2 Chronicles 11

Rehoboam Secures His Kingdom

 ^1(A) When Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he assembled the house of Judah and Benjamin, 180,000 chosen warriors, to fight against Israel, to restore the kingdom to Rehoboam. ²But the word of the LORD came to^(B) Shemaiah the man of God: ³"Say to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, ⁴'Thus says the LORD, You shall not go up or fight against^(C) your relatives. Return every man to his home, for this thing is from me.'" So they listened to the word of the LORD and returned and did not go against Jeroboam.

 ⁵Rehoboam lived in Jerusalem, and he built^(D) cities for defense in Judah. ⁶He built Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa, ⁷Beth-zur, Soco, Adullam, ⁸Gath,^(E) Mareshah, Ziph, ⁹Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah, ¹⁰Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron, fortified cities that are in Judah and in Benjamin. ¹¹He made the fortresses strong, and put commanders in them, and stores of food, oil, and wine. ¹²And he put shields and spears in all the cities and made them very strong. So he held Judah and Benjamin.

Priests and Levites Come to Jerusalem

 ¹³And the priests and the Levites who were in all Israel presented themselves to him from all places where they lived. ¹⁴For the Levites left^(F) their common lands and their holdings and came to Judah and Jerusalem,^(G) because Jeroboam and his sons cast them out from serving as priests of the LORD, ¹⁵and he appointed his own^(H) priests for the high places and for the goat idols and for^(I) the calves that he had made. ^16(J) And those who had set their hearts to seek the LORD God of Israel came after them from all the tribes of Israel to Jerusalem to sacrifice to the LORD, the God of their fathers. ^17(K) They strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and for three years they made Rehoboam the son of Solomon secure, for they walked for three years in the way of David and Solomon.

Rehoboam’s Family

 ¹⁸Rehoboam took as wife Mahalath the daughter of Jerimoth the son of David, and of Abihail the daughter of^(L) Eliab the son of Jesse, ¹⁹and she bore him sons, Jeush, Shemariah, and Zaham. ²⁰After her he took^(M) Maacah the daughter of Absalom, who bore him^(N) Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith. ²¹Rehoboam loved Maacah the daughter of Absalom above all his wives and concubines (he took eighteen wives and sixty concubines, and fathered twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters). ^22(O) And Rehoboam appointed^(P) Abijah the son of Maacah as chief prince among his brothers, for he intended to make him king. ²³And he dealt wisely and distributed some of his sons through all the districts of Judah and Benjamin, in all the fortified cities, and he gave them abundant provisions and procured wives for them.^[a]

2 Chronicles 12

Egypt Plunders Jerusalem

 ^1(Q) When the rule of Rehoboam was established^(R) and he was strong,^(S) he abandoned the law of the LORD, and all Israel with him. ^2(T) In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, because they had been unfaithful to the LORD,^(U) Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem ³with 1,200 chariots and 60,000 horsemen. And the people were without number who came with him from Egypt—^(V) Libyans, Sukkiim, and Ethiopians. ⁴And he took^(W) the fortified cities of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem. ⁵Then^(X) Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and to the princes of Judah, who had gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said to them, "Thus says the LORD,^(Y) 'You abandoned me, so I have abandoned you to the hand of Shishak.'" ⁶Then the princes of^(Z) Israel and the king humbled themselves and said,^(AA) "The LORD is righteous." ⁷When the LORD saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the LORD came to Shemaiah:^(AB) "They have humbled themselves. I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance,^(AC) and my wrath shall not be poured out on Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. ⁸Nevertheless, they shall be servants to him,^(AD) that they may know my service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries."

 ^9(AE) So Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem. He took away the treasures of the house of the LORD and the treasures of the king’s house. He took away everything. He also took away^(AF) the shields of gold that Solomon had made, ¹⁰and King Rehoboam made in their place shields of bronze and committed them to the hands of the officers of the guard, who kept the door of the king’s house. ¹¹And as often as the king went into the house of the LORD, the guard came and carried them and brought them back to the guardroom. ¹²And when^(AG) he humbled himself the wrath of the LORD turned from him, so as not to make a complete destruction. Moreover,^(AH) conditions were good^[b] in Judah.

 ^13(AI) So King Rehoboam grew strong in Jerusalem and reigned. Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city that the LORD had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel to put his name there. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite. ¹⁴And he did evil,^(AJ) for he did not set his heart to seek the LORD.

 ^15(AK) Now the acts of Rehoboam,^(AL) from first to last, are they not written in the chronicles of^(AM) Shemaiah the prophet and of^(AN) Iddo^(AO) the seer?^[c] There were continual wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam. ¹⁶And Rehoboam slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David, and^(AP) Abijah^[d] his son reigned in his place.

2 Chronicles 13

Abijah Reigns in Judah

 ^1(AQ) In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam,^(AR) Abijah began to reign over Judah. ²He reigned for three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was^(AS) Micaiah^[e] the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah.

   

   ^(AT) Now there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. ³Abijah went out to battle, having an army of valiant men of war, 400,000 chosen men. And Jeroboam^(AU) drew up his line of battle against him with 800,000 chosen mighty warriors. ⁴Then Abijah stood up on Mount^(AV) Zemaraim that is in^(AW) the hill country of Ephraim and said, "Hear me, O Jeroboam and all Israel! ⁵Ought you not to know that the LORD God of Israel^(AX) gave the kingship over Israel forever to David and his sons by^(AY) a covenant of salt? ⁶Yet Jeroboam the son of Nebat, a servant of Solomon the son of David, rose up^(AZ) and rebelled against his lord, ⁷and certain^(BA) worthless scoundrels gathered about him and defied Rehoboam the son of Solomon, when Rehoboam was^(BB) young and irresolute^[f] and could not withstand them.

