Chapter 16 is a direct continuation of the previous chapter, but with the opposite tone. The previous chapter opened with words of encouragement and the prophecy of Azaryahu ben Oded, which led to a major spiritual strengthening in Asa. Here, by contrast, a prophet arrives and speaks harsh, unpleasant words to Asa, and we see how the king reacts to them. The chapter recounts the war with Baasha, the hiring of the king of Aram, the rebuke of Hanani the Seer, Asa's illness, and his death.
בִּשְׁנַת שְׁלֹשִׁים וָשֵׁשׁ לְמַלְכוּת אָסָא עָלָה בַּעְשָׁא מֶלֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל עַל יְהוּדָה וַיִּבֶן אֶת הָרָמָה לְבִלְתִּי תֵּת יוֹצֵא וָבָא לְאָסָא מֶלֶךְ יְהוּדָה׃ - In the thirty-sixth year of Asa's reign, Baasha king of Israel marched against Judah and fortified Ramah, to prevent anyone from leaving or coming to Asa king of Judah.
As mentioned earlier, "the thirty-sixth year of Asa's reign" does not refer to the thirty-sixth year of Asa's personal rule, but rather the sixteenth year of his reign - one year after the war with the Cushites - and the count is thirty-six years from the initial division of the kingdom. In that year, Baasha king of Israel marched against Judah and built Ramah.
Why did Baasha build Ramah? As we saw above in chapter 15, verse 9, many people from his own nation, the kingdom of Israel, were defecting and joining the kingdom of Judah. This displeased him, so Baasha sought to stop his people from defecting to Judah. For this purpose, he fortified Ramah to seal the borders, so that there would be no one "leaving or coming" toward the kingdom of Judah.
וַיֹּצֵא אָסָא כֶּסֶף וְזָהָב מֵאֹצְרוֹת בֵּית יְהֹוָה וּבֵית הַמֶּלֶךְ וַיִּשְׁלַח אֶל בֶּן הֲדַד מֶלֶךְ אֲרָם הַיּוֹשֵׁב בְּדַרְמֶשֶׂק לֵאמֹר׃ בְּרִית בֵּינִי וּבֵינֶךָ וּבֵין אָבִי וּבֵין אָבִיךָ הִנֵּה שָׁלַחְתִּי לְךָ כֶּסֶף וְזָהָב לֵךְ הָפֵר בְּרִיתְךָ אֶת בַּעְשָׁא מֶלֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל וְיַעֲלֶה מֵעָלָי׃ - Asa then took silver and gold from the treasuries of the House of the Lord and the king's palace, and sent them to Ben-hadad king of Aram, who dwelled in Damascus, saying: "There is a covenant between me and you, and between my father and your father. Behold, I have sent you silver and gold; go, break your covenant with Baasha king of Israel, that he may withdraw from me."
Asa takes silver and gold from the treasuries of the House of Hashem and the king's palace, and sends them to Ben-hadad king of Aram, who resides in Damascus ("Darmasek" means Damascus). The Malbim explains: From the wording of the text, one understands that Baasha had an alliance with Ben-hadad to wage war against Asa. Baasha hired him as a mercenary to come and assist him, and they forged a treaty between them - just as occurred in the days of Achaz, when Aram and Ephraim allied against Judah. Do not be surprised when you see one faction of the Jewish people allying with foreign nations to strike another part of the Jewish people.
In response, Asa attempts to win over Ben-hadad king of Damascus, persuading him that it is far better and more advantageous to align with him. The first argument: "There is a covenant between me and you, and between my father and your father" - if you are allying with Baasha because of the treaty you forged with him, know that we too share a covenant, and ours is far stronger, as it is an older alliance that already existed "between my father and your father." Baasha's father was a commoner, whereas my father was a king who had an alliance with your father from long ago.
The second argument: And if you should say that Baasha promised you vast amounts of silver and gold - "Behold, I have sent you silver and gold." I too am sending you silver and gold, and my money is certainly no less valuable or appealing than his.
