11 Asa did what pleased the Lord, as his ancestor David had done.
12 He expelled from the country all the male and female prostitutes serving at the pagan places of worship, and he removed all the idols his predecessors had made.
13 He removed his grandmother Maacah from her position as queen mother, because she had made an obscene idol of the fertility goddess Asherah. Asa cut down the idol and burnt it in the valley of the Kidron.
14 Even though Asa did not destroy all the pagan places of worship, he remained faithful to the Lord all his life.
15 He placed in the Temple all the objects his father had dedicated to God, as well as the gold and silver objects that he himself dedicated.
16 King Asa of Judah and King Baasha of Israel were constantly at war with each other as long as they were in power.
17 Baasha invaded Judah and started to fortify Ramah in order to cut off all traffic in and out of Judah.