I Kings 11

¹Now king Solomon loved many foreign women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites;

²of the nations concerning which Jehovah said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go among them, neither shall they come among you; for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.

³And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart.

⁴For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his heart was not perfect with Jehovah his God, as was the heart of David his father.

⁵For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.

⁶And Solomon did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, and went not fully after Jehovah, as did David his father.

⁷Then did Solomon build a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, in the mount that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the children of Ammon.

⁸And so did he for all his foreign wives, who burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.

⁹And Jehovah was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned away from Jehovah, the God of Israel, who had appeared unto him twice,

¹⁰and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which Jehovah commanded.

¹¹Wherefore Jehovah said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.

¹²Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it, for David thy father’s sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son.

¹³Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but I will give one tribe to thy son, for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.

¹⁴And Jehovah raised up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite: he was of the king’s seed in Edom.

¹⁵For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain, and had smitten every male in Edom

¹⁶(for Joab and all Israel remained there six months, until he had cut off every male in Edom);

¹⁷that Hadad fled, he and certain Edomites of his father’s servants with him, to go into Egypt, Hadad being yet a little child.

¹⁸And they arose out of Midian, and came to Paran; and they took men with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt, unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave him a house, and appointed him victuals, and gave him land.

¹⁹And Hadad found great favor in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen.

²⁰And the sister of Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh’s house; and Genubath was in Pharaoh’s house among the sons of Pharaoh.

²¹And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the host was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart, that I may go to mine own country.

²²Then Pharaoh said unto him, But what hast thou lacked with me, that, behold, thou seekest to go to thine own country? And he answered, Nothing: howbeit only let me depart.

²³And God raised upanotheradversary unto him, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah.

²⁴And he gathered men unto him, and became captain over a troop, when David slew them of Zobah: and they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus.

²⁵And he was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, besides the mischief that Hadad did: and he abhorred Israel, and reigned over Syria.

²⁶And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah, a servant of Solomon, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow, he also lifted up his hand against the king.

²⁷And this was the reason why he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breach of the city of David his father.

²⁸And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor; and Solomon saw the young man that he was industrious, and he gave him charge over all the labor of the house of Joseph.

²⁹And it came to pass at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; now Ahijah had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field.

³⁰And Ahijah laid hold of the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces.

³¹And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces; for thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee

³²(but he shall have one tribe, for my servant David’s sake and for Jerusalem’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel);

³³because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon; and they have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and mine ordinances, as did David his father.

³⁴Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand; but I will make him prince all the days of his life, for David my servant’s sake whom I chose, who kept my commandments and my statutes;

³⁵but I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand, and will give it unto thee, even ten tribes.

³⁶And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may have a lamp alway before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen me to put my name there.

³⁷And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel.

³⁸And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that which is right in mine eyes, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with thee, and will build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee.

³⁹And I will for this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever.

⁴⁰Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam; but Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.

⁴¹Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon?

⁴²And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.

⁴³And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.

I Kings 11

¹King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh—women of Moab, Ammon, Edom, and Sidon, as well as Hittite women.

²These women were from the nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, for surely they will turn your hearts after their gods.” Yet Solomon clung to these women in love.

³He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines—and his wives turned his heart away.

⁴For when Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the LORD his God, as his father David had been.

⁵Solomon followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.

⁶So Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD; unlike his father David, he did not follow the LORD completely.

⁷At that time on a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites.

⁸He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.

⁹Now the LORD grew angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.

¹⁰Although He had warned Solomon explicitly not to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the LORD’s command.

¹¹Then the LORD said to Solomon, “Because you have done this and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant.

¹²Nevertheless, for the sake of your father David, I will not do it during your lifetime; I will tear it out of the hand of your son.

¹³Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom away from him. I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”

¹⁴Then the LORD raised up against Solomon an adversary, Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom.

¹⁵Earlier, when David was in Edom, Joab the commander of the army had gone to bury the dead and had struck down every male in Edom.

¹⁶Joab and all Israel had stayed there six months, until he had killed every male in Edom.

¹⁷But Hadad, still just a young boy, had fled to Egypt, along with some Edomites who were servants of his father.

¹⁸Hadad and his men set out from Midian and went to Paran. They took men from Paran with them and went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave Hadad a house and land and provided him with food.

¹⁹There Hadad found such great favor in the sight of Pharaoh that he gave to him in marriage the sister of Queen Tahpenes, his own wife.

²⁰And the sister of Tahpenes bore Hadad a son named Genubath. Tahpenes herself weaned him in Pharaoh’s palace, and Genubath lived there among the sons of Pharaoh.

²¹When Hadad heard in Egypt that David had rested with his fathers and that Joab, the commander of the army, was dead, he said to Pharaoh, “Let me go, that I may return to my own country.”

²²But Pharaoh asked him, “What have you lacked here with me that you suddenly want to go back to your own country?” “Nothing,” Hadad replied, “but please let me go.”

²³And God raised up against Solomon another adversary, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer king of Zobah,

²⁴and had gathered men to himself. When David killed the Zobaites, Rezon captained a band of raiders and went to Damascus, where they settled and gained control.

²⁵Rezon was Israel’s enemy throughout the days of Solomon, adding to the trouble caused by Hadad. So Rezon ruled over Aram with hostility toward Israel.

²⁶Now Jeroboam son of Nebat was an Ephraimite from Zeredah whose mother was a widow named Zeruah. Jeroboam was a servant of Solomon, but he rebelled against the king,

²⁷and this is the account of his rebellion against the king. Solomon had built the supporting terraces and repaired the gap in the wall of the city of his father David.

²⁸Now Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor. So when Solomon noticed that the young man was industrious, he put him in charge of the whole labor force of the house of Joseph.

²⁹During that time, the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met Jeroboam on the road as he was going out of Jerusalem. Now Ahijah had wrapped himself in a new cloak, and the two of them were alone in the open field.

³⁰And Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing, tore it into twelve pieces,

³¹and said to Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and I will give you ten tribes.

³²But one tribe will remain for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.

³³For they have forsaken Me to worship Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites. They have not walked in My ways, nor done what is right in My eyes, nor kept My statutes and judgments, as Solomon’s father David did.

³⁴Nevertheless, I will not take the whole kingdom out of Solomon’s hand, because I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of David My servant, whom I chose because he kept My commandments and statutes.

³⁵But I will take ten tribes of the kingdom from the hand of his son and give them to you.

³⁶I will give one tribe to his son, so that My servant David will always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put My Name.

³⁷But as for you, I will take you, and you shall reign over all that your heart desires, and you will be king over Israel.

³⁸If you listen to all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight in order to keep My statutes and commandments as My servant David did, then I will be with you. I will build you a lasting dynasty just as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you.

³⁹Because of this, I will humble David’s descendants—but not forever.’”

⁴⁰Solomon therefore sought to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose and fled to Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, where he remained until the death of Solomon.

⁴¹As for the rest of the acts of Solomon—all that he did, as well as his wisdom—are they not written in the Book of the Acts of Solomon?

⁴²Thus the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.

⁴³And Solomon rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of his father David. And his son Rehoboam reigned in his place.