12 Rehoboam went to Shechem, because all the Israelites had gone there to make him king. 2 At this time, Nebat's son Jeroboam was still in Egypt. He had been living there since he ran away from King Solomon. When he heard the news about Rehoboam, he returned home. 3 The Israelites sent a message to Jeroboam to meet with them. Then Jeroboam and the whole group of Israelites went to speak to Rehoboam. They said to him, 4 ‘Your father caused us to work too hard. Please make the work easier for us. If you do that, we will serve you as our king.’ 5 Rehoboam answered them, ‘Go away for three days. Then come back to me.’ So the people went away.
6 Then King Rehoboam went to talk to the older advisors who had served his father Solomon. He asked them, ‘What answer should I give to these people?’ 7 The old men said to him, ‘If you agree to help these people today, they will always serve you as their king. So do what they are asking you to do.’
8 But Rehoboam did not agree with their advice. Instead he talked to some younger men. They had been his friends since they were young and now they were his advisors. 9 He asked them, ‘What do you think that I should say to these people? They want me to make their work easier.’
10 Rehoboam's young advisors said, ‘Those people said to you, “Your father made us work too hard. Please make our work easier.” You should tell them, “Even my little finger is thicker than my father's whole body! 11 My father made you work hard. I will make you work even harder! My father punished you with little whips. I will punish you with whips that bite your skin!” ’
12 Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam after three days. That was because the king had said, ‘Return to me in three days.’
13 King Rehoboam spoke cruel words to the people. He did not agree to say what the older men had told him to say. 14 Instead, he did what the young men had suggested. He said to the people, ‘My father gave you work that was too hard for you. I will make it even worse! My father punished you with little whips. I will punish you with whips that bite!’
15 So the king did not agree to do what the people wanted him to do. It was the Lord who caused this to happen. He had already given his message about this to Nebat's son Jeroboam. The prophet Ahijah who came from Shiloh had spoken the Lord 's message to Jeroboam.
16 All the Israelites realized that the king refused to listen to them. So they said to the king,
‘We can no longer serve the family of Jesse's son, David!
Israelites, go back to your homes!
You descendant of David, take care of your own family!’
So the Israelites went to their homes.
17 But Rehoboam continued to rule over the Israelites who lived in the towns of Judah. [ a ]
18 King Rehoboam sent a man called Adoniram to talk to the Israelite people. Adoniram had authority over the men who had to work for Rehoboam. But the Israelites threw stones at Adoniram and they killed him. So King Rehoboam quickly got into his chariot and he escaped to Jerusalem. 19 Since that time, the tribes in the north of Israel have not accepted the authority of King David's descendants.
20 All the Israelites heard that Jeroboam had returned from Egypt. So they asked him to come to a meeting of the people. They decided to make him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah still served David's descendant as their king.
21 Rehoboam arrived back in Jerusalem. He brought together all the men from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin who knew how to fight. There were 180,000 of them. Solomon's son Rehoboam wanted to attack the Israelite tribes so that he could rule them again as king. 22 But God told the prophet Shemaiah, 23 ‘Say this to Solomon's son Rehoboam, the king of Judah. Say it to all the people of Judah and Benjamin, and to all the other people. 24 This is what the Lord says: “Do not attack your brothers, the Israelites. Do not fight against them. Instead, you must all go home. I, the Lord , have decided that this must happen.” ’
So they obeyed the Lord 's message. They went back to their homes, as the Lord had commanded them to do.
25 Jeroboam made Shechem into a strong city. He lived there, in the hill country of Ephraim. He also went to make Penuel a strong city.
26 Jeroboam thought, ‘I do not want the people of my kingdom to accept David's descendants as king again. 27 The people that I rule will go to the Lord 's temple in Jerusalem to offer sacrifices there. Then they may decide to serve Rehoboam, king of Judah, who was their master before. They might kill me and then go back to serve King Rehoboam.’
28 So King Jeroboam talked to his advisors. He used gold to make images of two young cows. He said to the people, ‘It is too difficult for you to go to Jerusalem to worship the Lord , as you have done before. So I have made these gold cows for you instead. Look at them, Israelite people! These are your gods that rescued you and brought you out from Egypt.’
29 Jeroboam put one gold cow in Bethel. He put the other gold cow in Dan. [ b ] 30 But that caused the Israelite people to do a very bad thing. They went to Bethel and to Dan to worship the gold cows.
