Bible in 90 Days
Bronze Basins and Other Utensils
38 Then he made 10 bronze basins(A)—each basin holding 220 gallons[a] and each was six feet[b] wide—one basin for each of the 10 water carts. 39 He set five water carts on the right side of the temple and five on the left side. He put the reservoir near the right side of the temple toward the southeast.(B) 40 Then Hiram made(C) the basins, the shovels, and the sprinkling basins.
Completion of the Bronze Works
So Hiram finished all the work that he was doing for King Solomon on the Lord’s temple: 41 two pillars;(D) bowls for the capitals that were on top of the two pillars; the two gratings for covering both bowls of the capitals that were on top of the pillars;(E) 42 the 400 pomegranates for the two gratings (two rows of pomegranates for each grating covering both capitals’ bowls on top of the pillars(F)); 43 the 10 water carts;(G) the 10 basins on the water carts;(H) 44 the reservoir;(I) the 12 oxen underneath the reservoir;(J) 45 and the pots, shovels, and sprinkling basins.(K) All the utensils that Hiram made for King Solomon at the Lord’s temple were made of burnished bronze. 46 The king had them cast in clay molds in the Jordan Valley between Succoth(L) and Zarethan.(M) 47 Solomon left all the utensils unweighed because there were so many; the weight of the bronze was not determined.(N)
Completion of the Gold Furnishings
48 Solomon also made all the equipment in the Lord’s temple: the gold altar; the gold table that the bread of the Presence was placed on;(O) 49 the pure gold lampstands in front of the inner sanctuary, five on the right and five on the left;(P) the gold flowers, lamps, and tongs; 50 the pure gold ceremonial bowls, wick trimmers, sprinkling basins, ladles,[c] and firepans;(Q) and the gold hinges for the doors of the inner temple (that is, the most holy place) and for the doors of the temple sanctuary.
51 So all the work King Solomon did in the Lord’s temple was completed.(R) Then Solomon brought in the consecrated things of his father David(S)—the silver, the gold, and the utensils—and put them in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple.(T)
Solomon’s Dedication of the Temple
8 At that time Solomon assembled the elders(U) of Israel,(V) all the tribal heads(W) and the ancestral leaders of the Israelites before him at Jerusalem in order to bring the ark of the Lord’s covenant from the city of David,(X) that is Zion.(Y) 2 So all the men of Israel were assembled in the presence of King Solomon in the seventh month, the month of Ethanim,[d] at the festival.(Z)
3 All the elders(AA) of Israel came, and the priests(AB) picked up the ark.(AC) 4 The priests and the Levites brought the ark of the Lord, the tent of meeting,(AD) and the holy utensils that were in the tent.(AE) 5 King Solomon and the entire congregation of Israel, who had gathered around him and were with him in front of the ark, were sacrificing sheep and cattle that could not be counted or numbered, because there were so many.(AF) 6 The priests brought the ark of the Lord’s covenant to its place, into the inner sanctuary of the temple, to the most holy place(AG) beneath the wings of the cherubim. 7 For the cherubim were spreading their wings over[e] the place of the ark, so that the cherubim covered the ark and its poles from above.(AH) 8 The poles were so long that their ends were seen from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they were not seen from outside the sanctuary; they are there to this day.(AI) 9 Nothing was in the ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had put there at Horeb,[f](AJ) where the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites when they came out of the land of Egypt.(AK)
10 When the priests came out of the holy place, the cloud filled the Lord’s temple,(AL) 11 and because of the cloud, the priests were not able to continue ministering, for the glory(AM) of the Lord filled the temple.
12 Then Solomon said:
The Lord said that He would dwell in thick darkness.(AN)
13 I have indeed built an exalted temple(AO) for You,
a place for Your dwelling forever.(AP)
14 The king turned around and blessed(AQ) the entire congregation of Israel while they were standing. 15 He said:
May the Lord God of Israel be praised!
He spoke directly to my father David,
and He has fulfilled the promise(AR) by His power.
He said,
16 “Since the day I brought My people Israel out of Egypt,(AS)
I have not chosen a city to build a temple in
among any of the tribes of Israel,
so that My name(AT) would be there.
But I have chosen David to rule My people Israel.”(AU)
17 It was in the desire of my father David
to build a temple for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel.(AV)
18 But the Lord said to my father David,
“Since it was your desire to build a temple for My name,
you have done well to have this desire.(AW)
19 Yet you are not the one to build it;
instead, your son, your own offspring,
will build it for My name.”(AX)
20 The Lord has fulfilled what He promised.
I have taken the place of my father David,(AY)
and I sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised.(AZ)
I have built the temple for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel.
21 I have provided a place there for the ark,
where the Lord’s covenant is
that He made with our ancestors
when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.(BA)
Solomon’s Prayer
22 Then Solomon stood(BB) before the altar of the Lord in front of the entire congregation of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven.(BC) 23 He said:
Lord God of Israel,
there is no God like You
in heaven above or on earth below,(BD)
keeping the gracious covenant
with Your servants who walk before You
with their whole heart.(BE)
24 You have kept what You promised
to Your servant, my father David.
You spoke directly to him
and You fulfilled Your promise by Your power
as it is today.(BF)
25 Therefore, Lord God of Israel,
keep what You promised
to Your servant, my father David:
You will never fail to have a man
to sit before Me on the throne of Israel,(BG)
if only your sons guard their walk before Me
as you have walked before Me.(BH)
26 Now Lord[g] God of Israel,
please confirm what You promised
to Your servant, my father David.(BI)
27 But will God indeed live on earth?
Even heaven, the highest heaven, cannot contain You,
much less this temple I have built.(BJ)
28 Listen[h] to Your servant’s prayer and his petition,(BK)
Lord my God,
so that You may hear the cry and the prayer
that Your servant prays before You today,
29 so that Your eyes may watch over this temple night and day,(BL)
toward the place where You said:
My name will be there,(BM)
and so that You may hear the prayer
that Your servant prays toward this place.
