1 ARST King Solomon married many foreign women. First he married the daughter of the king of Egypt. He also married women from the Heth people group and from the Moab, Ammon, and Edom people groups, and from the city of Sidon. BSB BSB: King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh—women of Moab, Ammon, Edom, and Sidon, as well as Hittite women.
2 ARST He married them even though Yahweh had commanded the Israelite people saying,“Do not marry people from those areas, because if you do that, they will surely persuade you to worship the gods that they worship!” BSB BSB: These women were from the nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, for surely they will turn your hearts after their gods.” Yet Solomon clung to these women in love.
3 ARST Solomon married seven hundred women who were kings’ daughters. He also had three hundred wives who were his slaves. And his wives caused him to stop worshiping God. BSB BSB: He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines—and his wives turned his heart away.
4 ARST By the time that Solomon became old, they had persuaded him to worship the gods from their countries. He was not completely dedicated to Yahweh his God like his father David had been. BSB BSB: For when Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the LORD his God, as his father David had been.
5 ARST Solomon worshiped Asherah, the goddess that the people of Sidon worshiped, and he worshiped Molech, the disgusting god that the Ammon people group worshiped. BSB BSB: Solomon followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
6 ARST Thus Solomon did many things that Yahweh said were evil. He did not conduct his life as his father David had done; he did not conduct his life as Yahweh wanted him to. BSB BSB: So Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD; unlike his father David, he did not follow the LORD completely.
7 ARST On the hill to the east of Jerusalem he built a place to worship Chemosh, the disgusting god that the Moab people group worshiped, and a place to worship Molech, the disgusting god that the Ammon people group worshiped. BSB BSB: At that time on a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites.
8 ARST He also built places where all his foreign wives could burn incense and offer sacrifices to the gods from their own countries. BSB BSB: He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
9 ARST Even though Yahweh, the God whom the Israelites worshiped, had appeared to Solomon two times, and had commanded him to not worship foreign gods, Solomon refused to obey Yahweh. So Yahweh was angry with Solomon. BSB BSB: Now the LORD grew angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.
11 ARST Yahweh said to him,“You have chosen to disobey the covenant that I made with you and to disobey what I commanded you. So I am certainly not going to allow you to rule all of your kingdom. I am going to allow one of your officials to rule. BSB BSB: Then the LORD said to Solomon, “Because you have done this and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant.
12 ARST But because of what I promised your father David, I will allow you to rule all your kingdom while you are still living. After you die, I will not allow your son to rule the whole kingdom. BSB BSB: Nevertheless, for the sake of your father David, I will not do it during your lifetime; I will tear it out of the hand of your son.
13 ARST But I will not stop him from ruling some of the kingdom. I will allow him to rule one tribe, because of what I promised to David, who served me well, and because I want David’ s descendants to rule in Jerusalem, where my temple is located.” BSB BSB: Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom away from him. I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”
14 ARST Yahweh caused Hadad, from the family of the kings in the Edom people group, to rebel against Solomon. BSB BSB: Then the LORD raised up against Solomon an adversary, Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom.
15 ARST What happened was that previously, when David’s army had conquered Edom, his army commander Joab had gone there to help bury the Israelite soldiers who had been killed in the battle. Joab and his army remained in Edom for six months, and during that time they killed all the males of that area. BSB BSB: Earlier, when David was in Edom, Joab the commander of the army had gone to bury the dead and had struck down every male in Edom.
17 ARST Hadad was a young child at that time, and he had escaped to Egypt, along with some of his father’ s servants from Edom. BSB BSB: But Hadad, still just a young boy, had fled to Egypt, along with some Edomites who were servants of his father.
18 ARST They went to the region of Midian, and then they went to the desert area at Paran. Some other men joined them there. Then they all traveled to Egypt and went to the king of Egypt. The king gave Hadad some land and ordered his servants to give him some food regularly. BSB BSB: Hadad and his men set out from Midian and went to Paran. They took men from Paran with them and went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave Hadad a house and land and provided him with food.
19 ARST The king liked Hadad. As a result he gave him the sister of his own wife, Queen Tahpenes, to be Hadad’ s wife. BSB BSB: There Hadad found such great favor in the sight of Pharaoh that he gave to him in marriage the sister of Queen Tahpenes, his own wife.
20 ARST Later Hadad’ s wife gave birth to a son named Genubath. The sister of Tahpenes raised him in the palace, where he lived with the king’ s sons. BSB BSB: And the sister of Tahpenes bore Hadad a son named Genubath. Tahpenes herself weaned him in Pharaoh’s palace, and Genubath lived there among the sons of Pharaoh.
21 ARST While Hadad was in Egypt, he heard that David had died, and that Joab, the commander of David’ s army, was also dead. So he said to the king of Egypt,“Please allow me to return to my own country.” BSB BSB: When Hadad heard in Egypt that David had rested with his fathers and that Joab, the commander of the army, was dead, he said to Pharaoh, “Let me go, that I may return to my own country.”
22 ARST But the king said to him,“Why do you want to go back to your country? Is there something that you lack that you want me to give to you?” Hadad replied,“No, but please just allow me to go.” So the king allowed him to leave, and he returned to his own country and became the king of Edom. BSB BSB: But Pharaoh asked him, “What have you lacked here with me that you suddenly want to go back to your own country?” “Nothing,” Hadad replied, “but please let me go.”
