The In-Dept Study of the Bible
Kings 14
1 At that time Abijah the son ofJeroboam
became sick.
2 Jeroboam said to his wife, “Please get
up and disguise yourself, so that you won’t
be recognized as Jeroboam’s wife. Go
to Shiloh. Behold, Ahijah the prophet is
there, who said that I would be king over
this people.
3 Take withyoutenloaves of bread, some
cakes, and a jar of honey, and go to him. He
willtell you what will become ofthe child.”
4 Jeroboam’s wife did so, and arose and
wentto Shiloh, andcame to Ahijah’shouse.
Now Ahijahcouldnot see,forhis eyes were
set by reason of his age.
5 Yahweh said to Ahijah, “Behold, Jeroboam’s wife is coming to inquire of you
concerning her son, for he is sick. Tell
her such and such; for it will be, when
she comes in, that she will pretend to be
another woman.”
6 So when Ahijah heard the sound of her
feet as she came in at the door, he said,
“Come in, Jeroboam’s wife! Why do you
pretend to be another? For I am sentto you
with heavy news.
7 Go, tell Jeroboam, ‘Yahweh, the God of
Israel, says: “Because I exalted you from among the people, and made you prince
over my people Israel,
8 and tore the kingdom away from
David’s house, and gave it to you; and yet
you have not been as my servant David,
who kept my commandments, and who
followed me with all his heart, to do that
only which was right in my eyes,
9 but have done evil above all who were
before you, and have gone and made for
yourself other gods, molten images, to provoke me to anger, and have cast me behind
your back,
10 therefore, behold, I will bring evil on
the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off
from Jeroboam everyone who urinates on
a wall,† he who is shut up and he who
is left at large in Israel, and will utterly
sweep away the house of Jeroboam, as a
man sweeps away dung until it is all gone.
11 The dogs will eat he who belongs to
Jeroboam who dies in the city; and the
birds of the sky will eat he who dies in the
field, for Yahweh has spoken it.” ’
12 Arise therefore, and go to your house.
When your feet enter into the city, the
child will die.
13 All Israel will mourn for him and bury
him; for he only of Jeroboam will come to
the grave, because in him there is found
some good thing toward Yahweh, the God
of Israel, in the house of Jeroboam.
14 Moreover Yahweh will raise up a king
for himself over Israel who will cut off the
house of Jeroboam. This is the day! What?
Even now.
15 For Yahweh will strike Israel, as a reed
is shaken in the water; and he will root up
Israel out of this good land which he gave
to their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the River,‡ because they have made
their Asherah poles, provoking Yahweh to
anger.
16 He will give Israel up because of the
sins ofJeroboam, whichhehas sinned, and
with which he has made Israel to sin.”
17 Jeroboam’s wife arose and departed,
and came to Tirzah. As she came to the
threshold of the house, the child died.
18 All Israel buried him and mourned for
him, according to Yahweh’s word, which
he spokebyhis servant Ahijahtheprophet.
19 The rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how
he fought and how he reigned, behold,
they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
20 The days which Jeroboam reigned
were twenty two years; then he slept with
his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in
his place.
21 Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned
in Judah. Rehoboam was forty-one years
old whenhe beganto reign, and he reigned
seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city
which Yahweh had chosen out of all the
tribes of Israel, to put his name there.
His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonitess.
22 Judah did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, and they provoked him to jealousy with their
sins which they committed, above all that their fathers had done.
23 For they also built for themselves high
places, sacred pillars, and Asherah poles
on every high hill and under every green
tree.
24 There were also sodomites in the land.
They did according to allthe abominations
of the nations which Yahweh drove out
before the children of Israel.
25 In the fifth year of King Rehoboam,
Shishak king of Egypt came up against
Jerusalem;
26 and he took away the treasures of Yahweh’s house and the treasures ofthe king’s
house. He even took away all of it, including all the gold shields which Solomon had
made.
27 King Rehoboam made shields of
bronze in their place, and committed them
to the hands of the captains of the guard,
who kept the door of the king’s house.
28 It was so, that as often as the king went
into Yahweh’s house, the guard bore them,
and brought them back into the guard
room.
29 Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam,
and all that he did, aren’t they written in
the book of the chronicles of the kings of
Judah?
30 There was war between Rehoboam
and Jeroboam continually 31 Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and
was buried with his fathers in David’s city.
His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonitess. Abijam his son reigned in his
place.