1 Raja-raja 11:1--16:34
Konteks11:1 King Solomon fell in love with many foreign women (besides Pharaoh’s daughter), including Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites. 11:2 They came from nations about which the Lord had warned the Israelites, “You must not establish friendly relations with them! 1 If you do, they will surely shift your allegiance to their gods.” 2 But Solomon was irresistibly attracted to them. 3
11:3 He had 700 royal wives 4 and 300 concubines; 5 his wives had a powerful influence over him. 6 11:4 When Solomon became old, his wives shifted his allegiance to 7 other gods; he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God, as his father David had been. 8 11:5 Solomon worshiped 9 the Sidonian goddess Astarte and the detestable Ammonite god Milcom. 10 11:6 Solomon did evil in the Lord’s sight; 11 he did not remain loyal to 12 the Lord, like his father David had. 11:7 Furthermore, 13 on the hill east of Jerusalem 14 Solomon built a high place 15 for the detestable Moabite god Chemosh 16 and for the detestable Ammonite god Milcom. 17 11:8 He built high places for all his foreign wives so they could burn incense and make sacrifices to their gods. 18
11:9 The Lord was angry with Solomon because he had shifted his allegiance 19 away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him on two occasions 20 11:10 and had warned him about this very thing, so that he would not follow other gods. 21 But he did not obey 22 the Lord’s command. 11:11 So the Lord said to Solomon, “Because you insist on doing these things and have not kept the covenantal rules I gave you, 23 I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant. 11:12 However, for your father David’s sake I will not do this while you are alive. I will tear it away from your son’s hand instead. 11:13 But I will not tear away the entire kingdom; I will leave 24 your son one tribe for my servant David’s sake and for the sake of my chosen city Jerusalem.”
11:14 The Lord brought 25 against Solomon an enemy, Hadad the Edomite, a descendant of the Edomite king. 11:15 During David’s campaign against Edom, 26 Joab, the commander of the army, while on a mission to bury the dead, killed every male in Edom. 11:16 For six months Joab and the entire Israelite army 27 stayed there until they had exterminated every male in Edom. 28 11:17 Hadad, 29 who was only a small boy at the time, escaped with some of his father’s Edomite servants and headed for Egypt. 30 11:18 They went from Midian to Paran; they took some men from Paran and went to Egypt. Pharaoh, king of Egypt, supplied him with a house and food and even assigned him some land. 31 11:19 Pharaoh liked Hadad so well 32 he gave him his sister-in-law (Queen Tahpenes’ sister) as a wife. 33 11:20 Tahpenes’ sister gave birth to his son, 34 named Genubath. Tahpenes raised 35 him in Pharaoh’s palace; Genubath grew up in Pharaoh’s palace among Pharaoh’s sons. 11:21 While in Egypt Hadad heard that David had passed away 36 and that Joab, the commander of the army, was dead. So Hadad asked Pharaoh, “Give me permission to leave 37 so I can return to my homeland.” 11:22 Pharaoh said to him, “What do you lack here that makes you want to go to your homeland?” 38 Hadad replied, 39 “Nothing, but please give me permission to leave.” 40
11:23 God also brought against Solomon 41 another enemy, Rezon son of Eliada who had run away from his master, King Hadadezer of Zobah. 11:24 He gathered some men and organized a raiding band. 42 When David tried to kill them, 43 they went to Damascus, where they settled down and gained control of the city. 11:25 He was Israel’s enemy throughout Solomon’s reign and, like Hadad, caused trouble. He loathed 44 Israel and ruled over Syria.
11:26 Jeroboam son of Nebat, one of Solomon’s servants, rebelled against 45 the king. He was an Ephraimite 46 from Zeredah whose mother was a widow named Zeruah. 11:27 This is what prompted him to rebel against the king: 47 Solomon built a terrace and he closed up a gap in the wall of the city of his father David. 48 11:28 Jeroboam was a talented man; 49 when Solomon saw that the young man was an accomplished worker, he made him the leader of the work crew from the tribe 50 of Joseph. 11:29 At that time, when Jeroboam had left Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met him on the road; the two of them were alone in the open country. Ahijah 51 was wearing a brand new robe, 11:30 and he grabbed the robe 52 and tore it into twelve pieces. 11:31 Then he told Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces, for this is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘Look, I am about to tear the kingdom from Solomon’s hand and I will give ten tribes to you. 11:32 He will retain one tribe, for my servant David’s sake and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel. 11:33 I am taking the kingdom from him 53 because they have 54 abandoned me and worshiped the Sidonian goddess Astarte, the Moabite god Chemosh, and the Ammonite god Milcom. They have not followed my instructions 55 by doing what I approve and obeying my rules and regulations, like Solomon’s father David did. 56 11:34 I will not take the whole kingdom from his hand. I will allow him to be ruler for the rest of his life for the sake of my chosen servant David who kept my commandments and rules. 11:35 I will take the kingdom from the hand of his son and give ten tribes to you. 57 11:36 I will leave 58 his son one tribe so my servant David’s dynasty may continue to serve me 59 in Jerusalem, the city I have chosen as my home. 60 11:37 I will select 61 you; you will rule over all you desire to have and you will be king over Israel. 11:38 You must obey 62 all I command you to do, follow my instructions, 63 do what I approve, 64 and keep my rules and commandments, like my servant David did. Then I will be with you and establish for you a lasting dynasty, as I did for David; 65 I will give you Israel. 11:39 I will humiliate David’s descendants because of this, 66 but not forever.” 67 11:40 Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam escaped to Egypt and found refuge with King Shishak of Egypt. 68 He stayed in Egypt until Solomon died.
11:41 The rest of the events of Solomon’s reign, including all his accomplishments and his wise decisions, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of Solomon. 69 11:42 Solomon ruled over all Israel from Jerusalem 70 for forty years. 11:43 Then Solomon passed away 71 and was buried in the city of his father David. 72 His son Rehoboam replaced him as king. 73
12:1 Rehoboam traveled to Shechem, for all Israel had gathered in 74 Shechem to make Rehoboam 75 king. 12:2 76 When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard the news, he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon and had been living ever since. 77 12:3 They sent for him, 78 and Jeroboam and the whole Israelite assembly came and spoke to Rehoboam, saying, 12:4 “Your father made us work too hard. 79 Now if you lighten the demands he made and don’t make us work as hard, we will serve you.” 80 12:5 He said to them, “Go away for three days, then return to me.” So the people went away.
12:6 King Rehoboam consulted with the older advisers who had served 81 his father Solomon when he had been alive. He asked them, 82 “How do you advise me to answer these people?” 12:7 They said to him, “Today if you show a willingness to help these people and grant their request, they will be your servants from this time forward.” 83 12:8 But Rehoboam rejected their advice and consulted the young advisers who served him, with whom he had grown up. 84 12:9 He asked them, “How do you advise me 85 to respond to these people who said to me, ‘Lessen the demands your father placed on us’?” 86 12:10 The young advisers with whom Rehoboam 87 had grown up said to him, “Say this to these people who have said to you, ‘Your father made us work hard, but now lighten our burden.’ 88 Say this to them: ‘I am a lot harsher than my father! 89 12:11 My father imposed heavy demands on you; I will make them even heavier. 90 My father punished you with ordinary whips; I will punish you with whips that really sting your flesh.’” 91
12:12 Jeroboam and all the people reported 92 to Rehoboam on the third day, just as the king had ordered when he said, “Return to me on the third day.” 12:13 The king responded to the people harshly. He rejected the advice of the older men 12:14 and followed 93 the advice of the younger ones. He said, “My father imposed heavy demands on you; I will make them even heavier. 94 My father punished you with ordinary whips; I will punish you with whips that really sting your flesh.” 95 12:15 The king refused to listen to the people, because the Lord was instigating this turn of events 96 so that he might bring to pass the prophetic announcement he had made 97 through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat.
