Good News Translation (GNT)

Equipment for the Temple

1 King Solomon had a bronze altar made, which was 30 feet square and 15 feet high.

2 He also made a round tank of bronze, 7½ feet deep, 15 feet in diameter, and 45 feet in circumference.

3 All around the outer edge of the rim of the tankwere two rows of decorations, one above the other. The decorations were in the shape of bulls, which had been cast all in one piece with the rest of the tank.

4 The tank rested on the backs of twelve bronze bulls that faced outward, three facing in each direction.

5 The sides of the tank were 3 inches thick. Its rim was like the rim of a cup, curving outward like the petals of a flower. The tank held about 15,000 gallons.

6 They also made ten basins, five to be placed on the south side of the Temple and five on the north side. They were to be used to rinse the parts of the animals that were burned as sacrifices. The water in the large tank was for the priests to use for washing.

7-8 They made ten gold lampstands according to the usual pattern, and ten tables, and placed them in the main room of the Temple, five lampstands and five tables on each side. They also made a hundred gold bowls.

9 They made an inner courtyard for the priests, and also an outer courtyard. The doors in the gates between the courtyards were covered with bronze.

10 The tank was placed near the southeast corner of the Temple.

11-16 Huram also made pots, shovels, and bowls. He completed all the objects that he had promised King Solomon he would make for the Temple:

The two columns

The two bowl-shaped capitals on top of the columns

The design of interwoven chains on each capital

The 400 bronze pomegranates arranged in two rows around the design of each capital

The tencarts

The ten basins

The tank

The twelve bulls supporting the tank

The pots, shovels, and forks

Huram the master metalworker made all these objectsout of polished bronze, as King Solomon had commanded, for use in the Temple of the Lord.

17 The king had them all made in the foundry between Sukkoth and Zeredahin the Jordan Valley.

18 So many objects were made that no one determined the total weight of the bronze used.

19 King Solomon also had gold furnishings made for the Temple: the altar and the tables for the bread offered to God;

20 the lampstands and the lamps of fine gold that were to burn in front of the Most Holy Place, according to plan;

21 the flower decorations, the lamps, and the tongs;

22 the lamp snuffers, the bowls, the dishes for incense, and the pans used for carrying live coals. All these objects were made of pure gold. The outer doors of the Temple and the doors to the Most Holy Place were overlaid with gold.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/2CH/4-043766575c8ea502aa7e01a031d82979.mp3?version_id=68—

1 When King Solomon finished all the work on the Temple, he placed in the Temple storerooms all the things that his father David had dedicated to the Lord—the silver, gold, and other articles.

The Covenant Box Is Brought to the Temple

2 Then King Solomon summoned all the leaders of the tribes and clans of Israel to assemble in Jerusalem, in order to take the Lord’s Covenant Box from Zion, David’s City,to the Temple.

3 They all assembled at the time of the Festival of Shelters.

4 When all the leaders had gathered, then the Levites lifted the Covenant Box

5 and carried it to the Temple. The priests and the Levites also moved the Tent of the Lord’s presence and all its equipment to the Temple.

6 King Solomon and all the people of Israel assembled in front of the Covenant Box and sacrificed a large number of sheep and cattle—too many to count.

7 Then the priests carried the Covenant Box of the Lord into the Temple and put it in the Most Holy Place, beneath the winged creatures.

8 Their outstretched wings covered the Box and the poles it was carried by.

9 The ends of the poles could be seen by anyone standing directly in front of the Most Holy Place, but from nowhere else. (The poles are still there today.)

10 There was nothing inside the Covenant Box except the two stone tablets which Moses had placed there at Mount Sinai, when the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel as they were coming from Egypt.

The Glory of the Lord

11-14 All the priests present, regardless of the group to which they belonged, had consecrated themselves. And all the Levite musicians—Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun, and the members of their clans—were wearing linen clothing. The Levites stood near the east side of the altar with cymbals and harps, and with them were 120 priests playing trumpets. The singers were accompanied in perfect harmony by trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments, as they praised the Lord singing:

“Praise the Lord, because he is good,

And his love is eternal.”

