Rehoboam acted wisely and spread all his sons through all the areas of Judah and Benjamin to every strong city. And Rehoboam gave plenty of supplies to his sons. He also looked for wives for his sons.
Then King Asa called all the men of Judah together. They went to the town of Ramah and took away the rocks and wood that Baasha used to make the fortress. Asa and the men of Judah used the rocks and wood to make the towns of Geba and Mizpah stronger.
He put groups of soldiers in all the towns of Judah that were made into fortresses. {\cf2\super [204]} Jehoshaphat built fortresses in Judah and in the towns of Ephraim that his father Asa captured.
Jehoshaphat gave his sons many gifts of silver, gold, and precious things. He also gave them strong fortresses {\cf2\super [242]} in Judah. But Jehoshaphat gave the kingdom to Jehoram because Jehoram was his oldest son.
Uzziah fought a war against the Philistine people. He tore down the walls around the towns of Gath, Jabneh, and Ashdod. Uzziah built towns near the town of Ashdod and in other places among the Philistine people.
This was while the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem. The army of Babylon was also fighting against the cities of Judah that had not been captured. Those cities were Lachish and Azekah. These were the only fortified cities left in the land of Judah.