12:16 When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, the people answered the king, “We have no portion in David, no share in the son of Jesse! 98 Return to your homes, O Israel! 99 Now, look after your own dynasty, O David!” 100 So Israel returned to their homes. 101 12:17 (Rehoboam continued to rule over the Israelites who lived in the cities of Judah.) 12:18 King Rehoboam sent Adoniram, 102 the supervisor of the work crews, 103 out after them, but all Israel stoned him to death. King Rehoboam managed to jump into his chariot and escape to Jerusalem. 104 12:19 So Israel has been in rebellion against the Davidic dynasty to this very day. 12:20 When all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they summoned him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. No one except the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the Davidic dynasty. 105
12:21 When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he summoned 180,000 skilled warriors from all of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin 106 to attack Israel and restore the kingdom to Rehoboam son of Solomon. 12:22 But God told Shemaiah the prophet, 107 12:23 “Say this to King Rehoboam son of Solomon of Judah, and to all Judah and Benjamin, as well as the rest of the people, 12:24 ‘The Lord says this: “Do not attack and make war with your brothers, the Israelites. Each of you go home, for I have caused this to happen.”’” 108 They obeyed the Lord and went home as the Lord had ordered them to do. 109
12:25 110 Jeroboam built up Shechem in the Ephraimite hill country and lived there. From there he went out and built up Penuel. 12:26 Jeroboam then thought to himself: 111 “Now the Davidic dynasty could regain the kingdom. 112 12:27 If these people go up to offer sacrifices in the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem, 113 their loyalty could shift to their former master, 114 King Rehoboam of Judah. They might kill me and return to King Rehoboam of Judah.” 12:28 After the king had consulted with his advisers, 115 he made two golden calves. Then he said to the people, 116 “It is too much trouble for you to go up to Jerusalem. Look, Israel, here are your gods who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” 12:29 He put one in Bethel 117 and the other in Dan. 12:30 This caused Israel to sin; 118 the people went to Bethel and Dan to worship the calves. 119
12:31 He built temples 120 on the high places and appointed as priests people who were not Levites. 12:32 Jeroboam inaugurated a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, 121 like the festival celebrated in Judah. 122 On the altar in Bethel he offered sacrifices to the calves he had made. 123 In Bethel he also appointed priests for the high places he had made.
12:33 On the fifteenth day of the eighth month (a date he had arbitrarily chosen) 124 Jeroboam 125 offered sacrifices on the altar he had made in Bethel. 126 He inaugurated a festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to offer sacrifices. 13:1 Just then 127 a prophet 128 from Judah, sent by the Lord, arrived in Bethel, 129 as Jeroboam was standing near the altar ready to offer a sacrifice. 13:2 With the authority of the Lord 130 he cried out against the altar, “O altar, altar! This is what the Lord says, ‘Look, a son named Josiah will be born to the Davidic dynasty. He will sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who offer sacrifices on you. Human bones will be burned on you.’” 131 13:3 That day he also announced 132 a sign, “This is the sign the Lord has predetermined: 133 The altar will be split open and the ashes 134 on it will fall to the ground.” 135 13:4 When the king heard what the prophet 136 cried out against the altar in Bethel, Jeroboam, standing at the altar, extended his hand 137 and ordered, 138 “Seize him!” The hand he had extended shriveled up 139 and he could not pull it back. 13:5 The altar split open and the ashes 140 fell from the altar to the ground, 141 in fulfillment of the sign the prophet had announced with the Lord’s authority. 142 13:6 The king pled with 143 the prophet, 144 “Seek the favor of 145 the Lord your God and pray for me, so that my hand may be restored.” So the prophet sought the Lord’s favor 146 and the king’s hand was restored to its former condition. 147 13:7 The king then said to the prophet, “Come home with me and have something to eat. I’d like to give a present.” 13:8 But the prophet said to the king, “Even if you were to give me half your possessions, 148 I could not go with you and eat and drink 149 in this place. 13:9 For the Lord gave me strict orders, 150 ‘Do not eat or drink 151 there and do not go home the way you came.’” 13:10 So he started back on another road; he did not travel back on the same road he had taken to Bethel.
13:11 Now there was an old prophet living in Bethel. 152 When his sons came home, they told their father 153 everything the prophet 154 had done in Bethel that day and all the words he had spoken to the king. 155 13:12 Their father asked them, “Which road did he take?” His sons showed him 156 the road the prophet 157 from Judah had taken. 13:13 He then told his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” When they had saddled the donkey for him, he mounted it 13:14 and took off after the prophet, 158 whom he found sitting under an oak tree. He asked him, “Are you the prophet 159 from Judah?” He answered, “Yes, I am.” 13:15 He then said to him, “Come home with me and eat something.” 13:16 But he replied, “I can’t go back with you 160 or eat and drink 161 with you in this place. 13:17 For the Lord gave me strict orders, 162 ‘Do not eat or drink 163 there; do not go back the way you came.’” 13:18 The old prophet then said, 164 “I too am a prophet like you. An angel told me with the Lord’s authority, 165 ‘Bring him back with you to your house so he can eat and drink.’” 166 But he was lying to him. 167 13:19 So the prophet went back with him and ate and drank in his house. 168
13:20 While they were sitting at the table, the Lord spoke through the old prophet 169 13:21 and he cried out to the prophet from Judah, “This is what the Lord says, ‘You 170 have rebelled against the Lord 171 and have not obeyed the command the Lord your God gave you. 13:22 You went back and ate and drank in this place, even though he said to you, “Do not eat or drink there.” 172 Therefore 173 your corpse will not be buried in your ancestral tomb.’” 174
13:23 When the prophet from Judah finished his meal, 175 the old prophet saddled his visitor’s donkey for him. 176 13:24 As the prophet from Judah was traveling, a lion attacked him on the road and killed him. 177 His corpse was lying on the road, and the donkey and the lion just stood there beside it. 178 13:25 Some men came by 179 and saw the corpse lying in the road with the lion standing beside it. 180 They went and reported what they had seen 181 in the city where the old prophet lived. 13:26 When the old prophet who had invited him to his house heard the news, 182 he said, “It is the prophet 183 who rebelled against the Lord. 184 The Lord delivered him over to the lion and it ripped him up 185 and killed him, just as the Lord warned him.” 186 13:27 He told his sons, “Saddle my donkey,” and they did so. 187 13:28 He went and found the corpse lying in the road with the donkey and the lion standing beside it; 188 the lion had neither eaten the corpse nor attacked the donkey. 13:29 The old prophet 189 picked up the corpse of the prophet, 190 put it on the donkey, and brought it back. The old prophet then entered the city to mourn him and to bury him. 13:30 He put the corpse into his own tomb, and they 191 mourned over him, saying, “Ah, my brother!” 13:31 After he buried him, he said to his sons, “When I die, bury me in the tomb where the prophet 192 is buried; put my bones right beside his bones, 13:32 for the prophecy he announced with the Lord’s authority 193 against the altar in Bethel 194 and against all the temples on the high places in the cities of the north 195 will certainly be fulfilled.”
