2 Chronicles

11 And Rehoboam came to Jerusalem and assembled all the house of Judah and Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand picked warriors, to make war with Israel, to restore the kingship to Rehoboam. 2 And Jehovah’s word came to Shema’iah the man of God 3 “Say to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, the king of Judah, and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, 4 ‘Says Jehovah, You shall not go up, nor make war with your brothers; go back home; for this thing has come from me.’” And they listened to Jehovah’s word and turned back from going against Jeroboam.

5 And Rehoboam settled down in Jerusalem, and fortified cities in Judah to stand sieges; 6 and he fortified Bethlehem and ʽEtam and Tekoaʽ 7 and Beth-Sur and Soco and ʽAdullam 8 and Gath and Mareshah and Ziph 9 and Adoraim and Lakish and ʽAzekah 10 and Soreah and Aijalon and Hebron in Judah and Benjamin as guard-cities. 11 And he strengthened the guard-posts and put wardens in them, and stores of food and oil and wine, 12 and in each and every city shields and pikes, and made them very strong indeed, and had Judah and Benjamin for his.

13 And the priests and Levites throughout Israel sided with him out of all their territory; 14 for the Levites left their glebes and property and went to Judah and Jerusalem because Jeroboam and his sons had superseded them from serving as priests to Jehovah, 15 and he had set up priests of his own for the heights and for the satyrs and for the calves he had made. 16 And after them out of all the tribes of Israel those who had given their hearts to looking up Israel’s God Jehovah came to Jerusalem to sacrifice to Jehovah the God of their fathers; 17 and they strengthened the kingdom of Judah and reinforced Rehoboam the son of Solomon for three years, because for three years they went the way of David and Solomon.

18 And Rehoboam married Mahalath, the daughter of David’s son Jerimoth and Abihail the daughter of Jesse’s son Eliab; 19 and she bore him sons, Jeghush and Shemariah and Zaham. 20 And after her he married Maʽacah the daughter of Absalom; and she bore him Abijah and ʽAttai and Ziza and Shelomith. 21 And Rehoboam loved Maʽacah the daughter of Absalom more than any of his wives and concubines; for he took eighteen wives and sixty concubines, and begot twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters. 22* And Rehoboam set Maʽacah’s son Abijah at the head, as warden over his brothers, because he had determined to make him the king; 23* and he disjoined some of all his sons in all the lands of Judah and Benjamin, in all the guard-cities, and gave them provender in plenty and married them to wives.