24
And he gathered men about him and became leader of a marauding band,
1after the killing by David. And they went to Damascus and lived there and made him king in Damascus.
25
He was an adversary of Israel all the days of Solomon, doing harm as Hadad did. And he loathed Israel and reigned over Syria.
26
2Jeroboam the son of Nebat,
3an Ephraimite of Zeredah, a servant of Solomon, whose mother's name was Zeruah, a widow, also
4lifted up his hand against the king.
27
And this was the reason why he lifted up his hand against the king.
5Solomon built the Millo, and closed up the breach of the city of David his father.
28
The man Jeroboam was very able, and when Solomon saw that the young man was industrious he gave him charge over all the forced labor of the house of Joseph.
29
And at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, the prophet
6Ahijah the Shilonite found him on the road. Now Ahijah had dressed himself in a new garment, and the two of them were alone in the open country.
30
Then Ahijah laid hold of the new garment that was on him,
7and tore it into twelve pieces.
31
And he said to Jeroboam, "Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'Behold,
8I am about to tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon and will give you ten tribes
32
(but
9he shall have one tribe, for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem,
10the city that I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel),
33
because they have forsaken me
11and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites, and they have not walked in my ways, doing what is right in my sight and keeping my statutes and my rules, as David his father did.
34
Nevertheless, I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, but I will make him ruler all the days of his life, for the sake of David my servant whom I chose, who kept my commandments and my statutes.