13:33 After this happened, Jeroboam still did not change his evil ways; 196 he continued to appoint common people 197 as priests at the high places. Anyone who wanted the job he consecrated as a priest. 198 13:34 This sin caused Jeroboam’s dynasty 199 to come to an end and to be destroyed from the face of the earth.
14:1 200 At that time Jeroboam’s son Abijah became sick. 14:2 Jeroboam told his wife, “Disguise 201 yourself so that people cannot recognize you are Jeroboam’s wife. Then go to Shiloh; Ahijah the prophet, who told me I would rule over this nation, lives there. 202 14:3 Take 203 ten loaves of bread, some small cakes, and a container of honey and visit him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy.”
14:4 Jeroboam’s wife did as she was told. She went to Shiloh and visited Ahijah. 204 Now Ahijah could not see; he had lost his eyesight in his old age. 205 14:5 But the Lord had told Ahijah, “Look, Jeroboam’s wife is coming to find out from you what will happen to her son, for he is sick. Tell her so-and-so. 206 When she comes, she will be in a disguise.” 14:6 When Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps as she came through the door, he said, “Come on in, wife of Jeroboam! Why are you pretending to be someone else? I have been commissioned to give you bad news. 207 14:7 Go, tell Jeroboam, ‘This is what the Lord God of Israel says: “I raised you up 208 from among the people and made you ruler over my people Israel. 14:8 I tore the kingdom away from the Davidic dynasty and gave it to you. But you are not like my servant David, who kept my commandments and followed me wholeheartedly by doing only what I approve. 209 14:9 You have sinned more than all who came before you. You went and angered me by making other gods, formed out of metal; you have completely disregarded me. 210 14:10 So I am ready to bring disaster 211 on the dynasty 212 of Jeroboam. I will cut off every last male belonging to Jeroboam in Israel, including even the weak and incapacitated. 213 I will burn up the dynasty of Jeroboam, just as one burns manure until it is completely consumed. 214 14:11 Dogs will eat the members of your family 215 who die in the city, and the birds of the sky will eat the ones who die in the country.”’ Indeed, the Lord has announced it!
14:12 “As for you, get up and go home. When you set foot in the city, the boy will die. 14:13 All Israel will mourn him and bury him. He is the only one in Jeroboam’s family 216 who will receive a decent burial, for he is the only one in whom the Lord God of Israel found anything good. 14:14 The Lord will raise up a king over Israel who will cut off Jeroboam’s dynasty. 217 It is ready to happen! 218 14:15 The Lord will attack Israel, making it like a reed that sways in the water. 219 He will remove Israel from this good land he gave to their ancestors 220 and scatter them beyond the Euphrates River, 221 because they angered the Lord by making Asherah poles. 222 14:16 He will hand Israel over to their enemies 223 because of the sins which Jeroboam committed and which he made Israel commit.”
14:17 So Jeroboam’s wife got up and went back to 224 Tirzah. As she crossed the threshold of the house, the boy died. 14:18 All Israel buried him and mourned for him, just as the Lord had predicted 225 through his servant the prophet Ahijah.
14:19 The rest of the events of Jeroboam’s reign, including the details of his battles and rule, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel. 226 14:20 Jeroboam ruled for twenty-two years; then he passed away. 227 His son Nadab replaced him as king.
14:21 Now Rehoboam son of Solomon ruled in Judah. He 228 was forty-one years old when he became king and he ruled for seventeen years in Jerusalem, 229 the city the Lord chose from all the tribes of Israel to be his home. 230 His mother was an Ammonite woman 231 named Naamah.
14:22 Judah did evil in the sight of 232 the Lord. They made him more jealous by their sins than their ancestors had done. 233 14:23 They even built for themselves high places, sacred pillars, and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree. 14:24 There were also male cultic prostitutes 234 in the land. They committed the same horrible sins as the nations 235 that the Lord had driven out from before the Israelites.
14:25 In King Rehoboam’s fifth year, King Shishak of Egypt attacked Jerusalem. 14:26 He took away the treasures of the Lord’s temple and of the royal palace; he took everything, including all the golden shields that Solomon had made. 14:27 King Rehoboam made bronze shields to replace them and assigned them to the officers of the royal guard 236 who protected the entrance to the royal palace. 14:28 Whenever the king visited the Lord’s temple, the royal guard carried them and then brought them back to the guardroom.
14:29 The rest of the events of Rehoboam’s reign, including his accomplishments, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the
Kings of Judah. 237 14:30 Rehoboam and Jeroboam were continually at war with each other. 14:31 Rehoboam passed away 238 and was buried with his ancestors in the city of David. His mother was an Ammonite named Naamah. His son Abijah 239 replaced him as king.
15:1 In the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam son of Nebat, Abijah 240 became king over Judah. 15:2 He ruled for three years in Jerusalem. 241 His mother was Maacah, the daughter of Abishalom. 242 15:3 He followed all the sinful practices of his father before him. He was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God, as his ancestor David had been. 243 15:4 Nevertheless for David’s sake the Lord his God maintained his dynasty 244 in Jerusalem by giving him a son 245 to succeed him 246 and by protecting Jerusalem. 247 15:5 He did this 248 because David had done what he approved 249 and had not disregarded any of his commandments 250 his entire lifetime, except for the incident involving Uriah the Hittite. 15:6 Rehoboam 251 and Jeroboam were continually at war with each other throughout Abijah’s 252 lifetime. 15:7 The rest of the events of Abijah’s reign, including all his accomplishments, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Judah. 253 Abijah and Jeroboam had been at war with each other. 15:8 Abijah passed away 254 and was buried 255 in the city of David. His son Asa replaced him as king.
15:9 In the twentieth year of Jeroboam’s reign over Israel, Asa became the king of Judah. 15:10 He ruled for forty-one years in Jerusalem. 256 His grandmother 257 was Maacah daughter of Abishalom. 15:11 Asa did what the Lord approved 258 like his ancestor 259 David had done. 15:12 He removed the male cultic prostitutes from the land and got rid of all the disgusting idols 260 his ancestors 261 had made. 15:13 He also removed Maacah his grandmother 262 from her position as queen because she had made a loathsome Asherah pole. Asa cut down her Asherah pole and burned it in the Kidron Valley. 15:14 The high places were not eliminated, yet Asa was wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord throughout his lifetime. 263 15:15 He brought the holy items that he and his father had made into the Lord’s temple, including the silver, gold, and other articles. 264
15:16 Now Asa and King Baasha of Israel were continually at war with each other. 265 15:17 King Baasha of Israel attacked Judah and established Ramah as a military outpost to prevent anyone from leaving or entering the land of King Asa of Judah. 266 15:18 Asa took all the silver and gold that was left in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and of the royal palace and handed it to his servants. He then told them to deliver it 267 to Ben Hadad son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, ruler in Damascus, along with this message: 15:19 “I want to make a treaty with you, like the one our fathers made. 268 See, I have sent you silver and gold as a present. Break your treaty with King Baasha of Israel, so he will retreat from my land.” 269 15:20 Ben Hadad accepted King Asa’s offer and ordered his army commanders to attack the cities of Israel. 270 They conquered 271 Ijon, Dan, Abel Beth Maacah, and all the territory of Naphtali, including the region of Kinnereth. 272 15:21 When Baasha heard the news, he stopped fortifying 273 Ramah and settled down in Tirzah. 15:22 King Asa ordered all the men of Judah (no exemptions were granted) to carry away the stones and wood that Baasha had used to build Ramah. 274 King Asa used the materials to build up 275 Geba (in Benjamin) and Mizpah.
