Baasha

Biblical Account

According to 1 Kings 15:27, Baasha was the son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar. This Ahijah is not the same person as Ahijah the Shilonite, who prophesied to Jeroboam. After the division of the kingdom, while Nadab the son of Jeroboam, the first king of northern Israel, was besieging the Philistine town of Gibbethon, Baasha conspired against Nadab and killed him. This took place in the third year of Asa king of Judah, and Baasha reigned in Nadab's place (1 Kings 15:27–28). Once on the throne, Baasha struck down the entire house of Jeroboam, and Scripture records that this came to pass according to the word the Lord had spoken through Ahijah the Shilonite (15:29–30). He reigned in Tirzah for twenty-four years (15:33).

Baasha was at war with Asa throughout their reigns (15:16). When he fortified Ramah to cut off movement into and out of Judah, Asa sent silver and gold from the treasuries of the temple and the royal palace to Ben-hadad, king of Aram (Syria). Ben-hadad broke his treaty with Baasha and attacked the cities of northern Israel, whereupon Baasha stopped building Ramah (15:17–22).

The prophet Jehu the son of Hanani rebuked Baasha for walking in the way of Jeroboam and prophesied that his house would be destroyed like the house of Jeroboam (16:1–4). This Jehu is not the same person as Jehu, who later became king. After Baasha's death his son Elah succeeded him, but two years later Elah was assassinated by his servant Zimri, who then destroyed the entire house of Baasha (16:6–13).

Significance in Scripture

The house of Baasha is later cited, along with the house of Jeroboam, as an example of a royal dynasty that fell under God's judgment. Examples include the judgment that Elijah pronounced against Ahab (1 Kings 21:22) and the account from the reign of King Jehu (2 Kings 9:9). Jeremiah 41:9 mentions the pit that Asa had made for fear of Baasha. The New Testament does not mention Baasha.

Interpretation and Issues

• Divine instrument and human responsibility: 1 Kings 16:7 cites two reasons for Baasha's judgment: his following the way of Jeroboam and his destruction of the house of Jeroboam. Although he served as the means by which a prophecy was fulfilled, his deed is nonetheless condemned. For this reason the passage is often cited in discussions of God's sovereignty and human responsibility. Interpreters generally observe that Baasha rebelled out of personal ambition rather than out of a desire to carry out God's will.
• Chronological problem: 2 Chronicles 16:1 records that Baasha came up against Judah "in the six and thirtieth year of the reign of Asa." According to 1 Kings 16:8, however, Baasha had already died by about the twenty-sixth year of Asa. Proposed explanations for this discrepancy include a scribal error in transmission and a reckoning of years from the division of the kingdom, among others.
• Beyond the record above, Scripture says nothing further about Baasha's personal character or faith.

In the Korean Church

Baasha is seldom treated as the subject of a sermon in his own right. He is mentioned chiefly in sermons on King Asa's reliance on Aram rather than on God (2 Chronicles 16:7–9) and in Bible reading programs that cover the books of Kings.