²¹Rehoboam was king in Judah. He was the son of Solomon. Rehoboam was 41 years old when he became king. He ruled for 17 years in Jerusalem. It was the city the Lord had chosen out of all of the cities in the tribes of Israel. He wanted to put his Name there. Rehoboam’s mother was Naamah from Ammon.

²²The people of Judah did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. The sins they had committed stirred up his jealous anger. They did more to make him angry than their people who lived before them had done.

²³Judah also set up for themselves high places for worship. They set up sacred stones. They set up poles that were used to worship the goddess Asherah. They did it on every high hill and under every green tree.

²⁴There were even male prostitutes at the temples in the land. The people took part in all of the practices of other nations. The Lord hated those practices. He had driven those nations out to make room for the people of Israel.

²⁵Shishak attacked Jerusalem. It was in the fifth year that Rehoboam was king. Shishak was king of Egypt. ²⁶He carried away the treasures of the Lord’s temple. He also carried the treasures of the royal palace away. He took everything. That included all of the gold shields Solomon had made.

²⁷So King Rehoboam made bronze shields to take their place. He gave them to the commanders of the guards who were on duty at the entrance to the royal palace. ²⁸Every time the king went to the Lord’s temple, the guards carried the shields. Later, they took them back to the room where they were kept.

²⁹The other events of Rehoboam’s rule are written down. Everything he did is written down. All of those things are written in the official records of the kings of Judah. ³⁰Rehoboam and Jeroboam were always at war with each other. ³¹Rehoboam joined the members of his family who had already died. His body was buried in his family tomb in the City of David. His mother was Naamah from Ammon. His son Abijah became the next king after him.

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