2 Chronicles 11 Cross References - BSB

¹ When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mobilized the house of Judah and Benjamin—180,000 chosen warriors—to fight against Israel and restore the kingdom to Rehoboam. ² But the word of the LORD came to Shemaiah the man of God: ³ “Tell Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah and all the Israelites in Judah and Benjamin ⁴ that this is what the LORD says: ‘You are not to go up and fight against your brothers. Each of you must return home, for this word is from Me.’” So they listened to the words of the LORD and turned back from going against Jeroboam. ⁵ Rehoboam continued to live in Jerusalem, and he built up cities for defense in Judah. ⁶ He built up Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa, ⁷ Beth-zur, Soco, Adullam, ⁸ Gath, Mareshah, Ziph, ⁹ Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah, ¹⁰ Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron, the fortified cities in Judah and Benjamin. ¹¹ He strengthened their fortresses and put officers in them, with supplies of food, oil, and wine. ¹² He also put shields and spears in all the cities and strengthened them greatly. So Judah and Benjamin belonged to him. ¹³ Moreover, the priests and Levites from all their districts throughout Israel stood with Rehoboam. ¹⁴ For the Levites left their pasturelands and their possessions and went to Judah and Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons had rejected them as priests of the LORD. ¹⁵ And Jeroboam appointed his own priests for the high places and for the goat demons and calf idols he had made. ¹⁶ Those from every tribe of Israel who had set their hearts to seek the LORD their God followed the Levites to Jerusalem to sacrifice to the LORD, the God of their fathers. ¹⁷ So they strengthened the kingdom of Judah and supported Rehoboam son of Solomon for three years, because they walked for three years in the way of David and Solomon. ¹⁸ And Rehoboam married Mahalath, who was the daughter of David’s son Jerimoth and of Abihail, the daughter of Jesse’s son Eliab. ¹⁹ She bore sons to him: Jeush, Shemariah, and Zaham. ²⁰ After her, he married Maacah daughter of Absalom, and she bore to him Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith. ²¹ Rehoboam loved Maacah daughter of Absalom more than all his wives and concubines. In all, he had eighteen wives and sixty concubines, and he was the father of twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters. ²² Rehoboam appointed Abijah son of Maacah as chief prince among his brothers, intending to make him king. ²³ Rehoboam also acted wisely by dispersing some of his sons throughout the districts of Judah and Benjamin, and to all the fortified cities. He gave them abundant provisions and sought many wives for them.

²¹ And when Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mobilized the whole house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin—180,000 chosen warriors—to fight against the house of Israel and restore the kingdom to Rehoboam son of Solomon. ²² But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God: ²³ “Tell Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah, all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and the rest of the people ²⁴ that this is what the LORD says: ‘You are not to go up and fight against your brothers, the Israelites. Each of you must return home, for this word is from Me.’” So they listened to the word of the LORD and turned back according to the word of the LORD.

¹⁰ The LORD frustrates the plans of the nations; He thwarts the devices of the peoples.

¹⁶ No king is saved by his vast army; no warrior is delivered by his great strength.

³⁰ There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel that can prevail against the LORD. ³¹ A horse is prepared for the day of battle, but victory is of the LORD.

¹ This is the blessing that Moses the man of God pronounced upon the Israelites before his death.

²⁷ Then a man of God came to Eli and told him, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Did I not clearly reveal Myself to your father’s house when they were in Egypt under Pharaoh’s house?

¹⁴ In keeping with the ordinances of his father David, Solomon appointed the divisions of the priests over their service, and the Levites for their duties to offer praise and to minister before the priests according to the daily requirement. He also appointed gatekeepers by their divisions at each gate, for this had been the command of David, the man of God.

⁵ Then Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and the leaders of Judah who had gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak, and he said to them, “This is what the LORD says: ‘You have forsaken Me; therefore, I have forsaken you into the hand of Shishak.’” ⁶ So the leaders of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The LORD is righteous.” ⁷ When the LORD saw that they had humbled themselves, the word of the LORD came to Shemaiah, saying, “They have humbled themselves; I will not destroy them, but will soon grant them deliverance. My wrath will not be poured out on Jerusalem through Shishak.

¹⁵ Now the acts of Rehoboam, from first to last, are they not written in the records of Shemaiah the Prophet and of Iddo the Seer concerning the genealogies? There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam throughout their days.

¹¹ But you, O man of God, flee from these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness.

²⁸ These are the tribes of Israel, twelve in all, and this was what their father said to them. He blessed them, and he blessed each one with a suitable blessing.

⁴ And Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD. Early the next morning he got up and built an altar at the base of the mountain, along with twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel.

