1 Kings 12

1 And Roboam went to Sichem: for thither were all Israel come together to make him king.

And Rehoboam goes to Shechem, for all Israel has come to Shechem to make him king.

2 But Jeroboam the son of Nabat, who was yet in Egypt, a fugitive from the face of king Solomon, hearing of his death, returned out of Egypt.

And it comes to pass, at Jeroboam son of Nebat’s hearing (and he [is] yet in Egypt where he has fled from the presence of Solomon the king, and Jeroboam dwells in Egypt),

3 And they sent and called him: and Jeroboam came, and all the multitude of Israel, and they spoke to Roboam, saying:

that they send and call for him; and they come—Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel—and speak to Rehoboam, saying,

4 Thy father laid a grievous yoke upon us: now therefore do thou take off a little of the grievous service of thy father, and of his most heavy yoke, which he put upon us, and we will serve thee.

“Your father hardened our yoke, and you, now, lighten [some] of the hard service of your father, and his heavy yoke that he put on us, and we serve you.”

5 And he said to them: Go till the third day, and come to me again. And when the people was gone,

And he says to them, “Yet go [for] three days, and come back to me”; and the people go.

6 King Roboam took counsel with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and he said: What counsel do you give me, that I may answer this people?

And King Rehoboam consults with the elderly who have been standing in the presence of his father Solomon, in his being alive, saying, “How are you counseling to answer this people?”

7 They said to him: If thou wilt yield to this people today, and condescend to them, and grant their petition, and wilt speak gentle words to them, they will be thy servants always.

And they speak to him, saying, “If, today, you are a servant of this people, and have served them, and answered them, and spoken good words to them, then they have been servants to you [for] all the days.”

8 But he left the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men, that had been brought up with him, and stood before him.

And he forsakes the counsel of the elderly which they counseled him, and consults with the boys who have grown up with him, who are standing before him;

9 And he said to them: What counsel do you give me, that I may answer this people, who have said to me: Make the yoke which thy father put upon us lighter?

and he says to them, “What are you counseling, and we answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Lighten [some] of the yoke that your father put on us?”

10 And the young men that had been brought up with him, said: Thus shalt thou speak to this people, who have spoken to thee, saying: Thy father made our yoke heavy, do thou ease us. Thou shalt say to them: My little finger is thicker than the back of my father.

And they speak to him—the boys who had grown up with him—saying, “Thus you say to this people who have spoken to you, saying, Your father made our yoke heavy, and you, make [it] light on us; thus you speak to them, My little [finger] is thicker than the loins of my father;

11 And now my father put a, heavy yoke upon you, but I will add to your yoke: my father beat you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions.

and now, my father laid a heavy yoke on you, and I add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, and I discipline you with scorpions.”

12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Roboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying: Come to me again the third day.

And they come—Jeroboam and all the people—to Rehoboam, on the third day, as the king had spoken, saying, “Come back to me on the third day.”

13 And the king answered the people roughly, leaving the counsel of the old men, which they had given him,

And the king answers the people sharply, and forsakes the counsel of the elderly which they counseled him,

14 And he spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying: My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke: my father beat you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions.

and speaks to them, according to the counsel of the boys, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy, and I add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, and I discipline you with scorpions”;

15 And the king condescended not to the people: for the Lord was turned away from him, to make good his word, which he had spoken in the hand of Ahias the Silonite, to Jeroboam the son of Nabat.

and the king did not listen to the people, for the revolution was from YHWH, in order to establish His word that YHWH spoke by the hand of Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat.

16 Then the people seeing that the king would not hearken to them, answered him, saying: What portion have we in David? or what inheritance in the son of Isai? Go home to thy dwellings, O Israel, now David look to thy own house. So Israel departed to their dwellings.

And all Israel sees that the king has not listened to them, and the people send the king back word, saying, “What portion do we have in David? Indeed, there is no inheritance in the son of Jesse; [return] to your tents, O Israel; now see your house, O David!” And Israel goes to its tents.

17 But as for all the children of Israel that dwelt in the cities of Juda, Roboam reigned over them.

As for the sons of Israel, those dwelling in the cities of Judah—Rehoboam reigns over them.

