The Lord Appears to Solomon^(A)

9 When Solomon had finished^(B) building the temple of the Lord and the royal palace, and had achieved all he had desired to do, ² the Lord appeared^(C) to him a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. ³ The Lord said to him:

Solomon’s Other Activities^(W)

¹⁰ At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon built these two buildings—the temple of the Lord and the royal palace— ¹¹ King Solomon gave twenty towns in Galilee to Hiram king of Tyre, because Hiram had supplied him with all the cedar and juniper and gold^(X) he wanted. ¹² But when Hiram went from Tyre to see the towns that Solomon had given him, he was not pleased with them. ¹³ “What kind of towns are these you have given me, my brother?” he asked. And he called them the Land of Kabul,^[d](Y) a name they have to this day. ¹⁴ Now Hiram had sent to the king 120 talents^[e] of gold.^(Z)

¹⁵ Here is the account of the forced labor King Solomon conscripted^(AA) to build the Lord’s temple, his own palace, the terraces,^[f](AB) the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor,^(AC) Megiddo and Gezer.^{(AD) 16} (Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He had set it on fire. He killed its Canaanite inhabitants and then gave it as a wedding gift to his daughter,^(AE) Solomon’s wife. ¹⁷ And Solomon rebuilt Gezer.) He built up Lower Beth Horon,^{(AF) 18} Baalath,^(AG) and Tadmor^[g] in the desert, within his land, ¹⁹ as well as all his store cities^(AH) and the towns for his chariots^(AI) and for his horses^[h]—whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled.

²⁰ There were still people left from the Amorites, Hittites,^(AJ) Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites^(AK) (these peoples were not Israelites). ²¹ Solomon conscripted the descendants^(AL) of all these peoples remaining in the land—whom the Israelites could not exterminate^[i](AM)—to serve as slave labor,^(AN) as it is to this day. ²² But Solomon did not make slaves^(AO) of any of the Israelites; they were his fighting men, his government officials, his officers, his captains, and the commanders of his chariots and charioteers. ²³ They were also the chief officials^(AP) in charge of Solomon’s projects—550 officials supervising those who did the work.

²⁴ After Pharaoh’s daughter^(AQ) had come up from the City of David to the palace Solomon had built for her, he constructed the terraces.^(AR)

²⁵ Three^(AS) times a year Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on the altar he had built for the Lord, burning incense before the Lord along with them, and so fulfilled the temple obligations.

²⁶ King Solomon also built ships^(AT) at Ezion Geber,^(AU) which is near Elath^(AV) in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea.^{[j] 27} And Hiram sent his men—sailors^(AW) who knew the sea—to serve in the fleet with Solomon’s men. ²⁸ They sailed to Ophir^(AX) and brought back 420 talents^[k] of gold,^(AY) which they delivered to King Solomon.

¹⁰ And she gave the king 120 talents^[a] of gold,^(A) large quantities of spices, and precious stones. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

Ahijah’s Prophecy Against Jeroboam

14 At that time Abijah son of Jeroboam became ill, ² and Jeroboam said to his wife, “Go, disguise yourself, so you won’t be recognized as the wife of Jeroboam. Then go to Shiloh. Ahijah^(A) the prophet is there—the one who told me I would be king over this people. ³ Take ten loaves of bread^(B) with you, some cakes and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy.” ⁴ So Jeroboam’s wife did what he said and went to Ahijah’s house in Shiloh.

Now Ahijah could not see; his sight was gone because of his age. ⁵ But the Lord had told Ahijah, “Jeroboam’s wife is coming to ask you about her son, for he is ill, and you are to give her such and such an answer. When she arrives, she will pretend to be someone else.”

