Bible in 90 Days
The Other Bronze Implements
38 Hiram[a] also fashioned ten bronze basins, each holding about 40 baths,[b] each basin measuring four cubits[c] in diameter,[d] with one basin for each stand. 39 He set five of the stands on the right side of the Temple and five on the left side of the Temple. He set the bronze sea on the right side of the Temple eastward facing the south. 40 Hiram also made the basins, shovels, and bowls to complete the work that he performed for King Solomon in the Lord’s Temple, 41 including the two pillars and the bowls for the capitals that stood on top of the two pillars, along with the two lattices that covered the two bowls of the capitals that stood on top of the pillars, 42 plus the 400 pomegranates for the two lattices (that is, the two rows of pomegranates for each lattice to cover the two bowls of the capitals that stood on top of the pillars), 43 the ten stands with the ten basins on the stands, 44 the single bronze[e] sea and the twelve oxen that stood under the sea, 45 and the pots, shovels, and bowls—all of these utensils that Hiram made for King Solomon for the Lord’s Temple were made from polished bronze.
46 The king had them cast in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarethan in the Jordan plain. 47 Solomon never inventoried the weight of the bronze used, because there were too many utensils, so the weight of the bronze used was never ascertained. 48 Solomon made all the furnishings that were placed in the Lord’s Temple, including the golden altar and the golden table on which the bread of the Presence was placed, 49 along with the lamp stands (five on the right side and five on the left in front of the inner sanctuary), all made of pure gold, as well as the flower blossoms, lamps, and tongs of gold, 50 and the cups, snuffers, bowls, spoons, and the fire pans, all made of pure gold, and hinges for the doors of the inner sanctuary, the Most Holy Place, and for the gates of the Temple that led to the nave, also of gold.
51 Thus all the work that King Solomon performed in the Lord’s Temple was finished. Then Solomon brought in the articles that had been dedicated by his father David, including silver, gold, and other utensils, and he placed them into storage in the treasuries of the Lord’s Temple.
The Temple is Dedicated(A)
8 Then Solomon gathered together the elders of Israel, including all the heads of the tribes and the leaders of the ancestral households of the Israelis, to meet with him in Jerusalem so they could bring up the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord from Zion, the City of David. 2 So all the men gathered together to meet with King Solomon at the Festival of Tents[f] in the month Ethanim, the seventh month. 3 All the Elders of Israel showed up, and the priests picked up the ark 4 and brought it, the Tent of Meeting, and all the holy implements that were in the tent. The priests and descendants of Levi carried them up to Jerusalem.[g]
5 King Solomon and the entire congregation of Israel that had assembled to be with him stood in front of the ark, sacrificing so many sheep and oxen that they were neither counted nor inventoried. 6 After this, the priests brought the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord to the place prepared for it, into the inner sanctuary of the Temple, under the wings of the cherubim in the Most Holy Place. 7 The wings of the cherubim spread over the resting place for the ark, so that the cherubim made a covering over the ark and its poles when viewed[h] from above. 8 The poles extended so far that their ends could be seen from the Holy Place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they could not be seen from outside. They remain there to this day. 9 The ark was empty except for the two stone tablets that Moses had placed there at Horeb when the Lord had made a covenant with the Israelis after they had come out of the land of Egypt. 10 When the priests left the Holy Place after setting the ark in place,[i] the cloud filled the Lord’s Temple 11 so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, since the glory of the Lord filled the Lord’s Temple.
Solomon’s Speech of Dedication(B)
12 Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he lives shrouded in darkness. 13 Now I have been constructing a magnificent Temple dedicated to you that will serve as a place for you to inhabit forever.”
14 Then the king turned to face the entire congregation of Israel while the congregation of Israel remained standing. 15 Then Solomon[j] prayed:
“Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, who made a commitment[k] to my father David and then personally[l] fulfilled what he had promised when he said:[m]
16 ‘From the day I brought out my people Israel from Egypt I never chose a city from all the tribes of Israel to build a temple where my name might reside. I have chosen David to be over my people Israel.’
17 “My father David wanted to build a temple for the name of the Lord God of Israel. 18 The Lord told my father David:
‘Therefore, since you determined[n] to build a temple for my name, you acted well, because it was your choice[o] to do so. 19 Nevertheless, you are not to build the Temple, but your son who will be born[p] to you is to build a temple for my name.’
20 “The Lord has brought to fulfillment[q] what he promised, and now here I stand,[r] having succeeded my father David to sit on the throne of Israel, as the Lord promised. I have built the Temple for the name of the Lord God of Israel. 21 I have placed there the ark in which the covenant is stored that the Lord made with our ancestors when he brought them out of the land of Egypt.”
Solomon’s Prayer of Dedication(C)
22 Then Solomon took his place in front of the Lord’s altar in the presence of the entire congregation of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven, 23 and said:
“Lord God of Israel, there is no one like you, God in heaven above or on the earth below, who watches over[s] his covenant, showing gracious love to your servants who live their lives in your presence[t] with all their hearts. 24 It is you, Lord God,[u] who have kept your promise to my father, your servant David, that you made to him. Indeed, you made a commitment[v] to my father David and then personally fulfilled[w] what you had promised today.
25 “Now therefore, Lord God of Israel, keep your promise that you made[x] to my father, your servant David, when you said, ‘You will not lack a man to sit on the throne of Israel,[y] if only your descendants will watch their lives,[z] to live[aa] in my presence just as you have lived[ab] in my presence.’[ac]
26 “Now therefore, God of Israel, may your promise that you made[ad] to your servant David my father be fulfilled… 27 and yet, will God truly reside on earth? Look! Neither the sky nor the highest heaven can contain you! How much less this Temple that I have built! 28 Pay attention to the prayer of your servant and to his request, Lord my God, and listen to the cry and prayer that your servant is praying in your presence today. 29 Let your eyes always look toward this Temple night and day, toward the location where you have said ‘My name will reside there.’ Listen to the prayer that your servant prays in this direction.[ae] 30 Listen to the requests from your servant and from your people Israel as they pray in this direction,[af] listen from the place where you reside in heaven, then hear and forgive.
