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11 And king Solomon hath loved many strange women, and the daughter of Pharaoh, females of Moab, Ammon, Edom, Zidon, [and] of the Hittites,

of the nations of which Jehovah said unto the sons of Israel, `Ye do not go in to them, and they do not go in to you; surely they turn aside your heart after their gods;' to them hath Solomon cleaved for love.

And he hath women, princesses, seven hundred, and concubines three hundred; and his wives turn aside his heart.

And it cometh to pass, at the time of the old age of Solomon, his wives have turned aside his heart after other gods, and his heart hath not been perfect with Jehovah his God, like the heart of David his father.

And Solomon goeth after Ashtoreth god[dess] of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites;

and Solomon doth the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah, and hath not been fully after Jehovah, like David his father.

Then doth Solomon build a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, in the hill that [is] on the front of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the sons of Ammon;

and so he hath done for all his strange women, who are perfuming and sacrificing to their gods.

And Jehovah sheweth Himself angry with Solomon, for his heart hath turned aside from Jehovah, God of Israel, who had appeared unto him twice,

10 and given a charge unto him concerning this thing, not to go after other gods; and he hath not kept that which Jehovah commanded,

11 and Jehovah saith to Solomon, `Because that this hath been with thee, and thou hast not kept My covenant and My statutes that I charged upon thee, I surely rend the kingdom from thee, and have given it to thy servant.

12 `Only, in thy days I do it not, for the sake of David thy father; out of the hand of thy son I rend it;

13 only all the kingdom I do not rend away; one tribe I give to thy son, for the sake of David My servant, and for the sake of Jerusalem, that I have chosen.'

14 And Jehovah raiseth up an adversary to Solomon, Hadad the Edomite; of the seed of the king [is] he in Edom;

15 and it cometh to pass, in David's being with Edom, in the going up of Joab head of the host to bury the slain, that he smiteth every male in Edom --

16 for six months did Joab abide there, and all Israel, till the cutting off of every male in Edom --

17 and Hadad fleeth, he and certain Edomites, of the servants of his father, with him, to go in to Egypt, and Hadad [is] a little youth,

18 and they rise out of Midian, and come into Paran, and take men with them out of Paran, and come in to Egypt, unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he giveth to him a house, and bread hath commanded for him, and land hath given to him.

19 And Hadad findeth grace in the eyes of Pharaoh exceedingly, and he giveth to him a wife, the sister of his own wife, sister of Tahpenes the mistress;

20 and the sister of Tahpenes beareth to him Genubath his son, and Tahpenes weaneth him within the house of Pharaoh, and Genubath is in the house of Pharaoh in the midst of the sons of Pharaoh.

21 And Hadad hath heard in Egypt that David hath lain with his fathers, and that Joab head of the host is dead, and Hadad saith unto Pharaoh, `Send me away, and I go unto my land.'

22 And Pharaoh saith to him, `But, what art thou lacking with me, that lo, thou art seeking to go unto thine own land?' and he saith, `Nay, but thou dost certainly send me away.'

23 And God raiseth to him an adversary, Rezon son of Eliadah, who hath fled from Hadadezer king of Zobah, his lord,

24 and gathereth unto himself men, and is head of a troop in David's slaying them, and they go to Damascus, and dwell in it, and reign in Damascus;

25 and he is an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, (besides the evil that Hadad [did]), and he cutteth off in Israel, and reigneth over Aram.

26 And Jeroboam son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda -- the name of whose mother [is] Zeruah, a widow woman -- servant to Solomon, he also lifteth up a hand against the king;

27 and this [is] the thing [for] which he lifted up a hand against the king: Solomon built Millo -- he shut up the breach of the city of David his father,

28 and the man Jeroboam [is] mighty in valour, and Solomon seeth the young man that he is doing business, and appointeth him over all the burden of the house of Joseph.

29 And it cometh to pass, at that time, that Jeroboam hath gone out from Jerusalem, and Ahijah the Shilonite, the prophet, findeth him in the way, and he is covering himself with a new garment; and both of them [are] by themselves in a field,

30 and Ahijah layeth hold on the new garment that [is] on him, and rendeth it -- twelve pieces,

31 and saith to Jeroboam, `Take to thee ten pieces, for thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, lo, I am rending the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and have given to thee the ten tribes,

32 and the one tribe he hath for My servant David's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have fixed on, out of all the tribes of Israel.

33 `Because they have forsaken Me, and bow themselves to Ashtoreth, god[dess] of the Zidonians, to Chemosh god of Moab, and to Milcom god of the sons of Ammon, and have not walked in My ways, to do that which [is] right in Mine eyes, and My statutes and My judgments, like David his father.

