1And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king. 2And it happened, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam lived in Egypt, 3and they sent and called him), that Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came, and spoke to Rehoboam, saying, 4Your father made our yoke heavy: now therefore make the hard service of your father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve you. 5And he said to them, Go away for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed. 6And king Rehoboam took counsel with the old men, who had stood before Solomon his father while he was still alive, saying, What counsel do you give me to return an answer to this people? 7And they spoke to him, saying, If you will be a servant to this people this day, and will serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever. 8But he forsook the counsel of the old men which they had given him, and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him, who stood before him. 9And he said to them, What counsel do you give, that we may return an answer to this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke that your father put upon us lighter? 10And the young men who had grown up with him spoke to him, saying, Thus shall you say to this people who spoke to you, saying, Your father made our yoke heavy, but make it lighter for us; thus shall you speak to them, My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins. 11And now whereas my father loaded you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. 12So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had said, saying, Come to me again the third day. 13And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the counsel of the old men which they had given him, 14and spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke: my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. 15So the king did not listen to the people; for it was a turn of events brought about by Yehovah, that he might establish his word, which Yehovah spoke by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat. 16And when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? nor have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to your own house, David. So Israel departed to their tents. 17But as for the children of Israel who lived in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. 18Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the men subject to forced labor; and all Israel stoned him to death with stones. And king Rehoboam hurried to get up into his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. 19So Israel rebelled against the house of David to this day. 20And it happened, 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 who followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only. 21And when Rehoboam had come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen men, who were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom back to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying, 23Speak 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 Yehovah, You shall not go up, nor fight against your brothers the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from me. So they listened to the word of Yehovah, and returned and went their way, according to the word of Yehovah. 25Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and lived there; 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 go up to offer sacrifices in the house of Yehovah at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn again to their lord, even to Rehoboam king of Judah; and they will kill me, and return to Rehoboam king of Judah. 28So 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 Beth-el, and the other he put in Dan. 30And this thing became a sin; for the people went to worship before the one, even to Dan. 31And he made houses of high places, and made priests from among all the people, who were not of the sons of Levi. 32And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like the feast that is in Judah, and he went up to the altar; so he did in Beth-el, sacrificing to the calves that he had made: and he placed in Beth-el the priests of the high places that he had made. 33And he went up to the altar which he had made in Beth-el on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised in his own heart: and he ordained a feast for the children of Israel, and went up to the altar, to burn incense.