As the priests were leaving the Temple, it was suddenly filled with a cloud shining with the dazzling light of the Lord’s presence, and they could not continue the service of worship.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/2CH/5-e60f6648120a51455586fb2df3249100.mp3?version_id=68—

Solomon’s Address to the People

1 Then King Solomon prayed,

“Lord, you have chosen to live in clouds and darkness.

2 Now I have built a majestic temple for you,

a place for you to live in forever.”

3 All the people of Israel were standing there. The king turned to face them and asked God’s blessing on them.

4 He said, “Praise the Lord God of Israel! He has kept the promise he made to my father David when he said to him,

5 ‘From the time I brought my people out of Egypt until now, I did not choose any city in the land of Israel as the place to build a temple where I would be worshiped, and I did not choose anyone to lead my people Israel.

6 But now I have chosen Jerusalem as the place where I will be worshiped, and you, David, to rule my people.’”

7 And Solomon continued, “My father David planned to build a temple for the worship of the Lord God of Israel,

8 but the Lord said to him, ‘You were right in wanting to build a temple for me,

9 but you will never build it. It is your son, your own son, who will build my temple.’

10 “Now the Lord has kept his promise: I have succeeded my father as king of Israel, and I have built a temple for the worship of the Lord God of Israel.

11 I have placed in the Temple the Covenant Box, which contains the stone tablets of the covenant which the Lord made with the people of Israel.”

Solomon’s Prayer

12 Then in the presence of the people Solomon went and stood in front of the altar and raised his arms in prayer. (

13 Solomon had made a bronze platform and put it in the middle of the courtyard. It was eight feet square and five feet high. He mounted this platform, knelt down where everyone could see him, and raised his hands toward heaven.)

14 He prayed, “Lord God of Israel, in all heaven and earth there is no god like you. You keep your covenant with your people and show them your love when they live in wholehearted obedience to you.

15 You have kept the promise you made to my father David; today every word has been fulfilled.

16 Now, Lord God of Israel, keep the other promise you made to my father when you told him that there would always be one of his descendants ruling as king of Israel, provided that they carefully obeyed your Law just as he did.

17 So now, Lord God of Israel, let everything come true that you promised to your servant David.

18 “But can you, O God, really live on earth among men and women? Not even all of heaven is large enough to hold you, so how can this Temple that I have built be large enough?

19 Lord my God, I am your servant. Listen to my prayer and grant the requests I make to you.

20 Watch over this Temple day and night. You have promised that this is where you will be worshiped, so hear me when I face this Temple and pray.

21 Hear my prayers and the prayers of your people Israel when they face this place and pray. In your home in heaven hear us and forgive us.

22 “When people are accused of wronging others and are brought to your altar in this Temple to take an oath that they are innocent,

23 O Lord, listen in heaven and judge your servants. Punish the guilty ones as they deserve and acquit the innocent.

24 “When your people Israel are defeated by their enemies because they have sinned against you and then when they turn to you and come to this Temple, humbly praying to you for forgiveness,

25 listen to them in heaven. Forgive the sins of your people and bring them back to the land which you gave to them and to their ancestors.

26 “When you hold back the rain because your people have sinned against you and then when they repent and face this Temple, humbly praying to you,

27 O Lord, listen to them in heaven and forgive the sins of your servants, the people of Israel, and teach them to do what is right. Then, O Lord, send rain on this land of yours, which you gave to your people as a permanent possession.

28 “When there is famine in the land or an epidemic or the crops are destroyed by scorching winds or swarms of locusts, or when your people are attacked by their enemies, or when there is disease or sickness among them,

29 listen to their prayers. If any of your people Israel, out of heartfelt sorrow, stretch out their hands in prayer toward this Temple,

30 hear their prayer. Listen to them in your home in heaven and forgive them. You alone know the thoughts of the human heart. Deal with each of us as we deserve,

31 so that your people may honor you and obey you all the time they live in the land which you gave to our ancestors.

