1 Kings 11:26-40
Evangelical Heritage Version
God Chooses Jeroboam to Be King of Israel
26 Jeroboam son of Nebat was an Ephraimite from Zeredah. His mother’s name was Zeruah. She was a widow. Jeroboam was Solomon’s official, but he rebelled against the king. 27 This is the account of how he rebelled against the king.
When Solomon was rebuilding the Millo and repairing the gap in the wall in the city of his father David, 28 Jeroboam showed that he was a very capable man. When Solomon saw that the young man was a capable worker, he appointed him over all the forced labor of the house of Joseph.[a] 29 At that time, when Jeroboam left Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh met him on the road.[b] Ahijah was wearing a new cloak. The two of them were alone in the field. 30 Ahijah took the new cloak he was wearing and tore it into twelve pieces.
31 He told Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, because this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says.”
The Lord’s Message to Jeroboam
Look, I am tearing the kingdom out of Solomon’s hand, and I will give you ten tribes. 32 But one tribe will remain with him for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel. 33 This is because they have abandoned me and worshipped Ashtarte the goddess of the Sidonians, and Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites. They have not walked in my ways by doing what is upright in my eyes and keeping my commands and judgments as his father David did. 34 I will not take the whole kingdom from his hand because I appointed him leader for all the days of his life for the sake of my servant David, whom I chose and who kept my commands and statutes. 35 However, I will take the kingdom from his son’s hand, and I will give ten tribes to you. 36 To his son I will give one tribe in order that there may be a lamp for my servant David before me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put my Name.
37 But I will take you, and you will be king over all that your soul desires. You will be king over Israel. 38 If you listen to all that I command you, and if you walk in my ways and do what is right in my eyes, keeping my decrees and my statutes, just as my servant David did, then I will be with you, and I will build an enduring house for you, just as I built for David. I will give Israel to you. 39 Now I will humble the seed of David because of this, but not forever.
40 As a result Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam fled to Shishak king of Egypt. He stayed in Egypt until Solomon died.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1 Kings 11:28 That is, the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh
- 1 Kings 11:29 The Greek Old Testament has the additional words marked by the half-brackets: Ahijah from Shiloh met him on the road ⎣and caused him to turn aside out of the road⎦. The additional words are found between two occcurrences of the road.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.