< 2 Chronicles 12 >

1 Once Rehoboam was secure on the throne and was sure of his power, he together with all the Israelites abandoned the law of the Lord.
And it came to pass, when Rehoboam had established the kingdom, and had strengthened himself, he forsook the law of Yahweh, —and all Israel with him.
2 In the fifth year of Rehoboam's reign, Shishak, king of Egypt, came and attacked Jerusalem because they had been unfaithful to God.
And so it came to pass, in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, —because they had dealt treacherously against Yahweh; —
3 He came from Egypt with 1,200 chariots, 60,000 horsemen, and an army that couldn't be counted Egypt—Libyans, Sukkites, and Cushites.
with twelve hundred chariots, and with sixty thousand horsemen, -and, without number, the people who came with him out of Egypt—Lybians, Sukkiim, and Ethiopians.
4 He conquered the fortified towns of Judah and then approached Jerusalem.
And he captured the cities of defence which belonged to Judah, —and came, as far as Jerusalem.
5 Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and the leaders of Judah who had run for safety Jerusalem because of Shishak. He told them, “This is what the Lord says: ‘You have abandoned me, so I have abandoned you to Shishak.’”
And, Shemaiah the prophet, came unto Rehoboam, and the rulers of Judah, who had gathered themselves together unto Jerusalem because of Shishak, —and said unto them, Thus, saith Yahweh, Ye, have left, me, Therefore, I also, have left, you, in the hands of Shishak.
6 The leaders of Israel and the king admitted they were wrong and said, “The Lord is right.”
Then the rulers of Israel and the king humbled themselves, —and said, Righteous, is Yahweh!
7 When the Lord saw that they had repented, he sent a message to Shemaiah, saying, “They have repented. I won't destroy them, and I will soon save them. My anger won't be poured out on Jerusalem through Shishak.
And, when Yahweh saw that they humbled themselves, the word of Yahweh came unto Shemaiah, saying—They have humbled themselves, I will not destroy them, —but will grant them, in a little while, to escape, and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem, by the hand of Shishak.
8 Even so they will become his subjects, so that they can learn the difference between serving me and serving the kings of earth.”
Nevertheless they shall become his servants, that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.
9 King Shishak of Egypt attacked Jerusalem and took the treasures of the Lord's Temple and the treasures of the royal palace. He took away everything, including the gold shields that Solomon had made.
So Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, and took the treasures of the house of Yahweh, and the treasures of the house of the king, the whole, he took, —and he took the bucklers of gold, which Solomon had made.
10 Later Rehoboam replaced them with bronze shields and gave them to be looked after by the commanders of the guard stationed at the entrance to the royal palace.
And King Rehoboam made, instead of them, bucklers of bronze, —and committed them unto the hand of the captains of the runners, who kept guard at the entrance of the house of the king.
11 Whenever the king would enter the Temple of the Lord the guards would go with him, carrying the shields, and then take them back to the guardroom.
And so it was, whensoever the king came into the house of Yahweh, the runners came and bare them, and then returned them into the chamber of the runners.
12 Because Rehoboam repented, the anger of the Lord did not fall on him, and the Lord did not destroy him completely. Things went well in Judah.
But, when he humbled himself, then turned from him the anger of Yahweh, that he would not destroy, to make an end, —moreover also, in Judah, there were some good things.
13 King Rehoboam became powerful in Jerusalem. He was forty-one when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord had chosen from all the tribes of Israel where he would be honored. The name of his mother was Naamah the Ammonite.
So King Rehoboam strengthened himself in Jerusalem, and reigned, —because, forty-one years old, was Rehoboam when he began to reign, and, seventeen years, reigned he in Jerusalem, the city which Yahweh had chosen, to set his Name there—from among all the tribes of Israel, and, the name of his mother, was Naamah, the Ammonitess.
14 But Rehoboam did what was evil because he did not commit himself to following the Lord.
But he did evil, —in that he did not fix his heart to seek Yahweh.
15 What Rehoboam did, from beginning to end, is written down in the records of Shemaiah the Prophet and of Iddo the Seer dealing with genealogies. However, Rehoboam and Jeroboam were always at war with each other.
Now, the story of Rehoboam, first and last, is it not written in the story of Shemaiah the prophet and Iddo the seer, for enrolling, -also the wars of Rehoboam and Jeroboam, all the days?
16 Rehoboam died and was buried in the City of David. His son Abijah took over as king.
And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David, —and Abijah his son reigned in his stead.

< 2 Chronicles 12 >