32 “When foreigners who live in a distant land hear how great and powerful you are and how you are always ready to act, and then they come to pray at this Temple,

33 listen to their prayers. In heaven, where you live, hear them and do what they ask you to do, so that all the peoples of the world may know you and obey you, as your people Israel do. Then they will know that this Temple I have built is where you are to be worshiped.

34 “When you command your people to go into battle against their enemies and they pray to you, wherever they are, facing this city which you have chosen and this Temple which I have built for you,

35 listen to their prayers. Hear them in heaven and give them victory.

36 “When your people sin against you—and there is no one who does not sin—and in your anger you let their enemies defeat them and take them as prisoners to some other land, even if that land is far away,

37 listen to your people’s prayers. If there in that land they repent and pray to you, confessing how sinful and wicked they have been, hear their prayers, O Lord.

38 If in that land they truly and sincerely repent and pray to you as they face toward this land which you gave to our ancestors, this city which you have chosen, and this Temple which I have built for you,

39 then listen to their prayers. In your home in heaven hear them and be merciful to them and forgive all the sins of your people.

40 “Now, O my God, look on us and listen to the prayers offered in this place.

41 Rise up now, Lord God, and with the Covenant Box, the symbol of your power, enter the Temple and stay here forever. Bless your priests in all they do, and may all your people be happy because of your goodness to them.

42 Lord God, do not reject the king you have chosen. Remember the love you had for your servant David.”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/2CH/6-628c0b5690525d4b33954cdb0e520aa1.mp3?version_id=68—

The Dedication of the Temple

1 When King Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and burned up the sacrifices that had been offered, and the dazzling light of the Lord’s presence filled the Temple.

2 Because the Temple was full of the dazzling light, the priests could not enter it.

3 When the people of Israel saw the fire fall from heaven and the light fill the Temple, they fell face downward on the pavement, worshiping God and praising him for his goodness and his eternal love.

4 Then Solomon and all the people offered sacrifices to the Lord.

5 He sacrificed 22,000 head of cattle and 120,000 sheep as fellowship offerings. And so he and all the people dedicated the Temple.

6 The priests stood in the places that were assigned to them, and facing them stood the Levites, praising the Lord with the musical instruments that King David had provided and singing the hymn, “His Love Is Eternal!” as they had been commissioned by David. The priests blew trumpets while all the people stood.

7 Solomon consecrated the central part of the courtyard, the area in front of the Temple, and then offered there the sacrifices burned whole, the grain offerings, and the fat from the fellowship offerings. He did this because the bronze altar which he had made was too small for all these offerings.

8 Solomon and all the people of Israel celebrated the Festival of Shelters for seven days. There was a huge crowd of people from as far away as Hamath Pass in the north and the Egyptian border in the south.

9 They had spent seven days for the dedication of the altar and then seven more days for the festival. On the last day they had a closing celebration,

10 and on the following day, the twenty-third day of the seventh month, Solomon sent the people home. They were happy about all the blessings that the Lord had given to his people Israel, to David, and to Solomon.

God Appears to Solomon Again

11 After King Solomon had finished the Temple and the palace, successfully completing all his plans for them,

12 the Lord appeared to him at night. He said to him, “I have heard your prayer, and I accept this Temple as the place where sacrifices are to be offered to me.

13 Whenever I hold back the rain or send locusts to eat up the crops or send an epidemic on my people,

14 if they pray to me and repent and turn away from the evil they have been doing, then I will hear them in heaven, forgive their sins, and make their land prosperous again.

15 I will watch over this Temple and be ready to hear all the prayers that are offered here,

16 because I have chosen it and consecrated it as the place where I will be worshiped forever. I will watch over it and protect it for all time.