³⁴ To this day they are still practicing their former customs. None of them worship the LORD or observe the statutes, ordinances, laws, and commandments that the LORD gave the descendants of Jacob, whom He named Israel.

⁵ circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin; a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee;

⁴ And I heard the number of those who were sealed, 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel: ⁵ From the tribe of Judah 12,000 were sealed, from the tribe of Reuben 12,000, from the tribe of Gad 12,000, ⁶ from the tribe of Asher 12,000, from the tribe of Naphtali 12,000, from the tribe of Manasseh 12,000, ⁷ from the tribe of Simeon 12,000, from the tribe of Levi 12,000, from the tribe of Issachar 12,000, ⁸ from the tribe of Zebulun 12,000, from the tribe of Joseph 12,000, and from the tribe of Benjamin 12,000.

⁸ So Abram said to Lot, “Please let there be no contention between you and me, or between your herdsmen and my herdsmen. After all, we are brothers.

²⁰ As for you, what you intended against me for evil, God intended for good, in order to accomplish a day like this—to preserve the lives of many people.

²⁶ Then Abner called out to Joab: “Must the sword devour forever? Do you not realize that this will only end in bitterness? How long before you tell the troops to stop pursuing their brothers?”

²⁹ During that time, the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met Jeroboam on the road as he was going out of Jerusalem. Now Ahijah had wrapped himself in a new cloak, and the two of them were alone in the open field. ³⁰ And Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing, tore it into twelve pieces, ³¹ and said to Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and I will give you ten tribes. ³² But one tribe will remain for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel. ³³ For they have forsaken Me to worship Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites. They have not walked in My ways, nor done what is right in My eyes, nor kept My statutes and judgments, as Solomon’s father David did. ³⁴ Nevertheless, I will not take the whole kingdom out of Solomon’s hand, because I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of David My servant, whom I chose because he kept My commandments and statutes. ³⁵ But I will take ten tribes of the kingdom from the hand of his son and give them to you. ³⁶ I will give one tribe to his son, so that My servant David will always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put My Name. ³⁷ But as for you, I will take you, and you shall reign over all that your heart desires, and you will be king over Israel. ³⁸ If you listen to all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight in order to keep My statutes and commandments as My servant David did, then I will be with you. I will build you a lasting dynasty just as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you.

³⁶ As the sun was setting, the cry rang out in the army: “Every man to his own city, and every man to his own land!”

¹⁵ So the king did not listen to the people, and indeed this turn of events was from God, in order that the LORD might fulfill the word that He had spoken through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat. ¹⁶ When all Israel saw that the king had refused to listen to them, they answered the king: “What portion do we have in David, and what inheritance in the son of Jesse? To your tents, O Israel! Look now to your own house, O David!” So all the Israelites went home,

⁷ But a man of God came to him and said, “O king, do not let the army of Israel go with you, for the LORD is not with Israel—not with any of the Ephraimites. ⁸ Even if you go and fight bravely in battle, God will make you stumble before the enemy, for God has power to help and power to overthrow.” ⁹ Amaziah asked the man of God, “What should I do about the hundred talents I have given to the army of Israel?” And the man of God replied, “The LORD is able to give you much more than this.” ¹⁰ So Amaziah dismissed the troops who had come to him from Ephraim and sent them home. And they were furious with Judah and returned home in great anger.

⁸ Then the Israelites took 200,000 captives from their kinsmen—women, sons, and daughters. They also carried off a great deal of plunder and brought it to Samaria. ⁹ But a prophet of the LORD named Oded was there, and he went out to meet the army that returned to Samaria. “Look,” he said to them, “because of His wrath against Judah, the LORD, the God of your fathers, has delivered them into your hand. But you have slaughtered them in a rage that reaches up to heaven. ¹⁰ And now you intend to reduce to slavery the men and women of Judah and Jerusalem. But are you not also guilty before the LORD your God? ¹¹ Now therefore, listen to me and return the captives you took from your kinsmen, for the fierce anger of the LORD is upon you.” ¹² Then some of the leaders of the Ephraimites—Azariah son of Jehohanan, Berechiah son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah son of Shallum, and Amasa son of Hadlai—stood in opposition to those arriving from the war. ¹³ “You must not bring the captives here,” they said, “for you are proposing to bring guilt upon us from the LORD and to add to our sins and our guilt. For our guilt is great, and fierce anger is upon Israel.” ¹⁴ So the armed men left the captives and the plunder before the leaders and all the assembly. ¹⁵ Then the men who were designated by name arose, took charge of the captives, and provided from the plunder clothing for the naked. They clothed them, gave them sandals and food and drink, anointed their wounds, and put all the feeble on donkeys. So they brought them to Jericho, the City of Palms, to their brothers. Then they returned to Samaria.