31 “If a man should sin against his neighbor and he is required to take an oath, and he then comes to take an oath in front of your altar in this Temple, 32 then listen in heaven, act, and judge your servants, condemning the wicked by bringing back to him the consequences of his choices[ag] and by justifying the righteous by recompensing him according to his righteousness.
33 “If your people Israel are defeated in a battle with[ah] their enemy because they have sinned against you, when they return to you and confess to you,[ai] pray, and in this Temple they ask you to show grace to them, 34 then hear in heaven, forgive the sin of your people Israel, and return them to the soil[aj] that you gave to their ancestors.
35 “When heaven remains closed, and there is no rain because they have sinned against you, and they pray in the direction of this place, confessing your name and turning from their sin when you afflict them,[ak] 36 then hear in heaven and forgive the sin of your servants and of your people Israel. Indeed, teach them the best way to live and send rain on your land that you have given to your people as an inheritance.
37 “If a famine comes to the land, or if plant diseases, mildew, locust, or grasshoppers[al] appear, or if their enemies attack them in their settlements of the land, no matter what the epidemic or illness is, 38 whatever prayer or request is made, no matter whether it’s made by a single man or by all of your people Israel, each praying out of his own hurting heart and anguish and stretching out his hands toward this Temple, 39 then hear from heaven, the place where you reside, and forgive, repaying each person according to all of his ways, since you know their hearts—for you alone know the hearts of all human beings— 40 so they will fear you every day and live on the surface of the land that you have given to our ancestors.
41 “Now concerning the foreigner who is not from your people Israel, when he comes from a land far away for the sake of your name 42 (for people will hear of your great name, your mighty acts,[am] and your obvious power[an]), when he comes and prays facing this Temple, 43 then hear in heaven where you reside, and do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the people of the earth may know your name, fear you as do your people Israel, and so they may know that this Temple that I have built is called by your name.
44 “When your people go out to war against their enemies, no matter what way you send them, and they pray to the Lord in the direction of the city that you have chosen and in the direction of the Temple that I have built for your name, 45 then hear their prayer and their request in heaven, and fight for their cause.
46 “When they sin against you—because there isn’t a single human being who doesn’t sin—and you become angry with them and deliver them over to their enemy, who takes them away captive to the land that belongs to their enemy, whether near or far away, 47 if they turn their hearts back to you[ao] in the land where they have been taken captive, repent, and pray to you—even if they do so in the land of their captivity—confessing, ‘We have sinned, we have committed abominations, and practiced wickedness,’ 48 if they return to you with all of their heart and with all of their soul in the land of their enemies who have taken them captive, as they pray to you in the direction of their land that you have given to their ancestors and to the city that you have chosen, and to the Temple that I have built for your name, 49 then hear their prayer and requests in heaven, where you reside, and fight for their cause, 50 forgiving your people who have sinned against you, along with their transgressions by which they have transgressed against you.
“Show your compassion in the presence of those who have taken them captive, so they may show compassion on them, 51 since they are your people and your heritage, which you brought out of Egypt, from an iron fire furnace. 52 Do this[ap] so your eyes may remain open to the requests of your servant and to the requests of your people’s prayers, to listen to them whenever they call out to you, 53 because you have separated them to yourself as your heritage from all the people of the earth, as you spoke through your servant Moses when you brought our ancestors out of Egypt, Lord God.
Solomon’s Blessing to the Assembly(D)
54 When Solomon had completed saying this entire prayer to the Lord, he got up from kneeling with his hands spread out toward heaven in the presence of the Lord’s altar, 55 stood up, and blessed all of the assembly of Israel in a loud voice. He said:
56 “Blessed is the Lord, who has given security to his people Israel, just as he promised. Not one of his promises has failed to come about that he gave through his servant Moses. 57 May the Lord our God be with us, just as he was with our ancestors. May he never leave us or abandon us, 58 so that he may turn our hearts toward him, so that we may live life[aq] his way, keeping his commands, statutes, and ordinances that he gave to our ancestors. 59 And may what I’ve had to say to the Lord remain with the Lord our God both day and night, so that he may defend the cause of his servant and the cause of his people Israel, as the need of the day may require it, 60 so that, in turn,[ar] all the people of the earth may know that the Lord is God—there is no one else. 61 Now let your heart be completely devoted to the Lord our God, to live according to his statutes and to keep his commands, as we are doing today.”
Solomon’s Initial Offerings(E)
62 Then the king and all of Israel with him offered sacrifices to the Lord. 63 Solomon offered peace offerings to the Lord consisting of 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep. So the king and all the Israelis dedicated the Lord’s Temple. 64 That same day, the king consecrated the middle court that stood in front of the Lord’s Temple, because that was where he offered burnt offerings, grain offerings, and fat from the peace offerings and because the bronze altar that was in the Lord’s presence was too small to hold the burnt offerings, grain offerings, and fat from the peace offerings. 65 So Solomon observed the Festival of Tents[as] at that time, as did all of Israel with him. A large assembly came up from as far away as Lebo-hamath and the Wadi[at] of Egypt to appear in the presence of the Lord our God, not just for seven days, but for seven days after that, a total of fourteen days. 66 The following[au] day, Solomon[av] sent the people away as they blessed the king. Then they went back to their tents, rejoicing and glad for all the good things that the Lord had done for his servant David and to his people Israel.