And the third argument, the most convincing one: I am making life easier for you. Baasha paid you to come and fight alongside him against me, whereas I demand nothing of the sort from you. I am paying you to stay home. Why did Baasha pay you? Because he knows that on his own he cannot prevail against us, and he needs you. But if Baasha comes alone, I can certainly withstand him. Therefore, I do not need you to come and help me; it is enough for me that you remain neutral. I am paying you to stay home, just do not assist my adversary. And as a result, "he will withdraw from me," for Baasha alone will not dare to march against me.
וַיִּשְׁמַע בֶּן הֲדַד אֶל הַמֶּלֶךְ אָסָא וַיִּשְׁלַח אֶת שָׂרֵי הַחֲיָלִים אֲשֶׁר לוֹ אֶל עָרֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיַּכּוּ אֶת עִיּוֹן וְאֶת דָּן וְאֵת אָבֵל מָיִם וְאֵת כָּל מִסְכְּנוֹת עָרֵי נַפְתָּלִי׃ - And Ben-hadad hearkened to King Asa, and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel, and they struck Iyon, Dan, Abel-maim, and all the storage cities of the cities of Naphtali.
The Malbim notes that Scripture is precise in stating, "and sent the commanders of his armies" - and not the armies themselves - because the army of the king of Aram was already there, having initially come to assist Baasha. He sent only the army commanders, who redirected the forces against Baasha. Even though Asa had not demanded that he fight, but merely that he sit at home, since Ben-hadad had received payment, he apparently wished to give full value, and therefore went even further, striking Baasha and his men, along with Iyon, Dan, Abel-maim, and all the storage cities of Naphtali. "Storage cities" (miskenot) were treasury cities where they stored grain, wine, and produce.
וַיְהִי כִּשְׁמֹעַ בַּעְשָׁא וַיֶּחְדַּל מִבְּנוֹת אֶת הָרָמָה וַיַּשְׁבֵּת אֶת מְלַאכְתּוֹ׃ - And it came to pass, when Baasha heard it, that he stopped building Ramah, and ceased his work.
When Baasha heard this, he stopped building Ramah, which was intended to create a barrier preventing his people from defecting toward Judah. Nor did he halt only the construction of Ramah, but also all the other operations he was conducting against the king of Judah - "and ceased his work." In the Book of Kings it is written, "and he dwelt in Tirzah," meaning he did nothing further; "and he dwelt" (vayeshev) denotes sitting and resting, indicating that he relaxed and took no further action against Asa king of Judah.
וְאָסָא הַמֶּלֶךְ לָקַח אֶת כָּל יְהוּדָה וַיִּשְׂאוּ אֶת אַבְנֵי הָרָמָה וְאֶת עֵצֶיהָ אֲשֶׁר בָּנָה בַּעְשָׁא וַיִּבֶן בָּהֶם אֶת גֶּבַע וְאֶת הַמִּצְפָּה׃ - Then King Asa took all Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and its timber with which Baasha had built, and he built Geba and Mizpah with them.
The Malbim explains that Asa built fortresses in those locations to stop the enemy, and Ramah was situated nearby. Thus Baasha inadvertently made things easy for Asa, as he supplied him with the building materials: he sought to build a barrier for himself, but ultimately abandoned the construction, and Asa took all Judah, carried off the stones and timber of Ramah, and built Geba and Mizpah with them.
וּבָעֵת הַהִיא בָּא חֲנָנִי הָרֹאֶה אֶל אָסָא מֶלֶךְ יְהוּדָה וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו בְּהִשָּׁעֶנְךָ עַל מֶלֶךְ אֲרָם וְלֹא נִשְׁעַנְתָּ עַל יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ עַל כֵּן נִמְלַט חֵיל מֶלֶךְ אֲרָם מִיָּדֶךָ׃ - And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said to him: "Because you relied on the king of Aram, and did not rely on Hashem your God, therefore the army of the king of Aram has escaped out of your hand."
