King living at the time of Divided Monarchy
Abijah, the son of Rehoboam, reigned as king of Judah for three years and continued in the sins of his father.
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Also known as Abia · Abijam
Abijah, also known as Abijam (1Ki.14.31), was the second king of Judah after the division of the united monarchy. He was the son of Rehoboam and Maacah, the daughter of Absalom (2Ch.11.20). Abijah reigned for three years in Jerusalem (2Ch.13.1-2; 1Ki.15.1-2).
During his reign, there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam, the king of Israel (2Ch.13.3). In a battle at Mount Zemaraim, Abijah addressed the Israelites, emphasizing the legitimacy of the Davidic dynasty and the importance of the Levitical priesthood (2Ch.13.4-12). Despite being outnumbered, Judah prevailed against Israel because they relied on the Lord (2Ch.13.13-18).
Abijah expanded his power, taking cities from Jeroboam and growing stronger (2Ch.13.19-21). However, like his father Rehoboam, Abijah did not fully follow the Lord and allowed idolatry to persist in Judah (1Ki.15.3). He walked in all the sins of his father and did not have a fully devoted heart like his ancestor David (1Ki.15.3).
Abijah had fourteen wives and fathered twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters (2Ch.13.21). After his death, his son Asa succeeded him as king (1Ki.15.8; 2Ch.14.1). Abijah is also mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus Christ in Mat.1.7.
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20 verses in 4 books · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H0029
And Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried with them in the City of David; his motherʼs name was Naamah the Ammonite. And his son Abijam reigned in his place.
In the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam son of Nebat, Abijam became king of Judah,
As for the rest of the acts of Abijam, along with all his accomplishments, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? And there was war between Abijam and Jeroboam.
And Abijam rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David, and his son Asa reigned in his place.
Solomonʼs son was Rehoboam: Abijah was his son, Asa his son, Jehoshaphat his son,
After her, he married Maacah daughter of Absalom, and she bore to him Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith.
Rehoboam appointed Abijah son of Maacah as chief prince among his brothers, intending to make him king.
And Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David. And his son Abijah reigned in his place.
In the eighteenth year of Jeroboamʼs reign, Abijah became king of Judah,
and he reigned in Jerusalem three years. His motherʼs name was Micaiah daughter of Uriel; she was from Gibeah. And there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam.
Abijah went into battle with an army of 400,000 chosen men, while Jeroboam drew up in formation against him with 800,000 chosen and mighty men of valor.
Then Abijah stood on Mount Zemaraim in the hill country of Ephraim and said, “Hear me, O Jeroboam and all Israel!
and the men of Judah raised the battle cry. And when they raised the cry, God routed Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah.
Then Abijah and his people struck them with a mighty blow, and 500,000 chosen men of Israel fell slain.
Abijah pursued Jeroboam and captured some cities from him: Bethel, Jeshanah, and Ephron, along with their villages.
Jeroboam did not again recover his power during the days of Abijah, and the LORD struck him down and he died.
But Abijah grew strong, married fourteen wives, and became the father of twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.
Now the rest of the acts of Abijah, along with his ways and his words, are written in the Treatise of the Prophet Iddo.
Then Abijah rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David. And his son Asa reigned in his place, and in his days the land was at peace for ten years.
Solomon the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asa.
Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.