⁶ So when Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps at the door, he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why this pretense?^(C) I have been sent to you with bad news. ⁷ Go, tell Jeroboam that this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says:^(D) ‘I raised you up from among the people and appointed you ruler^(E) over my people Israel. ⁸ I tore^(F) the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you, but you have not been like my servant David, who kept my commands and followed me with all his heart, doing only what was right^(G) in my eyes. ⁹ You have done more evil^(H) than all who lived before you.^(I) You have made for yourself other gods, idols^(J) made of metal; you have aroused^(K) my anger and turned your back on me.^(L)

¹⁰ “‘Because of this, I am going to bring disaster^(M) on the house of Jeroboam. I will cut off from Jeroboam every last male in Israel—slave or free.^[a](N) I will burn up the house of Jeroboam as one burns dung, until it is all gone.^{(O) 11} Dogs^(P) will eat those belonging to Jeroboam who die in the city, and the birds^(Q) will feed on those who die in the country. The Lord has spoken!’

¹² “As for you, go back home. When you set foot in your city, the boy will die. ¹³ All Israel will mourn for him and bury him. He is the only one belonging to Jeroboam who will be buried, because he is the only one in the house of Jeroboam in whom the Lord, the God of Israel, has found anything good.^(R)

¹⁴ “The Lord will raise up for himself a king over Israel who will cut off the family of Jeroboam. Even now this is beginning to happen.^{[b] 15} And the Lord will strike Israel, so that it will be like a reed swaying in the water. He will uproot^(S) Israel from this good land that he gave to their ancestors and scatter them beyond the Euphrates River, because they aroused^(T) the Lord’s anger by making Asherah^(U) poles.^{[c] 16} And he will give Israel up because of the sins^(V) Jeroboam has committed and has caused Israel to commit.”

¹⁷ Then Jeroboam’s wife got up and left and went to Tirzah.^(W) As soon as she stepped over the threshold of the house, the boy died. ¹⁸ They buried him, and all Israel mourned for him, as the Lord had said through his servant the prophet Ahijah.

¹⁹ The other events of Jeroboam’s reign, his wars and how he ruled, are written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel. ²⁰ He reigned for twenty-two years and then rested with his ancestors. And Nadab his son succeeded him as king.

Rehoboam King of Judah^(X)

²¹ Rehoboam son of Solomon was king in Judah. 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. His mother’s name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite.^(Y)

²² Judah^(Z) did evil in the eyes of the Lord. By the sins they committed they stirred up his jealous anger^(AA) more than those who were before them had done. ²³ They also set up for themselves high places, sacred stones^(AB) and Asherah poles^(AC) on every high hill and under every spreading tree.^{(AD) 24} There were even male shrine prostitutes^(AE) in the land; the people engaged in all the detestable^(AF) practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites.

²⁵ In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt attacked^(AG) Jerusalem. ²⁶ He carried off the treasures of the temple^(AH) of the Lord and the treasures of the royal palace. He took everything, including all the gold shields^(AI) Solomon had made. ²⁷ 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.^{(AJ) 28} Whenever the king went to the Lord’s temple, the guards bore the shields, and afterward they returned them to the guardroom.

²⁹ As for the other events of Rehoboam’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? ³⁰ There was continual warfare^(AK) between Rehoboam and Jeroboam. ³¹ And Rehoboam rested with his ancestors and was buried with them in the City of David. His mother’s name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite.^(AL) And Abijah^[d] his son succeeded him as king.

Abijah King of Judah^(A)

15 In the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam son of Nebat, Abijah^[a] became king of Judah, ² and he reigned in Jerusalem three years. His mother’s name was Maakah^(B) daughter of Abishalom.^[b]

³ He committed all the sins his father had done before him; his heart was not fully devoted^(C) to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his forefather had been. ⁴ Nevertheless, for David’s sake the Lord his God gave him a lamp^(D) in Jerusalem by raising up a son to succeed him and by making Jerusalem strong. ⁵ For David had done what was right in the eyes of the Lord and had not failed to keep^(E) any of the Lord’s commands all the days of his life—except in the case of Uriah^(F) the Hittite.

⁶ There was war^(G) between Abijah^[c] and Jeroboam throughout Abijah’s lifetime. ⁷ As for the other events of Abijah’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? There was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. ⁸ And Abijah rested with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. And Asa his son succeeded him as king.

Asa King of Judah^(H)(I)

⁹ In the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Asa became king of Judah, ¹⁰ and he reigned in Jerusalem forty-one years. His grandmother’s name was Maakah^(J) daughter of Abishalom.

