1 Kings 11:31

31 Then he said to Jeroboam, "Take ten pieces of this coat for yourself. The Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'I will tear the kingdom away from Solomon and give you ten tribes.

1 Kings 11:31 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 11:31

And he said to Jeroboam, take thee ten pieces
Of the twelve, an emblem of the ten tribes he was to have:

for thus saith the Lord God of Israel, behold, I will rend the kingdom
out of the hand of Solomon;
that is, out of his family:

and will give ten tribes unto thee;
to rule over.

1 Kings 11:31 In-Context

29 One day as Jeroboam was leaving Jerusalem, Ahijah, the prophet from Shiloh, who was wearing a new coat, met him on the road. The two men were alone out in the country.

30 Ahijah took his new coat and tore it into twelve pieces.

31 Then he said to Jeroboam, "Take ten pieces of this coat for yourself. The Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'I will tear the kingdom away from Solomon and give you ten tribes.

32 But I will allow him to control one tribe. I will do this for the sake of my servant David and for Jerusalem, the city I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel.

33 I will do this because Solomon has stopped following me and has worshiped the Sidonian god Ashtoreth, the Moabite god Chemosh, and the Ammonite god Molech. Solomon has not obeyed me by doing what I said is right and obeying my laws and commands, as his father David did.