1 Kings 12

NEW JERUSALEM	DOUAI-RHEIMS
1 Rehoboam then went to Shechem, al Israel having come to Shechem to proclaim him king.	1 And Roboam went to Sichem: for thither were all Israel come together to make him king.
2 (As soon as Jeroboam son of Nebat heard the news -- he was stil in Egypt, where he had taken refugefrom King Solomon -- he returned from Egypt.	2 But Jeroboam the son of Nabat, who was yet in Egypt, a fugitive from the face of king Solomon, hearing of his death, returned out of Egypt.
3 They now sent for him, and Jeroboam and the whole assembly of Israel came.) And they spoke asfol ows to Rehoboam,	3 And they sent and called him: and Jeroboam came, and all the multitude of Israel, and they spoke to Roboam, saying:
4 'Your father laid a cruel yoke on us; if you wil lighten your father's cruel slavery, that heavy yoke whichhe imposed on us, we are wil ing to serve you.'	4 Thy father laid a grievous yoke upon us: now therefore do thou take off a little of the grievous service of thy father, and of his most heavy yoke, which he put upon us, and we will serve thee.
5 He said to them, 'Go away for three days and then come back to me.' And the people went away.	5 And he said to them: Go till the third day, and come to me again. And when the people was gone,
6 King Rehoboam then consulted the elders who had been in attendance on his father Solomon while hewas alive, and said, 'How do you advise me to answer this people?'	6 King Roboam took counsel with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and he said: What counsel do you give me, that I may answer this people?
7 They replied, 'If you become the servant of this people today, and submit to them and give them a fairreply, then they wil remain your servants for ever.'	7 They said to him: If thou wilt yield to this people to day, and condescend to them, and grant their petition, and wilt speak gentle words to them, they will be thy servants always.
8 But he rejected the advice given him by the elders and consulted the young men in attendance on him,who had grown up with him.	8 But he left the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men, that had been brought up with him, and stood before him.
9 He said, 'How do you advise us to answer these people who have been saying, "Lighten the yokewhich your father imposed on us!"? '	9 And he said to them: What counsel do you give me, that I may answer this people, who have said to me: Make the yoke which thy father put upon us lighter?
10 The young men who had grown up with him replied, 'This is the way to answer these people whohave been saying, "Your father made our yoke heavy, you must lighten it for us!" This is the right thing to say tothem, "My little finger is thicker than my father's loins.	10 And the young men that had been brought up with him, said: Thus shalt thou speak to this people, who have spoken to thee, saying: Thy father made our yoke heavy, do thou ease us. Thou shalt say to them: My little finger is thicker than the back of my father.
11 Although my father laid a heavy yoke on you, I shall make it heavier stil . My father controlled you withthe whip, but I shall apply a spiked lash!" '	11 And now my father put a, heavy yoke upon you, but I will add to your yoke: my father beat you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions.
12 On the third day Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam in obedience to the king'sinstruction: 'Come back to me in three days' time.'	12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Roboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying: Come to me again the third day.
13 And the king gave the people a harsh answer, rejecting the advice given him by the elders	13 And the king answered the people roughly, leaving the counsel of the old men, which they had given him,
14 and speaking to them as the young men had recommended, 'My father made your yoke heavy, I shallmake it heavier stil ! My father control ed you with the whip, but I shall apply a spiked lash!'	14 And he spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying: My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke: my father beat you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions.
15 Thus the king refused to listen to the people, and this was brought about by Yahweh to fulfil thepromise which he had made through Ahijah of Shiloh to Jeroboam son of Nebat.	15 And the king condescended not to the people: for the Lord was turned away from him, to make good his word, which he had spoken in the hand of Ahias the Silonite, to Jeroboam the son of Nabat.
16 When al Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, the people answered the king thus: Whatshare have we in David? -No heritage in the son of Jesse! Away to your tents, Israel! Now look after your ownHouse, David! So Israel went home again.	16 Then the people seeing that the king would not hearken to them, answered him, saying : What portion have we in David? or what inheritance in the son of Isai? Go home to thy dwellings, O Israel, now David look to thy own house. So Israel departed to their dwellings.