18 Then king Roboam sent Aduram, who was over the tribute: and all Israel stoned him, and he died. Wherefore king Roboam made haste to get him up into his chariot, and he fled to Jerusalem:

And King Rehoboam sends Adoram who [is] over the tribute, and all Israel casts stones at him, and he dies; and King Rehoboam has strengthened himself to go up into a chariot to flee to Jerusalem;

19 And Israel revolted from the house of David, unto this day.

and Israel transgresses against the house of David to this day.

20 And it came to pass when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they gathered an assembly, and sent and called him, and made him king over all Israel, and there was none that followed the house of David but the tribe of Juda only.

And it comes to pass, at all Israel hearing that Jeroboam has returned, that they send and call him to the congregation, and cause him to reign over all Israel; none has been after the house of David except the tribe of Judah alone.

21 And Roboam came to Jerusalem, and gathered together all the house of Juda, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred four-score thousand chosen men for war, to fight against the house of Israel and to bring the kingdom again under Roboam the son of Solomon.

And Rehoboam comes to Jerusalem, and assembles all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, one hundred and eighty thousand chosen warriors, to fight with the house of Israel, to bring back the kingdom to Rehoboam son of Solomon.

22 But the word of the Lord came to Semeias the man of God, saying:

And the word of God is to Shemaiah a man of God, saying,

23 Speak to Roboam the son of Solomon, the king of Juda, and to all the house of Juda, and Benjamin, and the rest of the people, saying:

“Speak to Rehoboam son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and the rest of the people, saying,

24 Thus saith the Lord: You shall not go up nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: let every man return to his house, for this thing is from me. They hearkened to the word of the Lord, and returned from their journey, as the Lord had commanded them.

Thus said YHWH: You do not go up nor fight with your brothers the sons of Israel; let each return to his house, for this thing has been from Me”; and they hear the word of YHWH, and turn back to go according to the word of YHWH.

25 And Jeroboam built Sichem in mount Ephraim, and dwelt there, and going out from thence he built Phanuel.

And Jeroboam builds Shechem in the hill-country of Ephraim, and dwells in it, and goes out there, and builds Penuel;

26 And Jeroboam said in his heart: Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David,

and Jeroboam says in his heart, “Now the kingdom turns back to the house of David—

27 If this people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem: and the heart of this people will turn to their lord Roboam the king of Juda, and they will kill me, and return to him.

if this people goes up to make sacrifices in the house of YHWH in Jerusalem, then the heart of this people has turned back to their lord, to Rehoboam king of Judah, and they have slain me, and turned back to Rehoboam king of Judah.”

28 And finding out a device he made two golden calves, and said to them: Go ye up no more to Jerusalem: Behold thy gods, O Israel, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt.

And the king takes counsel, and makes two calves of gold, and says to them, “Enough of you from going up to Jerusalem; behold, your gods, O Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt.”

29 And he set the one in Bethel, and the other in Dan:

And he sets the one in Beth-El, and the other he has put in Dan,

30 And this thing became an occasion of sin: for the people went to adore the calf as far as Dan.

and this thing becomes a sin, and the people go before the one—to Dan.

31 And he made temples in the high places, and priests of the lowest of the people, who were not of the sons of Levi.

And he makes the house of high places, and makes priests from the extremities of the people, who were not of the sons of Levi;

32 And he appointed a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, after the manner of the feast that was celebrated in Juda. And going up to the altar, he did in like manner in Bethel, to sacrifice to the calves, which he had made: and he placed in Bethel priests of the high places, which he had made.

and Jeroboam makes a festival in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like the festival that [is] in Judah, and he offers on the altar—so he did in Beth-El—to sacrifice to the calves which he made, and he has appointed in Beth-El the priests of the high places that he made.

33 And he went up to the altar, which he had built in Bethel, on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, which he had devised of his own heart: and he ordained a feast to the children of Israel, and went upon the altar to burn incense.

And he offers up on the altar that he made in Beth-El, on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in the month that he devised from his own heart, and he makes a festival for the sons of Israel, and offers on the altar—to make incense.