¹¹ The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the purposes of His heart to all generations.

⁴ They set up kings, but not by Me. They make princes, but without My approval. With their silver and gold they make themselves idols, to their own destruction.

²⁶ The next day he came upon two Israelites who were fighting, and he tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers. Why are you mistreating each other?’

⁵ I say this to your shame. Is there really no one among you wise enough to arbitrate between his brothers? ⁶ Instead, one brother goes to law against another, and this in front of unbelievers! ⁷ The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means that you are thoroughly defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? ⁸ Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, even against your own brothers!

¹ Continue in brotherly love.

⁸ Finally, all of you, be like-minded and sympathetic, love as brothers, be tenderhearted and humble.

¹¹ This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another. ¹² Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did Cain slay him? Because his own deeds were evil, while those of his brother were righteous. ¹³ So do not be surprised, brothers, if the world hates you.

² Solomon rebuilt the cities Hiram had given him and settled Israelites there. ³ Then Solomon went to Hamath-zobah and captured it. ⁴ He built Tadmor in the wilderness, in addition to all the store cities that he had built in Hamath. ⁵ He rebuilt Upper and Lower Beth-horon as fortified cities with walls, gates, and bars, ⁶ as well as Baalath, all the store cities that belonged to Solomon, and all the cities for his chariots and horses—whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, Lebanon, and throughout the land of his dominion.

²³ Rehoboam also acted wisely by dispersing some of his sons throughout the districts of Judah and Benjamin, and to all the fortified cities. He gave them abundant provisions and sought many wives for them.

⁶ Because the land was at peace, Asa built fortified cities in Judah. In those days no one made war with him, because the LORD had given him rest. ⁷ So he said to the people of Judah, “Let us build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, with doors and bars. The land is still ours because we have sought the LORD our God. We have sought Him and He has given us rest on every side.” So they built and prospered.

⁶ Then King Asa brought all the men of Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and the timbers Baasha had used for building. And with these materials he built up Geba and Mizpah.

¹² Jehoshaphat grew stronger and stronger, and he built fortresses and store cities in Judah

⁶ Uzziah went out to wage war against the Philistines, and he tore down the walls of Gath, Jabneh, and Ashdod. Then he built cities near Ashdod and among the Philistines.

⁴ He also built cities in the hill country of Judah and fortresses and towers in the forests.

⁸ He has uncovered the defenses of Judah. On that day you looked to the weapons in the House of the Forest. ⁹ You saw that there were many breaches in the walls of the City of David. You collected water from the lower pool. ¹⁰ You counted the houses of Jerusalem and tore them down to strengthen the wall. ¹¹ You built a reservoir between the walls for the waters of the ancient pool, but you did not look to the One who made it, or consider Him who planned it long ago.

¹⁹ So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).

⁸ And he struck them ruthlessly with a great slaughter, and then went down and stayed in the cave at the rock of Etam.

¹² Now David was the son of a man named Jesse, an Ephrathite from Bethlehem of Judah who had eight sons in the days of Saul. And Jesse was old and well along in years.

² So Joab sent to Tekoa to bring a wise woman from there. He told her, “Please pretend to be a mourner; put on clothes for mourning and do not anoint yourself with oil. Act like a woman who has mourned for the dead a long time.

³² And their villages were Etam, Ain, Rimmon, Tochen, and Ashan—five towns—

²⁰ Early in the morning they got up and left for the Wilderness of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood up and said, “Hear me, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be upheld; believe in His prophets, and you will succeed.”

⁵ Next to him, the Tekoites made repairs, but their nobles did not put their shoulders to the work under their supervisors.

²⁷ And next to them, the Tekoites repaired another section, from a point opposite the great tower that juts out to the wall of Ophel.

¹ “Run for cover, O sons of Benjamin; flee from Jerusalem! Sound the ram’s horn in Tekoa; send up a signal over Beth-haccherem, for disaster looms from the north, even great destruction.

¹ These are the words of Amos, who was among the sheepherders of Tekoa—what he saw concerning Israel two years before the earthquake, in the days when Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam son of Jehoash was king of Israel.

⁵ “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: ⁶ ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah, for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of My people Israel.’”

¹⁵ the king of Libnah, one; the king of Adullam, one;

³⁵ Jarmuth, Adullam, Socoh, Azekah,

⁵⁸ Halhul, Beth-zur, Gedor,

¹ So David left Gath and took refuge in the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and the rest of his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there.

