The Ark Brought to the Temple(A)

Then King Solomon summoned into his presence at Jerusalem the elders of Israel, all the heads of the tribes and the chiefs(B) of the Israelite families, to bring up the ark(C) of the Lord’s covenant from Zion, the City of David.(D) All the Israelites came together to King Solomon at the time of the festival(E) in the month of Ethanim, the seventh month.(F)

When all the elders of Israel had arrived, the priests(G) took up the ark, and they brought up the ark of the Lord and the tent of meeting(H) and all the sacred furnishings in it. The priests and Levites(I) carried them up, and King Solomon and the entire assembly of Israel that had gathered about him were before the ark, sacrificing(J) so many sheep and cattle that they could not be recorded or counted.

The priests then brought the ark of the Lord’s covenant(K) to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place,(L) and put it beneath the wings of the cherubim.(M) The cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark and overshadowed(N) the ark and its carrying poles. These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Holy Place in front of the inner sanctuary, but not from outside the Holy Place; and they are still there today.(O) There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets(P) that Moses had placed in it at Horeb, where the Lord made a covenant with the Israelites after they came out of Egypt.

10 When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud(Q) filled the temple of the Lord. 11 And the priests could not perform their service(R) because of the cloud, for the glory(S) of the Lord filled his temple.

12 Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud;(T) 13 I have indeed built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell(U) forever.”

14 While the whole assembly of Israel was standing there, the king turned around and blessed(V) them. 15 Then he said:

“Praise be to the Lord,(W) the God of Israel, who with his own hand has fulfilled what he promised with his own mouth to my father David. For he said, 16 ‘Since the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt,(X) I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built so that my Name(Y) might be there, but I have chosen(Z) David(AA) to rule my people Israel.’

17 “My father David had it in his heart(AB) to build a temple(AC) for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 18 But the Lord said to my father David, ‘You did well to have it in your heart to build a temple for my Name. 19 Nevertheless, you(AD) are not the one to build the temple, but your son, your own flesh and blood—he is the one who will build the temple for my Name.’(AE)

20 “The Lord has kept the promise he made: I have succeeded(AF) David my father and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the Lord promised, and I have built(AG) the temple for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 21 I have provided a place there for the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he made with our ancestors when he brought them out of Egypt.”

Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication(AH)

22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands(AI) toward heaven 23 and said:

Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like(AJ) you in heaven above or on earth below—you who keep your covenant of love(AK) with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way. 24 You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it—as it is today.

25 “Now Lord, the God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises(AL) you made to him when you said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants are careful in all they do to walk before me faithfully as you have done.’ 26 And now, God of Israel, let your word that you promised(AM) your servant David my father come true.

27 “But will God really dwell(AN) on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven,(AO) cannot contain(AP) you. How much less this temple I have built! 28 Yet give attention to your servant’s prayer and his plea for mercy, Lord my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence this day. 29 May your eyes be open(AQ) toward(AR) this temple night and day, this place of which you said, ‘My Name(AS) shall be there,’ so that you will hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place. 30 Hear the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray(AT) toward this place. Hear(AU) from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.(AV)

31 “When anyone wrongs their neighbor and is required to take an oath and they come and swear the oath(AW) before your altar in this temple, 32 then hear from heaven and act. Judge between your servants, condemning the guilty by bringing down on their heads what they have done, and vindicating the innocent by treating them in accordance with their innocence.(AX)

33 “When your people Israel have been defeated(AY) by an enemy because they have sinned(AZ) against you, and when they turn back to you and give praise to your name, praying and making supplication to you in this temple,(BA) 34 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the land you gave to their ancestors.

35 “When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain(BB) because your people have sinned(BC) against you, and when they pray toward this place and give praise to your name and turn from their sin because you have afflicted them, 36 then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Teach(BD) them the right way(BE) to live, and send rain(BF) on the land you gave your people for an inheritance.

37 “When famine(BG) or plague(BH) comes to the land, or blight(BI) or mildew, locusts or grasshoppers,(BJ) or when an enemy besieges them in any of their cities, whatever disaster or disease may come, 38 and when a prayer or plea is made by anyone among your people Israel—being aware of the afflictions of their own hearts, and spreading out their hands(BK) toward this temple— 39 then hear(BL) from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive(BM) and act; deal with everyone according to all they do, since you know(BN) their hearts (for you alone know every human heart), 40 so that they will fear(BO) you all the time they live in the land(BP) you gave our ancestors.

