1
Rehoboam went to Shechem, where all the people of northern Israel had gathered to make him king.
2
When Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had gone to Egypt to escape from King Solomon, heard this news, he returned from Egypt.
3
The people of the northern tribes sent for him, and then they all went together to Rehoboam and said to him,
4
"Your father Solomon treated us harshly and placed heavy burdens on us. If you make these burdens lighter and make life easier for us, we will be your loyal subjects."
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"Come back in three days and I will give you my answer," he replied. So they left.
6
King Rehoboam consulted the older men who had served as his father Solomon's advisers. "What answer do you advise me to give these people?" he asked.
7
They replied, "If you want to serve this people well, give a favorable answer to their request, and they will always serve you loyally."
8
But he ignored the advice of the older men and went instead to the young men who had grown up with him and who were now his advisers.
9
"What do you advise me to do?" he asked. "What shall I say to the people who are asking me to make their burdens lighter?"
10
They replied, "This is what you should tell them: 'My little finger is thicker than my father's waist!'
11
Tell them, 'My father placed heavy burdens on you; I will make them even heavier. He beat you with whips; I'll flog you with bullwhips!' "
12
Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to King Rehoboam, as he had instructed them.
13
The king ignored the advice of the older men and spoke harshly to the people,
14
as the younger men had advised. He said, "My father placed heavy burdens on you; I will make them even heavier. He beat you with whips; I'll flog you with bullwhips!"
15
It was the will of the LORD to bring about what he had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh. This is why the king did not pay any attention to the people.
16
When the people saw that the king would not listen to them, they shouted, "Down with David and his family! What have they ever done for us? People of Israel, let's go home! Let Rehoboam look out for himself !" So the people of Israel rebelled,
17
leaving Rehoboam as king only of the people who lived in the territory of Judah.
18
Then King Rehoboam sent Adoniram, who was in charge of the forced labor, to go to the Israelites, but they stoned him to death. At this, Rehoboam hurriedly got in his chariot and escaped to Jerusalem.
19
Ever since that time the people of the northern kingdom of Israel have been in rebellion against the dynasty of David.
20
When the people of Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned from Egypt, they invited him to a meeting of the people and made him king of Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to David's descendants.
21
When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he called together 180,000 of the best soldiers from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. He intended to go to war and restore his control over the northern tribes of Israel.
22
But God told the prophet Shemaiah
23
to give this message to Rehoboam and to all the people of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin:
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"Do not attack your own relatives, the people of Israel. Go home, all of you. What has happened is my will." They all obeyed the LORD's command and went back home.
25
King Jeroboam of Israel fortified the town of Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there for a while. Then he left and fortified the town of Penuel.
26
He said to himself, "As things are now, if my people go to Jerusalem and offer sacrifices to the LORD in the Temple there, they will transfer their allegiance to King Rehoboam of Judah and will kill me."
28
After thinking it over, he made two bull-calves of gold and said to his people, "You have been going long enough to Jerusalem to worship. People of Israel, here are your gods who brought you out of Egypt!"
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He placed one of the gold bull-calves in Bethel and the other in Dan.
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And so the people sinned, going to worship in Bethel and in Dan.
31
Jeroboam also built places of worship on hilltops, and he chose priests from families who were not of the tribe of Levi.
32
Jeroboam also instituted a religious festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the festival in Judah. On the altar in Bethel he offered sacrifices to the gold bull-calves he had made, and he placed there in Bethel the priests serving at the places of worship he had built.
33
And on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, the day that he himself had set, he went to Bethel and offered a sacrifice on the altar in celebration of the festival he had instituted for the people of Israel.
1
Rehoboam went to Shechem, where all the people of northern Israel had gathered to make him king.
2
When Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had gone to Egypt to escape from King Solomon, heard this news, he returned home.
3
The people of the northern tribes sent for him, and they all went together to Rehoboam and said to him,
4
"Your father placed heavy burdens on us. If you make these burdens lighter and make life easier for us, we will be your loyal subjects."
5
Rehoboam replied, "Give me three days to consider the matter. Then come back." So the people left.
6
King Rehoboam consulted the older men who had served as his father Solomon's advisers. "What answer do you advise me to give these people?" he asked.
7
They replied, "If you are kind to these people and try to please them by giving a considerate answer, they will always serve you loyally."
8
But he ignored the advice of the older men and went instead to the young men who had grown up with him and who were now his advisers.
9
"What do you advise me to do?" he asked. "What shall I say to the people who are asking me to make their burdens lighter?"
10
They replied, "This is what you should tell them: 'My little finger is thicker than my father's waist.'
11
Tell them, 'My father placed heavy burdens on you; I will make them even heavier. He beat you with whips; I'll flog you with bullwhips!' "
12
Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to King Rehoboam, as he had instructed them.
13
The king ignored the advice of the older men and spoke harshly to the people,
14
as the younger men had advised. He said, "My father placed heavy burdens on you; I will make them even heavier. He beat you with whips; I'll flog you with bullwhips!"
15
It was the will of the LORD God to bring about what he had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh. This is why the king did not pay any attention to the people.
16
When the people saw that the king would not listen to them, they shouted, "Down with David and his family! What have they ever done for us? People of Israel, let's go home! Let Rehoboam look out for himself !" So the people of Israel rebelled,
17
leaving Rehoboam as king only of the people who lived in the territory of Judah.
