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15 He fashioneth their Hearts alike he confidereth all their Works. 16 There is no King faved by the Multitude of an Hoft: a mighty Man is not delivered by much Strength.

17 An Horse is a vain Thing for Safety: neither fhall he deliver any by his great Strength.

18 Behold, the EYE of the LORD them that hope in his Mercy. is upon them that fear him : upon

19 TO DELIVER their Soul from Death, and to KEEP them ALIVE in Famine.

Pfal. xliv. 6 I will not TRUST in my Bow, neither fhall my Sword SAVE me.

7 But thou haft SAVED us from our Enemies, and haft put them to Shame that hated us.

18 Thus the Children of Ifrael were brought under at that Time, and the Children of Judah prevailed, because they RELIED upon the LORD God of their Fathers.

19 And Abijah pursued after Jeroboam, and took Cities from him, Beth-el with the Towns thereof, and Jefhanah with the Towns thereof, and Ephraim with the Towns thereof.

20 Neither did Jeroboam recover Strength again in the Days of Abijah: and the LORD ftruck him, and he died.

21 But Abijah waxed mighty, and married fourteen Wives, and begat twenty and two Sons, and fixteen Daugh

ters.

I KINGS XV.

3 And he walked in all the Sins of his Father, which he had done before him and his Heart was not perfect with the LORD his GOD, as the Heart of David his Father.

4 Neverthelefs, for David's Sake did the LORD his GOD give him a Lamp in Jerufalem, to fet up his Son after him, and to establish Jerufalem :

5 Because David did that which was right in the Eyes of the LORD, and turned not afide from any thing that he commanded him all the Days of his Life, fave only in the Matter of Uriah the Hittite.

7 Now the rest of the Acts of Abijam, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? And there was War between Abijam and Jeroboam.

PPP

8 And

8 And Abijam flept with his Fathers, and they buried him in the City of David: And Afa his Son reigned in his ftead.

25 And NADAB the Son of Jeroboam began to reign over Ifrael in the fecond Year of ASA King of Judah, and reigned over Ifrael two Years.

26 And he did Evil in the fight of the LORD, and walked in the Way of his Father, and in his Sin wherewith he made Ifrael to fin.

27 And BAASHA the Son of Ahijah of the House of Iffachar, confpired against him; and Baafha fmote him at Gibbethon which belongeth to the Philistines.

28 In the third Year of ASA King of Judah, did Baafha flay him, and reigned in his stead.

29 And he fmote all the House of Jeroboam, he left not. to Jeroboam any that breathed, according unto the Saying of the LORD, which he fpake by his Servant AHIJAH:

30 Because of the Sins of Jeroboam which he finned, and which he made Ifrael to fin, by his Provocation wherewith he provoked the LORD GOD of Ifrael to Anger.

33 In the third Year of Afa King of Judah, began Baafha to reign over all Ifrael in Tirzah, twenty and four Years.

34 And he did Evil in the fight of the LORD, and walked in the Way of Jeroboam, and in his Sin wherewith he made Ifrael to fin.

II. CHRON. CHA P. XV.

Afa, with Judah and many of Ifrael, moved by the Prophecy of Azariah the Son of Oded, make a folemn Covenant with GOD: 16 He putteth down Maachah his Mother for her Idolatry: 18 He bringeth dedicate Things into the House of GOD, and enjoyeth a long Peace.

Ver. 1 AND the SPIRIT of GOD came upon AZARIAH

Son

2 And he went out to meet Afa, and said unto him, Hear ye me Afa, and all Judah and Benjamin, The LORD is WITH YOU, while ye be WITH HIM; and if ye SEEK him, he will be FOUND of you; but if ye FORSAKE him, he will FORSAKE YOU.

3 Now for a long Seafon Ifrael hath been without the true GOD, and without a teaching Prieft, and without Law.

4 But when they in their Trouble did turn unto the LORD GOD of Ifrael, and SOUGHT him, he was FOUND of them.

5 And in thofe Times there was no PEACE to him that went out, nor to him that came in, but great VEXATIONS were upon all the Inhabitants of the Countries.

6 And Nation was destroyed of Nation, and City of City; for GOD did VEX them with all ADVERSITY.

7 Be ye STRONG therefore, let not your Hands be WEAK for your WORK SHALL BE REWARDED.

8 And when ASA heard thefe Words, and the Prophecy of Oded the Prophet, he took COURAGE, and put away the abominable IDOLS out of all the Land of Judah and Benjamin, and out of the Cities which he had taken from Mount Ephraim, and renewed the Altar of the LORD, that was before the Porch of the LORD.

9 And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and the Strangers with them out of Ephraim and Manaffeh, and out of Simeon: (for they fell to him out of Ifrael in abundance, when they faw that the LORD his GOD was with him.)

10 So they gathered themselves together at Jerufalem in the third Month, in the fifteenth Year of the Reign of Afa.

11 And they offered unto the LORD the fame time, of the Spoil which they had brought, feven hundred Oxen, and feven thoufand Sheep.