41 “As for the foreigner(BQ) who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your name— 42 for they will hear(BR) of your great name and your mighty hand(BS) and your outstretched arm—when they come and pray toward this temple, 43 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know(BT) your name and fear(BU) you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.(BV)

44 “When your people go to war against their enemies, wherever you send them, and when they pray(BW) to the Lord toward the city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name, 45 then hear from heaven their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.(BX)

46 “When they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin(BY)—and you become angry with them and give them over to their enemies, who take them captive(BZ) to their own lands, far away or near; 47 and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead(CA) with you in the land of their captors and say, ‘We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly’;(CB) 48 and if they turn back(CC) to you with all their heart(CD) and soul in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and pray(CE) to you toward the land you gave their ancestors, toward the city you have chosen and the temple(CF) I have built for your Name;(CG) 49 then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause. 50 And forgive your people, who have sinned against you; forgive all the offenses they have committed against you, and cause their captors to show them mercy;(CH) 51 for they are your people and your inheritance,(CI) whom you brought out of Egypt, out of that iron-smelting furnace.(CJ)

52 “May your eyes be open(CK) to your servant’s plea and to the plea of your people Israel, and may you listen to them whenever they cry out to you.(CL) 53 For you singled them out from all the nations of the world to be your own inheritance,(CM) just as you declared through your servant Moses when you, Sovereign Lord, brought our ancestors out of Egypt.”

54 When Solomon had finished all these prayers and supplications to the Lord, he rose from before the altar of the Lord, where he had been kneeling with his hands spread out toward heaven. 55 He stood and blessed(CN) the whole assembly of Israel in a loud voice, saying:

56 “Praise be to the Lord, who has given rest(CO) to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises(CP) he gave through his servant Moses. 57 May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us nor forsake(CQ) us. 58 May he turn our hearts(CR) to him, to walk in obedience to him and keep the commands, decrees and laws he gave our ancestors. 59 And may these words of mine, which I have prayed before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God day and night, that he may uphold the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel according to each day’s need, 60 so that all the peoples(CS) of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other.(CT) 61 And may your hearts(CU) be fully committed(CV) to the Lord our God, to live by his decrees and obey his commands, as at this time.”

The Dedication of the Temple(CW)

62 Then the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices(CX) before the Lord. 63 Solomon offered a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to the Lord: twenty-two thousand cattle and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep and goats. So the king and all the Israelites dedicated(CY) the temple of the Lord.

64 On that same day the king consecrated the middle part of the courtyard in front of the temple of the Lord, and there he offered burnt offerings, grain offerings and the fat(CZ) of the fellowship offerings, because the bronze altar(DA) that stood before the Lord was too small to hold the burnt offerings, the grain offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings.(DB)

65 So Solomon observed the festival(DC) at that time, and all Israel with him—a vast assembly, people from Lebo Hamath(DD) to the Wadi of Egypt.(DE) They celebrated it before the Lord our God for seven days and seven days more, fourteen days in all. 66 On the following day he sent the people away. They blessed the king and then went home, joyful and glad in heart for all the good(DF) things the Lord had done for his servant David and his people Israel.

The Lord Appears to Solomon(DG)

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

“I have heard(DJ) the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you have built, by putting my Name(DK) there forever. My eyes(DL) and my heart will always be there.

“As for you, if you walk before me faithfully with integrity of heart(DM) and uprightness, as David(DN) your father did, and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws,(DO) I will establish(DP) your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised David your father when I said, ‘You shall never fail(DQ) to have a successor on the throne of Israel.’

“But if you[a] or your descendants turn away(DR) from me and do not observe the commands and decrees I have given you[b] and go off to serve other gods(DS) and worship them, then I will cut off Israel from the land(DT) I have given them and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name.(DU) Israel will then become a byword(DV) and an object of ridicule(DW) among all peoples. This temple will become a heap of rubble. All[c] who pass by will be appalled(DX) and will scoff and say, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’(DY) People will answer,(DZ) ‘Because they have forsaken(EA) the Lord their God, who brought their ancestors out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—that is why the Lord brought all this disaster(EB) on them.’”