15:23 The rest of the events of Asa’s reign, including all his successes and accomplishments, as well as a record of the cities he built, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Judah. 276 Yet when he was very old he developed a foot disease. 277 15:24 Asa passed away 278 and was buried with his ancestors in the city of his ancestor David. His son Jehoshaphat replaced him as king.
15:25 In the second year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Jeroboam’s son Nadab became the king of Israel; he ruled Israel for two years. 15:26 He did evil in the sight of 279 the Lord. He followed in his father’s footsteps and encouraged Israel to sin. 280
15:27 Baasha son of Ahijah, from the tribe of Issachar, conspired against Nadab 281 and assassinated him in Gibbethon, which was in Philistine territory. This happened while Nadab and all the Israelite army were besieging Gibbethon. 15:28 Baasha killed him in the third year of Asa’s reign over Judah and replaced him as king. 15:29 When he became king, he executed Jeroboam’s entire family. He wiped out everyone who breathed, 282 just as the Lord had predicted 283 through his servant Ahijah the Shilonite. 15:30 This happened because of the sins which Jeroboam committed and which he made Israel commit. These sins angered the Lord God of Israel. 284
15:31 The rest of the events of Nadab’s reign, including all his accomplishments, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel. 285 15:32 Asa and King Nadab of Israel were continually at war with each other.
15:33 In the third year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Baasha son of Ahijah became king over all Israel in Tirzah; he ruled for twenty-four years. 15:34 He did evil in the sight of 286 the Lord; he followed in Jeroboam’s footsteps and encouraged Israel to sin. 287
16:1 Jehu son of Hanani received from the Lord this message predicting Baasha’s downfall: 288 16:2 “I raised you up 289 from the dust and made you ruler over my people Israel. Yet you followed in Jeroboam’s footsteps 290 and encouraged my people Israel to sin; their sins have made me angry. 291 16:3 So I am ready to burn up 292 Baasha and his family, and make your family 293 like the family of Jeroboam son of Nebat. 16:4 Dogs will eat the members of Baasha’s family 294 who die in the city, and the birds of the sky will eat the ones who die in the country.”
16:5 The rest of the events of Baasha’s reign, including his accomplishments and successes, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel. 295 16:6 Baasha passed away 296 and was buried in Tirzah. His son Elah replaced him as king. 16:7 The prophet Jehu son of Hanani received from the Lord the message predicting the downfall of Baasha and his family because of all the evil Baasha had done in the sight of the Lord. 297 His actions angered the Lord (including the way he had destroyed Jeroboam’s dynasty), so that his family ended up like Jeroboam’s. 298
16:8 In the twenty-sixth year of King Asa’s reign over Judah, Baasha’s son Elah became king over Israel; he ruled in Tirzah for two years. 16:9 His servant Zimri, a commander of half of his chariot force, conspired against him. While Elah was drinking heavily 299 at the house of Arza, who supervised the palace in Tirzah, 16:10 Zimri came in and struck him dead. (This happened in the twenty-seventh year of Asa’s reign over Judah.) Zimri replaced Elah as king. 300 16:11 When he became king and occupied the throne, he killed Baasha’s entire family. He did not spare any male belonging to him; he killed his relatives and his friends. 301 16:12 Zimri destroyed Baasha’s entire family, just as the Lord had predicted to Baasha 302 through Jehu the prophet. 16:13 This happened because of all the sins which Baasha and his son Elah committed and which they made Israel commit. They angered the Lord God of Israel with their worthless idols. 303
16:14 The rest of the events of Elah’s reign, including all his accomplishments, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel. 304
16:15 In the twenty-seventh year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Zimri became king over Israel; he ruled for seven days in Tirzah. Zimri’s revolt took place while the army was deployed 305 in Gibbethon, which was in Philistine territory. 16:16 While deployed there, the army received this report: 306 “Zimri has conspired against the king and assassinated him.” 307 So all Israel made Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that very day in the camp. 16:17 Omri and all Israel went up from Gibbethon and besieged Tirzah. 16:18 When Zimri saw that the city was captured, he went into the fortified area of the royal palace. He set the palace on fire and died in the flames. 308 16:19 This happened because of the sins he committed. He did evil in the sight of 309 the Lord and followed in Jeroboam’s footsteps and encouraged Israel to continue sinning. 310
16:20 The rest of the events of Zimri’s reign, including the details of his revolt, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel. 311
16:21 At that time the people of Israel were divided in their loyalties. Half the people supported Tibni son of Ginath and wanted to make him king; the other half supported Omri. 16:22 Omri’s supporters were stronger than those who supported Tibni son of Ginath. Tibni died; Omri became king.
16:23 In the thirty-first year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Omri became king over Israel. He ruled for twelve years, six of them in Tirzah. 16:24 He purchased the hill of Samaria 312 from Shemer for two talents 313 of silver. He launched a construction project there 314 and named the city he built after Shemer, the former owner of the hill of Samaria. 16:25 Omri did more evil in the sight of 315 the Lord than all who were before him. 16:26 He followed in the footsteps of Jeroboam son of Nebat and encouraged Israel to sin; 316 they angered the Lord God of Israel with their worthless idols. 317
16:27 The rest of the events of Omri’s reign, including his accomplishments and successes, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel. 318 16:28 Omri passed away 319 and was buried in Samaria. His son Ahab replaced him as king. 320
16:29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Omri’s son Ahab became king over Israel. Ahab son of Omri ruled over Israel for twenty-two years in Samaria. 321 16:30 Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the sight of 322 the Lord than all who were before him. 16:31 As if following in the sinful footsteps of Jeroboam son of Nebat were not bad enough, he married Jezebel the daughter of King Ethbaal of the Sidonians. Then he worshiped and bowed to Baal. 323 16:32 He set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal he had built in Samaria. 16:33 Ahab also made an Asherah pole; he 324 did more to anger the Lord God of Israel than all the kings of Israel who were before him.
16:34 During Ahab’s reign, 325 Hiel the Bethelite rebuilt Jericho. 326 Abiram, his firstborn son, died when he laid the foundation; 327 Segub, his youngest son, died when he erected its gates, 328 just as the Lord had warned 329 through Joshua son of Nun. 330
[11:2] 1 tn Heb “you must not go into them, and they must not go into you.”
[11:2] 2 tn Heb “Surely they will bend your heart after their gods.” The words “if you do” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[11:2] 3 tn Heb “Solomon clung to them for love.” The pronominal suffix, translated “them,” is masculine here, even though it appears the foreign women are in view. Perhaps this is due to attraction to the masculine forms used of the nations earlier in the verse.
[11:3] 4 tn Heb “wives, princesses.”
[11:3] 5 sn Concubines were slave women in ancient Near Eastern societies who were the legal property of their master, but who could have legitimate sexual relations with their master. A concubine’s status was more elevated than a mere servant, but she was not free and did not have the legal rights of a free wife. The children of a concubine could, in some instances, become equal heirs with the children of the free wife. The usage in the present passage suggests that after the period of the Judges concubines may have become more of a royal prerogative (cf. also 2 Sam 21:10-14).
[11:3] 6 tn Heb “his wives bent his heart.”
[11:4] 7 tn Heb “bent his heart after.”
[11:4] 8 tn Heb “his heart was not complete with the
[11:5] 9 tn Heb “walked after.”
[11:5] 10 tn Heb “Milcom, the detestable thing of the Ammonites.”
[11:6] 11 tn Heb “in the eyes of the
[11:6] 12 tn The idiomatic statement reads in Hebrew, “he did not fill up after.”
[11:7] 14 sn The hill east of Jerusalem refers to the Mount of Olives.