17 Rehoboam, however, reigned over those Israelites who lived in the towns of Judah.	17 But as for all the children of Israel that dwelt in the cities of Juda, Roboam reigned over them.
18 When King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was in charge of forced labour, all Israel stoned him todeath, while King Rehoboam managed to mount his chariot and escape to Jerusalem.	18 Then king Roboam sent Aduram, who was over the tribute: and all Israel stoned him, and he died. Wherefore king Roboam made haste to get him up into his chariot, and he fled to Jerusalem:
19 And Israel has remained in rebel ion against the House of David from that day to this.	19 And Israel revolted from the house of David, unto this day.
20 When al Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they summoned him to the assembly and madehim king of al Israel; no one remained loyal to the House of David, except the tribe of Judah.	20 And it came to pass when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they gathered an assembly, and sent and called him, and made him king over all Israel, and there was none that followed the house of David but the tribe of Juda only.
21 When Rehoboam reached Jerusalem he mustered the whole House of Judah and the tribe ofBenjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand picked warriors, to fight the House of Israel and win back the kingdomfor Rehoboam son of Solomon.	21 And Roboam came to Jerusalem, and gathered together all the house of Juda, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred fourscore thousand chosen men for war, to fight against the house of Israel and to bring the kingdom again under Roboam the son of Solomon.
22 But the word of Yahweh came to Shemaiah, man of God,	22 But the word of the Lord came to Semeias the man of God, saying:
23 'Say this to Rehoboam son of Solomon, king of Judah, to the whole House of Judah, to Benjamin andto the rest of the people,	23 Speak to Roboam the son of Solomon, the king of Juda, and to all the house of Juda, and Benjamin, and the rest of the people, saying:
24 "Yahweh says this: Do not go and make war on your brothers, the Israelites; let everyone go home,for this is my doing." ' They obeyed the command of Yahweh and turned back in accordance with his word.	24 Thus saith the Lord: You shall not go up nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: let every man return to his house, for this thing is from me. They hearkened to the word of the Lord, and returned from their journey, as the Lord had commanded them.
25 Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the mountain country of Ephraim and made that his residence. Then,leaving there, he fortified Penuel.	25 And Jeroboam built Sichem in mount Ephraim, and dwelt there, and going out from thence he built Phanuel.
26 Jeroboam thought to himself, 'As things are, the kingdom wil revert to the House of David.	26 And Jeroboam said in his heart: Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David,
27 If this people continues to go up to the Temple of Yahweh in Jerusalem to offer sacrifices, thepeople's heart will turn back again to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah, and they wil put me to death.'	27 If this people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem: and the heart of this people will turn to their lord Roboam the king of Juda, and they will kill me, and return to him.
28 So the king thought this over and then made two golden calves; he said to the people, 'You havebeen going up to Jerusalem long enough. Here is your God, Israel, who brought you out of Egypt!'	28 And finding out a device he made two golden calves, and said to them: Go ye up no more to Jerusalem: Behold thy gods, O Israel, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt.
29 He set one up at Bethel,	29 And he set the one in Bethel, and the other in Dan:
30 and the people went in procession in front of the other one al the way to Dan. In Israel this gave riseto sin, for the people went to Bethel to worship the one, and all the way to Dan to worship the other.	30 And this thing became an occasion of sin: for the people went to adore the calf as far as Dan.
31 He set up shrines on the high places and appointed priests from ordinary families, who were not oflevitical descent.	31 And he made temples in the high places, and priests of the lowest of the people, who were not of the sons of Levi.
32 Jeroboam also instituted a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth of the month, like the feast keptin Judah, when he offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did at Bethel, offering sacrifices to the calves which hehad made and, at Bethel, instal ing the priests of the high places which he had set up.	32 And he appointed a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, after the manner of the feast that was celebrated in Juda. And going up to the altar, he did in like manner in Bethel, to sacrifice to the calves, which he had made : and he placed in Bethel priests of the high places, which he had made.
33 On the fifteenth of the eighth month, the month which he had chosen deliberately, he offeredsacrifices on the altar which he had made at Bethel; he instituted a feast for the Israelites and himself went up tothe altar to burn the sacrifice.	33 And he went up to the altar, which he had built in Bethel, on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, which he had devised of his own heart: and he ordained a feast to the children of Israel, and went upon the altar to burn incense.