34 `And I do not take the whole of the kingdom out of his hand, for prince I make him all days of his life, for the sake of David My servant whom I chose, who kept My commands and My statutes;

35 and I have taken the kingdom out of the hand of his son, and given it to thee -- the ten tribes;

36 and to his son I give one tribe, for there being a lamp to David My servant all the days before Me in Jerusalem, the city that I have chosen to Myself to put My name there.

37 `And thee I take, and thou hast reigned over all that thy soul desireth, and thou hast been king over Israel;

38 and it hath been, if thou dost hear all that I command thee, and hast walked in My ways, and done that which is right in Mine eyes, to keep My statutes and My commands, as did David My servant, that I have been with thee, and have built for thee a stedfast house, as I built for David, and have given to thee Israel,

39 and I humble the seed of David for this; only, not all the days.'

40 And Solomon seeketh to put Jeroboam to death, and Jeroboam riseth and fleeth to Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and he is in Egypt till the death of Solomon.

41 And the rest of the matters of Solomon, and all that he did, and his wisdom, are they not written on the book of the matters of Solomon?

42 And the days that Solomon hath reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel [are] forty years,

43 and Solomon lieth with his fathers, and is buried in the city of David his father, and reign doth Rehoboam his son in his stead.

12 And Rehoboam goeth to Shechem, for to Shechem hath all Israel come to make him king.

And it cometh to pass, at Jeroboam son of Nebat's hearing (and he [is] yet in Egypt where he hath fled from the presence of Solomon the king, and Jeroboam dwelleth in Egypt),

that they send and call for him; and they come -- Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel -- and speak unto Rehoboam, saying,

`Thy father made hard our yoke, and thou, now, make light [some] of the hard service of thy father, and his heavy yoke that he put upon us, and we serve thee.'

And he saith unto them, `Go -- yet three days, and come back unto me;' and the people go.

And king Rehoboam consulteth with the elders who have been standing in the presence of Solomon his father, in his being alive, saying, `How are ye counselling to answer this people?'

And they speak unto him, saying, `If, to-day, thou art servant to this people, and hast served them, and answered them, and spoken unto them good words, then they have been to thee servants all the days.'

And he forsaketh the counsel of the elders which they counselled him, and consulteth with the lads who have grown up with him, who are standing before him;

and he saith unto them, `What are ye counselling, and we answer this people, who have spoken unto me, saying, Lighten [somewhat] of the yoke that thy father put upon us?'

10 And they speak unto him -- the lads who had grown up with him -- saying, `Thus dost thou say to this people who have spoken unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, and thou, make [it] light upon us; thus dost thou speak unto them, My little [finger] is thicker than the loins of my father;

11 and now, my father laid on you a heavy yoke, and I add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, and I -- I chastise you with scorpions.'

12 And they come -- Jeroboam and all the people -- unto Rehoboam, on the third day, as the king had spoken, saying, `Come back unto me on the third day.'

13 And the king answereth the people sharply, and forsaketh the counsel of the elders which they counselled him,

14 and speaketh unto them, according to the counsel of the lads, saying, `My father made your yoke heavy, and I add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, and I -- I chastise you with scorpions;'

15 and the king hearkened not unto the people, for the revolution was from Jehovah, in order to establish His word that Jehovah spake by the hand of Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam son of Nebat.

16 And all Israel see that the king hath not hearkened unto them, and the people send the king back word, saying, `What portion have we in David? yea, there is no inheritance in the son of Jesse; to thy tents, O Israel; now see thy house, O David!' and Israel goeth to its tents.

17 As to the sons of Israel, those dwelling in the cities of Judah -- over them reign doth Rehoboam.

18 And king Rehoboam sendeth Adoram who [is] over the tribute, and all Israel cast at him stones, and he dieth; and king Rehoboam hath strengthened himself to go up into a chariot to flee to Jerusalem;

19 and Israel transgresseth against the house of David unto this day.

20 And it cometh to pass, at all Israel's hearing that Jeroboam hath returned, that they send and call him unto the company, and cause him to reign over all Israel; none hath been after the house of David save the tribe of Judah alone.

21 And Rehoboam cometh to Jerusalem, and assembleth all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen warriors, to fight with the house of Israel, to bring back the kingdom to Rehoboam son of Solomon.

22 And the word of God is unto Shemaiah a man of God, saying,

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

24 Thus said Jehovah, Ye do not go up nor fight with your brethren the sons of Israel; turn back each to his house, for from Me hath this thing been;' and they hear the word of Jehovah, and turn back to go according to the word of Jehovah.