[11:7] map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[11:7] 15 sn A high place. The “high places” were places of worship that were naturally or artificially elevated (see 1 Kgs 3:2).
[11:7] 16 tn Heb “Chemosh, the detestable thing of Moab.”
[11:7] 17 tc The MT reads “Molech,” but Milcom must be intended (see vv. 5, 33).
[11:8] 18 tn Heb “and the same thing he did for all his foreign wives, [who] were burning incense and sacrificing to their gods.”
[11:9] 19 tn Heb “bent his heart.”
[11:9] 20 sn These two occasions are mentioned in 1 Kgs 3:5 and 9:2.
[11:10] 21 tn Heb “and had commanded him concerning this thing not to walk after other gods.”
[11:11] 23 tn Heb “Because this is with you, and you have not kept my covenant and my rules which I commanded you.”
[11:15] 26 tn Heb “when David was [fighting (?)] with Edom.”
[11:16] 27 tn Heb “and all Israel.”
[11:16] 28 tn Heb “until he had cut off every male in Edom.”
[11:17] 29 tn The MT reads “Adad,” an alternate form of the name Hadad.
[11:17] 30 tn Heb “and Adad fled, he and Edomite men from the servants of his father, to go to Egypt, and Hadad was a small boy.”
[11:18] 31 tn Heb “and they arose from Midian and went to Paran and they took men with them from Paran and went to Egypt to Pharaoh king of Egypt and he gave to him a house and food and he said to him, and a land he gave to him.” Something seems to be accidentally omitted after “and he said to him.”
[11:19] 32 tn Heb “and Hadad found great favor in the eyes of Pharaoh.”
[11:19] 33 tn Heb “and he gave to him a wife, the sister of his wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen.”
[11:20] 34 tn Heb “bore him Genubath his son.”
[11:20] 35 tc The Hebrew text reads וַתִּגְמְלֵהוּ (vattigmÿlehu, “weaned him”) but a slight alteration of the consonantal text yields וַתִּגְדְלֵהוּ (vattigdÿlehu, “raised him”), which seems to make better sense.
[11:21] 36 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
[11:21] 37 tn Heb “send me away.”
[11:22] 38 tn Heb “Indeed what do you lack with me, that now you are seeking to go to your land?”
[11:22] 39 tn Heb “and he said.”
[11:22] 40 sn So Hadad asked Pharaoh… This lengthy description of Hadad’s exile in Egypt explains why Hadad wanted to oppose Solomon and supports the author’s thesis that his hostility to Solomon found its ultimate source in divine providence. Though Hadad enjoyed a comfortable life in Egypt, when the
[11:23] 41 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Solomon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[11:24] 42 tn Heb “and he was the officer of a raiding band.”
[11:24] 43 tn The Hebrew text reads “when David killed them.” This phrase is traditionally joined with what precedes. The ancient Greek version does not reflect the phrase and some suggest that it has been misplaced from the end of v. 23.
[11:25] 44 tn The construction (Qal of קוּץ + בְּ [quts + bet] preposition) is rare, but not without parallel (see Lev 20:23).
[11:26] 45 tn Heb “raised a hand against.”
[11:26] 46 tn Heb “Ephrathite,” which here refers to an Ephraimite (see HALOT 81 s.v. אֶפְרַיִם).
[11:27] 47 tn Heb “this is the matter concerning which he raised a hand against the king.”
[11:27] 48 sn The city of his father David. The phrase refers here to the fortress of Zion in Jerusalem, not to Bethlehem. See 2 Sam 5:7.
[11:28] 49 tn Heb “man of strength.”
[11:29] 51 tn The Hebrew text has simply “he,” making it a bit unclear whether Jeroboam or Ahijah is the subject, but in the Hebrew word order Ahijah is the nearer antecedent, and this is followed by the present translation.
[11:30] 52 tn Heb “and Ahijah grabbed the new robe that was on him.”
[11:33] 53 tn The words “I am taking the kingdom from him” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[11:33] 54 tc This is the reading of the MT; the LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate read “he has.”
[11:33] 55 tn Heb “walked in my ways.”
[11:33] 56 tn Heb “by doing what is right in my eyes, my rules and my regulations, like David his father.”
[11:35] 57 tn Heb “and I will give it to you, ten tribes.”
[11:36] 59 tn Heb “so there might be a lamp for David my servant all the days before me in Jerusalem.” The metaphorical “lamp” symbolizes the Davidic dynasty. Because this imagery is unfamiliar to the modern reader, the translation “so my servant David’s dynasty may continue to serve me” has been used.
[11:36] 60 tn Heb “so there might be a lamp for David my servant all the days before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen for myself to put my name there.”
[11:38] 62 tn Heb “If you obey.” In the Hebrew text v. 38 is actually one long conditional sentence, which has been broken into two parts in the translation for stylistic purposes.
[11:38] 63 tn Heb “walk in my ways.”
[11:38] 64 tn Heb “do what is right in my eyes.”
[11:38] 65 tn Heb “I will build for you a permanent house, like I built for David.”
[11:39] 66 sn Because of this. Reference is made to the idolatry mentioned earlier.
[11:39] 67 tn Heb “but not all the days.”
[11:40] 68 tn Heb “but Jeroboam arose and ran away to Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt.”
[11:41] 69 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Solomon, and all which he did, and his wisdom, are they not written on the scroll of the events of Solomon?”
[11:42] 70 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[11:43] 71 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
[11:43] 72 sn The city of his father David. The phrase refers here to the fortress of Zion in Jerusalem, not to Bethlehem. See 2 Sam 5:7.
[11:43] 73 tc Before this sentence the Old Greek translation includes the following words: “And it so happened that when Jeroboam son of Nebat heard – now he was in Egypt where he had fled from before Solomon and was residing in Egypt – he came straight to his city in the land of Sarira which is on mount Ephraim. And king Solomon slept with his fathers.”
[12:1] 75 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Rehoboam) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[12:2] 76 tc Verse 2 is not included in the Old Greek translation. See the note on 11:43.
[12:2] 77 tn Heb “and Jeroboam lived in Egypt.” The parallel text in 2 Chr 10:2 reads, “and Jeroboam returned from Egypt.” In a purely consonantal text the forms “and he lived” and “and he returned” are identical (וישׁב).
[12:3] 78 tn Heb “They sent and called for him.”
[12:4] 79 tn Heb “made our yoke burdensome.”
[12:4] 80 tn Heb “but you, now, lighten the burdensome work of your father and the heavy yoke which he placed on us, and we will serve you.” In the Hebrew text the prefixed verbal form with vav (וְנַעַבְדֶךָ, [vÿna’avdekha] “and we will serve you”) following the imperative (הָקֵל [haqel], “lighten”) indicates purpose (or result). The conditional sentence used in the translation above is an attempt to bring out the logical relationship between these forms.
[12:6] 81 tn Heb “stood before.”
[12:7] 83 tn Heb “If today you are a servant to these people and you serve them and answer them and speak to them good words, they will be your servants all the days.”
[12:8] 84 tn Heb “He rejected the advice of the elders which they advised and he consulted the young men with whom he had grown up, who stood before him.” The referent (Rehoboam) of the initial pronoun (“he”) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[12:9] 85 tn In the Hebrew text the verb “we will respond” is plural, although it can be understood as an editorial “we.” The ancient versions have the singular here.
[12:9] 86 tn Heb “Lighten the yoke which your father placed on us.”
[12:10] 87 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Rehoboam) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[12:10] 88 tn Heb “Your father made our yoke heavy, but make it lighter upon us.”
