1 Kings 12:1

1 Rehoboam went to Shechem, where all the Israelites had gone 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

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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 Rehoboam went to Shechem, where all the Israelites had gone to make him king.

2 Jeroboam son of Nebat was still in Egypt, where he had gone to escape from Solomon. When Jeroboam heard about Rehoboam being made king, he was living in Egypt.

3 After the people sent for him, he and the people went to Rehoboam and said to him,

4 "Your father forced us to work very hard. Now, make it easier for us, and don't make us work as hard as he did. Then we will serve you."

5 Rehoboam answered, "Go away for three days, and then come back to me." So the people left.