30 Hear the petition of Your servant(BN)
and Your people Israel,
which they pray toward this place.(BO)
May You hear in Your dwelling place in heaven.
May You hear and forgive.
31 When a man sins against his neighbor
and is forced to take an oath,[i](BP)
and he comes to take an oath
before Your altar in this temple,
32 may You hear in heaven and act.
May You judge Your servants,
condemning the wicked man by bringing
what he has done on his own head
and providing justice for the righteous
by rewarding him according to his righteousness.(BQ)
33 When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy,
because they have sinned against You,(BR)
and they return to You and praise Your name,
and they pray and plead with You
for mercy in this temple,
34 may You hear in heaven
and forgive the sin of Your people Israel.
May You restore them to the land
You gave their ancestors.(BS)
35 When the skies are shut and there is no rain,
because they have sinned against You,(BT)
and they pray toward this place
and praise Your name,
and they turn from their sins
because You are afflicting them,(BU)
36 may You hear in heaven
and forgive the sin of Your servants
and Your people Israel,
so that You may teach them the good way
they should walk in.(BV)
May You send rain on Your land
that You gave Your people for an inheritance.(BW)
37 When there is famine on the earth,
when there is pestilence,
when there is blight, mildew, locust, or grasshopper,(BX)
when their enemy besieges them
in the region of their fortified cities,[j]
when there is any plague or illness,
38 whatever prayer or petition
anyone from Your people Israel might have—
each man knowing his own afflictions[k](BY)
and spreading out his hands toward this temple(BZ)—
39 may You hear in heaven, Your dwelling place,
and may You forgive, act, and repay the man,
according to all his ways, since You know his heart,
for You alone know every human heart,(CA)
40 so that they may fear(CB) You
all the days they live on the land(CC)
You gave our ancestors.
41 Even for the foreigner who is not of Your people Israel
but has come from a distant land(CD)
because of Your name—
42 for they will hear of Your great name,
mighty hand,(CE) and outstretched arm,
and will come(CF) and pray toward this temple—
43 may You hear in heaven, Your dwelling place,
and do according to all the foreigner asks You for.
Then all the people on earth will know(CG) Your name,
to fear You as Your people Israel do
and know that this temple I have built
is called by Your name.
44 When Your people go out to fight against their enemies,[l]
wherever You send them,
and they pray to Yahweh
in the direction of the city You have chosen(CH)
and the temple I have built for Your name,
45 may You hear their prayer and petition in heaven
and uphold their cause.(CI)
46 When they sin against You—
for there is no one who does not sin(CJ)—
and You are angry with them
and hand them over to the enemy,
and their captors deport them to the enemy’s country(CK)—
whether distant or nearby—
47 and when they come to their senses[m]
in the land where they were deported
and repent and petition You in their captors’ land:
“We have sinned and done wrong;
we have been wicked,”(CL)
48 and when they return to You with their whole mind and heart
in the land of their enemies who took them captive,(CM)
and when they pray to You in the direction of their land
that You gave their ancestors,
the city You have chosen,(CN)
and the temple I have built for Your name,
49 may You hear in heaven, Your dwelling place,
their prayer and petition and uphold their cause.
50 May You forgive Your people
who sinned against You
and all their rebellions[n] against You,
and may You give them compassion
in the eyes of their captors,
so that they may be compassionate to them.(CO)
51 For they are Your people and Your inheritance;(CP)
You brought them out of Egypt,
out of the middle of an iron furnace.(CQ)
52 May Your eyes be open to Your servant’s petition
and to the petition of Your people Israel,
listening to them whenever they call to You.
53 For You, Lord God, have set them apart as Your inheritance
from all the people on earth,
as You spoke through Your servant Moses
when You brought their ancestors out of Egypt.(CR)
Solomon’s Blessing
54 When Solomon finished praying this entire prayer and petition to the Lord, he got up from kneeling before the altar of the Lord, with his hands spread out toward heaven,(CS) 55 and he stood and blessed the whole congregation of Israel(CT) with a loud voice: 56 “May the Lord be praised! He has given rest(CU) to His people Israel according to all He has said. Not one of all the good promises He made through His servant Moses has failed.(CV) 57 May the Lord our God be with us as He was with our ancestors. May He not abandon us or leave us(CW) 58 so that He causes us to be devoted[o] to Him,(CX) to walk in all His ways, and to keep His commands, statutes, and ordinances, which He commanded our ancestors. 59 May my words I have made my petition with before the Lord be near the Lord our God day and night, so that He may uphold His servant’s cause and the cause of His people Israel, as each day requires,(CY) 60 and so that all the peoples of the earth may know that Yahweh is God. There is no other!(CZ) 61 Let your heart be completely devoted to the Lord our God(DA) to walk in His statutes and to keep His commands, as it is today.”
