11 King Solomon fell in love with many foreign women (besides Pharaoh’s daughter), including Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites. 2 They came from nations about which the Lord had warned the Israelites, “You must not establish friendly relations with them! 1 If you do, they will surely shift your allegiance to their gods.” 2 But Solomon was irresistibly attracted to them. 3
3 He had 700 royal wives 4 and 300 concubines; 5 his wives had a powerful influence over him. 6 4 When Solomon became old, his wives shifted his allegiance to 7 other gods; he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God, as his father David had been. 8 5 Solomon worshiped 9 the Sidonian goddess Astarte and the detestable Ammonite god Milcom. 10 6 Solomon did evil in the Lord’s sight; 11 he did not remain loyal to 12 the Lord, like his father David had. 7 Furthermore, 13 on the hill east of Jerusalem 14 Solomon built a high place 15 for the detestable Moabite god Chemosh 16 and for the detestable Ammonite god Milcom. 17 8 He built high places for all his foreign wives so they could burn incense and make sacrifices to their gods. 18
9 The Lord was angry with Solomon because he had shifted his allegiance 19 away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him on two occasions 20 10 and had warned him about this very thing, so that he would not follow other gods. 21 But he did not obey 22 the Lord’s command. 11 So the Lord said to Solomon, “Because you insist on doing these things and have not kept the covenantal rules I gave you, 23 I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant. 12 However, for your father David’s sake I will not do this while you are alive. I will tear it away from your son’s hand instead. 13 But I will not tear away the entire kingdom; I will leave 24 your son one tribe for my servant David’s sake and for the sake of my chosen city Jerusalem.”
14 The Lord brought 25 against Solomon an enemy, Hadad the Edomite, a descendant of the Edomite king. 15 During David’s campaign against Edom, 26 Joab, the commander of the army, while on a mission to bury the dead, killed every male in Edom. 16 For six months Joab and the entire Israelite army 27 stayed there until they had exterminated every male in Edom. 28 17 Hadad, 29 who was only a small boy at the time, escaped with some of his father’s Edomite servants and headed for Egypt. 30 18 They went from Midian to Paran; they took some men from Paran and went to Egypt. Pharaoh, king of Egypt, supplied him with a house and food and even assigned him some land. 31 19 Pharaoh liked Hadad so well 32 he gave him his sister-in-law (Queen Tahpenes’ sister) as a wife. 33 20 Tahpenes’ sister gave birth to his son, 34 named Genubath. Tahpenes raised 35 him in Pharaoh’s palace; Genubath grew up in Pharaoh’s palace among Pharaoh’s sons. 21 While in Egypt Hadad heard that David had passed away 36 and that Joab, the commander of the army, was dead. So Hadad asked Pharaoh, “Give me permission to leave 37 so I can return to my homeland.” 22 Pharaoh said to him, “What do you lack here that makes you want to go to your homeland?” 38 Hadad replied, 39 “Nothing, but please give me permission to leave.” 40
23 God also brought against Solomon 41 another enemy, Rezon son of Eliada who had run away from his master, King Hadadezer of Zobah. 24 He gathered some men and organized a raiding band. 42 When David tried to kill them, 43 they went to Damascus, where they settled down and gained control of the city. 25 He was Israel’s enemy throughout Solomon’s reign and, like Hadad, caused trouble. He loathed 44 Israel and ruled over Syria.
26 Jeroboam son of Nebat, one of Solomon’s servants, rebelled against 45 the king. He was an Ephraimite 46 from Zeredah whose mother was a widow named Zeruah. 27 This is what prompted him to rebel against the king: 47 Solomon built a terrace and he closed up a gap in the wall of the city of his father David. 48 28 Jeroboam was a talented man; 49 when Solomon saw that the young man was an accomplished worker, he made him the leader of the work crew from the tribe 50 of Joseph. 29 At that time, when Jeroboam had left Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met him on the road; the two of them were alone in the open country. Ahijah 51 was wearing a brand new robe, 30 and he grabbed the robe 52 and tore it into twelve pieces. 31 Then he told Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces, for this is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘Look, I am about to tear the kingdom from Solomon’s hand and I will give ten tribes to you. 32 He will retain one tribe, for my servant David’s sake and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel. 33 I am taking the kingdom from him 53 because they have 54 abandoned me and worshiped the Sidonian goddess Astarte, the Moabite god Chemosh, and the Ammonite god Milcom. They have not followed my instructions 55 by doing what I approve and obeying my rules and regulations, like Solomon’s father David did. 56 34 I will not take the whole kingdom from his hand. I will allow him to be ruler for the rest of his life for the sake of my chosen servant David who kept my commandments and rules. 35 I will take the kingdom from the hand of his son and give ten tribes to you. 57 36 I will leave 58 his son one tribe so my servant David’s dynasty may continue to serve me 59 in Jerusalem, the city I have chosen as my home. 60 37 I will select 61 you; you will rule over all you desire to have and you will be king over Israel. 38 You must obey 62 all I command you to do, follow my instructions, 63 do what I approve, 64 and keep my rules and commandments, like my servant David did. Then I will be with you and establish for you a lasting dynasty, as I did for David; 65 I will give you Israel. 39 I will humiliate David’s descendants because of this, 66 but not forever.” 67 40 Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam escaped to Egypt and found refuge with King Shishak of Egypt. 68 He stayed in Egypt until Solomon died.
