1 Kings 14
Tree of Life Version
Curse on House of Jeroboam
14 At that time, Abijah, Jeroboam’s son fell sick. 2 Jeroboam said to his wife, “Please go disguise yourself, so they won’t recognize you as Jeroboam’s wife, and go to Shiloh. Look, the prophet Ahijah who told me that I would be king over these people is there. 3 Take with you ten loaves, biscuits and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy.”
4 Jeroboam’s wife did so. She got up and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. Now Ahijah could not see for his eyes were dim because of his age. 5 Adonai had said to Ahijah, “Look! Jeroboam’s wife is coming to ask you about her son, for he is sick. You are to say such and such to her, for she will be in disguise.”
6 As soon as Ahijah heard the sound of her feet as she came through the door, he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why this disguise? But I have been sent to you with a difficult message. 7 Go tell Jeroboam, thus says Adonai, God of Israel: ‘I raised you up from among the people and made you leader over My people Israel. 8 I tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it you. Yet you have not been like My servant David who kept My commandments and followed Me with all his heart, doing only what was right in My eyes. 9 Instead you have done more evil than all who were before you, and have gone and made yourself other gods—molten images to vex Me—and have cast Me behind your back. 10 Therefore, I am about to bring evil on the house of Jeroboam. I will cut off to Jeroboam even one man, bond and free, in Israel. I will burn up the house of Jeroboam as one burns the dung until it is all gone. 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. For Adonai has spoken it.
12 “As for you, arise and go to your house. As soon as you set foot in the town, the boy will die. 13 All Israel will lament over him and bury him, for it is only him of Jeroboam’s house who will be buried, because in him alone, of all Jeroboam’s house, something good was found toward Adonai, the God of Israel.
14 “Moreover Adonai will raise up for Himself a king over Israel who will cut off the house of Jeroboam that day. So now, what else? 15 Adonai will strike Israel until it sways like a reed in the water. He will uproot Israel from this good land that He gave to their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the River, because they have made their Asherah poles, provoking Adonai. 16 So He will give up Israel because of the sins of Jeroboam which he committed, and caused Israel to commit.”
17 Then Jeroboam’s wife got up, left and went to Tirzah. As soon as she stepped over the threshold of the house, the child died. 18 They buried him and all Israel lamented over him, just as was the word of Adonai that He spoke through His servant Ahijah the prophet.
19 As for the rest of the deeds of Jeroboam, how he made war and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 20 The days that Jeroboam reigned were 22 years and then he slept with his fathers. His son Nadab reigned in his place.
Idolatry and Consequences
21 Meanwhile Rehoboam son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was 41 years old when he became king, and he reigned 17 years in Jerusalem—the city where Adonai had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel to put His Name. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonitess.
22 Judah did what was evil in Adonai’s eyes. They provoked Him to jealousy with more than all that their forefathers had done with the sins that they committed. 23 They also built for themselves high places, sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every leafy tree; 24 and there were also male cult prostitutes in the land. They did the same abominations as those of the nations that Adonai had driven out before the children of Israel.
25 Now it came to pass in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, King Shishak of Egypt marched against Jerusalem. 26 He took away the treasures of the House of Adonai and the treasures of the royal palace. He took away everything—even taking all the golden shields that Solomon had made. 27 So King Rehoboam made in their place bronze shields and committed them to the hands of the captains of the guard, watching over the doorway of the royal palace. 28 Whenever the king went to the House of Adonai, the guard would carry them and bring them back into the guardroom.
29 Now the rest of the deeds of Rehoboam and all that he did—are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 30 There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually. 31 Then Rehoboam slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite. Then his son Abijam became king in his place.
1 Kings 14
King James Version
14 At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick.
2 And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh: behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, which told me that I should be king over this people.
3 And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him: he shall tell thee what shall become of the child.
4 And Jeroboam's wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age.
5 And the Lord said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he is sick: thus and thus shalt thou say unto her: for it shall be, when she cometh in, that she shall feign herself to be another woman.
6 And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings.
7 Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel,
8 And rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee: and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes;
9 But hast done evil above all that were before thee: for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back:
10 Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone.
11 Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat: for the Lord hath spoken it.
12 Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die.
13 And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him: for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam.
14 Moreover the Lord shall raise him up a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam that day: but what? even now.
15 For the Lord shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the Lord to anger.
16 And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin.
17 And Jeroboam's wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah: and when she came to the threshold of the door, the child died;
18 And they buried him; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the prophet.
19 And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred, and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
20 And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years: and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his stead.