62 The king and all Israel with him were offering sacrifices in the Lord’s presence. 63 Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to the Lord: 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep.(DB) In this manner the king and all the Israelites dedicated(DC) the Lord’s temple.(DD)
64 On the same day, the king consecrated the middle of the courtyard that was in front of the Lord’s temple because that was where he offered the burnt offering, the grain offering, and the fat of the fellowship offerings(DE) since the bronze altar before the Lord was too small to accommodate the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, and the fat of the fellowship offerings.(DF)
65 Solomon and all Israel with him—a great assembly, from the entrance of Hamath[p](DG) to the Brook of Egypt(DH)—observed the festival at that time(DI) in the presence of the Lord our God, seven days, and seven more days—14 days.[q](DJ) 66 On the fifteenth day[r] he sent the people away. So they blessed the king and went home to their tents rejoicing and with joyful hearts for all the goodness that the Lord had done for His servant David and for His people Israel.(DK)
The Lord’s Response
9 When Solomon finished building the temple of the Lord,(DL) the royal palace, and all that Solomon desired to do,(DM) 2 the Lord appeared to Solomon a second time just as He had appeared to him at Gibeon.(DN) 3 The Lord said to him:
I have heard your prayer and petition you have made before Me. I have consecrated this temple you have built, to put My name there forever;(DO) My eyes and My heart will be there at all times.(DP)
4 As for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, with a heart of integrity and in what is right, doing everything I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and ordinances,(DQ) 5 I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised your father David: You will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.(DR)
6 If you or your sons turn away from following Me and do not keep My commands—My statutes that I have set before you—and if you go and serve other gods and worship them,(DS) 7 I will cut off Israel from the land I gave them,(DT) and I will reject[s] the temple I have sanctified for My name.(DU) Israel will become an object of scorn and ridicule among all the peoples.(DV) 8 Though this temple is now exalted,[t] everyone who passes by will be appalled and will mock.[u] They will say: Why did the Lord do this to this land and this temple?(DW) 9 Then they will say: Because they abandoned the Lord their God who brought their ancestors out of the land of Egypt. They clung to other gods and worshiped and served them. Because of this, the Lord brought all this ruin on them.(DX)
King Hiram’s 20 Towns
10 At the end of 20 years during which Solomon had built the two houses, the Lord’s temple and the royal palace(DY)— 11 Hiram king of Tyre(DZ) having supplied him with cedar and cypress logs and gold(EA) for his every wish(EB)—King Solomon gave Hiram 20 towns in the land of Galilee. 12 So Hiram went out from Tyre to look over the towns that Solomon had given him, but he was not pleased with them. 13 So he said, “What are these towns you’ve given me, my brother?” So he called them the Land of Cabul,[v] as they are still called today.(EC) 14 Now Hiram had sent the king 9,000 pounds[w] of gold.(ED)
Solomon’s Forced Labor
15 This is the account of the forced labor(EE) that King Solomon had imposed to build the Lord’s temple, his own palace, the supporting terraces,(EF) the wall of Jerusalem,(EG) and Hazor,(EH) Megiddo,(EI) and Gezer.(EJ) 16 Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He then burned it down, killed the Canaanites who lived in the city, and gave it as a dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s wife.(EK) 17 Then Solomon rebuilt Gezer, Lower Beth-horon,(EL) 18 Baalath,(EM) Tamar[x][y] in the Wilderness of Judah, 19 all the storage cities that belonged to Solomon, the chariot cities,(EN) the cavalry cities,(EO) and whatever Solomon desired to build(EP) in Jerusalem, Lebanon, or anywhere else in the land of his dominion.
20 As for all the peoples who remained of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, who were not Israelites— 21 their descendants who remained in the land after them, those whom the Israelites were unable to completely destroy(EQ)—Solomon imposed forced labor on them; it is this way until today.(ER) 22 But Solomon did not consign the Israelites to slavery;(ES) they were soldiers, his servants, his commanders, his captains, and commanders of his chariots and his cavalry. 23 These were the deputies(ET) who were over Solomon’s work: 550 who ruled over the people doing the work.(EU)
Solomon’s Other Activities
24 Pharaoh’s daughter moved from the city of David(EV) to the house that Solomon had built for her;(EW) he then built the terraces.(EX)
25 Three times a year Solomon offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on the altar he had built for the Lord, and he burned incense with them in the Lord’s presence.(EY) So he completed the temple.(EZ)
26 King Solomon put together a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber,(FA) which is near Eloth on the shore of the Red Sea in the land of Edom. 27 With the fleet, Hiram sent his servants, experienced seamen, along with Solomon’s servants. 28 They went to Ophir(FB) and acquired gold there—16 tons[z]—and delivered it to Solomon.(FC)
The Queen of Sheba
10 The queen of Sheba(FD) heard about Solomon’s fame(FE) connected with the name of Yahweh and came to test him with difficult questions.(FF) 2 She came to Jerusalem with a very large entourage, with camels bearing(FG) spices, gold in great abundance, and precious stones.(FH) She came to Solomon and spoke to him about everything that was on her mind. 3 So Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too difficult for the king to explain to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba observed all of Solomon’s wisdom, the palace he had built,(FI) 5 the food at his table,(FJ) his servants’ residence, his attendants’ service and their attire, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he offered at the Lord’s temple, it took her breath away.
6 She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your words and about your wisdom is true. 7 But I didn’t believe the reports until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, I was not even told half. Your wisdom and prosperity far exceed the report I heard.(FK) 8 How happy are your men.[aa] How happy are these servants of yours, who always stand in your presence hearing your wisdom.(FL) 9 May Yahweh your God be praised! He delighted in you and put you on the throne of Israel,(FM) because of the Lord’s eternal love for Israel.(FN) He has made you king to carry out justice and righteousness.”(FO)
10 Then she gave the king four and a half tons[ab] of gold,(FP) a great quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again did such a quantity of spices arrive as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 In addition, Hiram’s fleet that carried gold from Ophir brought from Ophir a large quantity of almug[ac] wood and precious stones.(FQ) 12 The king made the almug wood into steps for the Lord’s temple and the king’s palace and into lyres and harps for the singers. Never before had such almug wood come, and the like has not been seen again even to this very day.