41 The rest of the events of Solomon’s reign, including all his accomplishments and his wise decisions, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of Solomon. 69 42 Solomon ruled over all Israel from Jerusalem 70 for forty years. 43 Then Solomon passed away 71 and was buried in the city of his father David. 72 His son Rehoboam replaced him as king. 73
12 Rehoboam traveled to Shechem, for all Israel had gathered in 1 Shechem to make Rehoboam 2 king. 2 3 When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard the news, he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon and had been living ever since. 4 3 They sent for him, 5 and Jeroboam and the whole Israelite assembly came and spoke to Rehoboam, saying, 4 “Your father made us work too hard. 6 Now if you lighten the demands he made and don’t make us work as hard, we will serve you.” 7 5 He said to them, “Go away for three days, then return to me.” So the people went away.
6 King Rehoboam consulted with the older advisers who had served 8 his father Solomon when he had been alive. He asked them, 9 “How do you advise me to answer these people?” 7 They said to him, “Today if you show a willingness to help these people and grant their request, they will be your servants from this time forward.” 10 8 But Rehoboam rejected their advice and consulted the young advisers who served him, with whom he had grown up. 11 9 He asked them, “How do you advise me 12 to respond to these people who said to me, ‘Lessen the demands your father placed on us’?” 13 10 The young advisers with whom Rehoboam 14 had grown up said to him, “Say this to these people who have said to you, ‘Your father made us work hard, but now lighten our burden.’ 15 Say this to them: ‘I am a lot harsher than my father! 16 11 My father imposed heavy demands on you; I will make them even heavier. 17 My father punished you with ordinary whips; I will punish you with whips that really sting your flesh.’” 18
12 Jeroboam and all the people reported 19 to Rehoboam on the third day, just as the king had ordered when he said, “Return to me on the third day.” 13 The king responded to the people harshly. He rejected the advice of the older men 14 and followed 20 the advice of the younger ones. He said, “My father imposed heavy demands on you; I will make them even heavier. 21 My father punished you with ordinary whips; I will punish you with whips that really sting your flesh.” 22 15 The king refused to listen to the people, because the Lord was instigating this turn of events 23 so that he might bring to pass the prophetic announcement he had made 24 through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat.
16 When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, the people answered the king, “We have no portion in David, no share in the son of Jesse! 25 Return to your homes, O Israel! 26 Now, look after your own dynasty, O David!” 27 So Israel returned to their homes. 28 17 (Rehoboam continued to rule over the Israelites who lived in the cities of Judah.) 18 King Rehoboam sent Adoniram, 29 the supervisor of the work crews, 30 out after them, but all Israel stoned him to death. King Rehoboam managed to jump into his chariot and escape to Jerusalem. 31 19 So Israel has been in rebellion against the Davidic dynasty to this very day. 20 When all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they summoned him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. No one except the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the Davidic dynasty. 32
21 When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he summoned 180,000 skilled warriors from all of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin 33 to attack Israel and restore the kingdom to Rehoboam son of Solomon. 22 But God told Shemaiah the prophet, 34 23 “Say this to King Rehoboam son of Solomon of Judah, and to all Judah and Benjamin, as well as the rest of the people, 24 ‘The Lord says this: “Do not attack and make war with your brothers, the Israelites. Each of you go home, for I have caused this to happen.”’” 35 They obeyed the Lord and went home as the Lord had ordered them to do. 36
25 Jeroboam built up Shechem in the Ephraimite hill country and lived there. From there he went out and built up Penuel. 26 Jeroboam then thought to himself: 38 “Now the Davidic dynasty could regain the kingdom. 39 27 If these people go up to offer sacrifices in the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem, 40 their loyalty could shift to their former master, 41 King Rehoboam of Judah. They might kill me and return to King Rehoboam of Judah.” 28 After the king had consulted with his advisers, 42 he made two golden calves. Then he said to the people, 43 “It is too much trouble for you to go up to Jerusalem. Look, Israel, here are your gods who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” 29 He put one in Bethel 44 and the other in Dan. 30 This caused Israel to sin; 45 the people went to Bethel and Dan to worship the calves. 46
31 He built temples 47 on the high places and appointed as priests people who were not Levites. 32 Jeroboam inaugurated a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, 48 like the festival celebrated in Judah. 49 On the altar in Bethel he offered sacrifices to the calves he had made. 50 In Bethel he also appointed priests for the high places he had made.
33 On the fifteenth day of the eighth month (a date he had arbitrarily chosen) 51 Jeroboam 52 offered sacrifices on the altar he had made in Bethel. 53 He inaugurated a festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to offer sacrifices.