[12:10] 89 tn Heb “My little one is thicker than my father’s hips.” The referent of “my little one” is not clear. The traditional view is that it refers to the little finger. As the following statement makes clear, Rehoboam’s point is that he is more harsh and demanding than his father.
[12:11] 90 tn Heb “and now my father placed upon you a heavy yoke, but I will add to your yoke.”
[12:11] 91 tn Heb “My father punished you with whips, but I will punish you with scorpions.” “Scorpions” might allude to some type of torture using poisonous insects, but more likely it refers to a type of whip that inflicts an especially biting, painful wound. Cf. CEV “whips with pieces of sharp metal.”
[12:14] 93 tn Heb “and spoke to them according to.”
[12:14] 94 tn Heb “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke.”
[12:14] 95 tn Heb “My father punished you with whips, but I will punish you with scorpions.” See the note on the same phrase in v. 11.
[12:15] 96 tn Heb “because this turn of events was from the
[12:15] 97 tn Heb “so that he might bring to pass his word which the
[12:16] 98 sn We have no portion in David; no share in the son of Jesse. Their point seems to be that they have no familial relationship with David that brings them any benefits or places upon them any obligations. They are being treated like outsiders.
[12:16] 99 tn Heb “to your tents, Israel.” The word “return” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[12:16] 100 tn Heb “Now see your house, David.”
[12:16] 101 tn Heb “went to their tents.”
[12:18] 102 tc The MT has “Adoram” here, but the Old Greek translation and Syriac Peshitta have “Adoniram.” Cf. 1 Kgs 4:6.
[12:18] 103 sn The work crews. See the note on this expression in 4:6.
[12:18] 104 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[12:20] 105 tn Heb “there was no one [following] after the house of David except the tribe of Judah, it alone.”
[12:21] 106 tn Heb “he summoned all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, one hundred eighty thousand chosen men, accomplished in war.”
[12:22] 107 tn Heb “and the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying.”
[12:24] 108 tn Heb “for this thing is from me.”
[12:24] 109 tn Heb “and they heard the word of the
[12:25] 110 tc The Old Greek translation has here a lengthy section consisting of twenty-three verses that are not found in the MT.
[12:26] 111 tn Heb “said in his heart.”
[12:26] 112 tn Heb “Now the kingdom could return to the house of David.” The imperfect verbal form translated “could return” is understood as having a potential force here. Perhaps this is not strong enough; another option is “will return.”
[12:27] 113 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[12:27] 114 tn Heb “the heart of these people could return to their master.”
[12:28] 115 tn The words “with his advisers” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[12:28] 116 tn Heb “to them,” although this may be a corruption of “to the people.” Cf. the Old Greek translation.
[12:29] 117 map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.
[12:30] 118 tn Heb “and this thing became a sin.”
[12:30] 119 tc The MT reads “and the people went before the one to Dan.” It is likely that some words have been accidentally omitted and that the text originally said, “and the people went before the one at Bethel and before the one at Dan.”
[12:31] 120 tn The Hebrew text has the singular, but the plural is preferable here (see 1 Kgs 13:32). The Old Greek translation and the Vulgate have the plural.
[12:32] 121 sn The eighth month would correspond to October-November in modern reckoning.
[12:32] 122 sn The festival he celebrated in Judah probably refers to the Feast of Tabernacles (i.e., Booths or Temporary Shelters), held in the seventh month (September-October). See also 1 Kgs 8:2.
[12:32] 123 tn Heb “and he offered up [sacrifices] on the altar; he did this in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves which he had made.”
[12:33] 124 tn Heb “which he had chosen by himself.”
[12:33] 125 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jeroboam) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[12:33] 126 map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.
[13:1] 127 tn Heb “Look.” The Hebrew particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) is a rhetorical device by which the author invites the reader to visualize the scene for dramatic effect.
[13:1] 128 tn Heb “the man of God.”
[13:1] 129 tn Heb “came by the word of the
[13:2] 130 tn Heb “by the word of the
[13:2] 131 sn ‘Look…you.’ For the fulfillment of this prophecy see 2 Kgs 23:15-20.
[13:3] 134 tn Heb “the fat.” Reference is made to burnt wood mixed with fat. See HALOT 234 s.v. דשׁן.
[13:3] 135 tn Heb “will be poured out.”
[13:4] 136 tn Heb “the man of God.”
[13:4] 137 tn Heb “Jeroboam extended his hand from the altar.”
[13:4] 139 tn Heb “dried up” or “withered.” TEV and NLT interpret this as “became paralyzed.”
[13:5] 140 tn Heb “the fat.” Reference is made to burnt wood mixed with fat. See HALOT 234 s.v. דשׁן.
[13:5] 141 tn Heb “were poured out from the altar.”
[13:5] 142 tn Heb “according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the
[13:6] 143 tn Heb “The king answered and said to.”
[13:6] 144 tn Heb “the man of God” (a second time later in this verse, and once in v. 7 and v. 8).
[13:6] 145 tn Heb “appease the face of.”
[13:6] 146 tn Heb “appeased the face of the
[13:6] 147 tn Heb “and it was as in the beginning.”
[13:8] 149 tn Heb “eat food and drink water.”
[13:9] 150 tn Heb “for this he commanded me by the word of the
[13:9] 151 tn Heb “eat food and drink water.”
[13:11] 152 map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.
[13:11] 153 tn Heb “and his son came and told him.” The MT has the singular here, but several other textual witnesses have the plural, which is more consistent with the second half of the verse and with vv. 12-13.
[13:11] 154 tn Heb “the man of God.”
[13:11] 155 tn Heb “all the actions which the man of God performed that day in Bethel, the words which he spoke to the king, and they told them to their father.”
[13:12] 156 tn The Hebrew text has “and his sons saw” (וַיִּרְאוּ [vayyir’u], Qal from רָאָה [ra’ah]). In this case the verbal construction (vav consecutive + prefixed verbal form) would have to be understood as pluperfect, “his sons had seen.” Such uses of this construction are rare at best. Consequently many, following the lead of the ancient versions, prefer to emend the verbal form to a Hiphil with pronominal suffix (וַיַּרְאֻהוּ [vayyar’uhu], “and they showed him”).
[13:12] 157 tn Heb “the man of God.”
[13:14] 158 tn Heb “the man of God.”
[13:14] 159 tn Heb “the man of God.”
[13:16] 160 tn Heb “I am unable to return with you or to go with you.”
[13:16] 161 tn Heb “eat food and drink water.”
[13:17] 162 tn Heb “for a word to me by the word of the
[13:17] 163 tn Heb “eat food and drink water.”
[13:18] 164 tn Heb “and he said to him.”
[13:18] 165 tn Heb “by the word of the
[13:18] 166 tn Heb “eat food and drink water.”
[13:18] 167 tn Or “deceiving him.”
[13:18] sn He was lying to him. The motives and actions of the old prophet are difficult to understand. The old man’s response to the prophet’s death (see vv. 26-32) suggests he did not trick him with malicious intent. The old prophet probably wanted the honor of entertaining such a celebrity, or perhaps simply desired some social interaction with a fellow prophet.
[13:19] 168 tn Heb “and he returned with him and ate food in his house and drank water.”
[13:20] 169 tn Heb “and the word of the
[13:21] 170 tn The Hebrew text has “because” at the beginning of the sentence. In the Hebrew text vv. 21-22 are one long sentence comprised of a causal clause giving the reason for divine punishment (vv. 21-22a) and the main clause announcing the punishment (v. 22b). The translation divides this lengthy sentence for stylistic reasons.
