1.Könige 12 | Bibelen på hverdagsdansk

Nordriget forkaster Rehabeam som konge over dem

1 Rehabeam og hans rådgivere tog straks efter Salomons død til Sikem, hvor Nordrigets ledere samledes for at udråbe ham til konge. 2 Jeroboam, Nebats søn, vendte tilbage fra Egypten (hvortil han var flygtet for kong Salomon), da han hørte, at Salomon var død. 3 Nordrigets ledere sendte nu bud efter ham, og sammen trådte de frem for Rehabeam i Sikem. 4 „Din far lagde en masse skatter på os og krævede hårdt arbejde,” sagde de. „Hvis du er villig til at nedsætte kravene, vil vi gerne have dig som konge.” 5 „Det vil jeg tænke over,” svarede Rehabeam. „Kom tilbage om to dage,* så vil jeg give jer svar.” 6 Rehabeam drøftede nu sagen med sin fars gamle rådgivere. „Hvad foreslår I, jeg skal gøre?” spurgte han. 7 „Hvis du viser lederne, at du tager hensyn til deres ønsker, og siger, at du vil behandle folket godt, så vil de være loyale over for dig,” var deres svar. 8 Men Rehabeam brød sig ikke om deres råd. Han spurgte så de unge mænd, han var vokset op sammen med, og som han havde ansat i sin tjeneste: 9 „Hvad skal vi svare de her mennesker, som gerne vil være fri for hårdt arbejde og skatter?” 10 „Vi foreslår, at du siger: ‚Sammenlignet med mig var min far ingenting! 11 Hvis I synes, min far lagde tunge byrder på jer, vil jeg gøre dem endnu tungere. Hvis I synes, min far brugte en pisk af reb, så vil jeg bruge en pisk med metalstykker i!’ ” 12 Da Jeroboam og Nordrigets ledere som aftalt kom tilbage til den unge konge to dage senere, 13 gav han dem det brutale svar, som de unge mænd havde rådet ham til, i stedet for det gode svar fra sin fars rådgivere. 15 Kongen var således ikke villig til at lytte til deres ønsker, og derved kom han til at opfylde det profetiske ord fra Herren, som Ahija fra Shilo havde givet Jeroboam. 16 Da Nordrigets folk blev klar over, at kongen ikke ville lytte til dem, tog de afstand fra ham og råbte til hinanden: „Ud med David og hans slægt! Rehabeam kan få lov til at herske over sin egen stamme. Vi kan klare os selv.” 17 Således gik det til, at Rehabeam måtte nøjes med at være konge over Judas stamme. 18 Men han gav ikke op med det samme, så han sendte sin slavepisker Adoniram efter Nordrigets ledere for at tvinge dem, men de smed sten efter ham og slog ham ihjel. Rehabeam sprang da op i sin vogn og skyndte sig hjem til Jerusalem for ikke selv at blive slået ihjel. 19 Således brød de ti nordlige stammer forbindelsen med Judas stamme, og de to riger blev aldrig siden forsonet.

Jeroboam bliver konge i Nordriget

20 Da det blev kendt blandt alle Nordrigets indbyggere, at Jeroboam var vendt hjem, inviterede de ham til et stort folkemøde, hvor de gjorde ham til deres konge. Det var kun Judas stamme, der var loyal over for Davids slægt. 21 Da kong Rehabeam kom tilbage til Jerusalem, mønstrede han sin hær, der bestod af elitetropper fra Judas og Benjamins stammer—180.000 i alt. Med den hær ville han tvinge Nordriget til at anerkende ham som konge. 22 Men Gud gav profeten Shemaja følgende budskab: 23 „Sig til Judas konge og til hele Judas og Benjamins folk, at de ikke må bekrige deres broderfolk. Sig til soldaterne, at de skal gå hjem, for det, der er sket, er sket efter min vilje.” Da soldaterne hørte det, adlød de Herrens ord og gik hver til sit. 25 Jeroboam udbyggede nu byen Sikem i Efraims bjergland og gjorde den til sin hovedstad. Han udbyggede også Penuel som fæstningsby.

