1 Kings 12:1

King Rehoboam Acts Foolishly

1 1Then Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to 2Shechem to make him king.

1 Kings 12:1 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 12:1

And Rehoboam went to Shechem
After the death and internment of his father:

for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king:
as was pretended, though in reality it was to seek occasion against him, and make Jeroboam king; it is very probable they knew of the prophecy of Ahijah, and therefore would not go to Jerusalem, but to Shechem, a city in the tribe of Ephraim, of which Jeroboam was, and where he had sowed the seeds of sedition when ruler there; and this place they chose, partly because they could more freely speak what they had in their minds, and partly for the safety of Jeroboam they had sent for on this occasion; so that Rehoboam went thither not of choice, but of necessity. The Jews


FOOTNOTES:

F3 observe that this place was very ominous; here Dinah was ravished, Joseph was sold, Abimelech exercised tyranny, and here now the kingdom was divided.


F3 T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 102. 1.

1 Kings 12:1 In-Context

1 Then Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king.
2 Now when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it, he was living in Egypt (for he was yet in Egypt, where he had fled from the presence of King Solomon ).
3 Then 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; now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke which he put on us, and we will serve you."
5 Then he said to them, "Depart for three days, then return to me." So the people departed.

Cross References 2

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