1. Some time later, God spoke to Azariah son of Oded.
2. At once, Azariah went to Asa and said:Listen to me, King Asa and you people of Judah and Benjamin. The Lord will be with you and help you, as long as you obey and worship him. But if you disobey him, he will desert you.
3. For a long time, the people of Israel did not worship the true God or listen to priests who could teach them about God. They refused to obey God's Law.
4. But whenever trouble came, Israel turned back to the Lord their God and worshipped him.
5. There was so much confusion in those days that it wasn't safe to go anywhere in Israel.
6. Nations were destroying each other, and cities were wiping out other cities, because God was causing trouble and unrest everywhere.