The Northern Tribes Revolt
(2 Chronicles 10.1-19)1 Rehoboam went to Shechem, where all the people of northern Israel had gathered to make him king. 2 When Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had gone to Egypt to escape from King Solomon, heard this news, he returned from Egypt. 3 The people of the northern tribes sent for him, and then they all went together to Rehoboam and said to him, 4 “Your father Solomon treated us harshly and placed heavy burdens on us. If you make these burdens lighter and make life easier for us, we will be your loyal subjects.”
5 “Come back in three days and I will give you my answer,” he replied. So they left.
6 King Rehoboam consulted the older men who had served as his father Solomon's advisers. “What answer do you advise me to give these people?” he asked.
7 They replied, “If you want to serve this people well, give a favorable answer to their request, and they will always serve you loyally.”
8 But he ignored the advice of the older men and went instead to the young men who had grown up with him and who were now his advisers. 9 “What do you advise me to do?” he asked. “What shall I say to the people who are asking me to make their burdens lighter?”
10 They replied, “This is what you should tell them: ‘My little finger is thicker than my father's waist!’ 11 Tell them, ‘My father placed heavy burdens on you; I will make them even heavier. He beat you with whips; I'll flog you with bullwhips!’”
12 Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to King Rehoboam, as he had instructed them. 13 The king ignored the advice of the older men and spoke harshly to the people, 14 as the younger men had advised. He said, “My father placed heavy burdens on you; I will make them even heavier. He beat you with whips; I'll flog you with bullwhips!” 15 It was the will of the Lord to bring about what he had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through the prophet Ahijah from Shiloh. This is why the king did not pay any attention to the people.
16 When the people saw that the king would not listen to them, they shouted, “Down with David and his family! What have they ever done for us? People of Israel, let's go home! Let Rehoboam look out for himself!”
So the people of Israel rebelled, 17 leaving Rehoboam as king only of the people who lived in the territory of Judah.
18 Then King Rehoboam sent Adoniram, who was in charge of the forced labor, to go to the Israelites, but they stoned him to death. At this, Rehoboam hurriedly got in his chariot and escaped to Jerusalem. 19 Ever since that time the people of the northern kingdom of Israel have been in rebellion against the dynasty of David.
20 When the people of Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned from Egypt, they invited him to a meeting of the people and made him king of Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to David's descendants.
Shemaiah's Prophecy
(2 Chronicles 11.1-4)21 When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he called together 180,000 of the best soldiers from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. He intended to go to war and restore his control over the northern tribes of Israel. 22 But God told the prophet Shemaiah 23 to give this message to Rehoboam and to all the people of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin: 24 “Do not attack your own relatives, the people of Israel. Go home, all of you. What has happened is my will.” They all obeyed the Lord's command and went back home.
Jeroboam Turns Away from God
25 King Jeroboam of Israel fortified the town of Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there for a while. Then he left and fortified the town of Penuel. 26-27 He said to himself, “As things are now, if my people go to Jerusalem and offer sacrifices to the Lord in the Temple there, they will transfer their allegiance to King Rehoboam of Judah and will kill me.”
28 After thinking it over, he made two bull-calves of gold and said to his people, “You have been going long enough to Jerusalem to worship. People of Israel, here are your gods who brought you out of Egypt!” 29 He placed one of the gold bull-calves in Bethel and the other in Dan. 30 And so the people sinned, going to worship in Bethel and in Dan. 31 Jeroboam also built places of worship on hilltops, and he chose priests from families who were not of the tribe of Levi.
Worship at Bethel Is Condemned
32 Jeroboam also instituted a religious festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the festival in Judah. On the altar in Bethel he offered sacrifices to the gold bull-calves he had made, and he placed there in Bethel the priests serving at the places of worship he had built. 33 And on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, the day that he himself had set, he went to Bethel and offered a sacrifice on the altar in celebration of the festival he had instituted for the people of Israel.
Omazimo omulongo moshipotha
(2 Ondjal. 10:1-19)1 Rehoboam okwa yi kuShekem, nkoka Aaisraeli ayehe yokuumbangalantu ya gongala, ye mu kwaniileke. 2 Jeroboam yaNebat, ngoka a li a ya ontuku omukwaniilwa Salomo kuEgipiti, sho e shi kundana, okwa galuka a zi kuEgipiti. 3 Aantu yomazimo gokuumbangalantu oye mu tumu a ze ko, noyo ayehe oya yi kuRehoboam e taa ti kuye: 4 “Ho Salomo okwe tu tsike omitenge omidhigu. Ngele oto pupaleke omitenge ndhika e to tu vululukitha, otatu ningi aapiya yoye.”
5 Rehoboam okwa yamukula a ti: “Galukeni, nge pwa piti omasiku gatatu, otandi ke mu yamukula.” Oyo noya yi.
6 Omukwaniilwa Rehoboam okwa pula omayele kaasamane aakulupe mboka ya li haa pe he Salomo omayele. Okwe ya pula a ti: “Otamu pe ndje eyamukulo lya tya ngiini, ndi yamukule aantu mbaka?”
7 Aasamane oya yamukula ya ti: “Ngele owa hala, u ninge aantu mbaka nawa, gandja eyamukulo li na olukeno mushoka taa pula, oyo notaa ke ku longela aluhe nuudhiginini.”
8 Rehoboam okwa dhini omayele gaasamane aakulupe nokwa yi kaagundjuka yepipi lye mboka ya li ya putukila pamwe naye noya li aagandjindunge ye. 9 Okwe ya pula a ti: “Otandi ka tya ngiini kaantu mbo ya pula ndje, ndi ya pupalekele omitenge dhawo?”