God Appears to Solomon(F)
9 Later, after Solomon had finished building the Lord’s Temple, the royal palace, and everything else that Solomon wanted to do, 2 the Lord appeared to Solomon for a second time, just as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. 3 The Lord told him:
“I’ve heard your prayer and your request that you made to me. I have consecrated this Temple that you have built by placing my name there forever. My eyes and my heart will be there continuously.
4 “Now as for you, if you commune with me like your father did, with an upright heart of integrity and doing everything that I’ve commanded you and keeping my statutes and ordinances, 5 then I’ll make your royal throne secure forever, just as I agreed to do so for your father David when I said, ‘You are to not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’ 6 But if you or your descendants abandon me, and do not keep my commandments and statutes that I have given to you, and if you go away, serve other gods, and worship them, 7 then I will eliminate Israel from the land that I gave them and from the Temple that I’ve consecrated for my name. I will throw them out of my sight, and Israel will become the butt of jokes[aw] and a means of ridicule among people worldwide!
8 “This Temple will become a pile of ruins. Everyone who passes by it will be so astounded that they will ask, ‘Why did the Lord do this to this land and to this Temple?’ 9 They will answer, ‘Because they abandoned the Lord their God, who brought their ancestors out of the land of Egypt, and they adopted other gods and served them. That’s why the Lord has brought all of this disaster on them.’”
Solomon Cedes Cities to Hiram
10 It took 20 years for Solomon to finish working on the two houses—the Lord’s Temple and the royal palace— 11 after which King Solomon gave Hiram 20 cities in the land of Galilee, because King Hiram of Tyre had provided Solomon with as much cedar, cypress timber, and gold as he wanted. 12 Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities that Solomon had given him, but he wasn’t happy with them, 13 so he asked him, “What are these cities that you have given to me, my brother?” That’s why these cities were named “the land of Cabal”[ax] to this day. 14 Then Hiram paid the king 120 talents[ay] of gold.
Solomon’s Other Accomplishments(G)
15 Here is a summary of the conscripted labor that King Solomon required to build the Lord’s Temple, his royal palace, the terrace ramparts in the City of David,[az] the wall of Jerusalem, Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer. 16 Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, had attacked and captured Gezer, burned it down, killed the Canaanites who lived in the city, and then gave it as a dowry for his daughter, Solomon’s wife. 17 So Solomon rebuilt Gezer, lower Beth-horon, 18 Baalath, and Tamar in the wilderness, 19 along with the storage cities that Solomon used for his chariots and for his cavalry, everything that Solomon felt like building in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and in every territory under his control.
20 The people who survived from the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not related to the Israelis, 21 and whose descendants had survived them and continued to live in the land because the Israelis were unable to completely eliminate them, Solomon placed under conscripted labor, a situation that remains in effect to this day. 22 However, Solomon did not force Israelis into conscripted labor, but they did serve as his soldiers, servants, princes, captains, chariot commanders, and cavalry. 23 There were 550 chief officers who supervised Solomon’s activities and managed the staff that was doing the work.
24 As soon as Pharaoh’s daughter arrived from the City of David to live in her house that Solomon[ba] had built for her, then he fortified the terrace ramparts in the City of David.[bb] 25 Three times every year Solomon offered burnt offerings and peace offerings on the altar that he had built to the Lord, burning incense with the offerings in the presence of the Lord.
This concludes the record of the Temple construction.
Solomon’s Business Ventures(H)
26 King Solomon also built a fleet of ships at Ezion-geber, which is near Eloth on the shore of the Reed[bc] Sea in the land of Edom. 27 Hiram sent his servants to sail with the fleet, since they were expert seamen, and so they accompanied Solomon’s servants. 28 They sailed as far as Ophir[bd] and brought back 420 talents[be] of gold for Solomon.
The Queen of Sheba Visits Solomon(I)
10 When the queen of Sheba heard about Solomon’s reputation with the Lord, she came to test him[bf] with difficult questions. 2 She brought along a large retinue, camels laden with spices, and lots of gold and precious stones. Upon her arrival, she spoke with Solomon about everything that was on her mind.[bg] 3 Solomon answered all of her questions. Nothing was hidden from Solomon that he did not explain to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba had seen all of Solomon’s wisdom for herself, the palace that he had built, 5 the food set at his table, his servants who sat with him, his ministers in attendance and how they were dressed, his personal staff[bh] and how they were dressed, and even his personal stairway by which he went up to the Lord’s Temple, she was breathless!
6 “Everything I heard about your wisdom and what you have to say is true!” she gasped, 7 “but I didn’t believe it at first! But then I came here and I’ve seen it for myself! It’s amazing! I wasn’t told half of what’s really great about your wisdom. You’re far better in person than what the reports have said about you! 8 How blessed are your staff! And how blessed are your employees,[bi] who serve you continuously and get to listen to your wisdom! 9 And blessed be the Lord your God, who is delighted with you! He set you in place on the throne of Israel because the Lord loved Israel forever. That’s why he made you to be king, so you could carry out justice and implement righteousness.”
10 Then she gave the king 120 talents[bj] of gold, a vast quantity of spices, and precious stones. No spices ever came again that were comparable to those that the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon. 11 Hiram’s ships that brought gold from Ophir,[bk] also brought from Ophir[bl] lots of algum wood[bm] and precious stones. 12 The king used the algum wood[bn] to have supports made for the Lord’s Temple and for the royal palace, as well as lyres and harps for the choir,[bo] and nothing like that wood[bp] has ever come again or even been seen since right to this day. 13 In return, King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she wanted and had requested in addition to what he had given her consistent with his generosity. Afterward, she returned to her own land with her servants.
