ASA

BY REV.  ALFRED ROWLAND, D.D., LL.B.

1 KINGS xv. 8-24; 2 CHRON. xiv-xvi.

Asa was the third king who reigned over the separated kingdoms of Judah.  His father was Ahijah, of whom it is sternly said, “He walked in all the sins of his father, Rehoboam, which he had done before him.”  A worse bringing-up than Asa’s could scarcely be imagined.  As a child, and as a lad, he was grievously tempted by his father’s example, and by the influence of an idolatrous court, which was crowded by flatterers and panderers.  The leading spirit of the court-circle was Maachah, “the King’s mother,” as she is called—­the Sultana Valide.  She was a woman of strong character, and held a high official position.  She was the grand-daughter of Absalom, and was notorious for her fanatical idolatry.  In short, she was the evil genius of the kingdom, like the Chinese Queen-mother of our own times, although, happily, Asa possessed a force of character which the young Emperor of China seems to lack.  It is certainly noteworthy, that, with so much against the cultivation of a religious life, “Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, as did David his father.”  Sometimes on a heap of corruption, which we are glad to hurry past with abhorrence, God plants a beautiful and fragrant flower, as if in defiance of man’s neglect; and thus Asa appeared in the family, and in the court of Ahijah, his father—­a God-fearing, single-minded lad, with a will of his own.

As there was hope for him, there is hope for all.  Whatever a man’s parentage and circumstances may be, he is not forced into sin, and has no right to say, “We are delivered to do all these abominations.”  Amid all his difficulties and discouragements, if he is earnestly seeking to serve God, and looking to Him for help and hope, he may triumph over the most adverse circumstances, and prove himself to be a true citizen of heaven.  If he waits in prayer on God, as Joseph did in Egypt, Daniel in Babylon, and Asa in Ahijah’s court, he will not only be endued with piety, but with an independent spirit, and a resolute will, which will make him a power for good in the very sphere where he seemed likely to be crushed by the powers of evil.  It is not in vain that the apostle gave the exhortation, “Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.”  Asa was a noble example of obedience to that command.

It is clear from the narrative, in the First Book of Kings, that Asa was rich in noble qualities, such as manly resoluteness, political sagacity, and administrative vigour.  But special prominence is given in the Bible (as one might expect) to his religious sincerity, for it is emphatically said—­“Asa’s heart was perfect with the Lord all his days.”  This does not mean that he was sinless, that he had reached moral perfection, but that he had completely, with whole-heartedness, given himself over to the will of God, to be and to do what He ordained.