17 If you serve me faithfully as your father David did, obeying my laws and doing everything I have commanded you,

18 I will keep the promise I made to your father David when I told him that Israel would always be ruled by his descendants.

19 But if you and your people ever disobey the laws and commands I have given you and worship other gods,

20 then I will remove you from the land that I gave you, and I will abandon this Temple that I have consecrated as the place where I am to be worshiped. People everywhere will ridicule it and treat it with contempt.

21 “The Temple is now greatly honored, but then everyone who passes by it will be amazed and will ask, ‘Why did the Lord do this to this land and this Temple?’

22 People will answer, ‘It is because they abandoned the Lord their God, who brought their ancestors out of Egypt. They gave their allegiance to other gods and worshiped them. That is why the Lord has brought this disaster on them.’”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/2CH/7-4bd87159d5dbd73e9fa23d22929d2ac4.mp3?version_id=68—

Solomon’s Achievements

1 It took Solomon twenty years to build the Temple and his palace.

2 He also rebuilt the cities that King Hiram had given him, and sent Israelites to settle in them.

3 He captured the territory of Hamath and Zobah

4 and fortified the city of Palmyra in the desert. He rebuilt all the cities in Hamath that were centers for storing supplies.

5 Solomon also rebuilt the following cities: Upper Beth Horon and Lower Beth Horon (fortified cities with gates that could be barred),

6 the city of Baalath, all the cities where he stored supplies, and the cities where his horses and chariots were stationed. He carried out all his plans for building in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and throughout the territory that he ruled over.

7-8 Solomon employed at forced labor all the descendants of the people of Canaan whom the Israelites had not killed when they took possession of the land. These included Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, whose descendants continue to be slaves down to the present time.

9 Israelites were not used at forced labor, but served as soldiers, officers, chariot commanders, and cavalry troops.

10 There were 250 officials in charge of the forced labor working on the various building projects.

11 Solomon moved his wife, the daughter of the king of Egypt, from David’s City to a house he built for her. He said, “She must not live in the palace of King David of Israel, because any place where the Covenant Box has been is holy.”

12 Solomon offered sacrifices to the Lord on the altar which he had built in front of the Temple.

13 He offered burnt offerings according to the requirements of the Law of Moses for each holy day: Sabbaths, New Moon Festivals, and the three annual festivals—the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Harvest Festival, and the Festival of Shelters.

14 Following the rules laid down by his father David, he organized the daily work of the priests and of the Levites who assisted the priests in singing hymns and in doing their work. He also organized the Temple guards in sections for performing their daily duties at each gate, in accordance with the commands of David, the man of God.

15 The instructions which David had given the priests and the Levites concerning the storehouses and other matters were carried out in detail.

16 By this time all of Solomon’s projects had been completed. From the laying of the foundation of the Lord’s Temple to its completion, all the work had been successful.

17 Then Solomon went to Eziongeber and Elath, ports on the shore of the Gulf of Aqaba, in the land of Edom.

18 King Hiram sent him ships under the command of his own officers and with experienced sailors. They sailed with Solomon’s officers to the land of Ophir and brought back to Solomon about sixteen tons of gold.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/2CH/8-ec048a21e28130a85dc0c8b0475db7cc.mp3?version_id=68—

The Visit of the Queen of Sheba

1 The queen of Sheba heard of King Solomon’s fame, and she traveled to Jerusalem to test him with difficult questions. She brought with her a large group of attendants, as well as camels loaded with spices, jewels, and a large amount of gold. When she and Solomon met, she asked him all the questions that she could think of.

2 He answered them all; there was nothing too difficult for him to explain.

3 The queen of Sheba heard Solomon’s wisdom and saw the palace he had built.

4 She saw the food that was served at his table, the living quarters for his officials, the organization of his palace staff and the uniforms they wore, the clothing of the servants who waited on him at feasts, and the sacrifices he offeredin the Temple. It left her breathless and amazed.