Solomon’s Other Activities(EC)

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(ED) 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](EE) a name they have to this day. 14 Now Hiram had sent to the king 120 talents[e] of gold.(EF)

15 Here is the account of the forced labor King Solomon conscripted(EG) to build the Lord’s temple, his own palace, the terraces,[f](EH) the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor,(EI) Megiddo and Gezer.(EJ) 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,(EK) Solomon’s wife. 17 And Solomon rebuilt Gezer.) He built up Lower Beth Horon,(EL) 18 Baalath,(EM) and Tadmor[g] in the desert, within his land, 19 as well as all his store cities(EN) and the towns for his chariots(EO) 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,(EP) Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites(EQ) (these peoples were not Israelites). 21 Solomon conscripted the descendants(ER) of all these peoples remaining in the land—whom the Israelites could not exterminate[i](ES)—to serve as slave labor,(ET) as it is to this day. 22 But Solomon did not make slaves(EU) 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(EV) in charge of Solomon’s projects—550 officials supervising those who did the work.

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

25 Three(EY) 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(EZ) at Ezion Geber,(FA) which is near Elath(FB) in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea.[j] 27 And Hiram sent his men—sailors(FC) who knew the sea—to serve in the fleet with Solomon’s men. 28 They sailed to Ophir(FD) and brought back 420 talents[k] of gold,(FE) which they delivered to King Solomon.

The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon(FF)

10 When the queen of Sheba(FG) heard about the fame(FH) of Solomon and his relationship to the Lord, she came to test Solomon with hard questions.(FI) Arriving at Jerusalem with a very great caravan(FJ)—with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones—she came to Solomon and talked with him about all that she had on her mind. Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her. When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the palace he had built, the food on his table,(FK) the seating of his officials, the attending servants in their robes, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he made at[l] the temple of the Lord, she was overwhelmed.

She said to the king, “The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. But I did not believe(FL) these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth(FM) you have far exceeded the report I heard. How happy your people must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear(FN) your wisdom! Praise(FO) be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord’s eternal love(FP) for Israel, he has made you king to maintain justice(FQ) and righteousness.”

10 And she gave the king 120 talents[m] of gold,(FR) 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.

11 (Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir;(FS) and from there they brought great cargoes of almugwood[n] and precious stones. 12 The king used the almugwood to make supports[o] for the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. So much almugwood has never been imported or seen since that day.)

13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for, besides what he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she left and returned with her retinue to her own country.

Solomon’s Splendor(FT)

14 The weight of the gold(FU) that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents,[p] 15 not including the revenues from merchants and traders and from all the Arabian kings and the governors of the territories.

16 King Solomon made two hundred large shields(FV) of hammered gold; six hundred shekels[q] of gold went into each shield. 17 He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold, with three minas[r] of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.(FW)

18 Then the king made a great throne covered with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and its back had a rounded top. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them. 20 Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom. 21 All King Solomon’s goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold.(FX) Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon’s days. 22 The king had a fleet of trading ships[s](FY) at sea along with the ships(FZ) of Hiram. Once every three years it returned, carrying gold, silver and ivory, and apes and baboons.

23 King Solomon was greater in riches(GA) and wisdom(GB) than all the other kings of the earth. 24 The whole world sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom(GC) God had put in his heart. 25 Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift(GD)—articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules.

26 Solomon accumulated chariots and horses;(GE) he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses,[t] which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. 27 The king made silver as common(GF) in Jerusalem as stones,(GG) and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig(GH) trees in the foothills. 28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Kue[u]—the royal merchants purchased them from Kue at the current price. 29 They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty.[v] They also exported them to all the kings of the Hittites(GI) and of the Arameans.

Solomon’s Wives

11 King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women(GJ) besides Pharaoh’s daughter—Moabites, Ammonites,(GK) Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry(GL) with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines,(GM) and his wives led him astray.(GN) As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods,(GO) and his heart was not fully devoted(GP) to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. He followed Ashtoreth(GQ) the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek(GR) the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil(GS) in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.

On a hill east(GT) of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh(GU) the detestable god of Moab, and for Molek(GV) the detestable god of the Ammonites. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.

The Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared(GW) to him twice. 10 Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods,(GX) Solomon did not keep the Lord’s command.(GY) 11 So the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees,(GZ) which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear(HA) the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. 12 Nevertheless, for the sake of David(HB) your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13 Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe(HC) for the sake(HD) of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”(HE)

Solomon’s Adversaries

14 Then the Lord raised up against Solomon an adversary,(HF) Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom. 15 Earlier when David was fighting with Edom, Joab the commander of the army, who had gone up to bury the dead, had struck down all the men in Edom.(HG) 16 Joab and all the Israelites stayed there for six months, until they had destroyed all the men in Edom. 17 But Hadad, still only a boy, fled to Egypt with some Edomite officials who had served his father. 18 They set out from Midian and went to Paran.(HH) Then taking people from Paran with them, they went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave Hadad a house and land and provided him with food.