25 And Jeroboam buildeth Shechem in the hill-country of Ephraim, and dwelleth in it, and goeth out thence, and buildeth Penuel;

26 and Jeroboam saith in his heart, `Now doth the kingdom turn back to the house of David --

27 if this people go up to make sacrifices in the house of Jehovah in Jerusalem, then hath the heart of this people turned back unto their lord, unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they have slain me, and turned back unto Rehoboam king of Judah.'

28 And the king taketh counsel, and maketh two calves of gold, and saith unto them, `Enough to you of going up to Jerusalem; lo, thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.'

29 And he setteth the one in Beth-El, and the other he hath put in Dan,

30 and this thing becometh a sin, and the people go before the one -- unto Dan.

31 And he maketh the house of high places, and maketh priests of the extremities of the people, who were not of the sons of Levi;

32 and Jeroboam maketh a festival in the eighth month, in the fifteenth day of the month, like the festival that [is] in Judah, and he offereth on the altar -- so did he in Beth-El -- to sacrifice to the calves which he made, and he hath appointed in Beth-El the priests of the high places that he made.

33 And he offereth up on the altar that he made in Beth-El, on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in the month that he devised of his own heart, and he maketh a festival to the sons of Israel, and offereth on the altar -- to make perfume.

Solomon’s Wives

11 King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women(A) besides Pharaoh’s daughter—Moabites, Ammonites,(B) Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry(C) 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,(D) and his wives led him astray.(E) As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods,(F) and his heart was not fully devoted(G) to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. He followed Ashtoreth(H) the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek(I) the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil(J) in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.

On a hill east(K) of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh(L) the detestable god of Moab, and for Molek(M) 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(N) to him twice. 10 Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods,(O) Solomon did not keep the Lord’s command.(P) 11 So the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees,(Q) which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear(R) the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. 12 Nevertheless, for the sake of David(S) 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(T) for the sake(U) of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”(V)

Solomon’s Adversaries

14 Then the Lord raised up against Solomon an adversary,(W) 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.(X) 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.(Y) 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,(Z) Rezon son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer(AA) 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,(AB) 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(AC) and was hostile toward Israel.

Jeroboam Rebels Against Solomon

26 Also, Jeroboam son of Nebat rebelled(AD) 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[a](AE) and had filled in the gap in the wall of the city of David his father. 28 Now Jeroboam was a man of standing,(AF) and when Solomon saw how well(AG) 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(AH) 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(AI) 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(AJ) the kingdom out of Solomon’s hand and give you ten tribes. 32 But for the sake(AK) 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[b] forsaken me and worshiped(AL) Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Molek the god of the Ammonites, and have not walked(AM) in obedience to me, nor done what is right in my eyes, nor kept my decrees(AN) 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(AO) to his son so that David my servant may always have a lamp(AP) 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(AQ) over all that your heart desires;(AR) 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(AS) in my eyes by obeying my decrees(AT) and commands, as David my servant did, I will be with you. I will build you a dynasty(AU) 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(AV) to Egypt, to Shishak(AW) the king, and stayed there until Solomon’s death.

Solomon’s Death(AX)

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(AY) his son succeeded him as king.

Israel Rebels Against Rehoboam(AZ)

12 Rehoboam went to Shechem,(BA) 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(BB) from King Solomon), he returned from[c] 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(BC) 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(BD) 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,(BE) they will always be your servants.”

But Rehoboam rejected(BF) 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(BG) 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,(BH) to fulfill the word the Lord had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah(BI) the Shilonite.

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

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

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

18 King Rehoboam sent out Adoniram,[d](BN) who was in charge of forced labor, but all Israel stoned him to death.(BO) 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(BP) 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.(BQ)

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(BR) against Israel and to regain the kingdom for Rehoboam son of Solomon.

22 But this word of God came to Shemaiah(BS) the man of God:(BT) 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(BU) in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built up Peniel.[e](BV)

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,(BW) 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.(BX) 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.”(BY) 29 One he set up in Bethel,(BZ) and the other in Dan.(CA) 30 And this thing became a sin;(CB) the people came to worship the one at Bethel and went as far as Dan to worship the other.[f]

31 Jeroboam built shrines(CC) on high places and appointed priests(CD) from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites. 32 He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth(CE) month, like the festival held in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel,(CF) 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.(CG) So he instituted the festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to make offerings.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 11:27 Or the Millo
  2. 1 Kings 11:33 Hebrew; Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac because he has
  3. 1 Kings 12:2 Or he remained in
  4. 1 Kings 12:18 Some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac (see also 4:6 and 5:14); Hebrew Adoram
  5. 1 Kings 12:25 Hebrew Penuel, a variant of Peniel
  6. 1 Kings 12:30 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text; Masoretic Text people went to the one as far as Dan