10 Oyo ya yamukula ya ti: “Ya lombwela to ti: ‘Okanwegona kandje okanene ke vule oombwetelo dhatate!’ 11 Ya lombwela to ti: ‘Tate okwe mu tsike omitenge omidhigu; ngame otandi ke dhi dhigupaleka noonkondo. Okwe mu dhenge nongola; ngame otandi ke mu kwinunitha ekoosa!’ ”
12 Omasiku gatatu sho ga piti po, Jeroboam naantu ayehe oya galukile komukwaniilwa Rehoboam, ngaashi e ya tseyithilile. 13 Omukwaniilwa okwa dhini omayele gaasamane aakulupe e ta vavele aantu, 14 ngaashi a taamba omayele gaagundjuka. Okwa ti: “Tate okwe mu tsike omitenge omidhigu; ngame otandi ka gwedha ko, dhi dhigupale. Okwe mu dhenge nongola; ngame otandi ke mu kwinunitha ekoosa!” 15 Shika osha li ehalo lyOmuwa, a gwanithe shoka a popile kuJeroboam yaNebat momuhunganeki Ahija gwokuShilo. Omolwashoka omukwaniilwa ina pupa ko nando kaantu, e ya pulakene.
16 Aantu sho ya mono kutya nani omukwaniilwa ite ya pulakene, oyi igidha ya ti: “Otu na shike naDavid negumbo lye nuuthiga womuna gwaIsai? Oye tu ningile shike? Aaisraeli ne, tu yeni komagumbo. Rehoboam na tale sho ta ningi!”
Osho ngaaka Aaisraeli ya pindjala 17 noya thigi po Rehoboam, a kale ashike omukwaniilwa gwaantu mboka ye li moshikandjo shaJuda.
18 Nena omukwaniilwa Rehoboam okwa tumu Adoniram, ngoka a li omuwiliki gwiilonga ya thiminikwa, a ye kAaisraeli, ihe oye mu dhipaga nomamanya. Opo mpoka Rehoboam okwa nukile metembakwiita lye e ta yi ontuku kuJerusalem. 19 Okuza mpoka aantu yokuumbangalantu waIsrael oyi iteka ezimo lyaDavid.
20 Aaisraeli sho ya kundana kutya Jeroboam a galuka ko kuEgipiti, oye mu hiyile koshigongi shAaisraeli e taye mu kwaniileke omukwaniilwa gwaIsrael. Ezimo lyaJuda olyo alike lya kala poluvalo lwaDavid.
Ehunganeko lyaShemaja
(2 Ondjal. 11:1-4)21 Rehoboam sho a thiki muJerusalem, okwa hiya aakwiita ya pyokoka 180 000 yomezimo lyaJuda nolyaBenjamin. Okwa dhiladhila, a ye miita, a galule omazimo gAaisraeli gokuumbangalantu, e ga pangele natango. 22 Ihe Kalunga okwa lombwele omuhunganeki Shemaja, 23 a fale elaka ndika kuRehoboam nokaantu ayehe yomazimo gaJuda nogaBenjamin 24 tali ti: “Inamu matukila aamwanyoko Aisraeli. Shuneni komagumbo, ne amuhe. Shika sha ningwa, ongame nde shi hala.” Ayehe oya vulika keutho lyOmuwa e taa shuna kaandjawo.
Jeroboam ta pilamene Kalunga
25 Omukwaniilwa gwaIsrael Jeroboam okwa ningi Shekem shomevi lyokoondundu dhaEfraim oshilandohote e ta kala mo okathimbo. Nena okwa zi mo e ta ka ninga Penuel oshilandohote. 26 Okwi ipopile a ti: “Iinima ngele tayi ka piluka, nena uukwaniilwa otau ka shuna kegumbo lyaDavid. 27 Ngele aantu yandje otaa yi kuJerusalem e taa ka yambela Omuwa oontselelandjambo motempeli, otaa ka tula einekelo lyawo momukwaniilwa gwaJuda Rehoboam e taa dhipaga ndje.”
28 Sho e shi kutha mo nawa momadhiladhilo ge, okwa hambulitha oontsezi mbali dhoshingoli e ta ti kaantu ye: “Sha gwana nduno okuya kuJerusalem. Aantu yaIsrael, ookalunga yeni oyo mbaka ye mu tembudha muEgipiti.”
29 Okwa tula ontsezi yimwe yoshingoli muBetel nonkwawo muDan. 30 Nosho ngaaka aantu ya yono, sho ye ke dhi galikana muBetel nomuDan. 31 Jeroboam okwa tungu wo omahala gomagalikano koondungu dhoondundu e ta hogolola aayambi momazimo ngoka gaa shi gaLevi.
Esimaneko lyopuBetel tali pangulwa
32 Jeroboam okwa toto po oshituthi hashi dhanwa mesiku etimulongo netitano momwedhi omutihetatu, sha fa shAajuda. Koshiyambelo shomuBetel okwa yambele ko omafikilondjambo koontsezi dhoshingoli ndhoka a hambulitha, nomuBetel okwa langeke mo aayambi ya yakule pomahala ngoka e ga tungu. 33 Mesiku etimulongo netitano lyomwedhi omutihetatu, ndyoka ye mwene e li utha, okwa yi kuBetel e ta yamba efikilondjambo koshiyambelo mokudhana oshituthi shoka e shi totele Aaisraeli.