Jeroboam indfører afgudsdyrkelse og en ny fest

26 Det varede ikke længe, før Jeroboam begyndte at frygte for, om han nu også kunne fastholde kongemagten. „Nordrigets folk rejser jo stadig op til Herrens hus i Jerusalem for at bringe deres ofre der,” sagde han til sig selv. „Når de ser, hvor meget guld der er i Jerusalem, kan de let blive fristet til at gå over til kong Rehabeam af Juda. Så finder de måske på at slå mig ihjel og overgive hele Nordriget til Davids slægt.” 28 På sine rådgiveres opfordring fik Jeroboam derfor lavet to guldkalve. „Det er for besværligt at tage helt til Jerusalem og ofre,” sagde han til folket. „Her er jeres guder, som førte jer ud af Egyptens land!” 29 Den ene guldkalv blev anbragt i den sydlige by, Betel, og den anden blev senere i en stor procession ført op til den nordligste by, Dan. Det var naturligvis en alvorlig synd, for folket begyndte at tilbede disse afguder. 31 Jeroboam opførte også afgudsaltre på offerhøjene rundt omkring, og han udnævnte præster fra andre stammer end Levis stamme i modstrid med Herrens befaling. 32 Han bekendtgjorde også, at den årlige løvhyttefest for fremtiden skulle fejres i Betel den 15. dag i den ottende måned*—en dato han selv fandt på, og han indkaldte alle sine præster til at gøre tjeneste i Betel under den ugelange højtid. Da festen begyndte, steg han selv op på alteret i Betel for at tænde ilden og ofre til den guldkalv, han havde ladet opstille der.

English Standard Version

Rehoboam’s Folly

1 Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king. 2 And as soon as Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), then Jeroboam returned from* Egypt. 3 And they sent and called him, and Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came and said to Rehoboam, 4 “Your father made our yoke heavy. Now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke on us, and we will serve you.” 5 He said to them, “Go away for three days, then come again to me.” So the people went away. 6 Then King Rehoboam took counsel with the old men, who had stood before Solomon his father while he was yet alive, saying, “How do you advise me to answer this people?” 7 And they said to him, “If you will be a servant to this people today and serve them, and speak good words to them when you answer them, then they will be your servants forever.” 8 But he abandoned the counsel that the old men gave him and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him and stood before him. 9 And he said to them, “What do you advise that we answer this people who have said to me, ‘Lighten the yoke that your father put on us’?” 10 And the young men who had grown up with him said to him, “Thus shall you speak to this people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you lighten it for us,’ thus shall you say to them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s thighs. 11 And now, whereas my father laid on you a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.’” 12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king said, “Come to me again the third day.” 13 And the king answered the people harshly, and forsaking the counsel that the old men had given him, 14 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 disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.” 15 So the king did not listen to the people, for it was a turn of affairs brought about by the Lord that he might fulfill his word, which the Lord spoke by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

The Kingdom Divided

16 And when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, “What portion do we have in David? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, O Israel! Look now to your own house, David.” So Israel went to their tents. 17 But Rehoboam reigned over the people of Israel who lived in the cities of Judah. 18 Then King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was taskmaster over the forced labor, and all Israel stoned him to death with stones. And King Rehoboam hurried to mount his chariot to flee to Jerusalem. 19 So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day. 20 And when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. There was none that followed the house of David but the tribe of Judah only. 21 When Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, 180,000 chosen warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to restore the kingdom to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22 But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God: 23 “Say to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, 24 ‘Thus says the Lord, You shall not go up or fight against your relatives the people of Israel. Every man return to his home, for this thing is from me.’” So they listened to the word of the Lord and went home again, according to the word of the Lord.

Jeroboam’s Golden Calves

25 Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. And he went out from there and built Penuel. 26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom will turn back to the house of David. 27 If this people go up to offer sacrifices in the temple of the Lord at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn again to their lord, to Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me and return to Rehoboam king of Judah.” 28 So the king took counsel and made two calves of gold. And he said to the people, “You have gone up to Jerusalem long enough. Behold your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” 29 And he set one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. 30 Then this thing became a sin, for the people went as far as Dan to be before one.* 31 He also made temples on high places and appointed priests from among all the people, who were not of the Levites. 32 And Jeroboam appointed a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month like the feast that was in Judah, and he offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he made. And he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places that he had made. 33 He went up to the altar that he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, in the month that he had devised from his own heart. And he instituted a feast for the people of Israel and went up to the altar to make offerings.

1.Könige 12 | Bibelen på hverdagsdansk English Standard Version