¹³ At harvest time, three of the thirty chief men went down to David at the cave of Adullam, while a company of Philistines was encamped in the Valley of Rephaim.

¹⁵ I will again bring a conqueror against you, O dweller of Mareshah. The glory of Israel will come to Adullam.

²⁴ Ziph, Telem, Bealoth,

⁴⁴ Keilah, Achzib, and Mareshah—nine cities, along with their villages.

¹⁴ And David stayed in the wilderness strongholds and in the hill country of the Wilderness of Ziph. Day after day Saul searched for him, but God would not deliver David into his hand.

¹⁹ Then the Ziphites came up to Saul at Gibeah and said, “Is not David hiding among us in the strongholds at Horesh, on the hill of Hachilah south of Jeshimon?

¹ Some time later, David defeated the Philistines, subdued them, and took Gath and its villages from the hand of the Philistines.

¹ For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments. A Maskil of David. When the Ziphites went to Saul and said, “Is David not hiding among us?” Save me, O God, by Your name, and vindicate me by Your might!

⁵ So the five kings of the Amorites—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon—joined forces and advanced with all their armies. They camped before Gibeon and made war against it.

¹¹ As they fled before Israel along the descent from Beth-horon to Azekah, the LORD cast down on them large hailstones from the sky, and more of them were killed by the hailstones than by the swords of the Israelites.

³⁹ Lachish, Bozkath, Eglon,

⁹ Later, as Sennacherib king of Assyria and all his forces besieged Lachish, he sent his servants to Jerusalem with a message for King Hezekiah of Judah and all the people of Judah who were in Jerusalem:

² She died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went out to mourn and to weep for her.

²² They went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, dwelled. It had been built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.

¹⁴ Therefore Hebron belongs to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite as an inheritance to this day, because he wholly followed the LORD, the God of Israel.

³³ These were in the foothills: Eshtaol, Zorah, Ashnah,

⁴¹ The territory of their inheritance included Zorah, Eshtaol, Ir-shemesh, ⁴² Shaalabbin, Aijalon, Ithlah,

⁷ So they set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naphtali, Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the hill country of Judah.

¹¹ And the length of time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.

¹⁹ These were the men who served the king, besides those he stationed in the fortified cities throughout Judah.

¹⁹ And Tamar put ashes on her head and tore her robe. And putting her hand on her head, she went away crying bitterly.

²² And Absalom never said a word to Amnon, either good or bad, because he hated Amnon for disgracing his sister Tamar.

¹⁴ Uzziah supplied the entire army with shields, spears, helmets, armor, bows, and slingstones. ¹⁵ And in Jerusalem he made skillfully designed devices to shoot arrows and catapult large stones from the towers and corners. So his fame spread far and wide, for he was helped tremendously so that he became powerful.

⁵ Then Hezekiah worked resolutely to rebuild all the broken sections of the wall and to raise up towers on it. He also built an outer wall and reinforced the supporting terraces of the City of David, and he produced an abundance of weapons and shields.

³⁰ Thus any tithe from the land, whether from the seed of the land or the fruit of the trees, belongs to the LORD; it is holy to the LORD. ³¹ If a man wishes to redeem part of his tithe, he must add a fifth to its value. ³² Every tenth animal from the herd or flock that passes under the shepherd’s rod will be holy to the LORD. ³³ He must not inspect whether it is good or bad, and he shall not make any substitution. But if he does make a substitution, both the animal and its substitute shall become holy; they cannot be redeemed.’” ³⁴ These are the commandments that the LORD gave to Moses for the Israelites on Mount Sinai.

²¹ Behold, I have given to the Levites all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work they do, the service of the Tent of Meeting. ²² No longer may the Israelites come near to the Tent of Meeting, or they will incur guilt and die. ²³ The Levites are to perform the work of the Tent of Meeting, and they must bear their iniquity. This is a permanent statute for the generations to come. The Levites will not receive an inheritance among the Israelites. ²⁴ For I have given to the Levites as their inheritance the tithe that the Israelites present to the LORD as a contribution. That is why I told them that they would not receive an inheritance among the Israelites.” ²⁵ And the LORD instructed Moses, ²⁶ “Speak to the Levites and tell them: ‘When you receive from the Israelites the tithe that I have given you as your inheritance, you must present part of it as an offering to the LORD—a tithe of the tithe. ²⁷ Your offering will be reckoned to you as grain from the threshing floor or juice from the winepress. ²⁸ So you are to present an offering to the LORD from all the tithes you receive from the Israelites, and from these you are to give the LORD’s offering to Aaron the priest.