Solomon’s Wealth(J)
14 Solomon’s annual revenue was 666 talents[bq] of gold, 15 not including revenue from traders, merchants, and from all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land. 16 King Solomon made 200 large shields of beaten gold, overlaying each large shield with the gold from 600 gold pieces,[br] 17 and 300 shields from beaten gold, overlaying each shield with the gold from 300 gold pieces.[bs] The king put them in his palace in the Lebanon forest. 18 The king also made a great ivory throne and overlaid it with pure gold. 19 Six steps led up to the throne, which had a round canopy fastened to the rear of the throne and armrests on each side of the seat and two lions standing on either side of each armrest. 20 Twelve lions were placed on both sides of the six steps leading to the throne,[bt] and nothing comparable was made for any other[bu] kingdoms. 21 All of King Solomon’s drinking vessels were made of[bv] gold, and all the vessels in his palace in the Lebanon forest were made of[bw] pure gold. None were of silver, because silver was never considered to be valuable during Solomon’s lifetime, 22 because the king had ships that sailed to Tarshish accompanied by Hiram’s ships. Once every three years ships from Tarshish returned, bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks. 23 As a result, King Solomon became greater than all the kings of the earth in regards to wealth and wisdom. 24 All the earth continued to seek audiences with Solomon so they could hear the wise things that God had put in his heart. 25 Everyone kept on bringing gifts on an annual basis, including items made of silver and gold, garments, myrrh, spices, horses, and mules. 26 Solomon accumulated chariots and cavalry. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 cavalry soldiers. He stationed them in various chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. 27 The king made silver as common as[bx] stones in Jerusalem, and made cedar trees as abundant as sycamore[by] trees in the Shephelah.[bz] 28 Solomon imported horses from Egypt and Kue, and the king’s buyers procured them at market price from Kue. 29 A chariot from Egypt cost 600 pieces[ca] of silver, and a horse 150 pieces of silver,[cb] but then they were exported to all the Hittite kings and to the Aramean kings.
Solomon’s Forbidden Marriages and Idolatry(K)
11 But King Solomon married[cc] many foreign women besides the daughter of Pharaoh: women from Moab, Ammon, Edom, and Sidonia, along with Hittite women, too, 2 all of them from nations that the Lord had ordered the Israelis, “You are not to associate with[cd] them and they are not to associate with you, because they will most certainly turn your affections[ce] away to follow their gods.” Solomon became deeply attached to them by falling in love. 3 He had 700 princess wives and 300 mistresses[cf] who[cg] turned his heart away from the Lord,[ch] 4 because as Solomon grew older, his wives turned his affections away after other gods, and his heart was not fully as devoted to the Lord his God as his father David’s heart had been. 5 Solomon pursued Astarte, the Sidonian goddess, and Milcom, that detestable Ammonite idol. 6 Solomon practiced what the Lord considered to be evil by not fully following the Lord, as had his father David. 7 Later, Solomon even constructed a high place on the mountain east of Jerusalem that was dedicated to Chemosh, that detestable Moabite idol, and to Molech, the detestable Ammonite idol. 8 Solomon[ci] did this for all of his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their own gods.
9 The Lord became angry at Solomon because his heart wandered away from the Lord God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice[cj] 10 and warned him about this so he would not pursue other gods. But he did not obey what the Lord had commanded, 11 so the Lord told Solomon, “Because you have done this and haven’t kept my covenant and statutes that I commanded you, I’m going to tear the kingdom from you and give it to your servant. 12 I’m not going to do this during your lifetime, for the sake of your father David, but I will tear it out of your son’s control.[ck] 13 For the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, I won’t tear away the entire kingdom. I’ll leave one tribe for your son to govern.”[cl]
Solomon’s Enemies
14 After this, the Lord allowed[cm] Hadad the Edomite to oppose Solomon. He was part of the royal line of Edom. 15 During David’s military campaign against Edom, when his army commander Joab had gone out to bury the dead, he killed every male in Edom. 16 Joab had his entire army of Israel stay there for six months until he had eliminated every male in Edom.
17 But Hadad escaped to Egypt in the company of some of his father’s Edomite servants, while Hadad was still a little child. 18 They left Midian, arrived in Paran, and left from Paran with some men and traveled on to Egypt, where Pharaoh, king of Egypt, gave him a house to live in, assigned a food allotment to him, and gave him some land. 19 Hadad won the affection of the Pharaoh, who gave permission for Hadad to marry the sister of his own wife, Queen Tahpenes. 20 Queen Tahpenes’ sister bore him his son Genubath, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh’s palace while Genubath lived in Pharaoh’s palace with the Pharaoh’s own sons.
21 Later on, Hadad learned in Egypt that David had been buried[cn] with his ancestors and that Joab the army commander was dead. So Hadad asked Pharaoh, “Please send me out so I can go back to my own land.”
22 Pharaoh asked him, “But have you lacked anything from me that would make you want to go back to your own country?”
“No,” he answered, “but I still really must leave.”
23 God also raised up Eliada’s son Rezon, who had escaped from his master King Hadadezer of Zobah. 24 He raised an army and commanded a gang of raiders after David had eliminated those who lived in Zobah. Rezon and his army[co] moved to Damascus, remained there, and Rezon ruled from Damascus. 25 He opposed Israel during Solomon’s entire reign, in addition to all of the evil things that Hadad did. Rezon[cp] also hated Israel while he reigned over Aram.
