Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary1 Kings 15

Abijam's Reign.In this section, we learn about the short and troubled reign of Abijam, the son of Rehoboam, as king of Judah. The Bible gives a longer account of his reign and his victory over Jeroboam in 2 Chronicles 13:1-22 , but here the focus is on his failures. In this record, his name is changed from "Abijah" (meaning "My father is the Lord

v. 2: Abijam reigned for almost three years, dying before the end of Jeroboam's twentieth year (1 Kings 15:9 ). After his great victory over Jeroboam (2 Chronicles 13:21 ), he became proud and secure. God ended his reign early to make way for Asa, his son, who would be a better king.

v. 3: His mother was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom (probably Absalom, David’s son). This fits with other records that show Rehoboam married his close relatives (2 Chronicles 11:18 ), but he avoided marrying foreigners. Instead, he married women from the royal family.

v. 4: Abijam continued the wars his father had with Jeroboam. The fighting was not in great battles, which God had forbidden (1 Kings 12:24 ), but in frequent border clashes. Eventually, Jeroboam invaded with a large army. Abijam defended himself and defeated Jeroboam, forcing him to stop fighting for the rest of Abijam's reign (1 Kings 15:7; 2 Chronicles 13:20 ).

v. 5: Abijam was not like David. He did not have a sincere love for God’s ways. Even though he used the temple and priesthood to claim authority against Jeroboam (2 Chronicles 13:10-12 ), his heart was not right with the Lord

v. 6: God allowed Abijam to stay on the throne not because of his own faith, but for the sake of David (1 Kings 15:4-5 ). God kept his promise to David to maintain his family line and kingdom. The kingdom was preserved so that David would have a "lamp" (a continuing family line) as God had promised (Psalm 132:17 ). Jerusalem was also protected for future blessings. David is praised because he did what was right in God’s eyes, except for his sin with Uriah. That sin was serious, but because he repented, God did not end the promise to his family, even though the story is a warning for others.

Asa's Reign.This section gives a summary of King Asa’s reign in Judah. For more details, you can read 2 Chronicles 14–16 . Asa was known for his long reign and his efforts to bring religious reform. He tried to remove wickedness and idolatry from Judah and to restore true worship. However, even good rulers like Asa had faults. His reign had some mistakes, but overall, his heart stayed loyal to the Lord

v. 10: Asa’s mother was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom. He had a good reputation because he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord

v. 11: Asa removed evil from Judah. He started by getting rid of the sodomites, people known for immoral acts. He also destroyed the idols, even those that his father had made (1 Kings 15:12 ). Asa wanted to stop the curse of idolatry from spreading in his family. He was especially strict about stopping idolatry in his own family. When his grandmother Maachah had an idol, he took away her position as queen and destroyed her idol completely, burning it by the brook Kidron (1 Kings 15:13; Exodus 32:20 ). Asa showed that even family relationships should not come before loyalty to God (Deuteronomy 33:9 ).

v. 12: He continued to remove what was evil, especially the idols his father made. This was important because it broke the pattern of sin in his family and in the nation .

v. 13: Asa took away Maachah’s position as queen mother because she had made an idol. He did not show favoritism but destroyed her idol and removed her from the court .

v. 14: However, Asa did not remove the high places, the local altars where people made sacrifices. These were not as bad as idols but were still against God’s law, which said to worship in one place only (Deuteronomy 12:11 ). Asa should have removed these high places, but he did not. Still, his heart was loyal to the Lord

v. 15: Asa brought into the temple the things that had been dedicated to God, both from himself and from his father. This included gifts and spoils from battles. This act showed that he wanted to honor God, not just remove idols .

v. 16: Asa’s reign was not peaceful. Baasha, king of Israel, was a troublesome neighbor, and there was war between their kingdoms for many years . The division of Israel and Judah caused both sides to be weak and troubled by constant fighting.

v. 17: Baasha, king of Israel, tried to build the city of Ramah to block people from going to Jerusalem. Asa did not want this to happen, so he acted to stop him .

v. 18–19: Asa made a mistake during his reign. He took gold and silver from the temple and gave it to Benhadad, king of Syria, as a bribe. He wanted Benhadad to attack Israel and force Baasha to stop building Ramah (1 Kings 15:18-19 ). In doing this, Asa tempted Benhadad to break his agreement with Israel. He also showed a lack of trust in God to solve his problems and used the temple treasures in the wrong way.

v. 20–22: Benhadad attacked Israel and forced Baasha to leave Ramah. Asa then took the building materials from Ramah and used them to build his own cities (1 Kings 15:20-22 ). Although the plan worked, God was not pleased with Asa for using these methods (2 Chronicles 16:7-9 ).

v. 23: Asa also built cities to help his people grow and to attract others to live in Judah . The full story of his reign is written in the official records. Asa ruled for a long time and finished his reign with honor, leaving the throne to a worthy successor.

v. 24: In his old age, Asa became sick with a disease in his feet. This made it hard for him to work and made him irritable with those around him.

The Reign of Nadab and BaashaThis section shows how troubled the kingdom of Israel was while Judah enjoyed peace under Asa’s good rule. God had warned that Israel would be like a reed shaken in the water (1 Kings 14:15 ), and this came true. During Asa’s reign, Israel had many different kings in a short time. Jeroboam started as king, and Ahab ended Asa’s reign, but in between, there were Nadab, Baasha, Elah, Zimri, Tibni, and Omri. These men fought and destroyed each other. This chaos happened because Israel turned away from God and the family of David.v. 25: Nadab, the son of Jeroboam, became king after his father. If he had learned from his brother Abijah’s death and chosen to follow God, his reign could have been long and successful. But instead, he walked in the way of his father (1 Kings 15:26 ). He continued the worship of the golden calves and stopped people from going to Jerusalem to worship. He sinned and led Israel into sin, so God brought his rule to a quick end.

v. 26: Nadab was killed in the second year of his reign while he was attacking Gibbethon, a city that the Philistines had taken from the tribe of Dan. Baasha and others conspired against him and killed him in the middle of his army (1 Kings 15:27 ). Nadab had so little support that his own army did not try to avenge his death. Instead, they accepted Baasha as the new king.

v. 27: The Bible does not say exactly why Baasha killed Nadab. It could have been for personal reasons, revenge, or just ambition to become king. But after killing Nadab, Baasha took the throne (1 Kings 15:28 ).

v. 28: As soon as Baasha became king, he destroyed all of Jeroboam’s family. He did not just banish them; he killed every one of them, just as God had said would happen (1 Kings 14:10 ). This was cruel, but it was God’s just punishment for Jeroboam’s sins (1 Kings 15:29 ).

v. 29: The prophecy of Ahijah was fulfilled. God’s word always comes true. The destruction of Jeroboam’s family was not just a threat; it really happened. As the Bible says, those that provoke God do it to their own confusion (Jeremiah 7:19 ).

v. 30: Jeroboam’s sin was punished. He had led Israel into idolatry, and now his whole family was wiped out (1 Kings 15:30 ).

v. 33: Baasha became king and ruled for twenty-four years (1 Kings 15:33 ). But he did not destroy Jeroboam’s family because he hated their sin. He did it for his own selfish reasons. After becoming king, Baasha continued in the same sins as Jeroboam. He walked in the way of Jeroboam (1 Kings 15:34 ), even though he saw how Jeroboam’s sins led to disaster. This shows how sin can harden a person’s heart and make them repeat the same mistakes.