1 Kings 12

CAB^{(i) 1} And King Rehoboam went to Shechem; ² for all Israel was coming to Shechem to make him king. ³ And the people spoke to King Rehoboam, saying, Your father made our yoke heavy; ⁴ but lighten somewhat of the hard service of your father, and of his heavy yoke which he put upon us, and we will serve you. ⁵ And he said to them, Depart for three days, and return to me. And they departed. ⁶ Then the king referred the matter to the elders, who stood before Solomon his father while he was yet living, saying, How do you advise that I should answer this people? ⁷ And they spoke to him, saying, If you will this day be a servant to this people, and serve them, and speak to them good words, then will they be your servants continually. ⁸ But he forsook the counsel of the old men which they gave him, and consulted with the young men who were brought up with him, who stood in his presence. ⁹ And he said to them, What counsel do you give? And what shall I answer to this people who speak to me, saying, Lighten somewhat of the yoke which your father has put upon us? ¹⁰ And the young men who had been brought up with him, who stood before his face, spoke to him, saying, Thus shall you say to this people who have spoken to you, saying, Your father made our yoke heavy, and would you now lighten it from off us. Thus shall say to them: My little finger shall be thicker than my father's loins. ¹¹ And whereas my father put a heavy yoke on you, I also will add to your yoke: my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. ¹² And all Israel came to King Rehoboam on the third day, as the king spoke to them, saying, Return to me on the third day. ¹³ And the king answered the people harshly. And Rehoboam forsook the counsel of the old men which they counseled him. ¹⁴ And he spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. ¹⁵ And the king hearkened not to the people, because the change was from the Lord, that He might establish His word which He spoke by Ahijah the Shilonite concerning Jeroboam the son of Nebat. ¹⁶ And all Israel saw that the king did not hearken to them. And the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? Neither have we any inheritance in the son of Jesse. Depart, O Israel, to your tents; now feed your own house, David. ¹⁷ So Israel departed to his tents. ¹⁸ And the king sent Adoniram who was over the tribute; and they stoned him with stones, and he died. And King Rehoboam made haste to rise and flee to Jerusalem. ¹⁹ So Israel rebelled against the house of David until this day. ²⁰ And it came to pass when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned out of Egypt, that they sent and called him to the assembly, and they made him king over Israel; and none followed the house of David except the tribe of Judah and Benjamin only. ²¹ And Rehoboam went into Jerusalem, and he assembled the congregation of Judah, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and twenty thousand young men, warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to recover the kingdom to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. ²² And the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying, ²³ Speak to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying, ²⁴ Thus says the Lord: You shall not go up, neither shall you fight with your brethren the sons of Israel. Return each man to his own home, for this thing is from Me. And they hearkened to the word of the Lord, and they ceased from going up, according to the word of the Lord. So King Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the City of David; and Rehoboam his son reigned in his place in Jerusalem, being sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twelve years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Naanan, daughter of Ana son of Naas king of the children of Ammon. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, and walked not in the way of David his father. And there was a man of Mount Ephraim, a servant to Solomon, and his name was Jeroboam; and the name of his mother was Sarira, a harlot; and Solomon made him head of the levies of the house of Joseph. And he built for Solomon Sarira in Mount Ephraim; and he had three hundred chariots of horses. He built the citadel with the levies of the house of Ephraim; he fortified the City of David, and aspired to the kingdom. And Solomon sought to kill him; and he was afraid, and escaped to Shishak king of Egypt, and was with him until Solomon died. And Jeroboam heard in Egypt that Solomon was dead; and he spoke in the ears of Shishak king of Egypt, saying, Let me go, and I will depart into my land. And Shishak said to him, Ask any request, and I will grant it you. And Shishak gave to Jeroboam Ano the eldest sister of Tahpenes his wife, to be his wife. She was great among the daughters of the king, and she bore to Jeroboam Abia his son. And Jeroboa said to Shishak, Let me indeed go, and I will depart. And Jeroboam departed out of Egypt, and came into the land of Sarira that was in Mount Ephraim, and there the whole tribe of Ephraim assembled, and Jeroboam built a fortress there. And his young child was sick with a very severe sickness; and Jeroboam went to inquire concerning the child. And he said to Ano his wife, Arise, go, inquire of God concerning the child, whether he shall recover from his sickness. Now there was a man in Selom, and his name was Ahijah. And he was sixty years old, and the word of the Lord was with him. And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, and take in your hand loaves