**The Reign of Abijah: A Tale of Faith and Victory**
In the days when the kingdom of Israel was divided, Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, ruled over Judah in the south, while Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, reigned over the northern tribes of Israel. After Rehoboam’s death, his son Abijah ascended to the throne of Judah. Abijah was a man of complexity, for though he did not fully walk in the ways of his forefather David, he nevertheless trusted in the Lord and sought to uphold the covenant between God and His people.
The land was fraught with tension, for the division of the kingdom had left bitter animosity between the two nations. Jeroboam, the king of Israel, had led the northern tribes into idolatry, setting up golden calves in Bethel and Dan and appointing priests who were not of the Levitical line. He had turned the hearts of the people away from the Lord, and his actions provoked the anger of the God of Israel.
In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam’s reign, Abijah gathered his forces and prepared for war. He assembled an army of four hundred thousand valiant warriors, all chosen men, ready to fight for the cause of Judah. Jeroboam, hearing of this, mustered an even larger army of eight hundred thousand men, a formidable host that seemed insurmountable. The stage was set for a great confrontation, and the two armies met at Mount Zemaraim, in the hill country of Ephraim.
Abijah stood on a high place, overlooking the battlefield, and with a voice that carried across the valley, he addressed Jeroboam and the armies of Israel. His words were not merely a call to arms but a proclamation of faith and a reminder of the covenant that bound Judah to the Lord.
“Hear me, Jeroboam and all Israel!” Abijah cried. “Do you not know that the Lord God of Israel gave the kingship over Israel forever to David and his descendants by a covenant of salt? Yet Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, a servant of Solomon, rose up and rebelled against his master. And there gathered to him worthless men, sons of Belial, and they strengthened themselves against Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, when he was young and timid and could not withstand them.”
Abijah’s voice grew stronger as he continued, his words piercing the hearts of those who listened. “And now you think to withstand the kingdom of the Lord in the hand of the sons of David, because you are a great multitude and have with you the golden calves that Jeroboam made you for gods. Have you not driven out the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and made priests for yourselves like the peoples of other lands? Whoever comes to consecrate himself with a young bull and seven rams may become a priest of what are not gods.”
He paused, allowing his words to sink in, and then declared with unwavering conviction, “But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not forsaken Him. The priests who minister to the Lord are the sons of Aaron, and the Levites attend to their duties. Every morning and evening they offer burnt offerings and fragrant incense to the Lord. They set out the showbread on the pure table and light the lamps of the golden lampstand. We keep the charge of the Lord our God, but you have forsaken Him. Behold, God Himself is with us at our head, and His priests with their trumpets will sound the battle cry against you. O sons of Israel, do not fight against the Lord, the God of your fathers, for you cannot succeed.”
But Jeroboam paid no heed to Abijah’s warning. Instead, he devised a cunning strategy, sending part of his army to ambush Judah from behind while the rest engaged them from the front. The men of Judah, realizing they were surrounded, cried out to the Lord. The priests blew the trumpets, and the warriors raised a mighty shout, trusting in the God of their fathers.
Then the Lord intervened. He struck Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. The armies of Israel fled before them, for the Lord had delivered them into the hand of Judah. Abijah and his men pursued them with great vigor, and the slaughter was immense. Five hundred thousand chosen men of Israel fell that day, a devastating blow to Jeroboam’s forces.
The cities of Bethel, Jeshanah, and Ephron, along with their surrounding villages, were captured by Abijah. Jeroboam’s power was severely weakened, and he never recovered his strength during the days of Abijah. The Lord struck him down, and he died, but Abijah grew mighty and took fourteen wives, fathering twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.
The rest of the acts of Abijah, his ways and his sayings, are written in the chronicles of the prophet Iddo. And when Abijah rested with his fathers, he was buried in the City of David, and his son Asa reigned in his place.
Thus, the story of Abijah serves as a testament to the power of faith and the importance of remaining steadfast in the covenant with the Lord. Though Abijah was not without fault, his trust in God and his defense of true worship brought victory to Judah and demonstrated that the Lord fights for those who honor Him.
