¹In the thirty-sixth year of Asa’s reign , Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah , and built Ramah , that he might not allow anyone to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah .

²Then Asa brought out silver and gold out of the treasures of the LORD ’s house and of the king ’s house , and sent to Ben Hadad king of Syria, who lived at Damascus , saying,

³“Let there be a treaty between me and you , as there was between my father and your father. Behold , I have sent you silver and gold . Go , break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel , that he may depart from me .”

⁴Ben Hadad listened to King Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel ; and they struck Ijon , Dan , Abel Maim, and all the storage cities of Naphtali .

⁵When Baasha heard of it , he stopped building Ramah , and let his work cease .

⁶Then Asa the king took all Judah , and they carried away the stones and timber of Ramah , with which Baasha had built ; and he built Geba and Mizpah with them .

⁷At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah , and said to him , “Because you have relied on the king of Syria, and have not relied on the LORD your God , therefore the army of the king of Syria has escaped out of your hand .

⁸Weren’t the Ethiopians and the Lubim a huge army , with chariots and exceedingly many horsemen ? Yet , because you relied on the LORD , he delivered them into your hand .

⁹For the LORD ’s eyes run back and forth throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect towards him . You have done foolishly in this ; for from now on you will have wars .”

¹⁰Then Asa was angry with the seer , and put him in the prison ; for he was in a rage with him because of this thing . Asa oppressed some of the people at the same time .

¹¹Behold , the acts of Asa, first and last, behold , they are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel .

¹²In the thirty-ninth year of his reign , Asa was diseased in his feet . His disease was exceedingly great; yet in his disease he didn’t seek the LORD , but just the physicians .

¹³Asa slept with his fathers, and died in the forty-first year of his reign .

¹⁴They buried him in his own tomb , which he had dug out for himself in David ’s city , and laid him in the bed which was filled with sweet odours and various kinds of spices prepared by the perfumers’ art ; and they made a very great fire for him .