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2 Chronicles 10-12
Holman Christian Standard Bible
2 Chronicles 10-12
Holman Christian Standard Bible
The Kingdom Divided
10 Then Rehoboam went to Shechem,(A) for all Israel had gone to Shechem to make him king. 2 When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard about it—for he was in Egypt where he had fled from King Solomon’s presence—Jeroboam returned from Egypt.(B) 3 So they summoned him. Then Jeroboam and all Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam: 4 “Your father made our yoke difficult. Therefore, lighten your father’s harsh service and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.”
5 Rehoboam replied, “Return to me in three days.” So the people left.
6 Then King Rehoboam consulted with the elders who had served his father Solomon when he was alive, asking, “How do you advise me to respond to these people?”
7 They replied, “If you will be kind to these people and please them by speaking kind words to them, they will be your servants forever.”
8 But he rejected the advice of the elders who had advised him, and he consulted with the young men who had grown up with him, the ones serving him. 9 He asked them, “What message do you advise we send back to these people who said to me, ‘Lighten the yoke your father put on us’?”
10 Then the young men who had grown up with him told him, “This is what you should say to the people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you, make it lighter on us!’ This is what you should say to them: ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins.[a] 11 Now therefore, my father burdened you with a heavy yoke, but I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I, with barbed whips.’”[b]
12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day, just as the king had ordered, saying, “Return to me on the third day.” 13 Then the king answered them harshly. King Rehoboam rejected the elders’ advice 14 and spoke to them according to the young men’s advice, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy,[c](C) but I will add to it; my father disciplined you with whips, but I, with barbed whips.”[d]
15 The king did not listen to the people because the turn of events came from God,(D) in order that the Lord might carry out His word that He had spoken through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat.(E)
16 When(F) all Israel saw[e](G) that the king had not listened to them, the people answered the king:
What portion do we have in David?
We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse.
Israel, each man to your tent;
David, look after your own house now!
So all Israel went to their tents. 17 But as for the Israelites living in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.
18 Then King Rehoboam sent Hadoram,[f](H) who was in charge of the forced labor, but the Israelites stoned him to death. However, King Rehoboam managed to get into his chariot to flee to Jerusalem. 19 Israel is in rebellion against the house of David until today.
Rehoboam in Jerusalem
11 When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem,(I) he mobilized the house of Judah and Benjamin—180,000 choice warriors—to fight against Israel to restore the reign to Rehoboam. 2 But the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah,(J) the man of God: 3 “Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon, king of Judah, to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people: 4 ‘This is what the Lord says: You are not to march up and fight against your brothers.(K) Each of you must return home, for this incident has come from Me.’”(L)
So they listened to what the Lord said and turned back from going against Jeroboam.
Judah’s King Rehoboam
5 Rehoboam stayed in Jerusalem, and he fortified cities[g](M) in Judah. 6 He built up Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa, 7 Beth-zur, Soco, Adullam, 8 Gath, Mareshah, Ziph, 9 Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah, 10 Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron, which are fortified cities in Judah and in Benjamin. 11 He strengthened their fortifications and put leaders in them with supplies of food, oil, and wine. 12 He also put large shields and spears in each and every city to make them very strong. So Judah and Benjamin were his.
13 The priests and Levites from all their regions throughout Israel took their stand with Rehoboam, 14 for the Levites left their pasturelands and their possessions(N) and went to Judah and Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons refused to let them serve as priests of Yahweh.(O) 15 Jeroboam appointed his own priests for the high places,(P) the goat-demons,(Q) and the golden calves he had made.(R) 16 Those from every tribe of Israel who had determined in their hearts to seek Yahweh their God followed the Levites to Jerusalem to sacrifice to Yahweh, the God of their ancestors. 17 So they strengthened the kingdom of Judah and supported Rehoboam son of Solomon for three years,(S) because they walked in the way of David and Solomon for three years.