12 And they entred into a COVENANT to SEEK the LORD GOD of their Fathers, with all their HEART, and with all their SOUL;

13 That whofoever would not SEEK the LORD God of Ifrael, fhould be put to Death, whether fmall or great, whether Man or Woman.

14 And they swARE unto the LORD with a loud Voice, and with Shouting, and with Trumpets, and with Cornets.

15 And all Judah rejoiced at the Oath: for they had SWORN with all their HEART, and SOUGHT him with their whole DESIRE, and he was FOUND of them: and the LORD gave them REST round about.

16 And also concerning Maachah the Mother of Afa the King, he removed her from being Queen, because she had made an Idol in a Grove: and Afa cut down her Idol, and stamped it, and burnt it at the Brook Kidron.

2 KINGS XV.

12 And he took away the SODOMITES out of the Land, and removed all the Idols that his Father had made.

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2 CHRON. XV.

17 But the high Places were not taken away out of Ifrael: nevertheless, the Heart of Afa was perfect all his Days.

18 And he brought into the Houfe of GOD the Things that his Father had dedicated, and that he himself had dedicated, Silver, and Gold, and Veffels.

19 And there was no more War unto the five and thirtieth Year of the Reign of Asa.

2 CHRON. XIV.

8 And Afa had an Army of Men that bare Targets, and Spears, out of Judah three hundred thousand, and out of Benjamin, that bare Shields and drew Bows, two hundred and fourfcore thoufand: all these were mighty Men of Va

lour.

9 And there came out against them Zerah the Ethiopian, with an Hoft of a thoufand thoufand, and three hundred Chariots, and came unto Marefhah.

10 Then Afa went out against him, and they fet the Battle in Array in the Valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.

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" Pfal. xxxiii 13 The LORD looketh from HEAVEN, he BEHOLDETH all

the Sons of MEN.

14 From the Place of his Habita

tion he LOOK ETH upon all the INHABITANTS of the EARTH.

alike: he confidereth all their Works. 15 He FASHIONETH their HEARTS

11" And Afa CRIED unto the LORD his GOD, and faid, LORD, it is NOTHING with thee to HELP, whether with many, or with them that have NO POWER: HELP US, O LORD our GoD, for we REST on thee, and in thy NAME we go against this multitude: O LORD, thou art our GoD, let not MAN PREVAIL against THEE. 12 So the LORD fmote the Ethiopians before Afa, and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled.

16 There is no KING SAVED by the MULTITUDE of an HOST, a MIGHTY MAN is not DELIVERED by MUCH STRENGTH.

18 Behold, the EYE of the LORD

is upon them that FEAR him, upon them that HOPE in his MERCY.

13 And Afa and the People that were with him pursued them unto Gerar, and the Ethiopians were overthrown, that they could not recover themselves, for they were destroyed before the LORD, and before his Hoft; and they carried away very much Spoil.

14 And they fmote all the Cities round about Gerar, for the Fear of the LORD came upon them: and they spoiled all the Citics, for there was exceeding much Spoil in them.

I KINGS

I KINGS XV.

16 And there was War between Afa and Baafha King of Ifrael all their Days.

17 And Baafha King of Ifrael went up against Judah, and built Ramah, that he might not fuffer any to go out or come in to Afa King of Judah.

18 Then Afa took all the Silver and the Gold that were left in the Treasures of the House of the LORD, and the Treasures of the King's House, and delivered them into the Hand of his Servants: and King Afa fent them to Ben-hadad King of Syria, that dwelt at Damafcus, faying,

19 There is a League between me and thee, and between my Father and thy Father: behold, I have fent unto thee a Prefent of Silver and Gold; come and break thy League with Baasha King of Ifrael, that he may depart from me.

20 So Ben-hadad hearkned unto King Afa, and sent the Captains of the Hofts which he had against the Cities of Ifrael, and fmote Ijon, and Dan, and Abel-beth-maachah, and all Cinneroth, with all the Land of Naphtali.

21 And it came to pafs, when Baafha heard thereof, that he left off building of Ramah, and dwelt in Tirzah.

2 CHRON. XVI.

7 " And Hanani the Seer came to Afa King of Judah, and faid unto him, Because thou haft RELIED on the King of Syria, and not RELIED on the LORD thy GOD, therefore is the Hoft of the King of Syria efcaped out of thine Hand.

8 Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubims a huge Hoft, with very many Chariots and Horfemen? yet because thou didft RELY on the LORD, he delivered them into thine Hand.

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24 Be of good Courage, and he fhall ftrengthen your Hearts, all ye that hope in the LORD.

Pfal. cxviii. 8 It is better to TRUST in the LORD, than to put Confidence in Man.

9 It is better to TRUST in the LORD, than to put Confidence in Princes. Pfal. cxxv. They that TRUST in the LORD, shall be as Mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever.

Jer. xvii. s Thus faith the LORD, Curfed be the Man that trufteth in Man, and maketh Flesh his Arm, and whofe Heart departeth from the

LORD.

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