Strong Start and a Poor Finish
A study of the life of King Asa
from II Chronicles 14-16
II Chronicles 14:2-7
ASA Begins a Revival
Asa had a good start. As soon as he came to the throne he was busy ridding the
nation of idolatry.
He removed Idols and sites of idol worship.
He commanded the people to follow God.
Not only did Asa bring about a spiritual revival, he worked hard to fortify the cities.
During his early reign he took advantage of a period of peace to build and strengthen.
HE REMEMBERED to give credit to God for giving them the land. (verse 7)
Remembering God encouraged them in building and helped them to continue to
experience God’s blessing.
Christian Application: Always remember to give God the credit for the good things in your
life.
II Chronicles 14:8-19
A CRISIS ARISES
While Asa had experienced a time of peace, conflict no doubt had to arise. God may
grant us a period without conflict, but it is only to prepare us for a conflict that will come
later.
The conflict was serious. A Cushite (upper Ethiopia) king brought a vast army
towards Judah. There is no adequate translation for the size of his army. The N.I.V. uses
the term “vast” while the Hebrew word is non-specific but is plain in saying that it is
thousands upon thousands upon thousands. On top of the numbers problem, this army
was the fact that the Cushite army had the best war technology of the day- The War
Chariots, which provided shielding AND mobility for archers and allowed troops to arrive
at the front of the battle fairly fresh and rested.
Asa does the right thing- he calls out to God- Let’s look at his prayer.
1) It contained praise! (There is none like you)
2) It contained a plea! (Help us!)
3) It contained a statement of faith! (we rely on you)
4) It contained a statement of relationship! (you are our God)
The Lord responds to this prayer by striking down the enemies. The Cushites flee
and Asa and his men chased them home, gathering loot and great rewards.
II Chronicles 15:1-7
An Encouraging Prophecy
Azariah comes to meet Asa as he returns. He speaks a word of prophecy to Asa to
encourage him. The content of his prophecy was:
1. God is with you when you walk with Him!
2. If you forsake God, He will forsake you!
3. Times have been hard for God’s people!
4. God would reward Asa’s hard work!
II Chronicles 15:8-19
ASA’s Response to the prophecy
If Asa had been a reformer before, he intensified his efforts after hearing this
prophecy. He continued to stand for the Lord and God’s blessing was on him.
God’s blessing was so clearly on King Asa that people even migrated and moved
from Israel to Judah in order to get in on God’s blessing. (see verse 9).
Fifteen years into Asa’s reign he gathers the people together for a time of worship
and a time of sacrifice. There the nation joyfully swore to follow God and they were
overjoyed because they truly meant it. (verse 15) And God responded by blessing them
and demonstrating his presence among them.
The one real drawback to Asa’s reign was that his revival did not extend into the
nation of Israel. He was only able to effect revival in Judah. However, his heart was fully
dedicated to the Lord.
Christian Application: God’s presence is much more noticeable when we are serving him
wholeheartedly.
II Chronicles 16:1-6
ASA DEMONSTRATES A LACK OF TRUST
No matter how much we trust God today, there will come a test tomorrow to see if
we will trust him then.
Asa had done such a good job of strenghtening Judah, the people of Israel wanted to
come and live in Judah. But the king of Israel, Baasha, attempted to prevent anyone
crossing the borders between the two nations.
Asa, rather than consulting the Lord, makes a deal with the Pagan King of Aram
(also called Syria, but it not modern day Syria) and bribes him to attack Israel. The worst
part of the bribing is where he got the money-- part of it came from the silver and gold in
the temple.
Christian Application: God never wants us to align ourselves with those who are against
God in order to accomplish what we believe to be God’s Will.
II Chronicles 16:7-9
GOD’s RESPONSE TO ASA’s WRONG ACTION
Hanani comes with a message to Asa. The message contains:
1) A statement of the sin Asa committed! (You did not trust God)
2) A declaration of the results! (You will not defeat the king of Aram)
3) A reminder of past victories! (Remember the victory over the Cushites)
4) A declaration of God’s purpose! (to strengthen those who rely on him!)
5) A pronouncement of judgment! (Now you will be at war!)
II Chronicles 16:10-14
ASA’s LIFE CONCLUDES IN MISERY
Asa responds to the prophet’s message by casting him into prison. That wasn’t all.
He began to oppress some of his own people (verse 10). It is easy to let your anger spill out
onto other people and Asa did this.
Then Asa was affliected with a serious foot disease. Still, rather than rely on God,
he turned to Physicians, who were in reality pagan healers who used rituals that were in
conflict with God’s law. Of his 41 year reign, 35 were spent serving God.
Christian Application: Beware of the time in your life when you do not want to seek God’s
answers to your problems.