19 Pharaoh was so pleased with Hadad that he gave him a sister of his own wife, Queen Tahpenes, in marriage. 20 The sister of Tahpenes bore him a son named Genubath, whom Tahpenes brought up in the royal palace. There Genubath lived with Pharaoh’s own children.

21 While he was in Egypt, Hadad heard that David rested with his ancestors and that Joab the commander of the army was also dead. Then Hadad said to Pharaoh, “Let me go, that I may return to my own country.”

22 “What have you lacked here that you want to go back to your own country?” Pharaoh asked.

“Nothing,” Hadad replied, “but do let me go!”

23 And God raised up against Solomon another adversary,(HI) Rezon son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer(HJ) king of Zobah. 24 When David destroyed Zobah’s army, Rezon gathered a band of men around him and became their leader; they went to Damascus,(HK) where they settled and took control. 25 Rezon was Israel’s adversary as long as Solomon lived, adding to the trouble caused by Hadad. So Rezon ruled in Aram(HL) and was hostile toward Israel.

Jeroboam Rebels Against Solomon

26 Also, Jeroboam son of Nebat rebelled(HM) against the king. He was one of Solomon’s officials, an Ephraimite from Zeredah, and his mother was a widow named Zeruah.

27 Here is the account of how he rebelled against the king: Solomon had built the terraces[w](HN) and had filled in the gap in the wall of the city of David his father. 28 Now Jeroboam was a man of standing,(HO) and when Solomon saw how well(HP) the young man did his work, he put him in charge of the whole labor force of the tribes of Joseph.

29 About that time Jeroboam was going out of Jerusalem, and Ahijah(HQ) the prophet of Shiloh met him on the way, wearing a new cloak. The two of them were alone out in the country, 30 and Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing and tore(HR) it into twelve pieces. 31 Then he said to Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘See, I am going to tear(HS) the kingdom out of Solomon’s hand and give you ten tribes. 32 But for the sake(HT) of my servant David and the city of Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, he will have one tribe. 33 I will do this because they have[x] forsaken me and worshiped(HU) Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Molek the god of the Ammonites, and have not walked(HV) in obedience to me, nor done what is right in my eyes, nor kept my decrees(HW) and laws as David, Solomon’s father, did.

34 “‘But I will not take the whole kingdom out of Solomon’s hand; I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of David my servant, whom I chose and who obeyed my commands and decrees. 35 I will take the kingdom from his son’s hands and give you ten tribes. 36 I will give one tribe(HX) to his son so that David my servant may always have a lamp(HY) before me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put my Name. 37 However, as for you, I will take you, and you will rule(HZ) over all that your heart desires;(IA) you will be king over Israel. 38 If you do whatever I command you and walk in obedience to me and do what is right(IB) in my eyes by obeying my decrees(IC) and commands, as David my servant did, I will be with you. I will build you a dynasty(ID) as enduring as the one I built for David and will give Israel to you. 39 I will humble David’s descendants because of this, but not forever.’”

40 Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam fled(IE) to Egypt, to Shishak(IF) the king, and stayed there until Solomon’s death.

Solomon’s Death(IG)

41 As for the other events of Solomon’s reign—all he did and the wisdom he displayed—are they not written in the book of the annals of Solomon? 42 Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years. 43 Then he rested with his ancestors and was buried in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam(IH) his son succeeded him as king.

Israel Rebels Against Rehoboam(II)

12 Rehoboam went to Shechem,(IJ) for all Israel had gone there to make him king. When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this (he was still in Egypt, where he had fled(IK) from King Solomon), he returned from[y] Egypt. So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and the whole assembly of Israel went to Rehoboam and said to him: “Your father put a heavy yoke(IL) on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.”

Rehoboam answered, “Go away for three days and then come back to me.” So the people went away.

Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders(IM) who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. “How would you advise me to answer these people?” he asked.

They replied, “If today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer,(IN) they will always be your servants.”

But Rehoboam rejected(IO) the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him. He asked them, “What is your advice? How should we answer these people who say to me, ‘Lighten the yoke your father put on us’?”

10 The young men who had grown up with him replied, “These people have said to you, ‘Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but make our yoke lighter.’ Now tell them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. 11 My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.’”

