Beginning

12 ¶ And Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king.

² And it came to pass, when Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it (for he had fled from the presence of King Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt),

³ that they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came and spoke unto Rehoboam, saying,

⁴ Thy father made our yoke grievous; now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.

⁵ And he said unto them, Depart, and in three days come again to me. And the people departed.

⁶ Then King Rehoboam consulted with the old men that had stood before Solomon, his father, while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people?

⁷ And they spoke unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a slave unto this people this day and wilt serve them and answer them by speaking good words unto them, then they will be thy slaves for ever.

⁸ But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him and who stood before him.

⁹ And he said unto them, What counsel give ye that we may answer this people who have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke which thy father put upon us lighter?

¹⁰ And the young men that were grown up with him spoke unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto this people that spoke unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto them: My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins.

¹¹ And now whereas my father ladened you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke; my father has chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.

¹² So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me again the third day.

¹³ And the king answered the people roughly and forsook the old men’s counsel that they gave him

¹⁴ and spoke to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke; my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.

¹⁵ Therefore, the king did not hearken unto the people, for the cause was from the LORD, to confirm his word, which the LORD spoke by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam, the son of Nebat.

¹⁶ ¶ So when all Israel saw that the king did not hearken unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? There is no inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, O Israel! Now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents.

¹⁷ But Rehoboam reigned over the sons of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah.

¹⁸ Then King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the tribute, but all Israel stoned him with stones, and he died. Then King Rehoboam made speed to get into his chariot and flee to Jerusalem.

¹⁹ So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day.

²⁰ And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation and made him king over all Israel; there were none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only.

²¹ And when Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, one hundred and eighty thousand chosen men of war, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam, the son of Solomon.

²² But the word of God came unto Shemaiah, the man of God, saying,

²³ Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin and to the remnant of the people, saying,

²⁴ Thus hath the LORD said, Ye shall not go up nor fight against your brethren, the sons of Israel; return each one to his house, for this thing is from me. They hearkened, therefore, to the word of the LORD and returned to depart, according to the word of the LORD.

²⁵ ¶ And Jeroboam rebuilt Shechem in Mount Ephraim and dwelt therein, and going out from there, rebuilt Penuel.

²⁶ And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David

²⁷ if this people go up to sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem; for the heart of this people shall turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam, king of Judah, and they shall kill me and go again to Rehoboam, king of Judah.

²⁸ And having taken counsel, the king made two calves of gold and said unto the people, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem; behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

²⁹ And he set the one in Bethel and the other he put in Dan.

³⁰ And this became an occasion for sin, for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.

³¹ And he made a house of high places and made priests of the lowest of the people, who were not of the sons of Levi.

³² Then Jeroboam ordained a solemnity in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the solemnity that was celebrated in Judah; and he sacrificed upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made. He also ordered in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made.

³³ So he sacrificed upon the altar which he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, the month which he had devised of his own heart, and made a feast unto the sons of Israel; and he climbed up on the altar to burn incense.

13 ¶ And, behold, a man of God came out of Judah by the word of the LORD unto Bethel; and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense.

² And he cried against the altar by the word of the LORD and said, O altar, altar, thus hath the LORD said: Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee he shall sacrifice the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men’s bones shall be burnt upon thee.

³ And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the LORD has spoken: Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes with the burnt fat that are upon it shall be poured out.

⁴ And when King Jeroboam heard the word of the man of God, who had cried out against the altar in Bethel, that he put forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not pull it in again to him.

⁵ The altar also was rent, and the ashes with the burnt fat were poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD.

⁶ Then the king answered and said unto the man of God, Intreat now the face of the LORD thy God and pray for me, that my hand may be restored me again. And the man of God besought the LORD, and the king’s hand was restored him again and became as it was before.

⁷ And the king said unto the man of God, Come home with me and refresh thyself, and I will give thee a gift.

⁸ But the man of God said unto the king, If thou wilt give me half thy house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place,

⁹ for so was it charged me by the word of the LORD, saying, Eat no bread nor drink water nor turn again by the same way that thou camest.

¹⁰ So he went another way and did not return by the way that he came to Bethel.

¹¹ ¶ Now there dwelt an old prophet in Bethel, and his sons came and told him all the works that the man of God had done that day in Bethel; they also told their father the words which he had spoken unto the king.

