1 Kings 14:5-18

5 ADONAI had told Achiyah, "Yarov'am's wife is on her way to you to ask about her son, who is ill. You are to tell her thus and thus; moreover, when she comes, she will be pretending she is another woman."
6 When Achiyah heard the sound of her feet as she came in the door, he said, "Enter, wife of Yarov'am! Why pretend you are someone else? I've been given bad news for you.
7 Go, tell Yarov'am that this is what ADONAI says: 'I raised you up from among the people, made you prince over my people Isra'el,
8 tore the kingdom away from the dynasty of David and gave it to you. In spite of this, you have not been like my servant David, who obeyed my mitzvot and followed me with all his heart, so that he could do only what I regarded as right.
9 Rather, you have committed more evil than anyone before you! You went and made other gods for yourself and images of cast metal to make me angry, but me you shoved behind your back!
10 Therefore, I will now bring disaster on the house of Yarov'am. I will cut off every male of Yarov'am's line, whether a slave or free in Isra'el; I will sweep away the house of Yarov'am as completely as when someone sweeps away dung until it's all gone.
11 If someone from the line of Yarov'am dies in the city, the dogs will eat him; if he dies in the countryside, the vultures will eat him. For ADONAI has said it.'
12 So get up and go home; when your feet enter the city, the boy will die.
13 All Isra'el will mourn him, and they will bury him; he is the only one of Yarov'am's line who will lie in a grave, because he alone in the house of Yarov'am has in him an element of good toward ADONAI the God of Isra'el.
14 Moreover, ADONAI will raise up for himself a king over Isra'el who at that time will cut off the house of Yarov'am. And what will God do now?
15 ADONAI will strike Isra'el until it shakes like a reed in the water; he will uproot Isra'el from this good land, which he gave to their ancestors, and scatter them beyond the [Euphrates] River; because they made sacred poles for themselves, thus making ADONAI angry.
16 He will give up on Isra'el because of the sins of Yarov'am, which he committed himself, and with which he made Isra'el sin as well."
17 Yarov'am's wife got up, left and went to Tirtzah. The moment she reached the threshold of the house, the boy died.
18 All Isra'el buried him and mourned him, in keeping with the word of ADONAI spoken through his servant Achiyah the prophet.

1 Kings 14:5-18 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 14

This chapter relates the sickness of Jeroboam's son, the application of his wife, at his instance, to the prophet Ahijah, in the child's favour, 1Ki 14:1-6, the prophecy of the prophet concerning the ruin of Jeroboam's house, and the death of the child, which came to pass, 1Ki 14:7-18, an account of the years of Jeroboam's reign, and also of Rehoboam's, 1Ki 14:19-21, and of the evil things done and suffered by the latter in his kingdom, and the calamities that came upon him for it, 1Ki 14:22-28 and the conclusion of his reign, 1Ki 14:29-31.

Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.