18 Rehoboam married Mahalath, daughter of David’s son Jerimoth and of Abihail daughter of Jesse’s son Eliab.(T) 19 She bore sons to him: Jeush, Shemariah, and Zaham. 20 After her, he married Maacah daughter[h](U) of Absalom. She bore Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith to him. 21 Rehoboam loved Maacah daughter[i] of Absalom more than all his wives and concubines. He acquired 18 wives(V) and 60 concubines and was the father of 28 sons and 60 daughters.
22 Rehoboam appointed Abijah son of Maacah as chief, leader among his brothers, intending to make him king.(W) 23 Rehoboam also showed discernment by dispersing some of his sons to all the regions of Judah and Benjamin and to all the fortified cities. He gave them plenty of provisions and sought many wives for them.
Shishak’s Invasion
12 When Rehoboam had established his sovereignty and royal power,(X) he abandoned the law of the Lord—he and all Israel with him. 2 Because they were unfaithful to the Lord, in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak(Y) king of Egypt went to war against Jerusalem(Z) 3 with 1,200 chariots, 60,000 cavalrymen, and countless people who came with him from Egypt—Libyans,(AA) Sukkiim, and Cushites. 4 He captured the fortified cities(AB) of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem.
5 Then Shemaiah(AC) the prophet went to Rehoboam and the leaders of Judah who were gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak. He said to them: “This is what the Lord says: ‘You have abandoned Me; therefore, I have abandoned you into the hand of Shishak.’”(AD)
6 So the leaders of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “Yahweh is righteous.”(AE)
7 When the Lord saw that they had humbled themselves, the Lord’s message came to Shemaiah: “They have humbled themselves; I will not destroy them but will grant them a little deliverance.(AF) My wrath will not be poured out on Jerusalem through Shishak.(AG) 8 However, they will become his servants so that they may recognize the difference between serving Me and serving the kingdoms of other lands.”(AH)
9 So King Shishak of Egypt went to war(AI) against Jerusalem.(AJ) He seized the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and the treasuries of the royal palace. He took everything. He took the gold shields that Solomon had made.(AK) 10 King Rehoboam made bronze shields in their place and committed them into the care of the captains of the royal escorts[j] who guarded the entrance to the king’s palace. 11 Whenever the king entered the Lord’s temple, the royal escorts would carry the shields and take them back to the royal escorts’ armory. 12 When Rehoboam humbled himself, the Lord’s anger turned away from him, and He did not destroy him completely.(AL) Besides that, conditions were good in Judah.(AM)
Rehoboam’s Last Days
13 King Rehoboam(AN) established his royal power in Jerusalem. Rehoboam was 41 years old when he became king and reigned 17 years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord had chosen from all the tribes of Israel to put His name.(AO) Rehoboam’s mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite. 14 Rehoboam did what was evil, because he did not determine in his heart to seek the Lord.(AP)
15 The events(AQ) of Rehoboam’s reign, from beginning to end, are written in the Events of Shemaiah(AR) the Prophet and of Iddo the Seer concerning genealogies.(AS) There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam throughout their reigns. 16 Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David. His son Abijah[k](AT) became king in his place.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 10:10 Or waist
- 2 Chronicles 10:11 Lit with scorpions
- 2 Chronicles 10:14 Some Hb mss, LXX; other Hb mss read I will make your yoke heavy; 1Kg 12:14
- 2 Chronicles 10:14 Lit with scorpions
- 2 Chronicles 10:16 Some Hb mss, LXX; other Hb mss omit saw; 1Kg 12:16
- 2 Chronicles 10:18 = Adoram in 1Kg 12:18
- 2 Chronicles 11:5 Lit he built cities for a fortress
- 2 Chronicles 11:20 Possibly granddaughter; 2Ch 13:2
- 2 Chronicles 11:21 Possibly granddaughter; 2Ch 13:2
- 2 Chronicles 12:10 Lit the runners
- 2 Chronicles 12:16 = Abijam in 1Kg 14:31–15:8
2 Chronicles 10-12
New International Version
2 Chronicles 10-12
New International Version
Israel Rebels Against Rehoboam(A)
10 Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king. 2 When Jeroboam(B) son of Nebat heard this (he was in Egypt, where he had fled(C) from King Solomon), he returned from Egypt. 3 So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and all Israel(D) went to Rehoboam and said to him: 4 “Your father put a heavy yoke on us,(E) but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.”