21 And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the Lord did choose out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. And his mother's name was Naamah an Ammonitess.
22 And Judah did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done.
23 For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree.
24 And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the Lord cast out before the children of Israel.
25 And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem:
26 And he took away the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king's house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.
27 And king Rehoboam made in their stead brasen shields, and committed them unto the hands of the chief of the guard, which kept the door of the king's house.
28 And it was so, when the king went into the house of the Lord, that the guard bare them, and brought them back into the guard chamber.
29 Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
30 And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all their days.
31 And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And his mother's name was Naamah an Ammonitess. And Abijam his son reigned in his stead.
1 Kings 14
English Standard Version
Prophecy Against Jeroboam
14 At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick. 2 And Jeroboam said to his wife, “Arise, and disguise yourself, that it not be known that you are the wife of Jeroboam, and go to (A)Shiloh. Behold, Ahijah the prophet is there, (B)who said of me that I should be king over this people. 3 (C)Take with you ten loaves, some cakes, and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what shall happen to the child.”
4 Jeroboam's wife did so. She arose and went to (D)Shiloh and came to the house of (E)Ahijah. Now (F)Ahijah could not see, for his eyes were dim because of his age. 5 And the Lord said to (G)Ahijah, “Behold, the wife of Jeroboam is coming to inquire of you concerning her son, for he is sick. Thus and thus shall you say to her.”
When she came, she pretended to be another woman. 6 But when (H)Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why do you pretend to be another? For I am charged with unbearable news for you. 7 Go, tell Jeroboam, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: (I)“Because I exalted you from among the people and made you leader over my people Israel 8 and (J)tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you, and yet you have not been (K)like my servant David, who kept my commandments and followed me with all his heart, doing only that which was right in my eyes, 9 but you have done evil above all who were before you and have gone and (L)made for yourself other gods and (M)metal images, provoking me to anger, and (N)have cast me behind your back, 10 therefore behold, I will bring harm upon the house of Jeroboam and (O)will cut off from Jeroboam every male, (P)both bond and free in Israel, and (Q)will burn up the house of Jeroboam, as a man burns up dung until it is all gone. 11 (R)Anyone belonging to Jeroboam who dies in the city the dogs shall eat, and anyone who dies in the open country the birds of the heavens shall eat, for the Lord has spoken it.”’ 12 Arise therefore, go to your house. (S)When your feet enter the city, the child shall die. 13 And all Israel shall mourn for him and bury him, for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him (T)there is found something pleasing to the Lord, the God of Israel, in the house of Jeroboam. 14 (U)Moreover, the Lord will raise up for himself a king over Israel who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam today. And henceforth, 15 the Lord will strike Israel as a reed is shaken in the water, and (V)root up Israel out of (W)this good land that he gave to their fathers and scatter them (X)beyond the Euphrates,[a] because they have made their (Y)Asherim, provoking the Lord to anger. 16 And he will give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, which he sinned and made Israel to sin.”
17 Then Jeroboam's wife arose and departed and came to (Z)Tirzah. And (AA)as she came to the threshold of the house, the child died. 18 And all Israel buried him and mourned for him, (AB)according to the word of the Lord, which he spoke by his servant Ahijah the prophet.
The Death of Jeroboam
19 Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, (AC)how he warred and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 20 And the time that Jeroboam reigned was twenty-two years. And he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his place.
Rehoboam Reigns in Judah
21 (AD)Now Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, (AE)the city that the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. (AF)His mother's name was Naamah the Ammonite. 22 (AG)And Judah did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and they (AH)provoked him to jealousy with their sins that they committed, more than all that their fathers had done. 23 For they also built for themselves (AI)high places (AJ)and pillars and (AK)Asherim on every high hill and (AL)under every green tree, 24 and there were also (AM)male cult prostitutes in the land. They did according to all the abominations of the nations that the Lord drove out before the people of Israel.
25 (AN)In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem. 26 He took away the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king's house. (AO)He took away everything. He also took away all the shields of gold (AP)that Solomon had made, 27 and King Rehoboam made in their place shields of bronze, and committed them to the hands of the officers of the guard, who kept the door of the king's house. 28 And as often as the king went into the house of the Lord, the guard carried them and brought them back to the guardroom.
29 (AQ)Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 30 (AR)And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually. 31 And Rehoboam slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. (AS)His mother's name was Naamah the Ammonite. And (AT)Abijam his son reigned in his place.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 14:15 Hebrew the River
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