 ⁸"And now you think to withstand the kingdom of the LORD in the hand of the sons of David, because you are a great multitude and have with you^(BC) the golden calves that Jeroboam made you for gods. ^9(BD) Have you not driven out the priests of the LORD, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and made priests for yourselves like the peoples of other lands? Whoever comes^(BE) for ordination^[g] with a young bull or seven rams becomes a priest of what are^(BF) no gods. ¹⁰But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not forsaken him. We have priests ministering to the LORD who are sons of Aaron, and Levites for their service. ¹¹They offer to the LORD^(BG) every morning and every evening burnt offerings and incense of sweet spices, set out^(BH) the showbread on the table of pure gold,^(BI) and care for the golden lampstand that its lamps may^(BJ) burn every evening. For we^(BK) keep the charge of the LORD our God, but you have forsaken him. ¹²Behold, God is with us at our head, and his priests^(BL) with their battle trumpets to sound the call to battle against you. O sons of Israel,^(BM) do not fight against the LORD, the God of your fathers, for you cannot succeed."

 ¹³Jeroboam had sent^(BN) an ambush around to come upon them from behind. Thus his troops^[h] were in front of Judah, and the ambush was behind them. ¹⁴And when Judah looked, behold, the battle was in front of and behind them.^(BO) And they cried to the LORD, and the priests^(BP) blew the trumpets. ¹⁵Then the men of Judah raised the battle shout. And when the men of Judah shouted,^(BQ) God defeated Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. ¹⁶The men of Israel fled before Judah,^(BR) and God gave them into their hand. ¹⁷Abijah and his people struck them with great force, so there fell slain of Israel 500,000 chosen men. ¹⁸Thus the men of Israel were subdued at that time, and the men of Judah prevailed,^(BS) because they relied on the LORD, the God of their fathers. ¹⁹And Abijah pursued Jeroboam^(BT) and took cities from him, Bethel with its villages and Jeshanah with its villages and^(BU) Ephron^[i] with its villages. ²⁰Jeroboam did not recover his power in the days of Abijah.^(BV) And the LORD struck him down,^(BW) and he died. ²¹But Abijah grew mighty. And he took fourteen wives and had twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters. ²²The rest of the acts of Abijah, his ways and his sayings, are written in the^(BX) story of the prophet^(BY) Iddo.

²⁴For^(A) in this hope we were saved. Now^(B) hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? ²⁵But if we hope for what we do not see, we^(C) wait for it with patience.

 ²⁶Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For^(D) we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but^(E) the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. ²⁷And^(F) he who searches hearts knows what is^(G) the mind of the Spirit, because^[a] the Spirit^(H) intercedes for the saints^(I) according to the will of God. ²⁸And we know that for those who love God all things work together^(J) for good,^[b] for^(K) those who are called according to his purpose. ²⁹For those whom he^(L) foreknew he also^(M) predestined^(N) to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be^(O) the firstborn among many brothers. ³⁰And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also^(P) justified, and those whom he justified he also^(Q) glorified.

God’s Everlasting Love

 ³¹What then shall we say to these things?^(R) If God is for us, who can be^[c] against us? ^32(S) He who did not spare his own Son but^(T) gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? ³³Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect?^(U) It is God who justifies. ^34(V) Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—^(W) who is at the right hand of God,^(X) who indeed is interceding for us.^{[d] 35}Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? ³⁶As it is written,

   ^(Y) "For your sake^(Z) we are being killed all the day long;
   we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered."

 ³⁷No, in all these things we are more than^(AA) conquerors through^(AB) him who loved us. ³⁸For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, ³⁹nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

³⁵You have given me the shield of your salvation,
   and your right hand^(A) supported me,
   and your^(B) gentleness made me great.
³⁶You^(C) gave a wide place for my steps under me,
   and my feet did not slip.
³⁷I pursued my enemies and overtook them,
   and did not turn back till they were consumed.
³⁸I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise;
   they fell under my feet.
³⁹For you equipped me with strength for the battle;
   you made those who rise against me sink under me.
⁴⁰You made my enemies^(D) turn their backs to me,^[a]
   and those who hated me I destroyed.
^41(E) They cried for help, but there was none to save;
   they cried to the LORD, but he did not answer them.
⁴²I beat them fine as^(F) dust before the wind;
   I cast them out like^(G) the mire of the streets.

 ⁴³You delivered me from^(H) strife with the people;
   you made me^(I) the head of the nations;
   ^(J) people whom I had not known served me.
⁴⁴As soon as they heard of me they obeyed me;
   ^(K) foreigners^(L) came cringing to me.
^45(M) Foreigners lost heart
   and^(N) came trembling out of their fortresses.

 ⁴⁶The LORD lives, and blessed be my rock,
   and exalted be the God of my salvation—
⁴⁷the God who gave me vengeance
   and^(O) subdued peoples under me,
⁴⁸who delivered me from my enemies;
   yes, you^(P) exalted me above those who rose against me;
   you rescued me from^(Q) the man of violence.

 ^49(R) For this I will praise you, O LORD, among the nations,
   and^(S) sing to your name.
⁵⁰Great^(T) salvation he brings to his king,
   and shows steadfast love to his^(U) anointed,
   to^(V) David and his offspring forever.

²⁷Cease to hear instruction, my son,
   ^(A) and you will stray from the words of knowledge.
²⁸A worthless witness mocks at justice,
   and the mouth of the wicked^(B) devours iniquity.
²⁹Condemnation is ready for^(C) scoffers,
   and^(D) beating for the backs of fools.