13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba her every desire—whatever she asked—besides what he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she, along with her servants, returned to her own country.(FR)
Solomon’s Wealth
14 The weight(FS) of gold that came to Solomon annually was 25 tons,[ad] 15 besides what came from merchants,(FT) traders’ merchandise, and all the Arabian kings and governors of the land.(FU)
16 King Solomon made 200 large shields of hammered gold; 15 pounds[ae] of gold went into each shield. 17 He made 300 small shields of hammered gold; about four pounds[af] of gold went into each shield. The king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon.(FV)
18 The king also made a large ivory throne and overlaid it with fine gold. 19 The throne had six steps; there was a rounded top at the back of the throne, armrests on either side of the seat, and two lions standing beside the armrests. 20 Twelve lions were standing there on the six steps, one at each end. Nothing like it had ever been made in any other kingdom.
21 All of King Solomon’s drinking cups were gold, and all the utensils of the House of the Forest of Lebanon(FW) were pure gold.(FX) There was no silver, since it was considered as nothing in Solomon’s time, 22 for the king had ships of Tarshish(FY) at sea with Hiram’s fleet, and once every three years the ships of Tarshish would arrive bearing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.[ag](FZ)
23 King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the world in riches and in wisdom.(GA) 24 The whole world wanted an audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom that God had put in his heart.(GB) 25 Every man would bring his annual tribute: items[ah] of silver and gold, clothing, weapons,[ai] spices, and horses and mules.(GC)
26 Solomon accumulated 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen(GD) and stationed them in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem.(GE) 27 The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones,(GF) and he made cedar(GG) as abundant as sycamore in the Judean foothills. 28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and Kue.[aj] The king’s traders bought them from Kue at the going price.(GH) 29 A chariot was imported from Egypt for 15 pounds[ak] of silver, and a horse for about four pounds.[al] In the same way, they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and to the kings of Aram through their agents.(GI)
Solomon’s Unfaithfulness to God
11 King Solomon loved many foreign women in addition to Pharaoh’s daughter:(GJ) Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women(GK) 2 from the nations that the Lord had told the Israelites about, “Do not intermarry with them, and they must not intermarry with you, because they will turn you away from Me to their gods.”(GL) Solomon was deeply attached to these women and loved them. 3 He had 700 wives who were princesses and 300 concubines,(GM) and they turned his heart away from the Lord.(GN)
4 When Solomon was old, his wives seduced him to follow other gods. He was not completely devoted to Yahweh his God, as his father David had been.(GO) 5 Solomon followed Ashtoreth,(GP) the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom,(GQ) the detestable idol of the Ammonites.(GR) 6 Solomon did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, and unlike his father David, he did not completely follow Yahweh.
7 At that time, Solomon built a high place(GS) for Chemosh,(GT) the detestable idol of Moab, and for Milcom,[am](GU) the detestable idol of the Ammonites, on the hill across from Jerusalem.(GV) 8 He did the same for all his foreign wives, who were burning incense and offering sacrifices to their gods.
9 The Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from Yahweh, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.(GW) 10 He had commanded him about this, so that he would not follow other gods, but Solomon did not do what the Lord had commanded.(GX)
11 Then the Lord said to Solomon, “Since you have done this[an] and did not keep My covenant and My statutes, which I commanded you, I will tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant.(GY) 12 However, I will not do it during your lifetime because of your father David;(GZ) I will tear it out of your son’s hand. 13 Yet I will not tear the entire kingdom away from him. I will give one tribe to your son(HA) because of my servant David and because of Jerusalem that I chose.”
Solomon’s Enemies
14 So the Lord raised up(HB) Hadad the Edomite as an enemy against Solomon. He was of the royal family in Edom. 15 Earlier, when David was in Edom, Joab, the commander of the army, had gone to bury the dead and had struck down every male in Edom. 16 For Joab and all Israel had remained there six months, until he had killed every male in Edom.(HC) 17 Hadad fled to Egypt, along with some Edomites from his father’s servants. At the time Hadad was a small boy. 18 Hadad and his men set out from Midian and went to Paran.(HD) They took men with them from Paran and went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt,(HE) who gave Hadad a house, ordered that he be given food, and gave him land. 19 Pharaoh liked Hadad so much that he gave him a wife, the sister of his own wife, Queen Tahpenes. 20 Tahpenes’ sister gave birth to Hadad’s son Genubath. Tahpenes herself weaned him in Pharaoh’s palace, and Genubath lived there along with Pharaoh’s sons.
21 When Hadad heard in Egypt that David rested with his fathers and that Joab, the commander of the army, was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, “Let me leave, so I can go to my own country.”
22 But Pharaoh asked him, “What do you lack here with me for you to want to go back to your own country?”
“Nothing,” he replied, “but please let me leave.”
23 God raised up Rezon son of Eliada as an enemy(HF) against Solomon. Rezon had fled from his master Hadadezer king of Zobah(HG) 24 and gathered men to himself. He became captain of a raiding party when David killed the Zobaites. He[ao] went to Damascus,(HH) lived there, and became king in Damascus. 25 Rezon was Israel’s enemy throughout Solomon’s reign, adding to the trouble Hadad had caused. He ruled over Aram,[ap](HI) but he loathed Israel.
