1 Kings 12

Counsel from Elders and Youth 1 Kings 12:6–11

⁶Verse 6. King Rehoboam took counsel with the old men, who had stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, saying, “What counsel do you give me to answer these people?” ⁷Verse 7. They replied, “If you will be a servant to this people today, and will serve them, and answer them with good words, then they will be your servants forever.” ⁸Verse 8. But he abandoned the counsel of the old men which they had given him, and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him, who stood before him. ⁹Verse 9. He said to them, “What counsel do you give, that we may answer these people, who have spoken to me, saying, ‘Make the yoke that your father put on us lighter?’”

¹⁰Verse 10. The young men who had grown up with him said to him, “Tell these people who spoke to you, saying, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but make it lighter to us;’ tell them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. ¹¹Verse 11. Now my father burdened you with a heavy yoke, but I will add to your yoke. My father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.’”

Rehoboam's Harsh Response 1 Kings 12:12–15

¹²Verse 12. So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king asked, saying, “Come to me again the third day.” ¹³Verse 13. The king answered the people roughly, and abandoned the counsel of the old men which they had given him, ¹⁴Verse 14. and spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke. My father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.” ¹⁵Verse 15. So the king didn’t listen to the people; for it was a thing brought about from Yahweh, that he might establish his word, which Yahweh spoke by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

Israel's Rebellion 1 Kings 12:16–19

¹⁶Verse 16. When all Israel saw that the king didn’t listen to them, the people answered the king, saying, “What portion have we in David? We don’t have an inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, Israel! Now see to your own house, David.” So Israel departed to their tents. ¹⁷Verse 17. But as for the children of Israel who lived in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. ¹⁸Verse 18. Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the men subject to forced labor; and all Israel stoned him to death with stones. King Rehoboam hurried to get himself up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem.

¹⁹Verse 19. So Israel rebelled against David’s house to this day.

Jeroboam Becomes King 1 Kings 12:20–24

²⁰Verse 20. When all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the congregation, and made him king over all Israel. There was no one who followed David’s house, except for the tribe of Judah only. ²¹Verse 21. When Rehoboam had come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen men, who were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. ²²Verse 22. But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying, ²³Verse 23. “Speak to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, saying,

²⁴Verse 24. ‘Yahweh says, “You shall not go up or fight against your brothers, the children of Israel. Everyone return to his house; for this thing is from me.”’” So they listened to Yahweh’s word, and returned and went their way, according to Yahweh’s word.

Jeroboam's Idolatry 1 Kings 12:25–33

²⁵Verse 25. Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and lived in it; and he went out from there, and built Penuel. ²⁶Verse 26. Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom will return to David’s house. ²⁷Verse 27. If this people goes up to offer sacrifices in Yahweh’s house at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn again to their lord, even to Rehoboam king of Judah; and they will kill me, and return to Rehoboam king of Judah.” ²⁸Verse 28. So the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold; and he said to them, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Look and behold your gods, Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”

²⁹Verse 29. He set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan. ³⁰Verse 30. This thing became a sin; for the people went even as far as Dan to worship before the one there. ³¹Verse 31. He made houses of high places, and made priests from among all the people, who were not of the sons of Levi. ³²Verse 32. Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like the feast that is in Judah, and he went up to the altar. He did so in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he had made, and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places that he had made.

³³Verse 33. He went up to the altar which he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and he ordained a feast for the children of Israel, and went up to the altar, to burn incense.