31 Jeroboam also built places on hills for people to worship. He chose men who were not from Levi's tribe to be priests. 32 He decided to have a festival on the 15th day of the eighth month each year. He wanted it to be like the festival that they had in Judah. [ c ] He offered sacrifices on the altar in Bethel to the gold cows that he had made. He also chose priests to serve at the places that he built for people to worship.
33 On the 15th day of the eighth month, Jeroboam offered sacrifices on the altar that he had made at Bethel. That was the special day that he himself had decided to choose as a festival for the Israelites. On that day, he burned incense on the altar.
12 Jeroboam son of Nebat was still in Egypt where he had run away from Solomon. When he heard about Solomon’s death, he returned to his city, Zeredah, in the hills of Ephraim. [ a ]
Rehoboam and all the Israelites went to Shechem to make him the king. The people said to Rehoboam, 4 “Your father forced us to work very hard. Now, make it easier for us. Stop the heavy work that your father forced us to do and we will serve you.”
5 Rehoboam answered, “Come back to me in three days, and I will answer you.” So the people left.
6 There were some older men who had helped Solomon make decisions when he was alive. So King Rehoboam asked these men what he should do. He said, “How do you think I should answer the people?”
7 They answered, “If you are like a servant to them today, they will sincerely serve you. If you speak kindly to them, they will always work for you.”
8 But Rehoboam did not listen to the advice from the older men. He asked the young men who were his friends. 9 Rehoboam asked them, “The people said, ‘Give us easier work than your father gave us.’ How do you think I should answer them? What should I tell them?”
10 Then the young men who grew up with him answered, “Those people came to you and said, ‘Your father forced us to work very hard. Now make our work easier.’ So you should tell them, ‘My little finger is stronger than my father’s whole body. 11 My father forced you to work hard, but I will make you work much harder! My father punished you with whips, but I will punish you with whips that have sharp metal tips.’”
12 Three days later, Jeroboam and all the people came back as Rehoboam had said. 13 King Rehoboam did not listen to the advice from the older men, and he was rude to the people. 14 He did what his friends told him to do and said, “My father forced you to work hard, but I will make you work much harder! My father punished you with whips, but I will punish you with whips that have sharp metal tips.” 15 So the king did not do what the people wanted. The Lord caused this to happen. He did this in order to keep the promise he made to Jeroboam son of Nebat when he sent the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh to speak to him.
16 The Israelites saw that the new king refused to listen to them, so they said to him,
“We are not part of David’s family are we?
We don’t get any of Jesse’s land, do we?
So, people of Israel, let’s go home
and let David’s son rule his own people!”
So the Israelites went home. 17 But Rehoboam still ruled over the Israelites who lived in the cities of Judah.
18 A man named Adoniram was one of the men who directed the workers. King Rehoboam sent Adoniram to talk to the people, but the Israelites threw stones at him until he died. King Rehoboam ran to his chariot and escaped to Jerusalem. 19 So Israel rebelled against the family of David, and this is how things are even today.
20 When all the Israelites heard that Jeroboam had come back, they called him to a meeting and made him king over all Israel. The tribe of Judah was the only tribe that continued to follow the family of David.
21 Rehoboam went back to Jerusalem and gathered together an army of 180,000 men from the families of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin. Rehoboam wanted to go fight against the Israelites and take back his kingdom. 22 But God spoke to a prophet named Shemaiah. He said, 23 “Talk to Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to men of Judah and Benjamin. 24 Say to them, ‘The Lord says that you must not go to war against your brothers. Everyone, go home! I made all this happen.’” So all the men in Rehoboam’s army obeyed the Lord . They went home, just as the Lord had commanded.
25 Jeroboam rebuilt the city of Shechem, in the hill country of Ephraim, and lived there. Later he went to the city of Penuel [ b ] and rebuilt it.
26-27 Jeroboam said to himself, “If the people keep going to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices at the Lord ’s Temple, someday they will want to be ruled by their old masters. They will want to be ruled by King Rehoboam of Judah. And then they will kill me.” 28 So the king asked his advisors what to do. They gave him their advice, and King Jeroboam made two golden calves. He said to the people, “You don’t have to go to Jerusalem to worship anymore. Israel, these are the gods that brought you out of Egypt. [ c ] ” 29 King Jeroboam put one golden calf in Bethel and the other one in the city of Dan. [ d ] 30 What a terrible sin this was, because the Israelites started going to the cities of Dan and Bethel [ e ] to worship the calves.
