Baasha was the third king of the northern kingdom of Israel, ruling from 908 to 886 BC. He was a fierce leader who started the second of Israel's nine dynasties. Baasha was the son of Ahijah from the tribe of Issachar. The Lord chose him from among the common people to lead the army (1 Kings 16:2). While the Israelite army was attacking Gibbethon, where Philistines were living, Baasha killed King Nadab. He also wiped out all the family members of the former king, Nadab's father Jeroboam (1 Kings 15:27–29).
During his 24-year rule, Baasha fought against Asa, the king of Judah (1 Kings 15:16, 32).The conflict was mainly about controlling trade routes between Israel and Judah. To block trade with Jerusalem, Baasha built a stronghold at Ramah, which was north of Jerusalem (1 Kings 15:17, 21)To counter this, Asa took all the silver and gold from the temple and his own palace and bribed King Ben-hadad of Syria to turn against Baasha (1 Kings 15:18–20). Ben-hadad then attacked several of Israel's northern cities and took land near the Jordan River. This made Baasha lose his resolve, and he withdrew from Judah’s borders (1 Kings 15:20–21).