12Rehoboam traveled to Shechem because all of Israel went there to install him as king.H7346H3212H7927H3478H935H7927H4427 2Nebat's son Jeroboam heard about it while he was still in Egypt, where he had fled to get away from King Solomon. Jeroboam returned from EgyptH3379H1121H5028H4714H8085H1272H6440H4428H8010H3379H3427H4714 3after being summoned. When Jeroboam and the entire assembly of Israel arrived, they spoke to Rehoboam,H7971H7121H3379H6951H3478H935H1696H7346H559 4"Your father made our burdens unbearable. Therefore lighten your father's requirements and his heavy burdens that he placed on us, and we'll serve you."H1H7185H5923H7185H7186H5656H1H3515H5923H5414H7043H5647 5"Come again in three days," Rehoboam said to them. So the people leftH559H3212H7969H3117H7725H5971H3212 6while King Rehoboam conferred with his advisors who had worked for his father Solomon during his administration. He asked them, "What is your advice as to how I should respond to these people?"H4428H7346H3289H2205H5975H6440H8010H1H2416H559H3289H7725H1697H5971 7They advised him, "If today you are a servant, you will serve this people by answering them and speaking kindly to them. Then they will serve you forever."H1696H559H5650H5971H3117H5647H6030H1696H2896H1697H5650H3117 8But Rehoboam ignored the counsel that his elder advisors had given him. Instead, he consulted the younger men who had grown up with him and who worked for him.H5800H6098H2205H3289H3289H3206H1431H5975H6440 9As a result, he asked them, "What's your advice so that we can give an answer to these people who have asked me, 'Please lighten the burden that your father put on us.'?"H559H3289H7725H1697H5971H1696H559H7043H5923H1H5414H7043 10"This is what you should tell these people who asked you 'Your father made our burden heavy, but you must make it lighter for us!'" the young men who grew up with Rehoboam replied. "Tell them, 'My little finger will be thicker than my father's whole body!H3206H1431H1696H559H559H5971H1696H559H1H3513H5923H3513H7043H1696H6995H5666H1H4975 11Not only that, but since my father loaded you down heavily, I'm going to add to that burden. If my father disciplined you with whips, but I'm going to discipline you with scorpions!'"H1H6006H3515H5923H3254H5923H1H3256H7752H3256H6137 12So Jeroboam and all the people went back to Rehoboam on the third day, just as they had been directed when the king said, "Come back again in three days."H3379H5971H935H7346H7992H3117H4428H1696H559H7725H7992H3117 13But the king gave the people a harsh response, because he was ignoring the counsel that his elders had given him.H4428H6030H5971H7186H5800H2205H6098H3289 14Instead, Rehoboam spoke to them along the lines of what the younger men suggested. He told them "My father burdened you heavily, but I will add to that burden. If my father disciplined you with whips, I'm going to discipline you with scorpions!"H1696H6098H3206H559H1H3513H5923H3513H3254H5923H1H3256H7752H3256H6137 15The king would not listen to the people, because the turn of events was from the Lord, to fulfill his prediction that the Lord spoke by means of Ahijah the Shilonite to Nebat's son JeroboamH4428H8085H5971H5438H3068H6965H1697H3068H1696H3027H281H7888H3379H1121H5028 16When all of Israel saw that the king wasn't listening to them, the people responded to the king's message, "What's the point in following David?We have no inheritance in the descendants of Jesse. Let's go home, Israel! David, take care of your own household!' So Israel left for home.H7725H3478H7200H4428H8085H5971H1697H4428H559H2506H1732H5159H1121H3448H168H3478H7200H1004H1732H3478H3212H168 17And so Rehoboam ruled over the Israelites who lived in the cities of Judah.H1121H3478H3427H5892H3063H7346H4427 18King Rehoboam sent Hadoram, who was in charge of conscripted labor, but all of Israel stoned him to death, and King Rehoboam had to jump in his chariot and flee back in a hurry to Jerusalem.H4428H7346H7971H151H4522H3478H7275H68H4191H4428H7346H553H5927H4818H5127H3389 19That's how Israel came to be in rebellion against David's dynasty to this day.H3478H6586H1004H1732H3117 20Now when all of Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent for him and invited him to visit their assembly, where they installed him as king over all of Israel. Nobody (with the sole exception of the tribe of Judah) would align with David's dynasty.H3478H8085H3379H7725H7971H7121H5712H4427H3478H310H1004H1732H2108H7626H3063 21As soon as Rehoboam returned to Jerusalem, he assembled 180,000 elite soldiers from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, intending to attack the dynasty of Israel and restore the kingdom to Solomon's son Rehoboam.H7346H935H3389H6950H1004H3063H7626H1144H3967H8084H505H977H6213H4421H3898H1004H3478H7725H4410H7725H7346H1121H8010 22But a message from God came to Shemaiah, a man of God:H1697H430H8098H376H430H559 23"Tell Solomon's son Rehoboam, king of Judah, all the dynasty of Judah, Benjamin, and the rest of the people,H559H7346H1121H8010H4428H3063H1004H3063H1144H3499H5971H559 24'This is what the Lord says: "You are not to fight or even approach your fellow Israelites in battle. Every soldier is to return to his own home, because this development comes from me."'" So they listened to what the Lord had to say and returned home, just as the Lord had directed.1220H559H3068H5927H3898H251H1121H3478H7725H376H1004H1697H1961H8085H1697H3068H7725H3212H1697H3068 25Later on, Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. He also expanded from there and built Penuel.H3379H1129H7927H2022H669H3427H3318H1129H6439 26Jeroboam was thinking to himself, "The kingdom is about to return to David's control.H3379H559H3820H4467H7725H1004H1732 27If these people keep going up to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices to the Lord there, the hearts of these people will return to their lord, King Rehoboam of Judah. Then they'll kill me and return to Rehoboam, king of Judah!"H5971H5927H6213H2077H1004H3068H3389H3820H5971H7725H113H7346H4428H3063H2026H7725H7346H4428H3063 28So the king sought some advice and then build two golden calves and announced, "It's too difficult for you to travel to Jerusalem. So here are your gods, Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!"H4428H3289H6213H8147H5695H2091H559H7227H5927H3389H430H3478H5927H776H4714 29He set one of them in Bethel and placed the other one in Dan.H7760H259H1008H259H5414H1835 30Doing this was sinful, because the people traveled as far as Dan to appear before one of their idols.H1697H2403H5971H3212H6440H259H1835 31Jeroboam built temples on the high places, and appointed his own priests from the fringe elements of the people who were not descendants of Levi.H6213H1004H1116H6213H3548H7098H5971H1121H3878 32Jeroboam invented a feast for the fifteenth day of the eighth month similar to the feast that takes place in Judah. He approached the altar that he had set up in Bethel and sacrificed to the calves that he had made, having stationed in Bethel the priests that he had appointed.H3379H6213H2282H8066H2320H2568H6240H3117H2320H2282H3063H5927H4196H6213H1008H2076H5695H6213H5975H1008H3548H1116H6213 33Then, on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, he went up to burn incense on the altar that he had set up in Bethel, thus beginning the feast that he had made up out of his own heart for the Israelites.H5927H4196H6213H1008H2568H6240H3117H8066H2320H2320H908H3820H6213H2282H1121H3478H5927H4196H6999
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