Jeroboam Rebels against Solomon
26 Solomon had a servant, Nebat’s son Jeroboam, who was an Ephraimite from Zeredah. His widowed mother was named Zeruah. Jeroboam rebelled against Solomon, 27 and this is why he rose in rebellion against the king: Solomon had built up the terrace ramparts[cq] in the city of his father David in order to repair a weakness. 28 Jeroboam was a valiant soldier, and because Solomon observed that the young man was able to get things done, he set him in charge over all of the conscripted labor from the household of Joseph. 29 During that time, Jeroboam left Jerusalem and the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met him on the road. Ahijah had wrapped himself up in a new cloak, and both of them were alone on the open road. 30 Ahijah grabbed the new cloak that he was wearing and tore it into twelve pieces! 31 Then he told Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, because this is what the Lord God of Israel says:
‘Pay attention! I’m going to tear the kingdom out of Solomon’s control[cr] and give you ten tribes. 32 I’ll leave him one tribe for the sake of my servant David and one tribe[cs] for the sake of Jerusalem, the city that I chose from all of the tribes of Israel. 33 I’m doing this[ct] because they have abandoned me and worshipped that Sidonian goddess Astarte, the Moabite god Chemosh, and the Ammonite god Milcom. They haven’t lived my way by doing what I consider to be right and observing my statutes and my ordinances, like his father David did.
34 ‘Nevertheless, I won’t take the entire kingdom away from him, but I’ll let him reign for the rest of his life, because of my servant David, whom I chose, who obeyed my commandments and statutes, 35 but I will take the kingdom away from his son’s control[cu] and give ten tribes to you. 36 I’ll give one tribe to his son, so my servant David will always have a light shining in my presence in Jerusalem, the city that I chose for myself and where I have placed my name. 37 I’m going to take you and have you reign over whatever you desire. You will be king over Israel. 38 If you listen to everything that I command you to do, and if you live your life my way,[cv] and if you do what I consider to be right by observing my statutes and my commandments, just like my servant David did, then I will be with you, I will build an enduring dynasty for you,[cw] just like I did for David, and I’ll give Israel to you. 39 This is how I’m going to afflict David’s descendants because of what they have done, though I won’t do it continuously.’”
40 That’s why Solomon tried to execute Jeroboam, but Jeroboam got up and fled to Egypt, where he lived as a guest of King Shishak and remained until Solomon had died.
The Death of Solomon(L)
41 Now the rest of Solomon’s accomplishments, including everything else he did, as well as records of[cx] his wisdom, are recorded in the Book of the Acts of Solomon, are they not? 42 Solomon reigned over all of Israel from Jerusalem for a total of 40 years. 43 Then Solomon died, as had[cy] his ancestors, and he was buried in the city of his father David. His son Rehoboam reigned in his place.
Secession of the Northern Tribes(M)
12 Rehoboam traveled to Shechem because all of Israel went there to install him as king. 2 Nebat’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 Egypt 3 after being summoned. When Jeroboam and the entire assembly of Israel arrived, they spoke to Rehoboam, 4 “Your father made our burdens unbearable.[cz] Therefore lighten your father’s requirements and his heavy burdens that he placed on us, and we’ll serve you.”
5 “Come again in three days,” Rehoboam[da] told them. So the people left 6 while 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?”
7 They 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.”
8 But Rehoboam[db] 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[dc] him. 9 As 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.’?”
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[dd] replied. “Tell them, ‘My little finger will be thicker than my father’s whole body![de] 11 Not only that, but since my father loaded you down heavily, I’m going to add to that burden. My father disciplined you with whips, but I’m going to discipline you with scorpions!’”
12 So 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.” 13 But the king gave the people a harsh response, because he was ignoring the counsel that his elders had given him. 14 Instead, Rehoboam[df] 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!”
15 The 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 Jeroboam. 16 When 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,[dg] Israel! David, take care of your own household!’ So Israel left for home.[dh] 17 And so Rehoboam ruled over the Israelis who lived in the cities of Judah.
18 King 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. 19 That’s how Israel came to be in rebellion against David’s dynasty to this day.
Jeroboam Reigns over Israel(N)
20 Now 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. 21 As 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. 22 But a message from God came to Shemaiah, a man of God: 23 “Tell Solomon’s son Rehoboam, king of Judah, all the dynasty of Judah, Benjamin, and the rest of the people, 24 ‘This is what the Lord says: “You are not to fight or even approach your fellow Israelis 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,[di] just as the Lord had directed.
Jeroboam’s Idolatry
25 Later on, Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. He also expanded from there and built Penuel. 26 Jeroboam was thinking to himself, “The kingdom is about to return to David’s control.[dj] 27 If 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!” 28 So the king sought some advice and then built 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!” 29 He set one of them in Bethel and placed the other one in Dan. 30 Doing this was sinful, because the people traveled as far as Dan to appear before one of their idols.[dk] 31 Jeroboam[dl] built temples on the high places, and appointed his own priests from the fringe elements of the people who were not descendants of Levi.
32 Jeroboam invented a festival for the fifteenth day of the eighth month similar to the festival 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. 33 Then, 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 festival that he had made up out of his own heart for the Israelis.
Josiah’s Desecration Predicted by a Man of God
13 Right when Jeroboam was standing by the altar to burn some incense, a man of God arrived in Bethel from Judah in obedience to a command from the Lord. 2 He cursed[dm] the altar in this[dn] message from the Lord: “Hey altar! Hey altar! This is what the Lord says: ‘Pay attention to this! A son is going to be born in David’s dynasty. His name will be Josiah. He will sacrifice the priests who burn incense on you in these high places. Human bones will be burned on you!’”[do]
3 Later that same day, he gave them a special display of power[dp] of what was to come when he said, “Here’s proof[dq] that the Lord has decreed this:[dr] Look! This altar will be split apart and the ashes that are on it will spill out.”