26 Now Solomon’s servant,(HJ) Jeroboam son of Nebat, was an Ephraimite from Zeredah. His widowed mother’s name was Zeruah. Jeroboam rebelled(HK) against Solomon, 27 and this is the reason he rebelled against the king: Solomon had built the supporting terraces(HL) and repaired the opening in the wall of the city of his father David. 28 Now the man Jeroboam was capable, and Solomon noticed the young man because he was getting things done. So he appointed him over the entire labor force of the house of Joseph.(HM)
29 During that time, the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite(HN) met Jeroboam on the road as Jeroboam came out of Jerusalem. Now Ahijah had wrapped himself with a new cloak, and the two of them were alone in the open field. 30 Then Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he had on, tore it into 12 pieces,(HO) 31 and said to Jeroboam, “Take 10 pieces for yourself, for this is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘I am about to tear the kingdom out of Solomon’s hand. I will give you 10 tribes, 32 but one tribe will remain his because of my servant David(HP) and because of Jerusalem, the city I chose out of all the tribes of Israel.(HQ) 33 For they have abandoned Me; they have bowed the knee to Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, to Chemosh, the god of Moab, and to Milcom, the god of the Ammonites.(HR) They have not walked in My ways to do what is right in My eyes and to carry out My statutes and My judgments as his father David did.(HS)
34 “‘However, I will not take the whole kingdom from his hand but will let him be ruler all the days of his life because of My servant David, whom I chose and who kept My commands and My statutes. 35 I will take 10 tribes of the kingdom from his son’s hand and give them to you. 36 I will give one tribe(HT) to his son,(HU) so that My servant David will always have a lamp before Me(HV) in Jerusalem, the city I chose for Myself to put My name there.(HW) 37 I will appoint you,(HX) and you will reign as king(HY) over all you want,(HZ) and you will be king over Israel.
38 “‘After that, if you obey all I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight in order to keep My statutes and My commands as My servant David did, I will be with you.(IA) I will build you a lasting dynasty just as I built for David,(IB) and I will give you Israel. 39 I will humble David’s descendants, because of their unfaithfulness, but not forever.’”[aq](IC)
40 Therefore, Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam,(ID) but he fled to Egypt,(IE) to Shishak king of Egypt,(IF) where he remained until Solomon’s death.
Solomon’s Death
41 The rest of the events of Solomon’s reign, along with all his accomplishments and his wisdom, are written in the Book of Solomon’s Events.(IG) 42 The length of Solomon’s reign in Jerusalem over all Israel totaled 40 years.(IH) 43 Solomon rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of his father David. His son Rehoboam(II) became king in his place.(IJ)
The Kingdom Divided
12 Then Rehoboam(IK) went to Shechem,(IL) for all Israel(IM) had gone to Shechem to make him king.(IN) 2 When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard about it, for he was still in Egypt where he had fled from King Solomon’s presence,(IO) Jeroboam stayed in Egypt.[ar] 3 They summoned him, and Jeroboam and the whole assembly of Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam: 4 “Your father made our yoke difficult.(IP) You, therefore, lighten your father’s harsh service and the heavy yoke he put on us,(IQ) and we will serve you.”
5 Rehoboam replied, “Go home for three days and then return to me.” So the people left. 6 Then King Rehoboam consulted with the elders(IR) who had served his father Solomon when he was alive, asking, “How do you advise me to respond to these people?”
7 They replied, “Today if you will be a servant to these people and serve them, and if you respond to them by speaking kind words to them, they will be your servants forever.”(IS)
8 But he rejected the advice of the elders who had advised him(IT) and consulted with the young men who had grown up with him and served him. 9 He asked them, “What message do you advise that 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 these people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you, make it lighter on us!’ This is what you should tell them: ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins! 11 Although my father burdened you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with barbed whips.’”[as](IU)
12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day, as the king had ordered: “Return to me on the third day.” 13 Then the king answered the people harshly. He rejected the advice the elders had given him 14 and spoke to them according to the young men’s advice: “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 barbed whips.”[at]
15 The king did not listen to the people, because this turn of events came from the Lord(IV) to carry out His word, which the Lord had spoken through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat.(IW) 16 When all Israel saw that the king had not listened to them, the people answered him:
What portion do we have in David?
We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse.(IX)
Israel, return to your tents;
David, now look after your own house!(IY)
So Israel went to their tents, 17 but Rehoboam reigned over the Israelites living in the cities of Judah.(IZ)
18 Then King Rehoboam sent Adoram,[au](JA) who was in charge of forced labor, but all Israel stoned him to death. King Rehoboam managed to get into the chariot and flee to Jerusalem. 19 Israel is in rebellion against the house of David until today.(JB)
Rehoboam in Jerusalem
20 When all Israel heard that Jeroboam had come back,(JC) they summoned him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel.(JD) No one followed the house of David except the tribe of Judah alone.(JE) 21 When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem,(JF) he mobilized 180,000 choice warriors from the entire house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin(JG) to fight against the house of Israel to restore the kingdom to Rehoboam son of Solomon. 22 But a revelation from God came to Shemaiah,(JH) the man of God: 23 “Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon, king of Judah, to the whole house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, 24 ‘This is what the Lord says: You are not to march up and fight against your brothers, the Israelites. Each of you must return home, for I have done this.’”(JI)
So they listened to what the Lord said and went back as He had told them.
Jeroboam’s Idolatry
25 Jeroboam built Shechem(JJ) in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built Penuel.(JK) 26 Jeroboam said to himself, “The way things are going now, the kingdom might return to the house of David.(JL) 27 If these people regularly go to offer sacrifices in the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem,(JM) the heart of these people will return to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will murder me and go back to the king of Judah.” 28 So the king sought advice.