5 She said to the king, “What I heard in my own country about youand your wisdom is true!

6 I did not believe what they told me until I came and saw for myself. I had not heard of even half your wisdom. You are even wiser than people say.

7 How fortunate are those who serve you, who are always in your presence and are privileged to hear your wise sayings!

8 Praise the Lord your God! He has shown how pleased he is with you by making you king, to rule in his name. Because he loves his people Israel and wants to preserve them forever, he has made you their king so that you can maintain law and justice.”

9 She presented to King Solomon the gifts she had brought: almost five tons of gold and a very large amount of spices and jewels. There have never been any other spices as fine as those that the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

(

10 The sailors of King Hiram and of King Solomon who brought gold from Ophir also brought juniper wood and jewels.

11 Solomon used the wood to make stairs for the Temple and for his palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. Nothing like that had ever been seen before in the land of Judah.)

12 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she asked for. This was in addition to what he gave her in exchange for the giftsshe brought to him. Then she and her attendants returned to the land of Sheba.

King Solomon’s Wealth

13 Every year King Solomon received over twenty-five tons of gold,

14 in addition to the taxes paid by the traders and merchants. The kings of Arabia and the governors of the Israelite districts also brought him silver and gold.

15 Solomon made two hundred large shields, each of which was covered with about fifteen pounds of beaten gold,

16 and three hundred smaller shields, each covered with about eight pounds of beaten gold. He had them all placed in the Hall of the Forest of Lebanon.

17 The king also had a large throne made. Part of it was covered with ivory and the rest of it was covered with pure gold.

18 Six steps led up to the throne, and there was a footstool attached to it, covered with gold. There were arms on each side of the throne, and the figure of a lion stood at each side.

19 Twelve figures of lions were on the steps, one at either end of each step. No throne like this had ever existed in any other kingdom.

20 All of King Solomon’s drinking cups were made of gold, and all the utensils in the Hall of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. Silver was not considered valuable in Solomon’s day.

21 He had a fleet of ocean-going ships sailing with King Hiram’s fleet. Every three years his fleet would return, bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and monkeys.

22 King Solomon was richer and wiser than any other king in the world.

23 They all consulted him, to hear the wisdom that God had given him.

24 Each of them brought Solomon gifts—articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons, spices, horses, and mules. This continued year after year.

25 King Solomon also had four thousand stalls for his chariots and horses, and had twelve thousand cavalry horses. Some of them he kept in Jerusalem and the rest he stationed in various other cities.

26 He was supreme ruler of all the kings in the territory from the Euphrates River to Philistia and the Egyptian border.

27 During his reign silver was as common in Jerusalem as stone, and cedar was as plentiful as ordinary sycamore in the foothills of Judah.

28 Solomon imported horses from Musriand from every other country.

Summary of Solomon’s Reign

29 The rest of the history of Solomon from beginning to end is recorded inThe History of Nathan the Prophet, inThe Prophecy of Ahijah of Shiloh, and inThe Visions of Iddo the Prophet, which also deal with the reign of King Jeroboam of Israel.

30 Solomon ruled in Jerusalem over all Israel for forty years.

31 He died and was buried in David’s City, and his son Rehoboam succeeded him as king.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/2CH/9-8c5c0486a60feaae5f03e9277e982a77.mp3?version_id=68—

The Northern Tribes Revolt

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 home.

3 The people of the northern tribes sent for him, and they all went together to Rehoboam and said to him,

4 “Your father placed heavy burdens on us. If you make these burdens lighter and make life easier for us, we will be your loyal subjects.”

5 Rehoboam replied, “Give me three days to consider the matter. Then come back.” So the people 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 are kind to these people and try to please them by giving a considerate answer, 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 God 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.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/2CH/10-24eca7b5d0480c6f000027880f494e8d.mp3?version_id=68—

Shemaiah’s Prophecy

1 When King Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he called together 180,000 of the best soldiers from the tribes of Benjamin and Judah. He intended to go to war and restore his control over the northern tribes of Israel.