4 When he heard the man of God curse[ds] the altar in Bethel, the king pointed at the man of God from where the king was standing at the altar. “Seize him!” he ordered. But all of a sudden his hand that he had stretched out dried up, and he could not bring it back to his side! 5 Also, the altar broke apart and the ashes that were on it spilled out from the altar, providing just the proof that the man of God had predicted in his message from the Lord!
6 “Please!” the king begged the man of God, “Ask the Lord your God and pray for me that my hand may be restored for me!” So the man of God asked the Lord, and the king’s hand was immediately and fully restored, just like it had been before. 7 So the king told the man of God, “Come back to my palace and rest a while. I’d like to give you a reward.”
8 But the man of God replied to the king, “Even if you were to offer me half of your house, I wouldn’t go with you, and I’m sure not going to eat even a piece of bread or drink water in this place, 9 because the Lord commanded me specifically, ‘You are not to eat bread, drink water, or return by the way that you came to arrive here!’” 10 Then he left, returning a different way than the one by which he had traveled to Bethel.
An Old Prophet Rebukes the Man of God
11 Now there was an old prophet who lived in Bethel, and his sons went to him and told him everything that the man of God had accomplished that day in Bethel, including the message that he had delivered to the king. 12 “Which way did he go?” their father asked him, since his sons had observed the way that the man of God had taken to return to Judah from Bethel. 13 “Saddle my donkey for me!” he ordered.[dt] So they saddled the donkey for him 14 and he rode off after the man of God and found him sitting under an oak tree.[du] “You’re the man of God who came from Judah, aren’t you?” the old prophet[dv] asked him.
“I am,” he replied.
15 “Come home with me and have a meal,” he told him.
16 But he replied, “I can’t go back with you to your home, be in your company, or even eat food or drink water with you in this place, 17 because I’ve been given a command in the form of this message from the Lord: ‘You are to eat no food, drink no water, and do not return to Judah[dw] by traveling the way by which you go there.’”
18 “I’m a prophet like you,” the old man replied, “and an angel spoke to me and delivered this message from the Lord: ‘Bring him back with you to your house and give him food and water.’” But he was lying, 19 and the man of God[dx] accompanied the old prophet[dy] back to his house, ate some food, and drank some water.
20 Later, while they were sitting down at the table, a message from the Lord was delivered to the prophet who had brought him back, 21 so he cried out to the man of God from Judah: “This is what the Lord says: ‘Because you disobeyed a command from the Lord and haven’t done what the Lord your God commanded you to do, 22 but instead you returned to eat and drink in the very place that he told you “Eat no food and drink no water,” your body will not be buried in the same grave as your ancestors.’”
A Lion Kills the Man of God
23 After the meal was over, and the man had eaten food and had drunk water, the old prophet saddled the donkey for him—that is, for the man of God whom he had brought back. 24 Not long after the man of God[dz] had left, a lion met him along the road and killed him. His body was left lying in the middle of the road with the donkey standing beside it and with the lion also standing next to the body. 25 When some men passed by and noticed the body lying in the middle of the road and the lion standing beside the body, they went straight to the city and told what had happened in the city where the old prophet lived.
26 The prophet who had brought the man of God[ea] back from the road learned about it. “It’s the man of God who disobeyed the message from the Lord,” he said. “That’s why the Lord gave him to that lion, which mauled him and killed him, just as the message from the Lord told me to rebuke him.” 27 Then he ordered his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” So they did. 28 The old prophet[eb] went out and located the body on the road where the donkey and the lion were standing beside the body. The lion had not eaten the body nor mauled the donkey. 29 The prophet picked up the body of the man of God, laid it on the donkey, and brought it back to the city where the old man lived so he could mourn and bury him.
30 He buried the corpse in his own grave and his family mourned for him, crying out, “Oh, no! My brother!”
31 After he had buried the man of God,[ec] he gave these instructions to his children: “When I die, bury me in the same grave in which the man of God is buried. Place my bones beside his, 32 because what he predicted by a message from the Lord against the altar in Bethel and the temples built in the high places of the cities of Samaria will certainly come about.”
33 Despite everything that happened, Jeroboam never did repent of his evil practices. Instead, he appointed even more people to act as priests for the high places. Anyone who wanted to be a priest was ordained to be a priest in the high places. 34 This practice became so sinful that the Lord decided[ed] to erase Jeroboam’s dynasty, thus eliminating it from the face of the earth.
God Disciplines Jeroboam’s Family
14 Right at that time, Jeroboam’s son Abijah became ill, 2 so Jeroboam suggested to his wife, “Get up, disguise yourself so that no one will know that you’re Jeroboam’s wife, and go to Shiloh where the prophet Ahijah lives. He’s the one who told me that I would be king over this people. 3 Take ten loaves with you, some[ee] cakes, and a jar of honey and go visit him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy.”
4 So that’s what Jeroboam’s wife did. She got up, went to Shiloh, and found Ahijah’s home. Ahijah was blind, because his eyes could not focus[ef] due to his age. 5 Meanwhile, the Lord had spoken to Ahijah, “Be on your guard! Jeroboam’s wife is coming to ask you about her son, because he is ill. You’re to say such and such to her. When she arrives, she will pretend to be someone else!”
6 When she arrived, Ahijah heard the sound of her feet as she came through the doorway. He said this to her:
“Come in, wife of Jeroboam. What is this pretension at being someone else? I have some harsh news.[eg] 7 Go tell Jeroboam:
‘I raised you up from among the people.
‘I made you Commander-in-Chief[eh] over my people Israel.