² “Command the Israelites to give, from the inheritance they will possess, cities for the Levites to live in and pasturelands around the cities. ³ The cities will be for them to live in, and the pasturelands will be for their herds, their flocks, and all their other livestock. ⁴ The pasturelands around the cities you are to give the Levites will extend a thousand cubits from the wall on every side. ⁵ You are also to measure two thousand cubits outside the city on the east, two thousand on the south, two thousand on the west, and two thousand on the north, with the city in the center. These areas will serve as larger pasturelands for the cities.

²⁰ The remaining Kohathite clans of the Levites were allotted these cities: From the tribe of Ephraim ²¹ they were given Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim (a city of refuge for the manslayer), Gezer, ²² Kibzaim, and Beth-horon—four cities, together with their pasturelands. ²³ From the tribe of Dan they were given Elteke, Gibbethon, ²⁴ Aijalon, and Gath-rimmon—four cities, together with their pasturelands. ²⁵ And from the half-tribe of Manasseh they were given Taanach and Gath-rimmon—two cities, together with their pasturelands. ²⁶ In all, ten cities, together with their pasturelands, were given to the rest of the Kohathite clans. ²⁷ This is what the Levite clans of the Gershonites were given: From the half-tribe of Manasseh they were given Golan in Bashan, a city of refuge for the manslayer, and Beeshterah—two cities, together with their pasturelands. ²⁸ From the tribe of Issachar they were given Kishion, Daberath, ²⁹ Jarmuth, and En-gannim—four cities, together with their pasturelands. ³⁰ From the tribe of Asher they were given Mishal, Abdon, ³¹ Helkath, and Rehob—four cities, together with their pasturelands. ³² And from the tribe of Naphtali they were given Kedesh in Galilee (a city of refuge for the manslayer), Hammoth-dor, and Kartan—three cities, together with their pasturelands. ³³ In all, thirteen cities, together with their pasturelands, were given to the Gershonite clans. ³⁴ This is what the Merarite clan (the rest of the Levites) were given: From the tribe of Zebulun they were given Jokneam, Kartah, ³⁵ Dimnah, and Nahalal—four cities, together with their pasturelands. ³⁶ From the tribe of Reuben they were given Bezer, Jahaz, ³⁷ Kedemoth, and Mephaath—four cities, together with their pasturelands. ³⁸ And from the tribe of Gad they were given Ramoth in Gilead, a city of refuge for the manslayer, Mahanaim, ³⁹ Heshbon, and Jazer—four cities in all, together with their pasturelands. ⁴⁰ In all, twelve cities were allotted to the clans of Merari, the remaining Levite clans. ⁴¹ For the Levites, then, there were forty-eight cities in all, together with their pasturelands, within the territory of the Israelites. ⁴² Each of these cities had its own surrounding pasturelands; this was true for all the cities.

²⁸ After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves and said to the people, “Going up to Jerusalem is too much for you. Here, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” ²⁹ One calf he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan. ³⁰ And this thing became a sin; the people walked as far as Dan to worship before one of the calves. ³¹ Jeroboam also built shrines on the high places and appointed from every class of people priests who were not Levites. ³² And Jeroboam ordained a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the feast that was in Judah, and he offered sacrifices on the altar; he made this offering in Bethel to sacrifice to the calves he had set up, and he installed priests in Bethel for the high places he had set up. ³³ On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a month of his own choosing, Jeroboam offered sacrifices on the altar he had set up in Bethel. So he ordained a feast for the Israelites, offered sacrifices on the altar, and burned incense.

³³ Even after these events, Jeroboam did not repent of his evil ways, but again he appointed priests for the high places from every class of people. He ordained anyone who desired to be a priest of the high places.

⁶⁶ And some of the clans of the Kohathites were given cities from the tribe of Ephraim for their territory: ⁶⁷ They were given Shechem (a city of refuge) with its pasturelands in the hill country of Ephraim, and Gezer, ⁶⁸ Jokmeam, Beth-horon, ⁶⁹ Aijalon, and Gath-rimmon, together with their pasturelands. ⁷⁰ And from the half-tribe of Manasseh the remaining clans of the Kohathites were given Aner and Bileam, together with their pasturelands. ⁷¹ The Gershomites received the following: From the clan of the half-tribe of Manasseh they were given Golan in Bashan and also Ashtaroth, together with their pasturelands. ⁷² From the tribe of Issachar they were given Kedesh, Daberath, ⁷³ Ramoth, and Anem, together with their pasturelands. ⁷⁴ From the tribe of Asher they were given Mashal, Abdon, ⁷⁵ Hukok, and Rehob, together with their pasturelands. ⁷⁶ And from the tribe of Naphtali they were given Kedesh in Galilee, Hammon, and Kiriathaim, together with their pasturelands. ⁷⁷ The Merarites (the rest of the Levites) received the following: From the tribe of Zebulun they were given Rimmono and Tabor, together with their pasturelands. ⁷⁸ From the tribe of Reuben east of the Jordan opposite Jericho they were given Bezer in the wilderness, Jahzah, ⁷⁹ Kedemoth, and Mephaath, together with their pasturelands. ⁸⁰ And from the tribe of Gad they were given Ramoth in Gilead, Mahanaim, ⁸¹ Heshbon, and Jazer, together with their pasturelands.