12 Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, as the king had said, “Come back to me in three days.” 13 The king answered the people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by the elders, 14 he followed the advice of the young men and said, “My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged(IP) you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.” 15 So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from the Lord,(IQ) to fulfill the word the Lord had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah(IR) the Shilonite.

16 When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king:

“What share(IS) do we have in David,
    what part in Jesse’s son?
To your tents, Israel!(IT)
    Look after your own house, David!”

So the Israelites went home.(IU) 17 But as for the Israelites who were living in the towns of Judah,(IV) Rehoboam still ruled over them.

18 King Rehoboam sent out Adoniram,[z](IW) who was in charge of forced labor, but all Israel stoned him to death.(IX) 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(IY) to this day.

20 When all the Israelites heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the house of David.(IZ)

21 When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mustered all Judah and the tribe of Benjamin—a hundred and eighty thousand able young men—to go to war(JA) against Israel and to regain the kingdom for Rehoboam son of Solomon.

22 But this word of God came to Shemaiah(JB) the man of God:(JC) 23 “Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah, to all Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, 24 ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not go up to fight against your brothers, the Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.’” So they obeyed the word of the Lord and went home again, as the Lord had ordered.

Golden Calves at Bethel and Dan

25 Then Jeroboam fortified Shechem(JD) in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built up Peniel.[aa](JE)

26 Jeroboam thought to himself, “The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David. 27 If these people go up to offer sacrifices at the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem,(JF) they will again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will kill me and return to King Rehoboam.”

28 After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves.(JG) He said to the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.”(JH) 29 One he set up in Bethel,(JI) and the other in Dan.(JJ) 30 And this thing became a sin;(JK) the people came to worship the one at Bethel and went as far as Dan to worship the other.[ab]

31 Jeroboam built shrines(JL) on high places and appointed priests(JM) from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites. 32 He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth(JN) month, like the festival held in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel,(JO) sacrificing to the calves he had made. And at Bethel he also installed priests at the high places he had made. 33 On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a month of his own choosing, he offered sacrifices on the altar he had built at Bethel.(JP) So he instituted the festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to make offerings.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 9:6 The Hebrew is plural.
  2. 1 Kings 9:6 The Hebrew is plural.
  3. 1 Kings 9:8 See some Septuagint manuscripts, Old Latin, Syriac, Arabic and Targum; Hebrew And though this temple is now imposing, all
  4. 1 Kings 9:13 Kabul sounds like the Hebrew for good-for-nothing.
  5. 1 Kings 9:14 That is, about 4 1/2 tons or about 4 metric tons
  6. 1 Kings 9:15 Or the Millo; also in verse 24
  7. 1 Kings 9:18 The Hebrew may also be read Tamar.
  8. 1 Kings 9:19 Or charioteers
  9. 1 Kings 9:21 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.
  10. 1 Kings 9:26 Or the Sea of Reeds
  11. 1 Kings 9:28 That is, about 16 tons or about 14 metric tons
  12. 1 Kings 10:5 Or the ascent by which he went up to
  13. 1 Kings 10:10 That is, about 4 1/2 tons or about 4 metric tons
  14. 1 Kings 10:11 Probably a variant of algumwood; also in verse 12
  15. 1 Kings 10:12 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  16. 1 Kings 10:14 That is, about 25 tons or about 23 metric tons
  17. 1 Kings 10:16 That is, about 15 pounds or about 6.9 kilograms; also in verse 29
  18. 1 Kings 10:17 That is, about 3 3/4 pounds or about 1.7 kilograms; or perhaps reference is to double minas, that is, about 7 1/2 pounds or about 3.5 kilograms.
  19. 1 Kings 10:22 Hebrew of ships of Tarshish
  20. 1 Kings 10:26 Or charioteers
  21. 1 Kings 10:28 Probably Cilicia
  22. 1 Kings 10:29 That is, about 3 3/4 pounds or about 1.7 kilograms
  23. 1 Kings 11:27 Or the Millo
  24. 1 Kings 11:33 Hebrew; Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac because he has
  25. 1 Kings 12:2 Or he remained in
  26. 1 Kings 12:18 Some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac (see also 4:6 and 5:14); Hebrew Adoram
  27. 1 Kings 12:25 Hebrew Penuel, a variant of Peniel
  28. 1 Kings 12:30 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text; Masoretic Text people went to the one as far as Dan

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