8 ‘I tore the kingdom away from David’s dynasty.
‘Then I gave it to you.
But you have not lived like my servant David, who kept my commands with all his heart, and did only what I considered to be right.
9 ‘Instead, you have done more evil than everyone who lived before you.
‘You have gone out and crafted other gods for yourself.
‘You made cast images.
‘You have provoked me to anger.
‘You have thrown me behind your back.
10 ‘Therefore, watch while I bring calamity on Jeroboam’s dynasty!
‘I will eliminate every male,[ei] both slave and free in Israel, from Jeroboam.
‘I will burn up Jeroboam’s dynasty, as a man burns up manure until it is gone. 11 Dogs will eat anyone who dies in the city that belongs to Jeroboam’s household. The birds of the sky will eat anyone who dies in the open field, because the Lord has determined it.’
12 “Now get up and go home. When your feet cross the city line, your child will die. 13 Everyone in Israel will mourn for him and will bury him, because he alone from Jeroboam’s family will receive a decent burial, because something good was observed in him with respect to the Lord God of Israel out of all the household of Jeroboam!
14 “In addition to this, the Lord will raise up for himself a king over Israel who will eliminate Jeroboam’s dynasty, starting today and from now on. 15 The Lord will attack Israel, and Israel will shake like a reed shakes in a river current! He will uproot Israel from this good land that he gave to their ancestors and he will scatter them beyond the Euphrates[ej] River, because they erected their Asherim[ek] and provoked the Lord to become angry! 16 He will give up Israel because of Jeroboam’s sins that he committed and by which Jeroboam[el] caused Israel to sin.”
17 Then Jeroboam’s wife got up and left for Tirzah. As soon as she set foot over the threshold of the house, the child died. 18 All of Israel mourned him at his burial, just as the Lord had said when he spoke through Ahijah the prophet.
The Death of Jeroboam
19 Now as for the rest of Jeroboam’s accomplishments, including how he waged war and how he reigned, you may read about them in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 20 Jeroboam reigned for 22 years and then died, as had his ancestors, and his son Nadab reigned in his place.
Rehoboam Reigns over Judah(O)
21 Meanwhile, Solomon’s son Rehoboam reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was 41 years old when he became king, and he reigned for seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city where the Lord had chosen from all the tribes of Israel to place his Name. His mother was an Ammonite named Naamah. 22 Judah practiced what the Lord considered to be evil. They did more to provoke him to jealousy than their ancestors had ever done by committing the sins that they committed. 23 They erected high places, sacred pillars, and Asherim[em] for themselves on every high hill and under every green tree. 24 They even maintained male shrine prostitutes throughout the land, and imitated every detestable practice that the nations practiced whom the Lord had expelled in front of the Israelis.
25 As a result, during the fifth year of the reign of[en] King Rehoboam, King Shishak of Egypt invaded and attacked Jerusalem. 26 He stripped the Lord’s Temple and the royal palace of their treasures. He took everything, even the gold shields that Solomon had made. 27 King Rehoboam made shields out of bronze to take their place, and then committed them to the care and custody of the commanders of those who guarded the entrance to the royal palace. 28 Whenever the king entered the Lord’s Temple, the guards would carry them to and from the guard’s quarters.
29 As to the rest of Rehoboam’s accomplishments, and everything else that he undertook, they are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, aren’t they? 30 There was continual warfare between Rehoboam and Jeroboam, 31 but eventually Rehoboam died, as had his ancestors, and he was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. His mother’s name had been Naamah the Ammonite, and his son Abijah became king to replace him.
Abijah’s Reign over Judah(P)
15 Abijah reigned over Judah starting in the eighteenth year of Nebat’s son Jeroboam’s reign. 2 He reigned for three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Maacah, the daughter of Abishalom. 3 He practiced the same sins that his father committed before he was born. Unlike his ancestor David, his heart never became devoted to the Lord his God. 4 Nevertheless, for the sake of David, the Lord his God maintained a lamp for David[eo] in Jerusalem by raising up his son after him so that Jerusalem would be established, 5 because David had practiced what the Lord considered to be right. He never avoided anything that the Lord had commanded him during his entire lifetime, except for the case of Uriah the Hittite.
6 There was continual military conflict between Rehoboam and Jeroboam throughout his entire lifetime. 7 The rest of Abijah’s accomplishments, including everything he undertook, are written in the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, are they not? And a state of war continued to exist between Abijah and Jeroboam. 8 Eventually, Abijah died, as did his ancestors, and he was buried in the City of David. His son Asa succeeded him as king.
Asa Reigns over Judah(Q)
9 Asa began to reign as Judah’s king during the twentieth year of the reign of[ep] Jeroboam as king over Israel. 10 He reigned 41 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Maacah, the daughter of Abishalom. 11 Asa practiced what the Lord considered to be right, just like his ancestor David. 12 He also removed the male cult prostitutes[eq] from the land and destroyed all the idols that his ancestors had made. 13 He removed his mother Maacah from her position as Queen Mother because she had made a detestable image dedicated to Asherah.[er] Asa cut down his mother’s idol, crushed it, and burned it at the Kidron Brook. 14 Nevertheless, the high places were not removed, even though Asa’s heart was blameless toward the Lord all of his life. 15 Asa brought into the Lord’s Temple the things that his father had dedicated, as well as his own dedicated gifts such as silver, gold, and temple service[es] implements.
Alliances with Aram against Israel(R)
16 A state of continual military unrest existed between Asa and King Baasha of Israel throughout their lifetimes. 17 King Baasha of Israel invaded Judah and interdicted Ramah by building fortifications around it so no one could enter or leave to join King Asa of Judah. 18 But Asa removed all the silver and gold from the treasuries of the Lord’s Temple and from his royal palace, placed them into the care of some servants, and then sent them to Tabrimmon’s son King Ben-hadad of Aram, the grandson of Hezion, who lived in Damascus.