¹² And their father said unto them, What way did he go? And his sons showed him the way the man of God had gone, who had come from Judah.

¹³ And he said unto his sons, Saddle me the ass. So they saddled him the ass, and he rode thereon

¹⁴ and went after the man of God and found him sitting under an oak; and he said unto him, Art thou the man of God that didst come from Judah? And he said, I am.

¹⁵ Then he said unto him, Come home with me and eat bread.

¹⁶ And he said, I may not return with thee nor go in with thee; neither will I eat bread nor drink water with thee in this place,

¹⁷ for it was said to me by the word of the LORD, Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink water there nor turn again to go by the way that thou camest.

¹⁸ And the other said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art, and an angel spoke unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee into thy house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him.

¹⁹ So he went back with him and ate bread in his house and drank water.

²⁰ And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the word of the LORD came unto the prophet that brought him back,

²¹ and he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus hath the LORD said, Forasmuch as thou hast rebelled against the mouth of the LORD and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee,

²² but didst come back and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place, of which the LORD did say to thee, Eat no bread and drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers.

²³ ¶ And when he had eaten of the bread and after he had drunk, the prophet that had brought him back saddled an ass for him,

²⁴ and as he went, a lion met him by the way and slew him, and his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it, and the lion also stood by the carcase.

²⁵ And, behold, men passed by and saw the carcase cast in the way, and the lion standing by the carcase; and they came and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.

²⁶ And when the prophet that had brought him back from the way heard of it, he said, It is the man of God, who rebelled against the word of the LORD; therefore, the LORD has delivered him unto the lion, who has torn him and slain him, according to the word of the LORD, which he spoke unto him.

²⁷ And he spoke to his sons, saying, Saddle me an ass. And they saddled it for him.

²⁸ And he went and found his carcase cast in the way, and the ass and the lion standing by the carcase; the lion had not eaten the carcase nor torn the ass.

²⁹ And the prophet took up the carcase of the man of God and laid it upon the ass and brought it back. And the old prophet came to the city to mourn and to bury him.

³⁰ And he laid his carcase in his own grave, and they mourned over him, saying, Alas, my brother!

³¹ And it came to pass, after he had buried him, that he spoke to his sons, saying, When I am dead, then bury me in the sepulchre in which the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones.

³² For that which he proclaimed by the word of the LORD against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places, which are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely come to pass.

³³ After this thing Jeroboam did not return from his evil way, but made again of the lowest of the people priests of the high places; whoever would, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of the high places.

³⁴ And this became the cause of sin unto the house of Jeroboam for which it was cut off and destroyed from off the face of the earth.

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 not be known to be the wife of Jeroboam, and go to Shiloh, for Ahijah the prophet is there, who 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, that he shall tell thee what shall become of this 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 But the LORD had said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam shall come to consult thee regarding her son, who is sick; thus and thus shalt thou say unto her, for it shall be, when she comes, that she shall come in disguise.

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, wife of Jeroboam; why art thou in disguise? For I am sent to thee with heavy tidings.

⁷ ¶ Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus hath the LORD God of Israel said, 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 slave David, who kept my commandments and who followed me with all his heart, to doing only that which was right in my 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 everyone that pisses against the wall, the one that is shut up along with the one that is left in Israel, and will burn away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man burns away dung until it is all gone.

¹¹ The one that dies of those of Jeroboam in the city, the dogs shall eat, and the one that dies in the field, the fowls of the air shall eat; for the LORD has spoken it.

¹² Arise thou, therefore, go to thy 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 those of Jeroboam shall enter into the grave because in him there is found some good thing of the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam.

¹⁴ And the LORD shall raise up a king over Israel who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam in this day, but what if 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 had given 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 sinned and who has made Israel sin.

¹⁷ Then Jeroboam’s wife arose and departed and came to Tirzah; and as she entered by the threshold of the house, the child died.

¹⁸ And they buried him, and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the LORD, which he had spoken by the hand of his slave 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 twenty-two 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-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD chose 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 anger more than all that their fathers had done in their sins which they committed.

²³ For they also built themselves high places and statues, and groves on every high hill and under every green tree.

²⁴ And there were also male cult prostitutes in the land, and they did according to all the abominations of the Gentiles which the LORD had cast out before the sons 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 took it all away, 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, who kept the door of the king’s house.

²⁸ And when the king went into the house of the LORD, the guard bore them and brought them back afterward 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.