[13:21] 171 tn Heb “the mouth [i.e., command] of the
[13:22] 172 tn Heb “and you returned and ate food and drank water in the place about which he said to you, ‘do not eat food and do not drink water.’”
[13:22] 173 tn “Therefore” is added for stylistic reasons. See the note at 1 Kgs 13:21 pertaining to the grammatical structure of vv. 21-22.
[13:22] 174 tn Heb “will not go to the tomb of your fathers.”
[13:23] 175 tn Heb “and after he had eaten food and after he had drunk.”
[13:23] 176 tn Heb “and he saddled for him the donkey, for the prophet whom he had brought back.”
[13:24] 177 tn Heb “and he went and a lion met him in the road and killed him.”
[13:24] 178 tn Heb “and his corpse fell on the road, and the donkey was standing beside it, and the lion was standing beside the corpse.”
[13:25] 179 tn Heb “Look, men were passing by.”
[13:25] 180 tn Heb “the corpse.” The noun has been replaced by the pronoun (“it”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[13:25] 181 tn The words “what they had seen” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[13:26] 182 tn Heb “and the prophet who had brought him back from the road heard.”
[13:26] 183 tn Heb “the man of God.”
[13:26] 184 tn Heb “the mouth of the
[13:26] 185 tn Heb “broke him,” or “crushed him.”
[13:26] 186 tn Heb “according to the word of the
[13:27] 187 tn Heb “and they saddled [it].”
[13:28] 188 tn Heb “the corpse.” The noun has been replaced by the pronoun (“it”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[13:29] 189 tn Heb “the prophet.” The word “old” has been supplied in the translation to distinguish this individual from the other prophet.
[13:29] 190 tn Heb “the man of God.”
[13:30] 191 tn “They” is the reading of the Hebrew text here; perhaps this is meant to include not only the old prophet but his sons (cf. v. 31).
[13:31] 192 tn Heb “the man of God.”
[13:32] 193 tn Heb “for the word which he cried out by the word of the
[13:32] 194 map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.
[13:32] 195 tn Heb “Samaria.” The name of Israel’s capital city here stands for the northern kingdom as a whole. Actually Samaria was not built and named until several years after this (see 1 Kgs 16:24), so it is likely that the author of Kings, writing at a later time, is here adapting the old prophet’s original statement.
[13:33] 196 tn Heb “did not turn from his evil way.”
[13:33] 197 sn The expression common people refers to people who were not Levites. See 1 Kgs 12:31.
[13:33] 198 tn Heb “and one who had the desire he was filling his hand so that he became [one of] the priests of the high places.”
[14:1] 200 tc Some
[14:2] 201 tn Heb “Get up, change yourself.”
[14:2] 202 tn Heb “look, Ahijah the prophet is there, he told me [I would be] king over this nation.”
[14:3] 203 tn Heb “take in your hand.”
[14:4] 204 tn Heb “and the wife of Jeroboam did so; she arose and went to Shiloh and entered the house of Ahijah.”
[14:4] 205 tn Heb “his eyes were set because of his old age.”
[14:5] 206 sn Tell her so-and-so. Certainly the
[14:6] 207 tn Heb “I am sent to you [with] a hard [message].”
[14:7] 208 tn The Hebrew text has “because” at the beginning of the sentence. In the Hebrew text vv. 7-11 are one long sentence comprised of a causal clause giving the reason for divine punishment (vv. 7-9) and the main clause announcing the punishment (vv. 10-11). The translation divides this lengthy sentence for stylistic reasons.
[14:8] 209 tn Heb “what was right in my eyes.”
[14:9] 210 tn Heb “you went and you made for yourself other gods, metal [ones], angering me, and you threw me behind your back.”
[14:10] 211 sn Disaster. There is a wordplay in the Hebrew text. The word translated “disaster” (רָעָה, ra’ah) is from the same root as the expression “you have sinned” in v. 9 (וַתָּרַע [vattara’], from רָעַע, [ra’a’]). Jeroboam’s sins would receive an appropriate punishment.
[14:10] 213 tn Heb “and I will cut off from Jeroboam those who urinate against a wall (including both those who are) restrained and let free (or “abandoned”) in Israel.” The precise meaning of the idiomatic phrase עָצוּר וְעָזוּב (’atsur vÿ’azuv) is uncertain. For various options see HALOT 871 s.v. עצר 6 and M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 107. The two terms are usually taken as polar opposites (“slaves and freemen” or “minors and adults”), but Cogan and Tadmor, on the basis of contextual considerations (note the usage with אֶפֶס [’efes], “nothing but”) in Deut 32:36 and 2 Kgs 14:26, argue convincingly that the terms are synonyms, meaning “restrained and abandoned,” and refer to incapable or incapacitated individuals.
[14:10] 214 tn The traditional view understands the verb בָּעַר (ba’ar) to mean “burn.” Manure was sometimes used as fuel (see Ezek 4:12, 15). However, an alternate view takes בָּעַר as a homonym meaning “sweep away” (HALOT 146 s.v. II בער). In this case one might translate, “I will sweep away the dynasty of Jeroboam, just as one sweeps away manure it is gone” (cf. ASV, NASB, TEV). Either metaphor emphasizes the thorough and destructive nature of the coming judgment.
[14:11] 215 tn The Hebrew text has “belonging to Jeroboam” here.
[14:14] 218 tn Heb “This is the day. What also now?” The precise meaning of the second half of the statement is uncertain.
[14:15] 219 tn The elliptical Hebrew text reads literally “and the
[14:15] 220 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 22, 31).
[14:15] 221 tn Heb “the River.” In biblical Hebrew this is a typical reference to the Euphrates River. The name “Euphrates” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[14:15] 222 tn Heb “because they made their Asherah poles that anger the
[14:15] sn Asherah was a leading deity of the Canaanite pantheon, wife/sister of El and goddess of fertility. She was commonly worshiped at shrines in or near groves of evergreen trees, or, failing that, at places marked by wooden poles. These were to be burned or cut down (Deut 12:3; 16:21; Judg 6:25, 28, 30; 2 Kgs 18:4).
[14:16] 223 tn Heb “and he will give [up] Israel.”
[14:17] 224 tn Heb “went and entered.”
[14:18] 225 tn Heb “according to the word of the
[14:19] 226 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jeroboam, how he fought and how he ruled, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
[14:20] 227 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
[14:21] 228 tn Heb “Rehoboam.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[14:21] 229 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[14:21] 230 tn Heb “the city where the
[14:21] 231 tn Heb “an Ammonite”; the word “woman” is implied.
[14:22] 232 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
[14:22] 233 tn Heb “and they made him jealous more than all which their fathers had done by their sins which they sinned.”
[14:24] 234 tc The Old Greek translation has “a conspiracy” rather than “male cultic prostitutes.”
[14:24] 235 tn Heb “they did according to all the abominable acts of the nations.”
[14:29] 237 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Rehoboam, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”
[14:31] 238 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
[14:31] 239 tn In the Hebrew text the name is spelled “Abijam” here and in 1 Kgs 15:1-8.
[15:1] 240 tc The Old Greek also has the phrase “the son of Rehoboam.”
[15:2] 241 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[15:2] 242 sn Abishalom (also in v. 10) is a variant of the name Absalom (cf. 2 Chr 11:20). The more common form is used by TEV, NLT.
[15:3] 243 tn Heb “his heart was not complete with the
[15:4] 244 tn Heb “gave him a lamp.”