"The seer" refers to the prophet, and we will soon understand why he is specifically termed a "seer" here rather than a "prophet." He said to Asa: The fact that the army of Aram advanced against you alongside Baasha was orchestrated by Hashem in order to deliver them into your hand. The Holy One, blessed be He, wished to grant you immense wealth, and therefore brought these two armies to wage war against you, so that you would battle them and gain great riches from their spoil. Had you relied upon Hashem, you would have conquered the army of Aram as well; but because you leaned on the help of an adversary, they escaped your hand. Thus you suffered a double loss: first, you expended vast wealth to hire the king of Aram; and second, you gained nothing. Had you relied on Hashem, the king of Aram and Baasha would have advanced against you, you would have defeated them, and you would have acquired great wealth from the spoil.
הֲלֹא הַכּוּשִׁים וְהַלּוּבִים הָיוּ לְחַיִל לָרֹב לְרֶכֶב וּלְפָרָשִׁים לְהַרְבֵּה מְאֹד וּבְהִשָּׁעֶנְךָ עַל יְהֹוָה נְתָנָם בְּיָדֶךָ׃ - "Were not the Cushites and the Lubim a vast army, with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet, because you relied on Hashem, He delivered them into your hand."
Here you have a living example from your own history. The Malbim explains that the prophet came to say to him: What were you afraid of? If it was because they are two kings - behold, in the war with Zerach the Cushite there were also two kings, the Cushites and the Lubim, two great nations. And if you say it was because he had a vast army - there too they were "a vast host." And likewise regarding the chariots and horsemen - "exceedingly many." There you relied upon Hashem, and He delivered them into your hand; if so, what reason did you have to worry? Here too you should have relied upon Hashem, and Hashem would have delivered them into your hand.
כִּי יְהֹוָה עֵינָיו מְשֹׁטְטוֹת בְּכָל הָאָרֶץ לְהִתְחַזֵּק עִם לְבָבָם שָׁלֵם אֵלָיו נִסְכַּלְתָּ עַל זֹאת כִּי מֵעַתָּה יֵשׁ עִמְּךָ מִלְחָמוֹת׃ - "For the eyes of Hashem roam throughout the whole earth to strengthen those whose hearts are wholly devoted to Him; you have acted foolishly in this, for from now on you will have wars."
And if you ask why Hashem brought these two kings upon you - the answer is that this was divine providence from Hashem, "His eyes roam throughout the whole earth." First, to test you to see whether your heart was wholly devoted to Him. And second, that had your heart been wholly devoted to Him, He would have strengthened you to bring down those great nations before you - and this is "to strengthen those whose hearts are wholly devoted," meaning that their wholehearted devotion is what causes them to be strengthened against the nations. "You have acted foolishly in this" - for you did not understand this and acted foolishly. Until now you had no wars, because Hashem did not bring them to war except to fell them beneath you; from now on Hashem has left you to the hand of nature, and you will see that you will have wars and will require the help of an arm of flesh to assist you. Whereas had you relied upon Hashem, the Holy One, blessed is He, would have saved you from their hand, given you all their wealth, and you would have had no more wars.
וַיִּכְעַס אָסָא אֶל הָרֹאֶה וַיִּתְּנֵהוּ בֵּית הַמַּהְפֶּכֶת כִּי בְזַעַף עִמּוֹ עַל זֹאת וַיְרַצֵּץ אָסָא מִן הָעָם בָּעֵת הַהִיא׃ - "Then Asa was enraged at the seer and put him in the prison house, for he was in a rage with him over this; and Asa oppressed some of the people at that time."
