2 Chronicles 10

The Kingdom Splits: Rehoboam’s Bad Call

1 Rehoboam rolled up to Shechem, because all Israel had gone there to make him king.

2 When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard about it, he was still in Egypt, where he had bounced to get away from King Solomon, Jeroboam came back from Egypt.

3 They sent for him, and Jeroboam and all Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam, saying,

4 “Your daddy laid a heavy burden on us. Now, lighten up the tough work and the heavy grind your pops put on us, and we will serve you.”

5 He told them, “Bounce for three days, then come back to me.” So the people left.

6 King Rehoboam talked to the old heads who used to advise his daddy Solomon when he was alive. He asked, “What is your take, How should I answer these people?”

7 They told him, “If you act like a servant to these people, and you hook them up and give them good words, they will be your loyal servants forever.”

8 But he dismissed the advice of the old heads and went and chopped it up with the young dudes who grew up with him and were now serving him.

9 He asked them, “What is your advice, How should we answer these people who told me, ‘Lighten up the load your daddy put on us’?”

10 The young dudes who grew up with him told him, “Tell these people who said to you, ‘Your daddy made our grind heavy, but you lighten it for us', tell them this: ‘My pinky finger is thicker than my daddy’s whole waist!’”

11 “So now, my pops put a heavy load on you, but I am going to add to your load. My pops whipped you with regular whips, but I am going to whip you with whips that got thorns on them!”

12 So Jeroboam and all the people came back to Rehoboam on the third day, just like the king had told them, saying, “Come back to me on the third day.”

13 The king gave them a harsh answer, dismissing the old heads’ advice.

14 He spoke to them according to the young dudes’ advice, saying, “My pops made your load heavy; I am going to add to your load. My pops whipped you with regular whips; I am going to whip you with whips that got thorns on them!”

15 So the king did not listen to the people, because this whole situation was actually set up by God to make good on His word that the Lord had spoken through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat.

16 When all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people talked back to the king, saying, “What share do we got in David, No inheritance with” Jesse’s son! To your tents, O Israel! Now look after your own house, David!” So all Israel bounced to their tents.

17 But Rehoboam still ruled over the Israelites living in the towns of Judah.

18 King Rehoboam sent Hadoram, who was in charge of the forced labor, but the Israelites stoned him to death. King Rehoboam had to jump in his chariot and flee to Jerusalem to save his life.

19 So Israel has been rebelling against the house of David to this day.