5 Rehoboam answered, “Come back to me in three days.” So the people went away.
6 Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders(F) who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. “How would you advise me to answer these people?” he asked.
7 They replied, “If you will be kind to these people and please them and give them a favorable answer,(G) they will always be your servants.”
8 But Rehoboam rejected(H) the advice the elders(I) 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, “The 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 them harshly. Rejecting the advice of 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 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 God,(J) to fulfill the word the Lord had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite.(K)
16 When all Israel(L) saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king:
“What share do we have in David,(M)
what part in Jesse’s son?
To your tents, Israel!
Look after your own house, David!”
So all the Israelites went home. 17 But as for the Israelites who were living in the towns of Judah, Rehoboam still ruled over them.
18 King Rehoboam sent out Adoniram,[a](N) who was in charge of forced labor, but the Israelites stoned him to death. 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 to this day.
11 When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem,(O) he mustered Judah and Benjamin—a hundred and eighty thousand able young men—to go to war against Israel and to regain the kingdom for Rehoboam.
2 But this word of the Lord came to Shemaiah(P) the man of God: 3 “Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, 4 ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not go up to fight against your fellow Israelites.(Q) Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.’” So they obeyed the words of the Lord and turned back from marching against Jeroboam.
Rehoboam Fortifies Judah
5 Rehoboam lived in Jerusalem and built up towns for defense in Judah: 6 Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa, 7 Beth Zur, Soko, Adullam, 8 Gath, Mareshah, Ziph, 9 Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah, 10 Zorah, Aijalon and Hebron. These were fortified cities(R) in Judah and Benjamin. 11 He strengthened their defenses and put commanders in them, with supplies of food, olive oil and wine. 12 He put shields and spears in all the cities, and made them very strong. So Judah and Benjamin were his.
13 The priests and Levites from all their districts throughout Israel sided with him. 14 The Levites(S) even abandoned their pasturelands and property(T) and came to Judah and Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons had rejected them as priests of the Lord 15 when he appointed(U) his own priests(V) for the high places and for the goat(W) and calf(X) idols he had made. 16 Those from every tribe of Israel(Y) who set their hearts on seeking the Lord, the God of Israel, followed the Levites to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices to the Lord, the God of their ancestors. 17 They strengthened(Z) the kingdom of Judah and supported Rehoboam son of Solomon three years, following the ways of David and Solomon during this time.
Rehoboam’s Family
18 Rehoboam married Mahalath, who was the daughter of David’s son Jerimoth and of Abihail, the daughter of Jesse’s son Eliab. 19 She bore him sons: Jeush, Shemariah and Zaham. 20 Then he married Maakah(AA) daughter of Absalom, who bore him Abijah,(AB) Attai, Ziza and Shelomith. 21 Rehoboam loved Maakah daughter of Absalom more than any of his other wives and concubines. In all, he had eighteen wives(AC) and sixty concubines, twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters.
22 Rehoboam appointed Abijah(AD) son of Maakah as crown prince among his brothers, in order to make him king. 23 He acted wisely, dispersing some of his sons throughout the districts of Judah and Benjamin, and to all the fortified cities. He gave them abundant provisions(AE) and took many wives for them.
Shishak Attacks Jerusalem(AF)
12 After Rehoboam’s position as king was established(AG) and he had become strong,(AH) he and all Israel[b](AI) with him abandoned(AJ) the law of the Lord. 2 Because they had been unfaithful(AK) to the Lord, Shishak(AL) king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem in the fifth year of King Rehoboam. 3 With twelve hundred chariots and sixty thousand horsemen and the innumerable troops of Libyans,(AM) Sukkites and Cushites[c](AN) that came with him from Egypt, 4 he captured the fortified cities(AO) of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem.
