1 Kings 14

1 At that time Abia the son of Jeroboam fell sick.

It was at that time that Abijah, Jeroboam's son, fell ill.

2 And Jeroboam said to his wife: Arise, and change thy dress, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam, and go to Silo, where Ahias the prophet is, who told me, that I should reign over this people.

So Jeroboam told his wife, “Please go and disguise yourself so nobody will know you're Jeroboam's wife. Then go to Shiloh and look for Ahijah the prophet. He was the one who told me I would become king over this people.

3 Take also with thee ten leaves, and cracknels, and a pot of honey, and go to him: for he will tell thee what shall become of this child.

Take with you ten loaves of bread, some cakes, and a jar of honey for him. He will explain to you what will happen to the boy.”

4 Jeroboam’s wife did as he told her: and rising up went to Silo, and came to the house of Ahias: but he could not see, for his eyes were dim by reason of his age.

Jeroboam's wife did as she was told. She got up and went to Ahijah's house in Shiloh. Ahijah could not see—he had become blind because of his age.

5 And the Lord said to Ahias: Behold the wife of Jeroboam cometh in, to consult thee concerning her son that is sick: thus and thus shalt thou speak to her. So when she was coming in, and made as if she were another woman,

But the Lord had told Ahijah, “Look, Jeroboam's wife is coming to ask you about her son, because he's ill. This is what you are to tell her, because she'll come in disguise.”

6 Ahias heard the sound of her feet coming in at the door, and said: Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam: why dost thou feign thyself to be another? But I am sent to thee with heavy tidings.

So as soon as Ahijah heard her footsteps at the door, he called out, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam! Why do you bother coming in disguise? I have been given some bad news for you.

7 Go, and tell Jeroboam: Thus saith the Lord the God of Israel: Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel:

Go and tell Jeroboam this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I picked you from the masses and I made you ruler over my people Israel.

8 And rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it to thee, and thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and followed me with all his heart, doing that which was well pleasing in my sight:

I took the kingdom from the house of David and gave it to you. But you were not like my servant David, who kept my commandments and was totally committed to following me, only doing what was right in my sight.

9 But hast done evil above all that were before thee, and hast made thee strange gods and molten gods, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back:

You have done more evil than all those who lived before you. You have gone and made other gods for yourself, idols made of molten metal that made me angry. You have tossed me aside.

10 Therefore behold I will bring evils upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut of from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up, and the last in Israel: and I will sweep away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as dung is swept away till all be clean.

Now pay attention, because as a result of this I am going to bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam. I will totally exterminate every one of your descendants in Israel, whether slave or free. I will burn the house of Jeroboam like a man burning refuse until it's all gone.

11 Them that shall die of Jeroboam in the city, the dogs shall eat: and them that shall die in the field, the birds of the air shall devour: for the Lord hath spoken it.

Those of Jeroboam's family who die in the town will be eaten by dogs, and those who die in the countryside will be eaten by birds. For the Lord has spoken.

12 Arise thou therefore, and go to thy house: and when thy feet shall be entering into the city, the child shall die,

As for you, get up and go home. As soon as you arrive in the city, the child will die.

13 And all Israel shall mourn for him, and shall bury him: for he only of Jeroboam shall be laid in a sepulchre, because in his regard there is found a good word from the Lord the God of Israel, in the house of Jeroboam.

All of Israel will mourn for him, and they will bury him. He alone of Jeroboam's family will be buried in a tomb because only in him has the Lord, the God of Israel found anything good—of the whole family of Jeroboam.

14 And the Lord hath appointed himself a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam in this day, and in this time:

The Lord will choose for himself a king to rule over Israel who will destroy the house of Jeroboam. This is starting to happen even now!

15 And the Lord God shall strike Israel as a reed is shaken in the water: and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river: because they have made to themselves groves, to provoke the Lord.

The Lord will strike Israel like a reed jerked to and fro by the water. He will pull up Israel by the roots from this good land that he gave their forefathers and scatter them beyond the Euphrates, because they have made their pagan Asherah poles, making the Lord angry.

16 And the Lord shall give up Israel for the sins of Jeroboam, who hath sinned, and made Israel to sin.

He will abandon Israel because of the sins of Jeroboam, those that he committed himself, and those he made Israel commit.”

17 And the wife of Jeroboam arose, and departed, and came to Thersa: and when she was coming in to the threshold of the house, the child died;

Jeroboam's wife got up and left for Tirzah. As soon as she stepped through the doorway of her home, the boy died.

18 And they buried him. And all Israel mourned for him according to the word of the Lord, which he spoke by the hand of his servant Ahias the prophet.

All of Israel buried him and mourned for him, just as the Lord had said through his servant Ahijah the prophet.

19 And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he fought, and how he reigned, behold they are written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel.

The rest of what Jeroboam did, how he engaged in warfare and how he reigned, they are recorded in the Book of Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.

20 And the days that Jeroboam reigned, were two and twenty years: and he slept with his fathers: and Nadab his son reigned in his stead.

Jeroboam reigned for twenty-two years, and then he died. His son Nadab succeeded him as king.

21 And Roboam the son of Solomon reigned in Juda: Roboam was one and forty years old when he began to reign: and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem the city, which the Lord chose out of all the tribes of Israel to put his name there. And his mother’s name wee Naama an Ammonitess.

Rehoboam, son of Solomon, reigned in Judah. He was forty-one when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord had chosen from all the tribes of Israel where he would be honored. The name of his mother was Naamah the Ammonite.

22 And Juda did evil in the sight of the Lord, and provoked him above all that their fathers had done, in their sins which they committed.

Judah did what was evil in the Lord's sight, and because of the sins they committed they made his jealous anger even greater than all their fathers had done.

23 For they also built them altars, and statues, and groves upon every high hill and under every green tree:

They also set up for themselves high places, sacred pillars, and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree.

24 There were also the effeminate in the land, and they did according to all the abominations of the people whom the Lord had destroyed before the face of the children of Israel.

There were even cult prostitutes in the land. They followed all the disgusting practices of the nations that the Lord had driven out before the Israelites.

25 And in the fifth year of the reign of Roboam, Sesac king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem.

In the fifth year of King Rehoboam's reign, Shishak, king of Egypt, attacked Jerusalem.

26 And he took away the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the king’s treasures, and carried all off: as also the shields of gold which Solomon had made.

He took the treasures of the Lord's Temple and the royal palace. He took everything, including all the gold shields Solomon had made.

27 And Roboam made shields of brass instead of them, and delivered them into the. hand of the captains of the shieldbearers, and of them that kept watch before the gate of the king’s house.

So King Rehoboam made bronze shields to replace them and handed them over to the captains of the guard to look after. They stood on duty at the entrance to the royal palace.

28 And when the king went into the house of the Lord, they whose office it was to go before him, carried them: and afterwards they brought them back to the armoury of the shieldbearers.

Whenever the king went to the Lord's Temple, the guards would carry the shields. Afterwards they returned them to the guardroom.

29 Now the rest of the sets of Roboam, and all that he did, behold they are written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Juda.

The rest of what happened in Rehoboam's reign and everything that he did are recorded in the Book of Chronicles of the Kings of Judah.

30 And there was war between Roboam and Jeroboam always.

Rehoboam and Jeroboam were always at war with each other.

31 And Roboam slept with his fathers, and was buried with them in the city of David: and his mother’s name was Naama an Ammonitess: and Abiam his son reigned in his stead.

Rehoboam died and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. The name of his mother was Naamah the Ammonite. His son Abijam succeeded him as king.