23 ARST God also caused another man named Rezon son of Eliada, to rebel against Solomon. Rezon had run away from his master, King Hadadezer of the area of Zobah, north of Damascus. BSB BSB: And God raised up against Solomon another adversary, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer king of Zobah,
24 ARST Rezon then became the leader of a group of outlaws. That happened after David’ s army had defeated Hadadezer and had also killed all his soldiers. Rezon and his men went to Damascus and started to live there, and the people there appointed him to be their king. BSB BSB: and had gathered men to himself. When David killed the Zobaites, Rezon captained a band of raiders and went to Damascus, where they settled and gained control.
25 ARST All during the time that Solomon was alive, while Rezon was ruling not only Damascus but all of Aram, he was an enemy of Israel and caused trouble for Israel like Hadad did. BSB BSB: Rezon was Israel’s enemy throughout the days of Solomon, adding to the trouble caused by Hadad. So Rezon ruled over Aram with hostility toward Israel.
26 ARST Another man who rebelled against Solomon was one of his officials named Jeroboam son of Nebat. He was from the city of Zeredah in the region where the tribe of Ephraim lives. His mother was a widow named Zeruah. BSB BSB: Now Jeroboam son of Nebat was an Ephraimite from Zeredah whose mother was a widow named Zeruah. Jeroboam was a servant of Solomon, but he rebelled against the king,
27 ARST This is what happened. Solomon’ s workers were filling in the land on the east side of Jerusalem and repairing the walls around the city. BSB BSB: and this is the account of his rebellion against the king. Solomon had built the supporting terraces and repaired the gap in the wall of the city of his father David.
28 ARST Jeroboam was a very capable young man. So, when Solomon saw that he worked very hard, he appointed him to supervise all the men who were forced to work in the areas where the tribes of Manasseh and Ephraim live. BSB BSB: Now Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor. So when Solomon noticed that the young man was industrious, he put him in charge of the whole labor force of the house of Joseph.
29 ARST One day when Jeroboam was walking alone along the road outside of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah from the city of Shiloh met him. Ahijah was wearing a new robe, BSB BSB: 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 ARST which he took off and tore into twelve pieces. BSB BSB: And Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing, tore it into twelve pieces,
31 ARST He said to Jeroboam,“Take ten of these pieces for yourself, because Yahweh, the God whom we Israelites worship, says to you,‘I am going to tear the kingdom from Solomon, and I am going to enable you to become the ruler of ten of the tribes of Israel. BSB BSB: 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 ARST Solomon’ s descendants will still rule one tribe, because of what I promised David, a man who served me very well, and because of Jerusalem, the city that I have chosen from all the cities in Israel to be the city where my people will worship me. BSB BSB: 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 ARST I am going to do this because Solomon has rejected me and has been worshiping Asherah, the goddess that the people of Sidon worship, Chemosh, the god that the Moab people group worships, and Molech, the god that the Ammon people group worships. He has not conducted his life as I wanted him to. He has not obeyed my statutes and decrees, as his father David did. BSB BSB: 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 ARST But I will not take the entire kingdom away from him. I will enable him to rule Judah all during the years that he is alive. I will do that because of what I promised to do for David, whom I chose to be the king, and who served me well, and who always obeyed my commandments and laws. BSB BSB: 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 ARST But I will take the other ten tribes of his kingdom and give them to you to rule. BSB BSB: But I will take ten tribes of the kingdom from the hand of his son and give them to you.
36 ARST I will allow Solomon’ s son to rule one tribe, in order that descendants of David will always rule in Jerusalem, the city that I have chosen to be the place where my people worship me. BSB BSB: 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 ARST I will enable you to become the king of Israel, and you will rule over all the territory that you want to. BSB BSB: 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 ARST If you obey all that I command you to do, and conduct your life as I want you to, and if you do what I say is right by obeying my laws and commandments like David did, I will help you. I will make sure that your descendants will rule after you die, like I promised to do for David. BSB BSB: 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.
39 ARST Because of Solomon’ s sins, I will punish David’ s descendants, but I will not continue to punish them forever.’” BSB BSB: Because of this, I will humble David’s descendants—but not forever.’”
40 ARST Solomon found out what Ahijah told Jeroboam, so he tried to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam escaped and went to Egypt. He went to Shishak, the king of Egypt, and stayed with him until after Solomon died. BSB BSB: Solomon therefore sought to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose and fled to Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, where he remained until the death of Solomon.
41 ARST A record of all the other things that Solomon did, and all the wise things that he said, was written in the book of the events of Solomon. BSB BSB: As for the rest of the acts of Solomon—all that he did, as well as his wisdom—are they not written in the Book of the Acts of Solomon?
42 ARST He was king in Jerusalem and ruled over all of Israel for forty years. BSB BSB: Thus the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.
43 ARST Then Solomon died and was buried in the part of Jerusalem called the city of David. Then his son Rehoboam became the king. BSB BSB: And Solomon rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of his father David. And his son Rehoboam reigned in his place.
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