18
Then King Rehoboam sent Adoniram, who was in charge of the forced labor, to go to the Israelites, but they stoned him to death. At this, Rehoboam hurriedly got in his chariot and escaped to Jerusalem.
19
Ever since that time the people of the northern kingdom of Israel have been in rebellion against the dynasty of David.
1
When King Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he called together 180,000 of the best soldiers from the tribes of Benjamin and Judah. He intended to go to war and restore his control over the northern tribes of Israel.
2
But the LORD told the prophet Shemaiah
3
to give this message to King Rehoboam and to all the people of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin:
4
"Do not attack your own relatives. Go home, all of you. What has happened is my will." They obeyed the LORD's command and did not go to fight Jeroboam.
5
Rehoboam remained in Jerusalem and had fortifications built for the following cities of Judah and Benjamin:
6
Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa,
7
Bethzur, Soco, Adullam,
9
Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah,
10
Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron.
11
He had them strongly fortified and appointed a commander for each of them, and in each one he placed supplies of food, olive oil, and wine,
12
and also shields and spears. In this way he kept Judah and Benjamin under his control.
13
From all the territory of Israel priests and Levites came south to Judah.
14
The Levites abandoned their pastures and other land and moved to Judah and Jerusalem, because King Jeroboam of Israel and his successors would not let them serve as priests of the LORD.
15
Jeroboam appointed priests of his own to serve at the pagan places of worship and to worship demons and the idols he made in the form of bull-calves.
16
From all the tribes of Israel people who sincerely wanted to worship the LORD, the God of Israel, followed the Levites to Jerusalem, so that they could offer sacrifices to the LORD, the God of their ancestors.
17
This strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and for three years they supported Rehoboam son of Solomon and lived as they had under the rule of King David and King Solomon.
18
Rehoboam married Mahalath, whose father was Jerimoth son of David and whose mother was Abihail, the daughter of Eliab and granddaughter of Jesse.
19
They had three sons, Jeush, Shemariah, and Zaham.
20
Later he married Maacah, the daughter of Absalom, and they had four sons: Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith.
21
In all, Rehoboam had eighteen wives and sixty concubines, and he fathered twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters. Of all his wives and concubines he loved Maacah best,
22
and he favored her son Abijah over all his other children, choosing him as the one to succeed him as king.
23
Rehoboam wisely assigned responsibilities to his sons and stationed them throughout Judah and Benjamin in the fortified cities. He provided generously for them and also secured many wives for them.
1
Your life in Christ makes you strong, and his love comforts you. You have fellowship with the Spirit, and you have kindness and compassion for one another.
2
I urge you, then, to make me completely happy by having the same thoughts, sharing the same love, and being one in soul and mind.
3
Don't do anything from selfish ambition or from a cheap desire to boast, but be humble toward one another, always considering others better than yourselves.
4
And look out for one another's interests, not just for your own.
5
The attitude you should have is the one that Christ Jesus had:
6
He always had the nature of God, but he did not think that by force he should try to remain equal with God.
7
Instead of this, of his own free will he gave up all he had, and took the nature of a servant. He became like a human being and appeared in human likeness.
8
He was humble and walked the path of obedience all the way to death--- his death on the cross.
9
For this reason God raised him to the highest place above and gave him the name that is greater than any other name.
10
And so, in honor of the name of Jesus all beings in heaven, on earth, and in the world below will fall on their knees,
11
and all will openly proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12
So then, dear friends, as you always obeyed me when I was with you, it is even more important that you obey me now while I am away from you. Keep on working with fear and trembling to complete your salvation,
13
because God is always at work in you to make you willing and able to obey his own purpose.
14
Do everything without complaining or arguing,
15
so that you may be innocent and pure as God's perfect children, who live in a world of corrupt and sinful people. You must shine among them like stars lighting up the sky,
16
as you offer them the message of life. If you do so, I shall have reason to be proud of you on the Day of Christ, because it will show that all my effort and work have not been wasted.
17
Perhaps my life's blood is to be poured out like an offering on the sacrifice that your faith offers to God. If that is so, I am glad and share my joy with you all.
18
In the same way, you too must be glad and share your joy with me.
19
If it is the Lord's will, I hope that I will be able to send Timothy to you soon, so that I may be encouraged by news about you.
20
He is the only one who shares my feelings and who really cares about you.
21
Everyone else is concerned only with their own affairs, not with the cause of Jesus Christ.
22
And you yourselves know how he has proved his worth, how he and I, like a son and his father, have worked together for the sake of the gospel.
23
So I hope to send him to you as soon as I know how things are going to turn out for me.
24
And I trust in the Lord that I myself will be able to come to you soon.
25
I have thought it necessary to send to you our brother Epaphroditus, who has worked and fought by my side and who has served as your messenger in helping me.
26
He is anxious to see you all and is very upset because you had heard that he was sick.
27
Indeed he was sick and almost died. But God had pity on him, and not only on him but on me, too, and spared me an even greater sorrow.
28
I am all the more eager, then, to send him to you, so that you will be glad again when you see him, and my own sorrow will disappear.
29
Receive him, then, with joy, as a believer in the Lord. Show respect to all such people as he,
30
because he risked his life and nearly died for the sake of the work of Christ, in order to give me the help that you yourselves could not give.
