2 Chronicles 11

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.