¹¹ Asa did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, as his father David^(K) had done. ¹² He expelled the male shrine prostitutes^(L) from the land and got rid of all the idols^(M) his ancestors had made. ¹³ He even deposed his grandmother Maakah^(N) from her position as queen mother,^(O) because she had made a repulsive image for the worship of Asherah. Asa cut it down^(P) and burned it in the Kidron Valley. ¹⁴ Although he did not remove^(Q) the high places, Asa’s heart was fully committed^(R) to the Lord all his life. ¹⁵ He brought into the temple of the Lord the silver and gold and the articles that he and his father had dedicated.^(S)

¹⁶ There was war^(T) between Asa and Baasha king of Israel throughout their reigns. ¹⁷ Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah and fortified Ramah^(U) to prevent anyone from leaving or entering the territory of Asa king of Judah.

¹⁸ Asa then took all the silver and gold that was left in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple^(V) and of his own palace. He entrusted it to his officials and sent^(W) them to Ben-Hadad^(X) son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, the king of Aram, who was ruling in Damascus. ¹⁹ “Let there be a treaty^(Y) between me and you,” he said, “as there was between my father and your father. See, I am sending you a gift of silver and gold. Now break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel so he will withdraw from me.”

²⁰ Ben-Hadad agreed with King Asa and sent the commanders of his forces against the towns of Israel. He conquered^(Z) Ijon, Dan, Abel Beth Maakah and all Kinnereth in addition to Naphtali. ²¹ When Baasha heard this, he stopped building Ramah^(AA) and withdrew to Tirzah.^{(AB) 22} Then King Asa issued an order to all Judah—no one was exempt—and they carried away from Ramah^(AC) the stones and timber Baasha had been using there. With them King Asa^(AD) built up Geba^(AE) in Benjamin, and also Mizpah.^(AF)

²³ As for all the other events of Asa’s reign, all his achievements, all he did and the cities he built, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? In his old age, however, his feet became diseased. ²⁴ Then Asa rested with his ancestors and was buried with them in the city of his father David. And Jehoshaphat^(AG) his son succeeded him as king.

Nadab King of Israel

²⁵ Nadab son of Jeroboam became king of Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. ²⁶ He did evil^(AH) in the eyes of the Lord, following the ways of his father^(AI) and committing the same sin his father had caused Israel to commit.

²⁷ Baasha son of Ahijah from the tribe of Issachar plotted against him, and he struck him down^(AJ) at Gibbethon,^(AK) a Philistine town, while Nadab and all Israel were besieging it. ²⁸ Baasha killed Nadab in the third year of Asa king of Judah and succeeded him as king.

²⁹ As soon as he began to reign, he killed Jeroboam’s whole family.^(AL) He did not leave Jeroboam anyone that breathed, but destroyed them all, according to the word of the Lord given through his servant Ahijah the Shilonite. ³⁰ This happened because of the sins^(AM) Jeroboam had committed and had caused^(AN) Israel to commit, and because he aroused the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel.

³¹ As for the other events of Nadab’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals^(AO) of the kings of Israel? ³² There was war^(AP) between Asa and Baasha king of Israel throughout their reigns.

Baasha King of Israel

³³ In the third year of Asa king of Judah, Baasha son of Ahijah became king of all Israel in Tirzah,^(AQ) and he reigned twenty-four years. ³⁴ He did evil^(AR) in the eyes of the Lord, following the ways of Jeroboam and committing the same sin Jeroboam had caused Israel to commit.

¹⁵ The king made silver and gold^(A) as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig trees in the foothills.

The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon^(A)

9 When the queen of Sheba^(B) heard of Solomon’s fame, she came to Jerusalem to test him with hard questions. Arriving with a very great caravan—with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones—she came to Solomon and talked with him about all she had on her mind.

⁹ Then she gave the king 120 talents^[a] of gold,^(A) large quantities of spices, and precious stones. There had never been such spices as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

Solomon’s Splendor^(A)

¹³ The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents,^[a]