with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt, unto Pharaoh king of Egypt; which gave him an house, and appointed him victuals, and gave him land.

And Hadad found great favour in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen. And the sister of Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh's house: and Genubath was in Pharaoh's household among the sons of Pharaoh.

And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the host was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart, that I may go to mine own country.

Then Pharaoh

said unto him, But what hast thou lacked with me, that, behold, thou seekest to go to thine own country? And he answered, Nothing: howbeit let me go in any wise.

And God stirred him up another adversary, Rezon the son of Eliadah, which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah: and he gathered men unto him, and became captain over a band, when David slew them Zobah and they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Da

mascus.

of

And he was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, beside the mischief that Hadad did: and he abhorred Israel, and reigned over Syria.

And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon's servant, whose mother's name was Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king. And this was the cause that he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breaches of the city of David his father.

And the man Jeroboam was a mighty

man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph.

And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field: and Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: and he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee: (but he shall have one tribe for my servant David's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel :)

Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father.

Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand: but I will make him prince all the days of his life, for David my servant's sake, whom I chose, because he kept my commandments and my statutes: but I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand, and will give it unto thee, even ten tribes.

And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may have a light alway before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen me to put my name there. And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Is rael.

And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken

unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that is right in my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee. And I will for this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever.

Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. And Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of

Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.

And the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon?

And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years. And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.

Question.-What was the sin of Solomon ?

Answer. He forgot the true God; and, having sinned by taking many wives contrary to the commandment of the Lord, he sinned farther by worshipping idols. Q.-What is meant by "the abomination of Moab," and "the abomination of the children of Ammon?"

A.-The idols which they worshipped.

Q.-In what manner did the Lord punish Solomon for his wickedness?

A.-In consideration of the piety of David, and the promises made to him, the Lord did not deprive Solomon of his kingdom, but he would not allow him to leave all his great possessions to his son. Solomon, no doubt, thought he had founded a splendid kingdom, the richest and most powerful in the world; but the Lord told him that his son Rehoboam should only be king of one tribe, which was that of Judah, and that the other tribes should form the kingdom of Israel under Jeroboam, who, being at that time an officer of the king's, was described as his servant.

Q-Was any announcement of the Lord's will made to Jeroboam ?

A. The prophet Ahijah, the Shilonite (that is, an inhabi tant of Shiloh, the sacred place on Mount Ephraim), met him and tore his new garment into twelve pieces, and gave him ten, as a symbol of the ten tribes he was chosen to govern.

Q.-What may we understand by the words "that David my servant may have a light always before me in Jerusalem ?"

A.-The Lord had chosen Jerusalem, the "city of David," as the place where He was to be especially worshipped, and He appointed a descendant of David to be king

there.

O Lord of Love, our Father King !

United may Thy people be;

Together may we pray and sing,

And offer up our hearts to Thee.

Divided like the Jews of old,

We fear th' Almighty's angry frown; Banish our strife, and make us bold In faith to seek and gain the crown.

AND Rehoboam went to Shechem :

for all Israel were come to She

chem to make him king.

And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;) that they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.

And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed.

And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people? And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever. But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood before him :

And he said unto them, What counsel give ye that we may answer this people, who have spoken to me, say

ing, Make the yoke which thy father did put upon us lighter?

And the young men that were grown up with him spake unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto this people that spake unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father's loins. And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke my father hath chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.

So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me again the third day.

And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the old men's counsel that they gave him; and spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.

Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people; for the cause was from the LORD, that he might perform his saying, which the LORD spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What

portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents. But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.

Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the tribute; and all Israel stoned him with stones, that he died. Therefore king Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day.

And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only.

And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, an hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men, which were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon.

But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying, Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from me. They hearkened therefore to the word of the LORD, and returned to depart, according to the word of the LORD.

Then Jeroboam built Shechem in mount Ephraim and dwelt therein; and went out from thence, and built Penuel.

And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David: if this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.

Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And he set the one in Beth-el, and the other put he in Dan. And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.

And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.

And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Beth-el, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Beth-el the priests of the high places which he had made.

So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Beth-el the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.

Question.-Why did Rehoboam go to Shechem? Answer. It was the place of meeting of the ten tribes. Joseph was buried there, and in Joshua's time the people used to assemble there. Jeroboam afterwards made it the capital of his kingdom.

Q. What did the people demand of Rehoboam? A. That he should lighten the labour which Solomon had put upon them by forcing them to be employed on the public works. Jeroboam had been employed by Solomon to superintend these works, and so knew of the grievance which the people felt, and perhaps had encouraged them to complain of it.

Q-What was the advice of the old men whom Rehoboam consulted?

A. That he should consider the wishes of his people and act accordingly with kindness and justice, not enforcing his own will against theirs. The young men about him had less wisdom than the old counsellors, and advised the young king to assert his authority, and show the people by his severity that he was their master, and would do as he pleased, and make them feel how powerful he was by the severity of his punishments. Q.-What was the result of the king's taking the advice of the young men ?

A-The ten tribes would not submit to his tyranny, and rebelled against him. They would not listen to any terms which the king would offer, apparently not believing that he would keep any promise made, and they

Q.

A.

killed Adoram, who was sent to them from the king, probably for the purpose of trying to make peace. They chose Jeroboam for their king, so fulfilling the will of God, although there is no reason to suppose they were aware of it.

What sin did the new king, Jeroboam, commit ? He feared that if the people, following the practice of all the Jewish tribes, went to Jerusalem to sacrifice to the Lord, they would wish to be again united with the kingdom of Rehoboam. He therefore set up two calves of gold, and told the people to worship them, for they were the gods which brought them out of Egypt. He also made priests who were not of the house of Levi, and established a feast to take place similar to the feast in Jerusalem.

Q.-Why did Jeroboam choose Bethel and Dan as the places where the idols were to be worshipped?

1.-Bethel, as we know, was considered a very holy place, as God had appeared there twice to Jacob, who raised an altar, and at Bethel the ark had rested under the care of Phinehas. Dan, though a place of far less importance, was greatly esteemed. The king thought, therefore, that the fame of these places would be an inducement to his people to assemble there. Besides, Bethel was in the southern and Dan in the northern part of the dominion, so that one or the other could be conveniently reached,

AN

ND, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the LORD unto Beth-el; and Jeroboam stood by the altar to to burn incense.

And he cried against the altar in the word of the LORD, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the LORD; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee. And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the LORD hath spoken; Behold,

the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon it shall be poured out.

And it came to pass when king Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of God, which had cried against the altar in Beth-el, that he put forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not pull it in again to him. The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD.

And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Intreat now the