Then he made two golden calves, and he said to the people, “Going to Jerusalem is too difficult for you. Israel, here is your God[av] who brought you out of the land of Egypt.”(JN) 29 He set up one in Bethel,(JO) and put the other in Dan.(JP) 30 This led to sin;(JQ) the people walked in procession before one of the calves all the way to Dan.[aw](JR)
31 Jeroboam also built shrines on the high places(JS) and set up priests from every class of people who were not Levites.(JT) 32 Jeroboam made a festival in the eighth month on the fifteenth day of the month, like the festival in Judah.(JU) He offered sacrifices on the altar; he made this offering in Bethel to sacrifice to the calves he had set up. He also stationed the priests in Bethel for the high places he had set up.(JV) 33 He offered sacrifices on[ax] the altar he had set up in Bethel on the fifteenth day of the eighth month. He chose this month on his own.(JW) He made a festival for the Israelites, offered sacrifices on the altar, and burned incense.(JX)
Judgment on Jeroboam
13 A man of God(JY) came from Judah to Bethel by a revelation from the Lord while Jeroboam was standing beside the altar to burn incense.(JZ) 2 The man of God cried out against the altar by a revelation from the Lord: “Altar, altar, this is what the Lord says, ‘A son will be born to the house of David, named Josiah, and he will sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who are burning incense on you. Human bones will be burned on you.’”(KA) 3 He gave a sign(KB) that day. He said, “This is the sign that the Lord has spoken: ‘The altar will now be ripped apart, and the ashes that are on it will be poured out.’”(KC)
4 When the king heard the word that the man of God had cried out against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar and said, “Arrest him!” But the hand he stretched out against him withered, and he could not pull it back to himself. 5 The altar was ripped apart, and the ashes poured from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the Lord.
6 Then the king responded to the man of God, “Plead for the favor of the Lord your God and pray for me(KD) so that my hand may be restored to me.” So the man of God pleaded for the favor of the Lord, and the king’s hand was restored to him and became as it had been at first.
7 Then the king declared to the man of God, “Come home with me, refresh yourself, and I’ll give you a reward.”(KE)
8 But the man of God replied, “If you were to give me half your house,(KF) I still wouldn’t go with you, and I wouldn’t eat bread or drink water in this place, 9 for this is what I was commanded by the word of the Lord:(KG) ‘You must not eat bread or drink water or go back the way you came.’” 10 So he went another way; he did not go back by the way he had come to Bethel.
The Old Prophet and the Man of God
11 Now a certain old prophet was living in Bethel.(KH) His son[ay] came and told him all the deeds that the man of God had done that day in Bethel. His sons also told their father the words that he had spoken to the king.(KI) 12 Then their father said to them, “Which way did he go?” His sons had seen[az] the way taken by the man of God who had come from Judah. 13 Then he said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” So they saddled the donkey for him, and he got on it. 14 He followed the man of God and found him sitting under an oak tree. He asked him, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?”
“I am,” he said.
15 Then he said to him, “Come home with me and eat bread.”
16 But he answered, “I cannot go back with you, eat bread, or drink water with you in this place, 17 for a message came to me by the word of the Lord: ‘You must not eat bread or drink water there(KJ) or go back by the way you came.’”
18 He said to him, “I am also a prophet(KK) like you. An angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord: ‘Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water.’” The old prophet deceived him,(KL) 19 and the man of God went back with him, ate bread in his house, and drank water.
20 While they were sitting at the table, the word of the Lord came to the prophet who had brought him back, 21 and the prophet cried out to the man of God who had come from Judah, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Because you rebelled against the command of the Lord and did not keep the command that the Lord your God commanded you— 22 but you went back and ate bread and drank water in the place that He said to you, “Do not eat bread and do not drink water”—(KM) your corpse will never reach the grave of your fathers.’”(KN)
23 So after he had eaten bread and after he had drunk, the old prophet saddled the donkey for the prophet he had brought back. 24 When he left,[ba] a lion attacked[bb] him along the way and killed him.(KO) His corpse was thrown on the road, and the donkey was standing beside it; the lion was standing beside the corpse too.
25 There were men passing by who saw the corpse thrown on the road and the lion standing beside it, and they went and spoke about it in the city where the old prophet lived. 26 When the prophet who had brought him back from his way heard about it, he said, “He is the man of God who disobeyed the command of the Lord. The Lord has given him to the lion, and it has mauled and killed him, according to the word of the Lord that He spoke to him.”
27 Then the old prophet instructed his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” They saddled it,(KP) 28 and he went and found the corpse of the man of God thrown on the road with the donkey and the lion standing beside the corpse. The lion had not eaten the corpse or mauled the donkey. 29 So the prophet lifted the corpse of the man of God and laid it on the donkey and brought it back. The old prophet came into the city to mourn and bury him. 30 Then he laid the corpse in his own grave,(KQ) and they mourned over him: “Oh, my brother!”(KR)
31 After he had buried him, he said to his sons, “When I die, you must bury me in the grave where the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones, 32 for the word that he cried out by a revelation from the Lord against the altar in Bethel(KS) and against all the shrines of the high places(KT) in the cities of Samaria(KU) is certain to happen.”(KV)
33 After all this(KW) Jeroboam did not repent(KX) of his evil way but again set up priests for the high places from every class of people.(KY) He ordained whoever so desired it, and they became priests of the high places.(KZ) 34 This was the sin that caused the house of Jeroboam to be wiped out and annihilated from the face of the earth.(LA)
Disaster on the House of Jeroboam
14 At that time Abijah son of Jeroboam became sick.(LB) 2 Jeroboam said to his wife, “Go disguise yourself,(LC) so they won’t know that you’re Jeroboam’s wife, and go to Shiloh.(LD) Ahijah the prophet is there; it was he who told about me becoming king over this people.(LE) 3 Take with you 10 loaves of bread, some cakes, and a jar of honey,(LF) and go to him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy.”