2 But the Lord told the prophet Shemaiah

3 to give this message to King Rehoboam and to all the people of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin:

4 “Do not attack your own relatives. Go home, all of you. What has happened is my will.” They obeyed the Lord’s command and did not go to fight Jeroboam.

Rehoboam Fortifies the Cities

5 Rehoboam remained in Jerusalem and had fortifications built for the following cities of Judah and Benjamin:

6 Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa,

7 Bethzur, Soco, Adullam,

8 Gath, Mareshah, Ziph,

9 Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah,

10 Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron.

11 He had them strongly fortified and appointed a commander for each of them, and in each one he placed supplies of food, olive oil, and wine,

12 and also shields and spears. In this way he kept Judah and Benjamin under his control.

Priests and Levites Come to Judah

13 From all the territory of Israel priests and Levites came south to Judah.

14 The Levites abandoned their pastures and other land and moved to Judah and Jerusalem, because King Jeroboam of Israel and his successors would not let them serve as priests of the Lord.

15 Jeroboam appointed priests of his own to serve at the pagan places of worship and to worship demons and the idols he made in the form of bull-calves.

16 From all the tribes of Israel people who sincerely wanted to worship the Lord, the God of Israel, followed the Levites to Jerusalem, so that they could offer sacrifices to the Lord, the God of their ancestors.

17 This strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and for three years they supported Rehoboam son of Solomon and lived as they had under the rule of King David and King Solomon.

Rehoboam’s Family

18 Rehoboam married Mahalath, whose father was Jerimoth son of David and whose mother was Abihail, the daughter of Eliab and granddaughter of Jesse.

19 They had three sons, Jeush, Shemariah, and Zaham.

20 Later he married Maacah, the daughter of Absalom, and they had four sons: Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith.

21 In all, Rehoboam had eighteen wives and sixty concubines, and he fathered twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters. Of all his wives and concubines he loved Maacah best,

22 and he favored her son Abijah over all his other children, choosing him as the one to succeed him as king.

23 Rehoboam wisely assigned responsibilities to his sons and stationed them throughout Judah and Benjamin in the fortified cities. He provided generously for them and also secured many wives for them.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/2CH/11-90edf4436a4f987162f1c607e57422f7.mp3?version_id=68—

An Egyptian Invasion of Judah

1 As soon as Rehoboam had established his authority as king, he and all his people abandoned the Law of the Lord.

2 In the fifth year of Rehoboam’s reign their disloyalty to the Lord was punished. King Shishak of Egypt attacked Jerusalem

3 with an army of twelve hundred chariots, sixty thousand cavalry, and more soldiers than could be counted, including Libyan, Sukkite, and Ethiopiantroops.

4 He captured the fortified cities of Judah and advanced as far as Jerusalem.

5 Shemaiah the prophet went to King Rehoboam and the Judean leaders who had gathered in Jerusalem to escape Shishak. He said to them, “This is the Lord’s message to you: ‘You have abandoned me, so now I have abandoned you to Shishak.’”

6 The king and the leaders admitted that they had sinned, and they said, “What the Lord is doing is just.”

7 When the Lord saw this, he spoke again to Shemaiah and said to him, “Because they admit their sin, I will not destroy them. But when Shishak attacks, they will barely survive. Jerusalem will not feel the full force of my anger,

8 but Shishak will conquer them, and they will learn the difference between serving me and serving earthly rulers.”

9 King Shishak came to Jerusalem and took the treasures from the Temple and from the palace. He took everything, including the gold shields that King Solomon had made.

10 To replace them, Rehoboam made bronze shields and entrusted them to the officers responsible for guarding the palace gates.