for the man of God, and cakes for his children, and grapes and a pot of honey. And the woman arose, and took in her hand bread, and two cakes, and grapes, and a pot of honey, for Ahijah. And the man was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see. And she arose up from Sarira and went. And it came to pass when she had come into the city of Ahijah the Shilonite, that Ahijah said to his servant, Go out now to meet Ano the wife of Jeroboam, and you shall say to her, Come in, and stand not still; for thus says the Lord: I send grievous tidings to you. And Ano went in to the man of God; and Achia said to her, Why have you brought me bread and grapes, and cakes, and a pot of honey? Thus says the Lord: Behold, you shall depart from Me, and it shall come to pass when you have entered into the city, into Sarira, that your maidens shall come out to meet you, and shall say to you, The child is dead; for thus says the Lord: Behold, I will destroy every male of Jeroboam, and there shall be the dead of Jeroboam in the city, them the dogs shall eat, and him that has died in the field shall the birds of the air eat, and he shall lament for the child, saying, Woe is me, Lord! For there has been found in him some good thing touching the Lord. And the woman departed, when she heard this. And it came to pass as she entered into Sarira, that the child died; and there came forth a wailing to meet her. And Jeroboam went to Shechem in Mount Ephraim, and assembled there the tribes of Israel; and Rehoboam the son of Solomon went up there. And the word of the Lord came to Samaias son of Enlami, saying, Take to yourself a new garment which has not gone into the water, and tear it into twelve pieces; and you shall give some to Jeroboam, and you shall say to him, Thus says the Lord: Take to yourself ten pieces to cover you. And Jeroboam took them. And Samaias said, Thus says the Lord concerning the ten tribes of Israel. And the people said to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, Your father made his yoke heavy upon us, and made the meat of his table heavy; and now you shall lighten them upon us, and we will serve you. And Rehoboam said to the people, Wait three days, and I will return an answer. And Rehoboam said, Bring in to me the elders, and I will take counsel with them what I shall answer to the people on the third day. So Rehoboam spoke in their ears, as the people sent to him to say; and the elders of the people said, Thus the people have spoken to you. And Rehoboam rejected their counsel, and it pleased him not. And he sent and brought in those who had been brought up with him; and he said to them, Thus and thus has the people sent to me to say; and they that had been brought up with him said, Thus shall you speak to the people, saying, My little finger shall be thicker than my father's loins; my father scourged you with whips, but I will rule you with scorpions. And the saying pleased Rehoboam, and he answered the people as the young men, they that were brought up with him, counseled him. And all the people spoke as one man, everyone to his neighbor, and they cried out all together, saying, We have no part in David, nor inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel, everyone; for this man is not for a prince or a ruler over us. And all the people were dispersed from Shechem, and they departed everyone to his tent. And Rehoboam strengthened himself and departed, and mounted his chariot, and entered into Jerusalem. And the whole tribe of Judah followed him, and the whole tribe of Benjamin. And it came to pass at the beginning of the year, that Rehoboam gathered all the men of Judah and Benjamin, and went up to fight with Jeroboam at Shechem. And the word of the Lord came to Samaeas the man of God, saying, Speak to Rehoboam king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying, Thus says the Lord: You shall not go up, neither shall you fight with your brethren the sons of Israel; return every man to his house, for this thing is from Me. And they hearkened to the word of the Lord, and ceased to go up, according to the word of the Lord. ²⁵ And Jeroboam built Shechem in Mount Ephraim and dwelt in it, and went forth from there and built Penuel. ²⁶ And Jeroboam said in his heart, Behold, now the kingdom will return to the house of David. ²⁷ If this people shall go up to offer sacrifice in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, then the heart of the people will return to their lord, and to their master, to Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me. ²⁸ And the king took counsel, and went, and made two golden heifers, and said to the people, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold, here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. ²⁹ And he put one in Bethel, and he put the other in Dan. ³⁰ And this thing became a sin; and the people went before one as far as Dan, and left the house of the Lord. ³¹ And he made houses on the high places, and made priests of any part of the people, who were not of the sons of Levi. ³² And Jeroboam appointed a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, according to the feast in the land of Judah; ³³ and went up to the altar which he made in Bethel to sacrifice to the heifers which he made, and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made. And he went up to the altar which he had made, on the fifteenth dy in the eighth month, at the feast which he devised out of his own heart; and he made a feast to the children of Israel, and went up to the altar to sacrifice.