31 Jeroboam also built temples at the high places and chose priests from among the different tribes of Israel. (He did not choose priests only from the tribe of Levi.) 32 Then King Jeroboam started a new festival that was like the festival [ f ] in Judah, but it was on the 15th day of the eighth month. At this time the king offered sacrifices on the altar at Bethel. He and the priests he chose offered the sacrifices to the calves that he had set up at the high places he had made. 33 So King Jeroboam chose his own time for a festival for the Israelites, the 15th day of the eighth month. And during that time he offered sacrifices and burned incense on the altar he had built at Bethel.
12 And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king.
2 And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;)
3 That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying,
4 Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.
5 And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed.
6 And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people?
7 And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.
8 But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood before him:
9 And he said unto them, What counsel give ye that we may answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke which thy father did put upon us lighter?
10 And the young men that were grown up with him spake unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto this people that spake unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father's loins.
11 And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father hath chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me again the third day.
13 And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the old men's counsel that they gave him;
14 And spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
15 Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people; for the cause was from the Lord , that he might perform his saying, which the Lord spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
16 So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents.
17 But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.
18 Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the tribute; and all Israel stoned him with stones, that he died. Therefore king Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem.
19 So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day.
20 And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only.
21 And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, an hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men, which were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon.
22 But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying,
23 Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying,
24 Thus saith the Lord , Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from me. They hearkened therefore to the word of the Lord , and returned to depart, according to the word of the Lord .
25 Then Jeroboam built Shechem in mount Ephraim, and dwelt therein; and went out from thence, and built Penuel.
26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:
27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.
28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
29 And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan.
30 And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.
31 And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.
32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made.
33 So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.
12 ( A ) Then Rehoboam went to Shechem, because all Israel had come to ( B ) Shechem to make him king. 2 Now ( C ) when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard about this , [ a ] he was living in Egypt (for he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from the presence of King Solomon). 3 Then they sent word and summoned him, and Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam, saying, 4 “ ( D ) Your father made our yoke hard; but now, lighten the hard labor imposed by your father and his heavy yoke which he put on us, and we will serve you.” 5 Then he said to them, “ ( E ) Depart [ b ] for three days, then return to me.” So the people departed.
6 And King Rehoboam ( F ) consulted with the elders who had [ c ] served his father Solomon while he was still alive, saying, “How do you advise me to answer this people?” 7 Then they spoke to him, saying, “ ( G ) If you will be a servant to this people today, and will serve them and [ d ] grant them their request, and speak pleasant words to them, then they will be your servants always.” 8 But he ignored the advice of the elders which they had given him, and consulted with the young men who had grown up with him [ e ] and served him. 9 He said to them, “What advice do you give, so that we may answer this people who have spoken to me, saying, ‘Lighten the yoke which your father put on us’?” 10 And the young men who had grown up with him spoke to him, saying, “This is what you should say to this people who spoke to you, saying: ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, now you make it lighter for us!’ You should speak this way to them: ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist! 11 Now then, my father loaded you with a heavy yoke; yet I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with [ f ] scorpions!’”
12 Then Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day, just as the king had [ g ] directed, saying, “ ( H ) Return to me on the third day.” 13 And the king answered the people harshly, for he ignored the advice of the elders which they had [ h ] given him, 14 and he spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying, “ ( I ) My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with [ i ] scorpions!” 15 So the king did not listen to the people; ( J ) because it was [ j ] a turn of events from the Lord , ( K ) in order to establish His word which the Lord spoke through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
16 When all Israel saw that the king had not listened to them, the people replied to the king, saying,
“What share do we have in David?
We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse;
( L ) To your tents, Israel!
Now look after your own house, David!”
So Israel went away to their tents. 17 But ( M ) as for the sons of Israel who lived in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. 18 Then King Rehoboam sent ( N ) Adoram, who was in charge of the forced labor, and all Israel stoned him [ k ] to death. And King Rehoboam hurried to mount his chariot to flee to Jerusalem. 19 ( O ) So Israel has broken with the house of David to this day.
20 And it came about, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, that they sent word and called him to the assembly, and made him king over all Israel. ( P ) None except the tribe of Judah alone followed the house of David.
21 ( Q ) Now when Rehoboam had come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, 180,000 chosen warriors, to fight against the house of Israel to restore the kingdom to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22 But the word of God came to ( R ) Shemaiah the man of God, saying, 23 “Tell Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and the ( S ) rest of the people, saying, 24 ‘This is what the Lord says: “You shall not go up nor fight against your relatives the sons of Israel; return, every man to his house, ( T ) for this thing has come from Me.”’” So they listened to the word of the Lord , and returned to go their way in accordance with the word of the Lord .