4 Jeroboam’s wife did that: she went to Shiloh and arrived at Ahijah’s house. Ahijah could not see; his gaze was fixed[bc] due to his age.(LG) 5 But the Lord had said to Ahijah, “Jeroboam’s wife is coming soon to ask you about her son, for he is sick. You are to say such and such to her. When she arrives, she will be disguised.”(LH)
6 When Ahijah heard the sound of her feet entering the door, he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam! Why are you disguised?(LI) I have bad news for you. 7 Go tell Jeroboam, ‘This is what the Lord God of Israel says: I raised you up from among the people, appointed you ruler over My people Israel, 8 tore the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it to you.(LJ) But you were not like My servant David, who kept My commands and followed Me with all of his heart, doing only what is right in My eyes. 9 You behaved more wickedly than all who were before you.(LK) In order to provoke Me, you have proceeded to make for yourself other gods and cast images,(LL) but you have flung Me behind your back.(LM) 10 Because of all this, I am about to bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam:
I will eliminate all of Jeroboam’s males,[bd]
both slave and free,[be] in Israel;
I will sweep away the house of Jeroboam
as one sweeps away dung until it is all gone!(LN)
11 Anyone who belongs to Jeroboam and dies in the city,
the dogs will eat,
and anyone who dies in the field,
the birds of the sky will eat,(LO)
for the Lord has said it!’
12 “As for you, get up and go to your house. When your feet enter the city, the boy will die.(LP) 13 All Israel will mourn for him and bury him. He alone out of Jeroboam’s house will be put in the family tomb, because out of the house of Jeroboam the Lord God of Israel found something good only in him.(LQ) 14 The Lord will raise up for Himself a king over Israel, who will eliminate the house of Jeroboam.(LR) This is the day, yes,[bf] even today! 15 For the Lord will strike Israel and the people will shake as a reed shakes in water. He will uproot Israel from this good soil that He gave to their ancestors.(LS) He will scatter them beyond the Euphrates(LT) because they made their Asherah poles, provoking the Lord.(LU) 16 He will give up Israel because of Jeroboam’s sins that he committed and caused Israel to commit.”(LV)
17 Then Jeroboam’s wife got up and left and went to Tirzah.(LW) As she was crossing the threshold of the house, the boy died. 18 He was buried, and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the Lord He had spoken through His servant Ahijah the prophet.(LX)
19 As for the rest of the events of Jeroboam’s reign, how he waged war(LY) and how he reigned, note that they are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings. 20 The length of Jeroboam’s reign was 22 years. He rested with his fathers, and his son Nadab became king in his place.(LZ)
Judah’s King Rehoboam
21 Now Rehoboam, Solomon’s son, reigned in Judah.(MA) Rehoboam was 41 years old when he became king; he reigned 17 years in Jerusalem, the city where Yahweh had chosen from all the tribes of Israel to put His name.(MB) Rehoboam’s mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite.(MC)
22 Judah did what was evil in the Lord’s eyes.(MD) They provoked Him to jealous anger(ME) more than all that their ancestors had done with the sins they committed. 23 They also built for themselves high places,(MF) sacred pillars,(MG) and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree; 24 there were even male cult prostitutes in the land.(MH) They imitated all the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had dispossessed before the Israelites.(MI)
25 In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt(MJ) went to war against Jerusalem.(MK) 26 He seized the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and the treasuries of the royal palace. He took everything. He took all the gold shields that Solomon had made.(ML) 27 King Rehoboam made bronze shields in their place and committed them into the care of the captains of the royal escorts[bg](MM) who guarded the entrance to the king’s palace. 28 Whenever the king entered the Lord’s temple, the royal escorts would carry the shields, then they would take them back to the royal escorts’ armory.(MN)
29 The rest of the events of Rehoboam’s reign,(MO) along with all his accomplishments, are written about in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings. 30 There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam throughout their reigns.(MP) 31 Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite.(MQ) His son Abijam[bh](MR) became king in his place.
Judah’s King Abijam
15 In the eighteenth year of Israel’s King Jeroboam son of Nebat, Abijam became king over Judah 2 and reigned three years in Jerusalem.(MS) His mother’s name was Maacah(MT) daughter[bi] of Abishalom.
3 Abijam walked in all the sins his father before him had committed,(MU) and he was not completely devoted to the Lord his God as his ancestor David had been.(MV) 4 But because of David, the Lord his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem to raise up his son after him and to establish Jerusalem.(MW) 5 For David did what was right in the Lord’s eyes, and he did not turn aside from anything He had commanded him all the days of his life,(MX) except in the matter of Uriah(MY) the Hittite.
6 There had been war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of Rehoboam’s life.(MZ) 7 The rest of the events of Abijam’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, are written in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings.(NA) There was also war between Abijam and Jeroboam.(NB) 8 Abijam rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David.(NC) His son Asa became king in his place.(ND)
Judah’s King Asa
9 In the twentieth year of Israel’s King Jeroboam,(NE) Asa became king of Judah 10 and reigned 41 years in Jerusalem. His grandmother’s[bj] name was Maacah(NF) daughter[bk] of Abishalom.