The Malbim asks: Why was Asa enraged, when this was a prophecy from Hashem? His answer: The verse is precise in stating, "And Asa was enraged at the seer (ro'eh)." The prophet did not convey these words as prophecy or in the Name of Hashem, but merely by way of rebuke based on intellect and faith; he came to him as a rebuker, like an itinerant preacher delivering words of mussar. And there is a distinction between a ro'eh (seer) and a chozeh (visionary): a chozeh gazes upon divine matters in a prophetic vision, whereas a ro'eh observes according to intellect and sensory perception - as the Malbim himself explained in Yeshayahu chapter 30.
The Malbim further adds: Had he spoken these words to him gently and respectfully, Asa would have accepted them and would not have been angry. Why, then, was he enraged? "For he was in a rage with him over this" - because he spoke to him with wrath, like someone coming to shout at the king and reprimand him. Not only that, but he also gathered some of the people with him, effectively positioning them as opponents of the king. He was not satisfied with merely delivering rebuke to the king himself; rather, he came with a large group of people and formed a sort of opposition against the king.
And this is the meaning of "and Asa oppressed some of the people": Asa was displeased by this stirring of rebellion against him, and therefore he not only punished the prophet himself and placed him in the "stocks" - which was the prison - but also cracked down on those among the people who had expressed opposition to him.
וְהִנֵּה דִּבְרֵי אָסָא הָרִאשׁוֹנִים וְהָאַחֲרוֹנִים הִנָּם כְּתוּבִים עַל סֵפֶר הַמְּלָכִים לִיהוּדָה וְיִשְׂרָאֵל׃ - "And behold, the acts of Asa, first and last, are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel."
Asa's affairs were also mentioned in the chronicles of the kings of Israel, since he had wars against the kings of Israel as well. And what are "the acts of Asa, first and last"? The Malbim says: The first - prior to this episode, when he was righteous; and the last - when his steps faltered somewhat, meaning that he weakened slightly. And why does the Malbim emphasize "somewhat"? Because we saw earlier in chapter 15, verse 17, "Yet the high places were not taken away out of Israel; nevertheless the heart of Asa was whole all his days." If so, heaven forbid to say that Asa turned wicked. Therefore, the Malbim says that his steps faltered somewhat - he did not uphold the level of bitachon demanded of him.
וַיֶּחֱלֶא אָסָא בִּשְׁנַת שְׁלוֹשִׁים וָתֵשַׁע לְמַלְכוּתוֹ בְּרַגְלָיו עַד לְמַעְלָה חָלְיוֹ וְגַם בְּחָלְיוֹ לֹא דָרַשׁ אֶת יְהֹוָה כִּי בָּרֹפְאִים׃ - And Asa became diseased in the thirty-ninth year of his reign in his feet, until his disease spread upward; yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord, but rather the physicians.
Asa fell ill in his feet in the thirty-ninth year of his reign. The Gemara says that podagra seized him, which is an affliction of the feet. And where does this term come from? Just as "football" is called in English: "ball" and "foot". This illness begins in the feet and ascends upward all the way to the brain, which is the meaning of the verse, "in his feet, until his disease spread upward" - the illness rose from his feet to the upper parts of his body.
"Yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord, but rather the physicians" - that is to say, come and see that here too he sinned, in a manner resembling his previous sin. What was his previous sin? That he did not rely on Hashem, but rather on natural means. The same happened here: he did not seek Hashem, but rather the physicians, which demonstrates that his trust in Hashem was not complete.
We have discussed this issue at length in a separate lesson: is one permitted to consult physicians or not? The Ramban writes, "What do physicians have to do in the house of those who fear the Lord?" and proves from here, from Asa, that seeking doctors is not the ideal course, and that a person ought to place his trust in Hashem. It is permitted to consult doctors, as the Torah states, "and he shall cause him to be thoroughly healed" (ve-rapo yerape) - which teaches that permission is granted, yet it is not the highest ideal; rather, it is fitting for a person to trust in Hashem. On the other hand, we see that great holy leaders and righteous men did consult doctors: the Steipler, the Chazon Ish, and others - all the leading figures of Israel sought medical care. Is it forbidden, or is it a matter of spiritual levels? Rav Dessler also elaborated on this topic, and what we must understand is that according to our own spiritual level, it is our obligation to consult doctors.
