Jeroboam’s Idolatry

²⁵ Then ^(A)Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and lived ^[a]there. And he went out from there and built ^(B)Penuel. ²⁶ And Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom will return to the house of David. ^27 (C)If this people go up to ^[b]offer sacrifices in the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will return to their lord, to Rehoboam king of Judah; and they will kill me and return to Rehoboam king of Judah.” ²⁸ So the king ^[c]consulted, and he ^(D)made two golden ^(E)calves; and he said to ^[d]the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem; ^(F)behold your gods, Israel, that brought you up from the land of Egypt.” ²⁹ And he set up ^(G)one in ^(H)Bethel, and the other he put in ^(I)Dan. ³⁰ Now ^(J)this thing became a sin, for the people went to worship before the one as far as Dan. ³¹ And ^(K)he made houses on high places, and ^[e](L)appointed priests from ^[f]all the people who were not of the sons of Levi. ³² Jeroboam also ^[g]instituted a feast in the eighth month on the fifteenth day of the month, ^(M)like the feast that is in Judah, and he ^[h]went up to the altar. So he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves which he had made. And he stationed in Bethel ^(N)the priests of the high places which he had made.