5 Then the prophet Shemaiah(AP) came to Rehoboam and to the leaders of Judah who had assembled in Jerusalem for fear of Shishak, and he said to them, “This is what the Lord says, ‘You have abandoned me; therefore, I now abandon(AQ) you to Shishak.’”
6 The leaders of Israel and the king humbled(AR) themselves and said, “The Lord is just.”(AS)
7 When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, this word of the Lord came to Shemaiah: “Since they have humbled themselves, I will not destroy them but will soon give them deliverance.(AT) My wrath(AU) will not be poured out on Jerusalem through Shishak. 8 They will, however, become subject(AV) to him, so that they may learn the difference between serving me and serving the kings of other lands.”
9 When Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem, he carried off the treasures of the temple of the Lord and the treasures of the royal palace. He took everything, including the gold shields(AW) Solomon had made. 10 So King Rehoboam made bronze shields to replace them and assigned these to the commanders of the guard on duty at the entrance to the royal palace. 11 Whenever the king went to the Lord’s temple, the guards went with him, bearing the shields, and afterward they returned them to the guardroom.
12 Because Rehoboam humbled(AX) himself, the Lord’s anger turned from him, and he was not totally destroyed. Indeed, there was some good(AY) in Judah.
13 King Rehoboam established(AZ) himself firmly in Jerusalem and continued as king. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel in which to put his Name.(BA) His mother’s name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite. 14 He did evil because he had not set his heart on seeking the Lord.
15 As for the events of Rehoboam’s reign, from beginning to end, are they not written in the records of Shemaiah(BB) the prophet and of Iddo the seer that deal with genealogies? There was continual warfare between Rehoboam and Jeroboam. 16 Rehoboam(BC) rested with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. And Abijah(BD) his son succeeded him as king.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 10:18 Hebrew Hadoram, a variant of Adoniram
- 2 Chronicles 12:1 That is, Judah, as frequently in 2 Chronicles
- 2 Chronicles 12:3 That is, people from the upper Nile region
Psalm 53
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Psalm 53
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Psalm 53
A Portrait of Sinners
For the choir director: on Mahalath.[a](A) A Davidic Maskil.
1 The fool says in his heart, “God does not exist.”
They are corrupt, and they do vile deeds.
There is no one who does good.(B)
2 God looks down from heaven on the human race
to see if there is one who is wise,
one who seeks God.(C)
3 All have turned away;
all alike have become corrupt.
There is no one who does good,
not even one.(D)
4 Will evildoers never understand?
They consume My people as they consume bread;(E)
they do not call on God.(F)
5 Then they will be filled with terror—
terror like no other(G)—
because God will scatter
the bones of those who besiege you.(H)
You will put them to shame,
for God has rejected them.(I)
6 Oh, that Israel’s deliverance would come from Zion!
When God restores the fortunes of His people,[b]
Jacob will rejoice; Israel will be glad.(J)
Footnotes
- Psalm 53:1 Perhaps a tune, a musical instrument, or a dance; this may be related to Hb word for “sickness.”
- Psalm 53:6 Or restores His captive people
Psalm 53
New International Version
Psalm 53
New International Version
Psalm 53[a](A)
For the director of music. According to mahalath.[b] A maskil[c] of David.
1 The fool(B) says in his heart,
“There is no God.”(C)
They are corrupt, and their ways are vile;
there is no one who does good.
2 God looks down from heaven(D)
on all mankind
to see if there are any who understand,(E)
any who seek God.(F)
3 Everyone has turned away, all have become corrupt;
there is no one who does good,
not even one.(G)
4 Do all these evildoers know nothing?
They devour my people as though eating bread;
they never call on God.
5 But there they are, overwhelmed with dread,
where there was nothing to dread.(H)
God scattered the bones(I) of those who attacked you;(J)
you put them to shame,(K) for God despised them.(L)
6 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
When God restores his people,
let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!
Footnotes
- Psalm 53:1 In Hebrew texts 53:1-6 is numbered 53:2-7.
- Psalm 53:1 Title: Probably a musical term
- Psalm 53:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
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