Atifi Fam Mmusuakuw No Tew Atua
1Rehoboam kɔɔ Sekem, efisɛ na Israelfo nyinaa akɔ hɔ sɛ wɔrekosi no hene. 2Bere a Nebat babarima Yeroboam tee sɛ Salomo awu no, ofi Misraim bae, efisɛ oguan fii ɔhene Salomo nsam kɔtenaa Misraim. 3Enti Israel mpanyimfo soma ma wɔkɔfaa Yeroboam, na Israel nnipadɔm no nyinaa kɔɔ Rehoboam nkyɛn, ne no kɔkasae se, 4“Wʼagya hyɛɛ yɛn ma yɛyɛɛ adwumaden. Yɛsrɛ wo, tew saa adwumaden ne sonkahiri adesoa duruduru a wʼagya de soaa yɛn no so. Woyɛ saa a, yɛbɛsom wo nokware mu.”
5Rehoboam buae se, “Momma me nnansa na menwene mo asɛm yi ho. Ɛno akyi, mommra mmegye me mmuae.” Enti nnipa no san kɔe.
6Na Ɔhene Rehoboam kɔɔ ne mpanyimfo bi a na wotu nʼagya Salomo fo ne wɔn kosusuw asɛm no ho. Obisaa wɔn se, “Moka asɛm no ho dɛn? Mmuae bɛn na memfa mma saa nnipa yi?”
7Wobuaa no se, “Sɛ nnɛ yi, wopɛ sɛ woyɛ ɔsomfo ma saa nnipa yi, na woma wɔn mmuae pa a, ɛno de, daa wɔbɛsom wo nokware mu.”
8Nanso Rehoboam amfa afotu a mpanyimfo no maa no no. Mmom, ɔkɔɔ nʼatipɛnfo mmabun bi a ɔne wɔn sii so a na wotu no fo no nkyɛn. 9Okobisaa wɔn se, “Mo nso, mo afotu ne dɛn? Mmuae bɛn na memfa mma saa nnipa a wɔpɛ sɛ metew adesoa duruduru a mʼagya de soaa wɔn no so?”
10Mmerante no buae se, “Asɛm a ɛsɛ sɛ woka kyerɛ wɔn ne se, ‘Me nsateaa ketewa no mu piw sen mʼagya asen mu. Na sɛ modwene sɛ na ɔyɛ den wɔ mo so a, montwɛn na mubehu sɛnea mete.’ 11Yiw, mʼagya yɛɛ den wɔ mo so, na mɛyɛ aboro saa. Mʼagya hwee mo mpire na me de, mede nkekantwɛre na ɛbɛhwe mo.”
12Nnansa akyi no, Yeroboam ne nnipa no nyinaa san baa sɛ wɔrebetie Rehoboam mmuae sɛnea ɔkae no. 13Ɔhene no buaa nnipa no abufuw so. Wamfa mpanyimfo no afotu no; 14ɔfaa mmabun no afotu. Ɔka kyerɛɛ nnipa no se, “Mʼagya yɛɛ den wɔ mo so, na mɛyɛ aboro saa. Mʼagya hwee mo mpire na me de mede nkekantwɛre bɛkeka mo.” 15Enti ɔhene no anyɛ nnipa no abisade no ho hwee. Saa nsɛm a esisii yi yɛ Onyankopɔn nhyehyɛe, efisɛ ɛmaa Awurade nkɔm a ɔnam odiyifo Ahiya a ofi Silo no hyɛɛ Nebat babarima Yeroboam no baa mu.
16Bere a Israel nyinaa huu sɛ ɔhene anyɛ wɔn abisade amma wɔn no, wɔteɛteɛɛ mu se, “Yɛne Dawid nni hwee yɛ! Yɛne Yisai babarima no nni hwee yɛ! Israel, momma yɛnkɔ yɛn nkyi! Dawid, hwɛ wʼankasa wo fi so!” Enti Israelfo no san kɔɔ wɔn fi. 17Na Rehoboam kɔɔ so dii Israelfo a na wɔtete Yuda nkurow so no so hene.
18Ɔhene Rehoboam somaa Adoram a na ɔhwɛ adwumayɛfo so no sɛ ɔnkɔhwɛ mma ɔman no nyɛ dinn, nanso Israelfo no siw no abo kum no. Bere a ɔhene Rehoboam tee saa asɛm no, ntɛm ara, ohuruw tenaa ne teaseɛnam mu, guan kɔɔ Yerusalem. 19Israel mmusuakuw a wɔwɔ atifi fam no ampene sɛ Dawid aseni biara bedi wɔn so, de besi nnɛ.
20Bere a Israelfo tee sɛ Yeroboam fi Misraim asan aba no, wɔyɛɛ nhyiamu, sii no hene wɔ Israel nyinaa so. Enti Yuda abusuakuw no nko ara na wɔkae, som Dawid fi nokware mu.
Semaia Nkɔmhyɛ
21Bere a Rehoboam duu Yerusalem no, ɔboaboaa Yuda ne Benyamin asraafo ano. Oyii akofo mpem ɔha ne aduɔwɔtwe, sɛ wɔrekɔko atia Israel asraafo, na wɔafa ahemman no adi so.
22Nanso Onyankopɔn ka kyerɛɛ Semaia, Onyankopɔn nipa no se, 23“Ka kyerɛ Salomo babarima Rehoboam, Yudahene ne nnipa a wofi Yuda ne Benyamin se, 24‘Sɛnea Awurade se ni, Mo ne mo nuanom Israelfo nntwa mo ho nko. Monsan nkɔ mo akyi, na nea asi no nyinaa fi me!’ ” Enti wotiee Awurade asɛm no, san kɔɔ wɔn fi sɛnea Awurade hyɛe no.
