1 Kings 14

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

At that time Abiyah the son of Jerobo'am fell sick.

2 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.

And Jerobo'am said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that people may not know that thou art the wife of Jerobo'am; and go to Shiloh: behold, there is Achiyahu the prophet, who spoke of me that [I should become] king over this people.

3 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.”

And take with thee ten loaves of bread and spice-cakes, and a cruise of honey, and go to him: he will tell thee what is to become of the lad.

4 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.

And Jerobo'am's wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Achiyahu. But Achiyahu was not able to see; for his eyes were set by reason of his high age.

5 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.”

And the Lord had said unto Achiyahu, Behold the wife of Jerobo'am is coming to inquire a word of thee about her son; for he is sick: thus and thus shalt thou speak unto her; for it will be, when she cometh in, that she will feign to be another.

6 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.

And it happened, when Achiyahu heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jerobo'am; why is this, that thou feignest to be another? but I am sent to thee with a hard message.

7 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.

Go, say to Jerobo'am, Thus hath said the Lord the God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from the midst of the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel,

8 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.

And I rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it unto thee; whereas thou hast not been like my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed after me with all his heart, to do only what is right in my eyes;

9 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.

And thou hast done more evil than all that were before thee; and thou art gone and hast made unto thyself other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and me hast thou cast behind thy back:

10 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.

Therefore, behold, will I bring evil upon the house of Jerobo'am, and will cut off from Jerobo'am every male, [also] the guarded and fortified in Israel; and I will sweep out after the house of Jerobo'am as one sweepeth away the dung till there be nothing left of it.

11 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.

Him that dieth of Jerobo'am in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the heavens eat; for the Lord hath spoken it.

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

But thou, arise now, go to thy own house: when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die.

13 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.

And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him; for this one alone shall come of Jerobo'am's [family] to the grave; because there hath been found in him some good thing toward the Lord the God of Israel in the house of Jerobo'am.

14 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!

And the Lord will raise up unto himself a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jerobo'am what is here this day, and what will be after this.

15 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.

And the Lord will smite Israel, as the reed is shaken in the water, and he will pull up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and will scatter them on the other side of the river; because they have made their groves, provoking the Lord to anger.

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

And he will give Israel up for the sake of the sins of Jerobo'am, who did sin, and who induced Israel to sin.

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

And Jerobo'am's wife arose, and departed, and came to Thirzah; [and] as she came to the threshold of the door, the lad died:

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

And they buried him; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the Lord, which he had spoken by the hand of his servant Achiyahu the prophet.

19 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.

And the rest of the acts of Jerobo'am, how he warred, and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

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

And the days which Jerobo'am reigned were two and twenty years; and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son became king in his stead.

21 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.

And Rehobo'am the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehobo'am was forty and one years old when he became king, and seventeen years did he reign in Jerusalem, the city which the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. And his mother's name was Na'amah the 'Ammonitess.

22 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.

And Judah did what is evil in the eyes of the Lord, and they moved him to wrath more than all that their fathers had done, with their sins which they committed.

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

And they also built themselves high-places, and standing images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree.

24 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.

And sodomites also were in the land: they acted in accordance with all the abominable deeds of the nations which the Lord had driven out before the children of Israel.

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

And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehobo'am, that Shishak the king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem:

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

And he took away the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king's house; yea, every thing did he take away; and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.

27 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.

And king Rehobo'am made in their stead shields of copper, and committed them for keeping into the hand of the chiefs of the runners, who kept guard at the door of the king's house.

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

And it happened whenever the king went into the house of the Lord, that the runners used to bear them, and carried them then back into the apartment of the runners.

29 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.

And the rest of the acts of Rehobo'am, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah.

30 Rehoboam and Jeroboam were always at war with each other.

And there was war between Rehobo'am and Jerobo'am all the days.

31 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.

And Rehobo'am slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And his mother's name was Na'amah the 'Ammonitess. And Abiyam his son became king in his stead.