11 Asa did what was right in the Lord’s eyes, as his ancestor David had done.(NG) 12 He banished the male cult prostitutes(NH) from the land and removed all of the idols that his fathers had made.(NI) 13 He also(NJ) removed his grandmother[bl] Maacah from being queen mother because she had made an obscene image of Asherah. Asa chopped down her obscene image and burned it(NK) in the Kidron Valley.(NL) 14 The high places were not taken away;(NM) but Asa’s heart was completely devoted to the Lord his entire life.(NN) 15 He brought his father’s consecrated gifts and his own consecrated gifts into the Lord’s temple: silver, gold, and utensils.(NO)
16 There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel throughout their reigns.(NP) 17 Israel’s King Baasha went to war against Judah.(NQ) He built Ramah(NR) in order to deny anyone access to Judah’s King Asa. 18 So Asa withdrew all the silver and gold that remained in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple(NS) and the treasuries of the royal palace and put it into the hands of his servants. Then King Asa sent them to Ben-hadad(NT) son of Tabrimmon son of Hezion king of Aram who lived in Damascus,(NU) saying, 19 “There is a treaty between me and you, between my father and your father.(NV) Look, I have sent you a gift of silver and gold. Go and break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel(NW) so that he will withdraw from me.”
20 Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel. He attacked Ijon,(NX) Dan,(NY) Abel-beth-maacah,(NZ) all Chinnereth,(OA) and the whole land of Naphtali.(OB) 21 When Baasha heard about it, he quit building Ramah and stayed in Tirzah.(OC) 22 Then King Asa gave a command to everyone without exception in Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and the timbers Baasha had built it with. Then King Asa built Geba(OD) of Benjamin and Mizpah(OE) with them.
23 The rest of all the events of Asa’s reign,(OF) along with all his might, all his accomplishments, and the cities he built, are written in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings.(OG) But in his old age he developed a disease in his feet.(OH) 24 Then Asa rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of his ancestor David.(OI) His son Jehoshaphat(OJ) became king in his place.
Israel’s King Nadab
25 Nadab son of Jeroboam(OK) became king over Israel in the second year of Judah’s King Asa; he reigned over Israel two years. 26 Nadab did what was evil in the Lord’s sight and followed the example of his father and the sin he had caused Israel to commit.(OL)
27 Then Baasha(OM) son of Ahijah of the house of Issachar conspired against Nadab, and Baasha struck him down at Gibbethon(ON) of the Philistines while Nadab and all Israel were besieging Gibbethon. 28 In the third year of Judah’s King Asa,(OO) Baasha killed Nadab(OP) and reigned in his place.
29 When Baasha became king, he struck down the entire house of Jeroboam.(OQ) He did not leave Jeroboam any survivors but[bm] destroyed his family according to the word of the Lord He had spoken through His servant Ahijah the Shilonite.(OR) 30 This was because Jeroboam had provoked[bn] the Lord God of Israel by the sins he had committed and had caused Israel to commit.(OS)
31 The rest of the events of Nadab’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.(OT) 32 There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel throughout their reigns.(OU)
Israel’s King Baasha
33 In the third year of Judah’s King Asa, Baasha son of Ahijah became king over all Israel and reigned in Tirzah(OV) 24 years. 34 He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight and followed the example of Jeroboam and the sin he had caused Israel to commit.(OW)
16 Now the word of the Lord came to Jehu(OX) son of Hanani(OY) against Baasha: 2 “Because I raised you up from the dust(OZ) and made you ruler over My people Israel,(PA) but you have walked in the way of Jeroboam and have caused My people Israel to sin,(PB) provoking Me with their sins, 3 take note: I will sweep away Baasha and his house, and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat:(PC)
4 Anyone who belongs to Baasha and dies in the city,
the dogs will eat,
and anyone who is his and dies in the field,
the birds of the sky will eat.”(PD)
5 The rest of the events of Baasha’s reign, along with all his accomplishments and might, are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.(PE) 6 Baasha rested with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah. His son Elah became king in his place. 7 Through the prophet Jehu(PF) son of Hanani the word of the Lord also came against Baasha and against his house because of all the evil he had done in the Lord’s sight, provoking Him with the work of his hands and being like the house of Jeroboam, and because Baasha had struck down the house of Jeroboam.(PG)
Israel’s King Elah
8 In the twenty-sixth year of Judah’s King Asa, Elah son of Baasha became king over Israel and reigned in Tirzah(PH) two years.
9 His servant Zimri,(PI) commander of half his chariots, conspired against him while Elah was in Tirzah getting drunk(PJ) in the house of Arza, who was in charge of the household(PK) at Tirzah. 10 In the twenty-seventh year of Judah’s King Asa, Zimri went in, struck Elah down, killing him. Then Zimri became king in his place.(PL)
11 When he became king, as soon as he was seated on his throne, Zimri struck down the entire house of Baasha. He did not leave a single male,[bo](PM) including his kinsmen and his friends. 12 So Zimri destroyed the entire house of Baasha, according to the word of the Lord He had spoken against Baasha through Jehu the prophet.(PN) 13 This happened because of all the sins of Baasha and those of his son Elah, which they committed and caused Israel to commit, provoking the Lord God of Israel(PO) with their worthless idols.(PP)
14 The rest of the events of Elah’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.(PQ)
Israel’s King Zimri
15 In the twenty-seventh year of Judah’s King Asa, Zimri became king for seven days in Tirzah.(PR) Now the troops were encamped against Gibbethon of the Philistines.(PS) 16 When these troops heard that Zimri had not only conspired but had also struck down the king, then all Israel made Omri, the army commander, king over Israel that very day in the camp. 17 Omri along with all Israel marched up from Gibbethon and besieged Tirzah.(PT) 18 When Zimri saw that the city was captured, he entered the citadel of the royal palace and burned it down over himself. He died 19 because of the sin he committed by doing what was evil in the Lord’s sight and by following the example of Jeroboam and the sin he caused Israel to commit.(PU)
20 The rest of the events of Zimri’s reign, along with the conspiracy that he instigated, are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.
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