⁹ But did you not drive out the priests of the LORD, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites? And did you not make priests for yourselves as do the peoples of other lands? Now whoever comes to consecrate himself with a young bull and seven rams can become a priest of things that are not gods.

⁴ He took the gold from their hands, and with an engraving tool he fashioned it into a molten calf. And they said, “These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” ⁵ When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before the calf and proclaimed: “Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD.” ⁶ So the next day they arose, offered burnt offerings, and presented peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and drink, and got up to indulge in revelry. ⁷ Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go down at once, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. ⁸ How quickly they have turned aside from the way that I commanded them! They have made for themselves a molten calf and have bowed down to it. They have sacrificed to it and said, ‘These, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.’”

³¹ So Moses returned to the LORD and said, “Oh, what a great sin these people have committed! They have made gods of gold for themselves.

¹⁷ They sacrificed to demons, not to God, to gods they had not known, to newly arrived gods, which your fathers did not fear.

²⁸ After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves and said to the people, “Going up to Jerusalem is too much for you. Here, O Israel, are your gods, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.”

³¹ Jeroboam also built shrines on the high places and appointed from every class of people priests who were not Levites.

⁹ You have done more evil than all who came before you. You have proceeded to make for yourself other gods and molten images to provoke Me, and you have flung Me behind your back.

¹⁹ At Horeb they made a calf and worshiped a molten image. ²⁰ They exchanged their Glory for the image of a grass-eating ox.

⁵ He has rejected your calf, O Samaria. My anger burns against them. How long will they be incapable of innocence? ⁶ For this thing is from Israel—a craftsman made it, and it is not God. It will be broken to pieces, that calf of Samaria.

² Now they sin more and more and make for themselves cast images, idols skillfully made from their silver, all of them the work of craftsmen. People say of them, “They offer human sacrifice and kiss the calves!”

²⁰ No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God. And I do not want you to be participants with demons. ²¹ You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot partake in the table of the Lord and the table of demons too.

¹ Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,

¹⁴ These are demonic spirits that perform signs and go out to all the kings of the earth, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty.

²¹ but those who disregarded the word of the LORD left their servants and livestock in the field.

⁵ Instead, you must seek the place the LORD your God will choose from among all your tribes to establish as a dwelling for His Name, and there you must go. ⁶ To that place you are to bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and heave offerings, your vow offerings and freewill offerings, as well as the firstborn of your herds and flocks.

¹¹ then the LORD your God will choose a dwelling for His Name. And there you are to bring everything I command you: your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, and all the choice offerings you vow to the LORD.

¹³ Be careful not to offer your burnt offerings in just any place you see; ¹⁴ you must offer them only in the place the LORD will choose in one of your tribal territories, and there you shall do all that I command you.

⁴⁶ he said to them, “Take to heart all these words I testify among you today, so that you may command your children to carefully follow all the words of this law.

¹⁹ If indeed the land of your inheritance is unclean, then cross over to the land of the LORD’s possession, where the LORD’s tabernacle stands, and take possession of it among us. But do not rebel against the LORD or against us by building for yourselves an altar other than the altar of the LORD our God.

³ Then Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the LORD with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and Ashtoreths among you, prepare your hearts for the LORD, and serve Him only. And He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.” ⁴ So the Israelites put away the Baals and Ashtoreths and served only the LORD.

²⁹ Ascribe to the LORD the glory due His name; bring an offering and come before Him. Worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness;

¹ Then David said, “Here shall be the house of the LORD God, as well as the altar of burnt offering for Israel.”

¹⁹ Now set your heart and soul to seek the LORD your God. Get started building the sanctuary of the LORD God, so that you may bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD and the holy articles of God into the temple that will be built for the Name of the LORD.”

⁹ And he assembled all Judah and Benjamin, along with those from the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who had settled among them, for great numbers had come over to him from Israel when they saw that the LORD his God was with him.

¹¹ Nevertheless, some from Asher, Manasseh, and Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem.

