| King James Bible | New International Version |
| 1And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. | 1Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king. |
| 2And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;) | 2When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this (he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), he returned from Egypt. |
| 3That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, | 3So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and the whole assembly of Israel went to Rehoboam and said to him: |
| 4Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee. | 4"Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you." |
| 5And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed. | 5Rehoboam answered, "Go away for three days and then come back to me." So the people went away. |
| 6And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people? | 6Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. "How would you advise me to answer these people?" he asked. |
| 7And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever. | 7They replied, "If today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your servants." |
| 8But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood before him: | 8But Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him. |
| 9And he said unto them, What counsel give ye that we may answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke which thy father did put upon us lighter? | 9He asked them, "What is your advice? How should we answer these people who say to me, 'Lighten the yoke your father put on us'?" |
| 10And the young men that were grown up with him spake unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto this people that spake unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father's loins. | 10The young men who had grown up with him replied, "These people have said to you, 'Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but make our yoke lighter.' Now tell them, 'My little finger is thicker than my father's waist. |
| 11And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father hath chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. | 11My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.'" |
| 12So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me again the third day. | 12Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, as the king had said, "Come back to me in three days." |
| 13And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the old men's counsel that they gave him; | 13The king answered the people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by the elders, |
| 14And spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. | 14he followed the advice of the young men and said, "My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions." |
| 15Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people; for the cause was from the LORD, that he might perform his saying, which the LORD spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat. | 15So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from the LORD, to fulfill the word the LORD had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite. |
| 16So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents. | 16When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king: "What share do we have in David, what part in Jesse's son? To your tents, Israel! Look after your own house, David!" So the Israelites went home. |
| 17But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. | 17But as for the Israelites who were living in the towns of Judah, Rehoboam still ruled over them. |
| 18Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the tribute; and all Israel stoned him with stones, that he died. Therefore king Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. | 18King Rehoboam sent out Adoniram, who was in charge of forced labor, but all Israel stoned him to death. King Rehoboam, however, managed to get into his chariot and escape to Jerusalem. |
| 19So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day. | 19So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day. |
| 20And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only. | 20When all the Israelites heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the house of David. |
| 21And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, an hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men, which were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. | 21When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mustered all Judah and the tribe of Benjamin--a hundred and eighty thousand able young men--to go to war against Israel and to regain the kingdom for Rehoboam son of Solomon. |
| 22But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying, | 22But this word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God: |
| 23Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying, | 23"Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah, to all Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, |
| 24Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from me. They hearkened therefore to the word of the LORD, and returned to depart, according to the word of the LORD. | 24This is what the LORD says: Do not go up to fight against your brothers, the Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.'" So they obeyed the word of the LORD and went home again, as the LORD had ordered. |
| 25Then Jeroboam built Shechem in mount Ephraim, and dwelt therein; and went out from thence, and built Penuel. | 25Then Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built up Peniel. |
| 26And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David: | 26Jeroboam thought to himself, "The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David. |
| 27If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah. | 27If these people go up to offer sacrifices at the temple of the LORD in Jerusalem, they will again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will kill me and return to King Rehoboam." |
| 28Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. | 28After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. He said to the people, "It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt." |
| 29And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan. | 29One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan. |
| 30And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan. | 30And this thing became a sin; the people came to worship the one at Bethel and went as far as Dan to worship the other. |
| 31And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi. | 31Jeroboam built shrines on high places and appointed priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites. |
| 32And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made. | 32He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the festival held in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves he had made. And at Bethel he also installed priests at the high places he had made. |
| 33So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense. | 33On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a month of his own choosing, he offered sacrifices on the altar he had built at Bethel. So he instituted the festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to make offerings. |
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