1And Rehoboam went to Shechem; for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king.
2And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard — and he was yet in Egypt, where he had fled from the face of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt —
3that they sent and called him; and Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came, and spoke to Rehoboam, saying,
4"Your father made our yoke hard; and you now, lighten from the hard service (avodah) of your father, and from his heavy yoke which he put upon us, and we will serve (avad) you."
5And he said to them, "Go yet for three days, and return to me." And the people went.
6And king Rehoboam took counsel with the elders who had stood before the face of Solomon his father while he was yet living (chai), saying, "How do you counsel to return an answer to this people?"
7And they spoke to him, saying, "If today you will be a servant to this people, and serve (avad) them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants all the days."
8But he forsook the counsel of the elders which they had counseled him, and took counsel with the children who had grown up with him, who stood before his face.
9And he said to them, "What do you counsel, that we may return an answer to this people, who have spoken to me, saying, 'Lighten the yoke which your father put upon us'?"
10And the children who had grown up with him spoke to him, saying, "Thus you shall say to this people who spoke to you, saying, 'Your father made our yoke heavy, and you, lighten it from upon us' — thus you shall speak to them, 'My little finger is thicker than my father's loins.
11And now, my father loaded upon you a heavy yoke, and I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.'"
12And Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day, as the king had spoken, saying, "Return to me on the third day."
13And the king answered the people harshly, and forsook the counsel of the elders which they had counseled him,
14and spoke to them according to the counsel of the children, saying, "My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions."
15And the king did not listen to the people; for it was a turn of events from YHWH, that he might establish his word which YHWH spoke by the hand of Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
16And all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, and the people returned the king an answer, saying, "What portion do we have in David? And there is no inheritance in the son of Jesse; to your tents, O Israel! Now see to your own house, David!" And Israel went to its tents.
17But the sons of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah, over them Rehoboam reigned.
18And king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the levy; and all Israel stoned him with stones, and he died. And king Rehoboam strengthened himself to go up into the chariot, to flee to Jerusalem.
19And Israel rebelled against the house of David, to this day.
20And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, that they sent and called him to the congregation, and made him king over all Israel; there was none after the house of David except the tribe of Judah alone.
21And Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, and he assembled all the house of Judah, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen men, doers of war, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring back the kingship to Rehoboam the son of Solomon.
22And the word of God came to Shemaiah the man (ish) of God, saying,
23"Say to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, saying,
24Thus says YHWH: You shall not go up, and you shall not fight against your brothers the sons of Israel; return, each man (ish) to his house; for from me this thing has been done." And they listened to the word of YHWH, and returned to go, according to the word of YHWH.
25And Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and dwelt in it; and he went out from there, and built Penuel.
26And Jeroboam said in his heart, "Now the kingdom will return to the house of David.
27If this people goes up to make sacrifices in the house of YHWH at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will return to their lord, to Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me, and return to Rehoboam king of Judah."
28And the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold; and he said to them, "It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem; behold your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt."
29And he set the one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan.
30And this thing became a sin; and the people went before the one, as far as Dan.
31And he made a house of high places, and made priests from the ends of the people, who were not of the sons of Levi.
32And Jeroboam made a feast (chag) in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like the feast (chag) that is in Judah, and he went up upon the altar; so he did in Bethel, to sacrifice to the calves that he had made; and he stationed in Bethel the priests of the high places that he had made.
33And he went up upon the altar which he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, in the month which he had devised from his own heart; and he made a feast (chag) for the sons of Israel, and went up upon the altar to burn incense.