11 Every time the king went to the Temple, the guards carried the shields and then returned them to the guardroom.

12 Because he submitted to the Lord, the Lord’s anger did not completely destroy him, and things went well for Judah.

Summary of Rehoboam’s Reign

13 Rehoboam ruled in Jerusalem and increased his power as king. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he ruled for seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the Lord had chosen from all the territory of Israel as the place where he was to be worshiped. Rehoboam’s mother was Naamah, from the land of Ammon.

14 He did what was evil, because he did not try to find the Lord’s will.

15 Rehoboam’s acts from beginning to end and his family records are found inThe History of Shemaiah the ProphetandThe History of Iddo the Prophet. Rehoboam and Jeroboam were constantly at war with each other.

16 Rehoboam died and was buried in the royal tombs in David’s City and his son Abijah succeeded him as king.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/2CH/12-820f098f87883bd43e3bbec5e77d0f8f.mp3?version_id=68—

Abijah’s War with Jeroboam

1 In the eighteenth year of the reign of King Jeroboam of Israel, Abijah became king of Judah,

2 and he ruled three years in Jerusalem. His mother was Micaiah daughter of Uriel, from the city of Gibeah.

War broke out between Abijah and Jeroboam.

3 Abijah raised an army of 400,000 soldiers, and Jeroboam opposed him with an army of 800,000.

4 The armies met in the hill country of Ephraim. King Abijah went up Mount Zemaraim and called out to Jeroboam and the Israelites: “Listen to me!” he said.

5 “Don’t you know that the Lord, the God of Israel, made an unbreakable covenant with David, giving him and his descendants kingship over Israel forever?

6 Jeroboam son of Nebat rebelled against Solomon, his king.

7 Later he gathered together a group of worthless scoundrels, and they forced their will on Rehoboam son of Solomon, who was too young and inexperienced to resist them.

8 Now you propose to fight against the royal authority that the Lord gave to David’s descendants. You have a huge army and have with you the gold bull-calves that Jeroboam made to be your gods.

9 You drove out the Lord’s priests, the descendants of Aaron, and you drove out the Levites. In their place you appointed priests in the same way that other nations do. Anybody who comes along with a bull or seven sheep can get himself consecrated as a priest of those so-called gods of yours.

10 “But we still serve the Lord our God and have not abandoned him. Priests descended from Aaron perform their duties, and Levites assist them.

11 Every morning and every evening they offer him incense and animal sacrifices burned whole. They present the offerings of bread on a table that is ritually clean, and every evening they light the lamps on the gold lampstand. We do what the Lord has commanded, but you have abandoned him.

12 God himself is our leader and his priests are here with trumpets, ready to blow them and call us to battle against you. People of Israel, don’t fight against the Lord, the God of your ancestors! You can’t win!”

13 Meanwhile Jeroboam had sent some of his troops to ambush the Judean army from the rear, while the rest faced them from the front.

14 The Judeans looked around and saw that they were surrounded. They cried to the Lord for help, and the priests blew the trumpets.

15 The Judeans gave a loud shout, and led by Abijah, they attacked; God defeated Jeroboam and the Israelite army.

16 The Israelites fled from the Judeans, and God let the Judeans overpower them.

17 Abijah and his army dealt the Israelites a crushing defeat—half a million of Israel’s best soldiers were killed.

18 And so the people of Judah were victorious over Israel, because they relied on the Lord, the God of their ancestors.

19 Abijah pursued Jeroboam’s army and occupied some of his cities: Bethel, Jeshanah, and Ephron, and the villages near each of these cities.

20 Jeroboam never regained his power during Abijah’s reign. Finally the Lord struck him down, and he died.

21 Abijah, however, grew more powerful. He had fourteen wives and fathered twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.

22 The rest of the history of Abijah, what he said and what he did, is written inThe History of Iddo the Prophet.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/363/32k/2CH/13-0256c65b72b1eda3f134ca7ba6a4ae7f.mp3?version_id=68—