Yeroboam Yɛ Sika Anantwi
25Yeroboam kyekyeree Sekem kurow wɔ Efraim bepɔw asase so ma ɛbɛyɛɛ ne kuropɔn. Akyiri no, ɔkɔkyekyeree kurow Penuel. 26Yeroboam dwenee ho dinn, see ne koma mu se, “Sɛ manhwɛ yiye a, ahemman no bɛsan akɔ Dawid fifo adedifo nsam. 27Na sɛ wɔkɔ Yerusalem, kɔbɔ afɔre wɔ Awurade Asɔredan mu nso a, wɔbɛsom Yudahene Rehoboam. Ɛba saa a, wobekum me, de ɔno mmom asi wɔn so hene.”
28Enti otiee nea nʼafotufo ka, na ɔyɛɛ sikakɔkɔɔ anantwi mma abien. Ɔka kyerɛɛ nnipa no se, “Ɛyɛ ɔbrɛ bebree sɛ mobɛforo akɔ Yerusalem akɔsom. Ɛno nti, Israel, eyinom ne anyame a woyii mo fii Misraim!” 29Ɔde nantwi mma ahoni yi sisii Israel anafo ne atifi, wɔ Bet-El ne Dan. 30Eyi bɛyɛɛ bɔne kɛse, efisɛ nnipa no som ahoni no, a na mpo wotwa kwan kɔ Dan.
31Yeroboam12.31 Yeroboam yii asɔfo a wɔnyɛ Lewifo, efisɛ na Lewifo bebree ne Rehoboam aguan kɔ Yerusalem akɔpɛ guankɔbea (2 Be 11.13-17). sisii abosonnan wɔ nkoko so, na ɔpaw asɔfo fii nnipa no mu a na womfi Lewi asɔfo abusua mu. 32Yeroboam hyehyɛɛ nyamesom dapɔnna wɔ Bet-El a na wodi saa nna no Bul ɔsram (bɛyɛ Ahinime) mu a na ɛte sɛ Yuda Guankɔbea Afahyɛ no ara. Bet-El hɔ na ɔno ankasa bɔɔ afɔre maa nantwimma ahoni a wayɛ no. Na Bet-El hɔ ara nso na ɔpaw asɔfo maa abosomfi a osisii no. 33Na ɔno ankasa yii da bi too hɔ, Bul ɔsram (bɛyɛ Ɔsannaa) mfimfini mu hɔ, na Yeroboam kɔbɔɔ afɔre wɔ afɔremuka so wɔ Bet-El. Ɔhyɛɛ anyamesom afahyɛ ase maa Israel, na ɔforo kɔɔ afɔremuka no so kɔhyew aduhuam.
Israel rebels against Rehoboam
1Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king. 2When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this (he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), he returned from12:2 Or he remained in Egypt. 3So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and the whole assembly of Israel went to Rehoboam and said to him: 4‘Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labour and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.’
5Rehoboam answered, ‘Go away for three days and then come back to me.’ So the people went away.
6Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. ‘How would you advise me to answer these people?’ he asked.
7They replied, ‘If today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favourable answer, they will always be your servants.’
8But Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him. 9He asked them, ‘What is your advice? How should we answer these people who say to me, “Lighten the yoke your father put on us”?’
10The young men who had grown up with him replied, ‘These people have said to you, “Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but make our yoke lighter.” Now tell them, “My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. 11My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.” ’
12Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, as the king had said, ‘Come back to me in three days.’ 13The king answered the people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by the elders, 14he followed the advice of the young men and said, ‘My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.’ 15So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from the Lord, to fulfil the word the Lord had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite.
16When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king:
‘What share do we have in David,
what part in Jesse’s son?
To your tents, Israel!
Look after your own house, David!’
So the Israelites went home. 17But as for the Israelites who were living in the towns of Judah, Rehoboam still ruled over them.
18King Rehoboam sent out Adoniram,12:18 Some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac (see also 4:6 and 5:14); Hebrew Adoram who was in charge of forced labour, but all Israel stoned him to death. King Rehoboam, however, managed to get into his chariot and escape to Jerusalem. 19So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.
20When all the Israelites heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the house of David.
21When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mustered all Judah and the tribe of Benjamin – a hundred and eighty thousand able young men – to go to war against Israel and to regain the kingdom for Rehoboam son of Solomon.
22But this word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God: 23‘Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah, to all Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, 24“This is what the Lord says: do not go up to fight against your brothers, the Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.” ’ So they obeyed the word of the Lord and went home again, as the Lord had ordered.
Golden calves at Bethel and Dan
25Then Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built up Peniel.12:25 Hebrew Penuel, a variant of Peniel
26Jeroboam thought to himself, ‘The kingdom is now likely to revert to the house of David. 27If these people go up to offer sacrifices at the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem, they will again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will kill me and return to King Rehoboam.’
28After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. He said to the people, ‘It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’ 29One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan. 30And this thing became a sin; the people came to worship the one at Bethel and went as far as Dan to worship the other.12:30 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text; Masoretic Text people went to the one as far as Dan
31Jeroboam built shrines on high places and appointed priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites. 32He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the festival held in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves he had made. And at Bethel he also installed priests at the high places he had made. 33On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a month of his own choosing, he offered sacrifices on the altar he had built at Bethel. So he instituted the festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to make offerings.