[15:4] 245 tc The Old Greek has the plural “his sons.”
[15:4] 246 tn Heb “by raising up his son after him.”
[15:4] 247 tn Heb “and by causing Jerusalem to stand firm.”
[15:5] 248 tn The words “he did this” are added for stylistic reasons.
[15:5] 249 tn Heb “what was right in the eyes of the
[15:5] 250 tn Heb “and had not turned aside from all which he commanded him.”
[15:6] 251 tc Most Hebrew
[15:6] 252 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Abijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[15:7] 253 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Abijah, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”
[15:8] 254 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.” The Old Greek also has these words: “in the twenty-eighth year of Jeroboam.”
[15:8] 255 tn Heb “and they buried him.”
[15:10] 256 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[15:10] 257 tn Heb “mother,” but Hebrew often uses the terms “father” and “mother” for grandparents and more remote ancestors.
[15:11] 258 tn Heb “what was right in the eyes of the
[15:11] 259 tn Heb “father,” but Hebrew often uses the terms “father” and “mother” for grandparents and more remote ancestors.
[15:12] 260 tn The word used here, גִלּוּלִים [gillulim], is always used as a disdainful reference to idols. It is generally thought to have originally referred to “dung pellets” (cf. KBL 183 s.v. גִלּוּלִים). It is only one of several terms used in this way, such as “worthless things” (אֱלִילִים, ’elilim), “vanities” or “empty winds” (הֲבָלִים, havalim).
[15:12] 261 tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 24).
[15:13] 262 tn Heb “mother,” but Hebrew often uses the terms “father” and “mother” for grandparents and more remote ancestors.
[15:14] 263 tn Heb “yet the heart of Asa was complete with the
[15:15] 264 tn Heb “and he brought the holy things of his father and his holy things (into) the house of the
[15:16] 265 tn Heb “There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days.”
[15:17] 266 tn Heb “and he built up Ramah so as to not permit going out or coming in to Asa king of Judah.”
[15:18] 267 tn Heb “King Asa sent it.”
[15:19] 268 tn Heb “[May there be] a covenant between me and you [as there was] between my father and your father.”
[15:19] 269 tn Heb “so he will go up from upon me.”
[15:20] 270 tn Heb “and Ben Hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of the armies which belonged to him against the cities of Israel.”
[15:20] 271 tn Heb “he struck down.”
[15:20] 272 tn Heb “and all Kinnereth together with all the land of Naphtali.”
[15:21] 273 tn Heb “building.”
[15:22] 274 tn Heb “and King Asa made a proclamation to all Judah, there was no one exempt, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and its wood which Baasha had built.”
[15:22] 275 tn Heb “and King Asa built with them.”
[15:23] 276 tn Heb “As for the rest of all the events of Asa, and all his strength and all which he did and the cities which he built, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”
[15:23] 277 tn Heb “Yet in the time of his old age he became sick in his feet.”
[15:24] 278 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
[15:26] 279 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
[15:26] 280 tn Heb “and he walked in the way of his father and in his sin which he made Israel sin.”
[15:27] 281 tn Heb “against him”; the referent (Nadab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[15:29] 282 tn Heb “and when he became king, he struck down all the house of Jeroboam; he did not leave any breath to Jeroboam until he destroyed him.”
[15:29] 283 tn Heb “according to the word of the
[15:30] 284 tn Heb “because of Jeroboam which he committed and which he made Israel commit, by his provocation by which he made the
[15:31] 285 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Nadab, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
[15:34] 286 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
[15:34] 287 tn Heb “and he walked in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he made Israel sin.”
[16:1] 288 tn Heb “and the word of the
[16:2] 289 tn The Hebrew text has “because” at the beginning of the sentence. In the Hebrew text vv. 2-3 are one sentence comprised of a causal clause giving the reason for divine punishment (v. 2) and the main clause announcing the punishment (v. 3). The translation divides this sentence for stylistic reasons.
[16:2] 290 tn Heb “walked in the way of Jeroboam.”
[16:2] 291 tn Heb “angering me by their sins.”
[16:3] 292 tn The traditional view understands the verb בָּעַר (ba’ar) to mean “burn.” However, an alternate view takes בָּעַר (ba’ar) as a homonym meaning “sweep away” (HALOT 146 s.v. II בער). In this case one might translate, “I am ready to sweep away Baasha and his family.” Either metaphor emphasizes the thorough and destructive nature of the coming judgment.
[16:3] 293 tc The Old Greek, Syriac Peshitta, and some
[16:4] 294 tn Heb “the ones belonging to Baasha.”
[16:5] 295 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Baasha, and that which he did and his strength, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
[16:6] 296 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
[16:7] 297 tn Heb “and also through Jehu son of Hanani the word of the
[16:7] 298 tn Heb “angering him by the work of his hands, so that he was like the house of Jeroboam, and because of how he struck it down.”
[16:9] 299 tn Heb “while he was drinking and drunken.”
[16:10] 300 tn Heb “and he became king in his place.”
[16:11] 301 tn Heb “and he did not spare any belonging to him who urinate against a wall, [including] his kinsmen redeemers and his friends.”
[16:12] 302 tn Heb “according to the word of the
[16:13] 303 tn Heb “angering the
[16:14] 304 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Elah, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
[16:15] 305 tn Heb “Now the people were encamped.
[16:16] 306 tn Heb “and the people who were encamped heard.”
[16:16] 307 tn Heb “has conspired against and also has struck down the king.”
[16:18] 308 tn Heb “and he burned the house of the king over him with fire and he died.”
[16:19] 309 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
[16:19] 310 tn Heb “walking in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he did to make Israel sin.”
[16:20] 311 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Zimri, and his conspiracy which he conspired, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
[16:24] 312 map For location see Map2 B1; Map4 D3; Map5 E2; Map6 A4; Map7 C1.
[16:24] 313 tn The Hebrew term כִּכָּר (kikkar, “circle”) refers generally to something that is round. When used of metals it can refer to a disk-shaped weight made of the metal or to a standard unit of weight, generally regarded as a talent. Since the accepted weight for a talent of metal is about 75 pounds, this would have amounted to about 150 pounds of silver.
[16:24] 314 tn Heb “he built up the hill.”
[16:25] 315 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
[16:26] 316 tn Heb “walked in all the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat and in his sin which he made Israel sin.”
[16:26] 317 tn Heb “angering the
[16:27] 318 tn Heb “As for the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and his strength which he demonstrated, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
[16:28] 319 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
[16:28] 320 tc The Old Greek has eight additional verses here. Cf. 1 Kgs 22:41-44.
[16:29] 321 map For location see Map2 B1; Map4 D3; Map5 E2; Map6 A4; Map7 C1.
[16:30] 322 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
[16:31] 323 tn Heb “and he went and served Baal and bowed down to him.”
[16:31] sn The Canaanites worshiped Baal as a storm and fertility god.
[16:33] 324 tn Heb “Ahab”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[16:34] 325 tn Heb “in his days.”
[16:34] 326 map For location see Map5 B2; Map6 E1; Map7 E1; Map8 E3; Map10 A2; Map11 A1.
[16:34] 327 tn Heb “with Abiram, his firstborn, he founded it.”
[16:34] 328 tn Heb “with Segub, his youngest, he set up its gates.”
[16:34] 329 tn Heb “according to the word of the
[16:34] 330 sn Warned through Joshua son of Nun. For the background to this statement, see Josh 6:26, where Joshua pronounces a curse on the one who dares to rebuild Jericho. Here that curse is viewed as a prophecy spoken by God through Joshua.