However, anyone who examines the text closely will see: it states here, "he did not seek the Lord, but rather the physicians" - the criticism is not that he consulted physicians, but that he failed to seek Hashem. This carries a great lesson. When a person feels unwell, what does he do? He takes a pill. This approach is backwards. First of all, when a person does not feel well, he must say: Master of the Universe, send me healing. The illness comes from You and the cure comes from You; please grant me recovery. And because Hashem commanded us to make practical effort (hishtadlut), I will also take a pill. Yet with people it often works in reverse: first one takes a pill, and if the pain subsides, he thinks, "Master of the Universe, I did not need to trouble You, I managed on my own." And if it does not subside, only then does he turn to prayer, and when told that only Hashem can help him, he suddenly remembers there is a Creator of the world! That approach is mistaken. The proper way is to turn first and foremost to Hashem, while also engaging in practical effort and seeing a physician; the indictment here was that "he did not seek the Lord, but rather the physicians."
וַיִּשְׁכַּב אָסָא עִם אֲבֹתָיו וַיָּמָת בִּשְׁנַת אַרְבָּעִים וְאַחַת לְמָלְכוֹ׃ וַיִּקְבְּרֻהוּ בְקִבְרֹתָיו אֲשֶׁר כָּרָה לוֹ בְּעִיר דָּוִיד וַיַּשְׁכִּיבֻהוּ בַּמִּשְׁכָּב אֲשֶׁר מִלֵּא בְּשָׂמִים וּזְנִים מְרֻקָּחִים בְּמִרְקַחַת מַעֲשֶׂה וַיִּשְׂרְפוּ לוֹ שְׂרֵפָה גְּדוֹלָה עַד לִמְאֹד׃ - And Asa slept with his fathers, and died in the forty-first year of his reign. And they buried him in his own tombs, which he had hewn for himself in the city of David, and laid him in the bed which was filled with sweet spices and various kinds of perfumes prepared by the perfumers' art; and they made an exceedingly great burning for him.
Asa slept with his fathers and died in the forty-first year of his reign. They buried him in the burial chambers he had hewn for himself in the City of David, and laid him on a resting place filled with spices and "various kinds of perfumes" (u-znim merukachim) - meaning varieties of blended spices, related to the word le-mino ("after its kind"), which the Targum renders as le-zanohi.
"And they made an exceedingly great burning for him" - one explanation is that this refers to the burning of the spices and aromatic mixtures. Another explanation is that it was customary to burn royal items upon the death of kings - namely, to burn the king's garments so that no one else would make use of them, as it diminishes a king's dignity for another person to wear his clothes; and this was the burning that was exceedingly great. Rabbeinu Bachya suggests that this was a form of embalming: when Scripture says of our forefathers that the physicians embalmed them, it was done with various fragrant spices, much like the types of spices mentioned here in connection with Asa.
Chapter 16 portrays the decline of a righteous king. Asa, who had merited to defeat the vast Ethiopian army by leaning upon Hashem, became terrified before Baasha and the king of Aram. He expended vast treasures from the House of Hashem and the royal palace to hire Ben-hadad, and wound up losing twice over: both his wealth and the spoils he could have won. Chanani the Seer came and rebuked him, explaining that everything was guided by Divine Providence, for "the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong in behalf of them whose heart is whole toward Him." Yet Asa grew furious with him and put him into the prison house - according to the Malbim, because the rebuke was delivered with harsh anger before a public assembly against the king. Finally, even in his illness, "he did not seek the Lord, but rather the physicians," committing a sin akin to his original failure of trust. The message left for us is not that we should refrain from practical efforts and medical care, but that our priorities must be set straight: first turn to the Master of the Universe, and only then pursue the natural efforts we have been commanded to undertake.