2 Chronicles 10–11

Chapter 10

Rehoboam’s Reign of Folly

^1aThen Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king.

²When Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for ^ahe was in Egypt where he had fled from the presence of King Solomon), Jeroboam returned from Egypt.

³So they sent and summoned him. When Jeroboam and all Israel came, they spoke to Rehoboam, saying,

⁴“Your father made our ^ayoke hard; now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke which he put on us, and we will serve you.”

⁵He said to them, “Return to me again in three days.” So the people departed.

⁶Then King Rehoboam ^aconsulted with the elders who had ¹served his father Solomon while he was still alive, saying, “How do you counsel me to answer this people?”

⁷They spoke to him, saying, “If you will be kind to this people and please them and ^aspeak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever.”

⁸But he ^aforsook the counsel of the elders which they had given him, and consulted with the young men who grew up with him ¹and served him.

⁹So he said to them, “What counsel do you give that we may answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, ‘Lighten the yoke which your father put on us’?”

¹⁰The young men who grew up with him spoke to him, saying, “Thus you shall say to the people who spoke to you, saying, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you make it lighter for us.’ Thus you shall say to them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins!

¹¹‘Whereas my father loaded you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.’ ”

¹²So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day as the king had ¹directed, saying, “Return to me on the third day.”

¹³The king answered them harshly, and King Rehoboam forsook the counsel of the elders.

¹⁴He spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying, “¹My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to it; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.”

¹⁵So the king did not listen to the people, ^afor it was a turn of events from God ^bthat the Lord might establish His word, which He spoke through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

¹⁶When all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them the people answered the king, saying,

“^aWhat portion do we have in David?

We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse.

Every man to your tents, O Israel;

Now look after your own house, David.”

^bSo all Israel departed to their tents.

¹⁷But as for the sons of Israel who lived in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.

¹⁸Then King Rehoboam sent Hadoram, who was ^aover the forced labor, and the sons of Israel stoned him ¹to death. And King Rehoboam made haste to mount his chariot to flee to Jerusalem.

¹⁹So ^aIsrael has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.

Chapter 11

Rehoboam Reigns over Judah and Builds Cities

^1aNow when Rehoboam had come to Jerusalem, he assembled the house of Judah and Benjamin, 180,000 chosen men who were warriors, to fight against Israel to restore the kingdom to Rehoboam.

²But the word of the Lord came to ^aShemaiah the man of God, saying,

³“Speak to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, saying,

⁴‘Thus says the Lord, “You shall not go up or fight against ^ayour ¹relatives; return every man to his house, ^bfor this thing is from Me.” ’ ” So they listened to the words of the Lord and returned from going against Jeroboam.

⁵Rehoboam lived in Jerusalem and ^abuilt cities for defense in Judah.

⁶Thus he built Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa,

⁷Beth-zur, Soco, Adullam,

⁸Gath, Mareshah, Ziph,

⁹Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah,

¹⁰Zorah, Aijalon and Hebron, which are fortified cities in Judah and in Benjamin.

¹¹He also strengthened the fortresses and put officers in them and stores of food, oil and wine.

¹²He put shields and spears in every city and strengthened them greatly. So he held Judah and Benjamin.

¹³Moreover, the priests and the Levites who were in all Israel stood with him from all their districts.

Jeroboam Appoints False Priests

¹⁴For ^athe Levites left their pasture lands and their property and came to Judah and Jerusalem, for ^bJeroboam and his sons had excluded them from serving as priests to the Lord.

^15aHe set up priests of his own for the high places, for the satyrs and for the calves which he had made.

^16aThose from all the tribes of Israel who set their hearts on seeking the Lord God of Israel ¹followed them to Jerusalem, to sacrifice to the Lord God of their fathers.

^17aThey strengthened the kingdom of Judah and supported Rehoboam the son of Solomon for three years, for they walked in the way of David and Solomon for three years.

Rehoboam’s Family

¹⁸Then Rehoboam took as a wife Mahalath the daughter of Jerimoth the son of David and of Abihail the daughter of ^aEliab the son of Jesse,

¹⁹and she bore him sons: Jeush, Shemariah and Zaham.

²⁰After her he took ^aMaacah the daughter of ¹Absalom, and she bore him Abijah, Attai, Ziza and Shelomith.

²¹Rehoboam loved Maacah the daughter of Absalom more than all his other wives and concubines. For ^ahe had taken eighteen wives and sixty concubines and fathered twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters.

^22aRehoboam appointed Abijah the son of Maacah as head and leader among his brothers, for he intended to make him king.

²³He acted wisely and distributed ¹some of his sons through all the territories of Judah and Benjamin to all the fortified cities, and he gave them food in abundance. And he sought many wives for them.