¹⁸ A large number of the people—many from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun—had not purified themselves, yet they ate the Passover, contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah interceded for them, saying, “May the LORD, who is good, provide atonement for everyone ¹⁹ who sets his heart on seeking God—the LORD, the God of his fathers—even if he is not cleansed according to the purification rules of the sanctuary.”

¹⁴ If He were to set His heart to it and withdraw His Spirit and breath,

¹⁰ Place no trust in extortion, or false hope in stolen goods. If your riches increase, do not set your heart upon them.

⁵ Blessed are those whose strength is in You, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage. ⁶ As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs; even the autumn rain covers it with pools. ⁷ They go from strength to strength, until each appears before God in Zion.

¹ A song. A Psalm of David. My heart is steadfast, O God; I will sing and make music with all my being.

¹⁴ As soon as the king heard this, he was deeply distressed and set his mind on delivering Daniel, and he labored until sundown to rescue him.

⁸ They feed on the sins of My people and set their hearts on iniquity.

⁵ Now this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Consider carefully your ways.

²³ When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced and encouraged them all to abide in the Lord with all their hearts.

¹ Now Solomon son of David established himself securely over his kingdom, and the LORD his God was with him and highly exalted him. ² Then Solomon spoke to all Israel, to the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, to the judges, and to every leader in all Israel—the heads of the families. ³ And Solomon and the whole assembly went to the high place at Gibeon because it was the location of God’s Tent of Meeting, which Moses the servant of the LORD had made in the wilderness. ⁴ Now David had brought the ark of God from Kiriath-jearim to the place he had prepared for it, because he had pitched a tent for it in Jerusalem. ⁵ But the bronze altar made by Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, was in Gibeon before the tabernacle of the LORD. So Solomon and the assembly inquired of Him there. ⁶ Solomon offered sacrifices there before the LORD on the bronze altar in the Tent of Meeting, where he offered a thousand burnt offerings. ⁷ That night God appeared to Solomon and said, “Ask, and I will give it to you!” ⁸ Solomon replied to God: “You have shown much loving devotion to my father David, and You have made me king in his place. ⁹ Now, O LORD God, let Your promise to my father David be fulfilled. For You have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth. ¹⁰ Now grant me wisdom and knowledge, so that I may lead this people. For who is able to govern this great people of Yours?” ¹¹ God said to Solomon, “Since this was in your heart instead of requesting riches or wealth or glory for yourself or death for your enemies—and since you have not even requested long life but have asked for wisdom and knowledge to govern My people over whom I have made you king— ¹² therefore wisdom and knowledge have been granted to you. And I will also give you riches and wealth and honor unlike anything given to the kings before you or after you.”

¹⁷ And as for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, doing all I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and ordinances, ¹⁸ then I will establish your royal throne, as I covenanted with your father David when I said, ‘You will never fail to have a man to rule over Israel.’ ¹⁹ But if you turn away and forsake the statutes and commandments I have set before you, and if you go off to serve and worship other gods,

¹³ He observed the daily requirement for offerings according to the commandment of Moses for Sabbaths, New Moons, and the three annual appointed feasts—the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles. ¹⁴ In keeping with the ordinances of his father David, Solomon appointed the divisions of the priests over their service, and the Levites for their duties to offer praise and to minister before the priests according to the daily requirement. He also appointed gatekeepers by their divisions at each gate, for this had been the command of David, the man of God. ¹⁵ They did not turn aside from the king’s command regarding the priests or the Levites or any matter concerning the treasuries. ¹⁶ Thus all the work of Solomon was carried out, from the day the foundation was laid for the house of the LORD until it was finished. So the house of the LORD was completed.

¹ After Rehoboam had established his sovereignty and royal power, he and all Israel with him forsook the Law of the LORD.

⁴ What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah? For your loyalty is like a morning mist, like the early dew that vanishes.

²⁰ The seed sown on rocky ground is the one who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. ²¹ But since he has no root, he remains for only a season. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away.

⁶ When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and said, “Surely here before the LORD is His anointed.”

¹³ The three older sons of Jesse had followed Saul into battle: The firstborn was Eliab, the second was Abinadab, and the third was Shammah.

²⁸ Now when David’s oldest brother Eliab heard him speaking to the men, his anger burned against David. “Why have you come down here?” he asked. “And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and wickedness of heart—you have come down to see the battle!”

¹³ Jesse was the father of Eliab his firstborn; Abinadab was born second, Shimea third,

¹⁸ over Judah was Elihu, one of David’s brothers; over Issachar was Omri son of Michael;

¹ In the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam son of Nebat, Abijam became king of Judah, ² and he reigned in Jerusalem three years. His mother’s name was Maacah daughter of Abishalom.