19 “Let’s make a treaty between you and me,” he said, “just like the one between my father and your father. Notice that I’ve sent you silver and gold to break your treaty with King Baasha of Israel, so he’ll retreat from his attack[et] on me.”
20 So King Ben-hadad did just what King Asa had asked: he sent his commanding officers to attack the cities of Israel, conquering Ijon, Dan, Abel-beth-maacah, all of Chinneroth,[eu] and the territory of Naphtali. 21 When Baasha learned of this, he stopped fortifying Ramah and remained in Tirzah, 22 so King Asa published a proclamation throughout Judah (no one was left out) and they carried away the stones and timber with which Baasha had been fortifying Judah. King Asa used them to fortify Geba in Benjamin and Mizpah.
23 The rest of Asa’s accomplishments, his strength, everything that he undertook, and the cities that he fortified are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, are they not? However, as he approached old age, he became diseased in his feet. 24 Then Asa died, as had his ancestors, and he was buried with his ancestors in the City of David, his ancestor. His son Jehoshaphat reigned in his place.
Nadab Reigns over Israel
25 Jeroboam’s son Nadab became king over Israel during the second year of the reign of[ev] King Asa over Judah. He reigned over Israel for two years, 26 practicing what the Lord considered to be evil, living the way his father did, committing sins, and leading Israel to sin. 27 So Ahijah’s son Baasha from the household of Issachar conspired against him and killed Nadab at Gibbethon in Philistia while Nadab and all of Israel were attacking Gibbethon. 28 Baasha killed him during the third year of the reign of[ew] King Asa of Judah and took Nadab’s[ex] place as king.
29 As soon as he was established as king, he killed everyone in the household of Jeroboam. He left not even one single person alive. He destroyed them completely, just as the Lord had spoken through his servant Ahijah the Shilonite,[ey] 30 because of the sins that Jeroboam had committed, and because he led Israel into sin, provoking the Lord God of Israel to become angry.
31 Now the rest of Nadab’s accomplishments, including everything he undertook, are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel, are they not? 32 Meanwhile, a state of war continued to exist between Asa and Baasha king of Israel, throughout their reigns.
Baasha Reigns over Israel
33 During the third year of the reign of[ez] King Asa of Judah, Ahijah’s son Baasha became king over all of Israel. He reigned for 24 years at Tirzah. 34 He practiced what the Lord considered to be evil, living like Jeroboam did and leading Israel into sin.
Jehu Rebukes Baasha
16 Later, a message came from the Lord to Hanani’s son Jehu. It was directed to rebuke Baasha, and this is what it said:
2 “I raised you from the dirt to become Commander-in-Chief[fa] over my people Israel, but you’ve been living like Jeroboam, you’ve been leading my people Israel into sin, and you’ve been provoking me to anger with their sins. 3 So watch out! I’m going to devour Baasha and his household. I’m going to make your household just like the household of Jeroboam, Nebat’s son. 4 Anyone from Baasha’s household[fb] who dies in the city will be eaten by dogs, and anyone of his who dies in the field the birds of the sky will eat.”
5 Now the rest of Baasha’s accomplishments, including everything that he undertook, as well as his strengths, are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel, are they not? 6 Eventually, Baasha died, as had his ancestors, and he was buried in Tirzah. His son Elah was installed as king in his place.
7 In addition, a message from the Lord came through Hanani’s son Jehu the prophet against Baasha and his household, not only because of all of the things that Baasha[fc] did that the Lord considered to be evil, including provoking the Lord[fd] to anger by what he did and by being like the household of Jeroboam, but also because Baasha[fe] had destroyed Jeroboam’s household.[ff]
Elah Reigns over Israel
8 During the twenty-sixth year of the reign of[fg] King Asa of Judah, Baasha’s son Elah became king over Israel and reigned at Tirzah for two years. 9 But his servant Zimri, who commanded half of his chariot forces, conspired against Elah while he was drinking himself drunk in the home of Arza, who managed the household at Tirzah. 10 Zimri went inside, attacked him, and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of the reign of King Asa of Judah, and then became king in Elah’s place. 11 As soon as he had consolidated his reign, he executed the entire household of Baasha. He did not leave a single male alive, including any of Baasha’s relatives or friends. 12 In doing so, Zimri destroyed the entire household of Baasha, in keeping with the message from the Lord that he had spoken against Baasha through Jehu the prophet 13 because of all the sins that Baasha and his son Elah had committed and because of what they did to lead Israel into sin, thus provoking the Lord God of Israel to anger with their idolatry. 14 Now the rest of Elah’s accomplishments, including everything he undertook, are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel, are they not?
Zimri Reigns over Israel
15 Zimri reigned for seven days at Tirzah during the twenty-seventh year of the reign of[fh] King Asa of Judah. At that time, the army was encamped in a siege against Gibbethon of Philistia. 16 The army at the encampment heard this report: “Zimri has conspired against the king and killed him.” So the entire army of[fi] Israel made Omri, their commander, king over Israel. 17 Then Omri and the entire army of[fj] Israel left from Gibbethon and attacked Tirzah. 18 When Zimri observed that the city had been captured, he retreated into the king’s palace, set fire to the citadel, and died when the palace burned down around him 19 because of the sins that he committed by doing what the Lord considered to be evil, living like Jeroboam did, and sinning so as to lead Israel into sin. 20 The rest of Zimri’s accomplishments, including his conspiracy that he carried out, are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel, are they not?
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