25 Then ( U ) Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and lived [ l ] there. And he went out from there and built ( V ) Penuel. 26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom will return to the house of David. 27 ( W ) If this people go up to [ m ] offer sacrifices in the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will return to their lord, to Rehoboam king of Judah; and they will kill me and return to Rehoboam king of Judah.” 28 So the king [ n ] consulted, and he ( X ) made two golden ( Y ) calves; and he said to [ o ] the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem; ( Z ) behold your gods, Israel, that brought you up from the land of Egypt.” 29 And he set up ( AA ) one in ( AB ) Bethel, and the other he put in ( AC ) Dan. 30 Now ( AD ) this thing became a sin, for the people went to worship before the one as far as Dan. 31 And ( AE ) he made houses on high places, and [ p ] ( AF ) appointed priests from [ q ] all the people who were not of the sons of Levi. 32 Jeroboam also [ r ] instituted a feast in the eighth month on the fifteenth day of the month, ( AG ) like the feast that is in Judah, and he [ s ] went up to the altar. So he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves which he had made. And he stationed in Bethel ( AH ) the priests of the high places which he had made. 33 Then he [ t ] went up to the altar which he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, the month that he had [ u ] ( AI ) devised [ v ] in his own heart; and he [ w ] instituted a feast for the sons of Israel and [ x ] went up to the altar ( AJ ) to burn [ y ] incense.
12 Rehoboam went to Shechem, ( B ) for all Israel had gone there to make him king. 2 When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this (he was still in Egypt, where he had fled ( C ) from King Solomon), he returned from [ a ] Egypt. 3 So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and the whole assembly of Israel went to Rehoboam and said to him: 4 “Your father put a heavy yoke ( D ) on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.”
5 Rehoboam answered, “Go away for three days and then come back to me.” So the people went away.
6 Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders ( E ) who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. “How would you advise me to answer these people?” he asked.
7 They replied, “If today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer, ( F ) they will always be your servants.”
8 But Rehoboam rejected ( G ) the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him. 9 He asked them, “What is your advice? How should we answer these people who say to me, ‘Lighten the yoke your father put on us’?”
10 The young men who had grown up with him replied, “These people have said to you, ‘Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but make our yoke lighter.’ Now tell them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. 11 My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.’”
12 Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, as the king had said, “Come back to me in three days.” 13 The king answered the people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by the elders, 14 he followed the advice of the young men and said, “My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged ( H ) you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.” 15 So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from the Lord , ( I ) to fulfill the word the Lord had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah ( J ) the Shilonite.
16 When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king:
“What share ( K ) do we have in David,
what part in Jesse’s son?
To your tents, Israel! ( L )
Look after your own house, David!”
So the Israelites went home. ( M ) 17 But as for the Israelites who were living in the towns of Judah, ( N ) Rehoboam still ruled over them.
18 King Rehoboam sent out Adoniram, [ b ] ( O ) who was in charge of forced labor, but all Israel stoned him to death. ( P ) King Rehoboam, however, managed to get into his chariot and escape to Jerusalem. 19 So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David ( Q ) to this day.
20 When all the Israelites heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the house of David. ( R )
21 When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mustered all Judah and the tribe of Benjamin—a hundred and eighty thousand able young men—to go to war ( S ) against Israel and to regain the kingdom for Rehoboam son of Solomon.
22 But this word of God came to Shemaiah ( T ) the man of God: ( U ) 23 “Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah, to all Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, 24 ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not go up to fight against your brothers, the Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.’” So they obeyed the word of the Lord and went home again, as the Lord had ordered.
25 Then Jeroboam fortified Shechem ( V ) in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built up Peniel. [ c ] ( W )
26 Jeroboam thought to himself, “The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David. 27 If these people go up to offer sacrifices at the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem, ( X ) they will again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will kill me and return to King Rehoboam.”
28 After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. ( Y ) He said to the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” ( Z ) 29 One he set up in Bethel, ( AA ) and the other in Dan. ( AB ) 30 And this thing became a sin; ( AC ) the people came to worship the one at Bethel and went as far as Dan to worship the other. [ d ]
31 Jeroboam built shrines ( AD ) on high places and appointed priests ( AE ) from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites. 32 He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth ( AF ) month, like the festival held in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel, ( AG ) sacrificing to the calves he had made. And at Bethel he also installed priests at the high places he had made. 33 On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a month of his own choosing, he offered sacrifices on the altar he had built at Bethel. ( AH ) So he instituted the festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to make offerings.