²¹ Rehoboam loved Maacah daughter of Absalom more than all his wives and concubines. In all, he had eighteen wives and sixty concubines, and he was the father of twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters.

¹⁶ And Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David. And his son Abijah reigned in his place.

² and he reigned in Jerusalem three years. His mother’s name was Micaiah daughter of Uriel; she was from Gibeah. And there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam.

⁷ Solomon the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asa.

¹⁷ He must not take many wives for himself, lest his heart go astray. He must not accumulate for himself large amounts of silver and gold.

³⁰ Gideon had seventy sons of his own, since he had many wives.

² And sons were born to David in Hebron: His firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam of Jezreel; ³ his second was Chileab, by Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel; his third was Absalom, the son of Maacah daughter of King Talmai of Geshur; ⁴ his fourth was Adonijah, the son of Haggith; his fifth was Shephatiah, the son of Abital; ⁵ and his sixth was Ithream, by David’s wife Eglah. These sons were born to David in Hebron.

¹³ After he had arrived from Hebron, David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, and more sons and daughters were born to him.

³ He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines—and his wives turned his heart away.

¹ These were the sons of David who were born to him in Hebron: The firstborn was Amnon by Ahinoam of Jezreel; the second was Daniel by Abigail of Carmel; ² the third was Absalom the son of Maacah daughter of King Talmai of Geshur; the fourth was Adonijah the son of Haggith; ³ the fifth was Shephatiah by Abital; and the sixth was Ithream by his wife Eglah. ⁴ These six sons were born to David in Hebron, where he reigned seven years and six months. And David reigned in Jerusalem thirty-three years, ⁵ and these sons were born to him in Jerusalem: Shimea, Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon. These four were born to him by Bathsheba daughter of Ammiel. ⁶ David’s other sons were Ibhar, Elishua, Eliphelet, ⁷ Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia, ⁸ Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet—nine in all. ⁹ These were all the sons of David, besides the sons by his concubines. And Tamar was their sister.

⁸ There are sixty queens and eighty concubines, and maidens without number, ⁹ but my dove, my perfect one, is unique, the favorite of the mother who bore her. The maidens see her and call her blessed; the queens and concubines sing her praises.

¹⁵ If a man has two wives, one beloved and the other unloved, and both bear him sons, but the unloved wife has the firstborn son, ¹⁶ when that man assigns his inheritance to his sons he must not appoint the son of the beloved wife as the firstborn over the son of the unloved wife. ¹⁷ Instead, he must acknowledge the firstborn, the son of his unloved wife, by giving him a double portion of all that he has. For that son is the firstfruits of his father’s strength; the right of the firstborn belongs to him.

¹ These were the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel. Though he was the firstborn, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph son of Israel, because Reuben defiled his father’s bed. So he is not reckoned according to birthright. ² And though Judah prevailed over his brothers and a ruler came from him, the birthright belonged to Joseph.

¹ Then King David said to the whole assembly, “My son Solomon, the one whom God has chosen, is young and inexperienced. The task is great because this palace is not for man, but for the LORD God.

⁶ But while he was still alive, Abraham gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away from his son Isaac to the land of the east.

⁵ At that time Adonijah, David’s son by Haggith, began to exalt himself, saying, “I will be king!” And he acquired chariots and horsemen and fifty men to run ahead of him. ⁶ (His father had never once reprimanded him by saying, “Why do you act this way?” Adonijah was also very handsome, born next after Absalom.)

⁸ But Rehoboam rejected the advice of the elders; instead, he consulted the young men who had grown up with him and served him. ⁹ He asked them, “What message do you advise that we send back to these people who have spoken to me, saying, ‘Lighten the yoke your father put on us’?” ¹⁰ The young men who had grown up with him replied, “This is how you should answer these people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you should make it lighter.’ This is what you should tell them: ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist! ¹¹ Whereas my father burdened you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. Whereas my father scourged you with whips, I will scourge you with scorpions.’” ¹² After three days, Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, since the king had said, “Come back to me on the third day.” ¹³ And the king answered them harshly. King Rehoboam rejected the advice of the elders ¹⁴ and spoke to them as the young men had advised, saying, “Whereas my father made your yoke heavy, I will add to your yoke. Whereas my father scourged you with whips, I will scourge you with scorpions.” ¹⁵ So the king did not listen to the people, and indeed this turn of events was from God, in order that the LORD might fulfill the word that He had spoken through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat.

³ Their father had given them many gifts of silver and gold and precious things, as well as the fortified cities in Judah; but he gave the kingdom to Jehoram because he was the firstborn.

⁸ The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the sons of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the sons of light.