The Judean Kings

After the civil war Israel had two thrones. The throne of the southern kingdom was located at Jerusalem, the historical capital. This throne outlives the northern throne of Samaria and establishes the chronology across this period in history.

Background

Abraham's descendants started few. The generation after Abraham that matters to us here was Isaac. He had only two children, Jacob and Esau, and only Jacob would be used to restore Adam's fallen race. Then, when Jacob starts having sons, the number of sons starts to explode. At Jacob's son's generation there are twelve. By the time this tribe goes down to Egypt, there are about 72. 430 years later, when they come out of Egypt, there are over 600,000 men able to serve in the army, in their 20th year or better. If the population is evenly spread between the ages of 1 and 60, and for every male head of household there is a wife, the total population out of Egypt is at least 1.8 million people.

God takes this now growing band and says that he will not let them take over Canaan all at once, that they are not numerous enough , but that as they grow, they will be able to conquer it, with God's help.

360 years after finally moving into Canaan, the Israelites are given their first king. (9907 - 9547 = 360) Saul turns out badly so God chooses another, and David becomes king over the Israelites.

David's son Solomon is the last king (so far) to rule over all of the Israelites, because after the death of Solomon, civil war erupted in Israel. When things settled down, David's house was left ruling over just a part of Israel, the southern kingdom, known as Judah.

The story of the civil war in Israel goes like this: The country had gone to Shechem to make Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king. Jeroboam, the man who had rebelled against Solomon, returned from Egypt, to agitate for his position. The story picks up in 1 Kings.

10 First Kings 12:1-5 1וַיֵּ֥לֶךְ רְחַבְעָ֖ם שְׁכֶ֑ם כִּ֥י שְׁכֶ֛ם בָּ֥א כָל־ יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לְהַמְלִ֥יךְ אֹתֽוֹ׃ 2וַיְהִ֞י כִּשְׁמֹ֣עַ׀ יָרָבְעָ֣ם בֶּן־ נְבָ֗ט וְהוּא֙ עוֹדֶ֣נּוּ בְמִצְרַ֔יִם אֲשֶׁ֣ר בָּרַ֔ח מִפְּנֵ֖י הַמֶּ֣לֶךְ שְׁלֹמֹ֑ה וַיֵּ֥שֶׁב יָרָבְעָ֖ם בְּמִצְרָֽיִם׃ 3וַֽיִּשְׁלְחוּ֙ וַיִּקְרְאוּ־ ל֔וֹ יָרָבְעָ֖ם וְכָל־ קְהַ֣ל יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וַֽיְדַבְּר֔וּ אֶל־ רְחַבְעָ֖ם לֵאמֹֽר׃ 4אָבִ֖יךָ הִקְשָׁ֣ה אֶת־ עֻלֵּ֑נוּ וְאַתָּ֡ה עַתָּ֣ה הָקֵל֩ מֵעֲבֹדַ֨ת אָבִ֜יךָ הַקָּשָׁ֗ה וּמֵעֻלּ֧וֹ הַכָּבֵ֛ד אֲשֶׁר־ נָתַ֥ן עָלֵ֖ינוּ וְנַעַבְדֶֽךָּ׃ 5וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֲלֵיהֶ֗ם לְכ֥וּ עֹ֛ד שְׁלֹשָׁ֥ה יָמִ֖ים וְשׁ֣וּבוּ אֵלָ֑י וַיֵּלְכ֖וּ הָעָֽם׃ (WLC)

10 First Kings 12:1-5 1And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. 2And 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;) 3That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, 4Thy 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. 5And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed.(KJV)

10 First Kings 12:1-5 1And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. 2And 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;) 3That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, 4Thy 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. 5And he said unto them, Depart yet for 3 days, then come again to me. And the people departed.(KJV/NC)

10 First Kings 12:1-5 1And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. 2And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was yet in Egypt, whither he had fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt, 3and they sent and called him), that Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, 4Thy 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. 5And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed.(ASV)

10 First Kings 12:1-5 1AND Rehoboam went to Shechem; for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. 2And when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it (for he had fled from the presence of King Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt) 3Then they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the people of Israel came, and spoke to Rehoboam, saying, 4Your father made our yoke harsh; now therefore lighten some of the grievous service of your father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, and we will serve you. 5And he said to them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. So all the people departed. (LAM)

10 First Kings 12:1-5 1Rehobo'am went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king. 2And when Jerobo'am the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was still in Egypt, whither he had fled from King Solomon), then Jerobo'am returned from Egypt. 3And they sent and called him; and Jerobo'am and all the assembly of Israel came and said to Rehobo'am, 4"Your father made our yoke heavy. Now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke upon us, and we will serve you." 5He said to them, "Depart for three days, then come again to me." So the people went away.(RSV)

10 First Kings 12:1-5 1Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all the Israelites had gone there to make him king. 2When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this (he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), he returned from Egypt. 3So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and the whole assembly of Israel went to Rehoboam and said to him: 4"Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you."

5Rehoboam answered, "Go away for three days and then come back to me." So the people went away.(NIV)

10 First Kings 12:1-5 1Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. 2It happened, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was yet in Egypt, where he had fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam lived in Egypt, 3and they sent and called him), that Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came, and spoke to Rehoboam, saying, 4Your father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make you the grievous service of your father, and his heavy yoke which he put on us, lighter, and we will serve you. 5He said to them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. The people departed. (WEB)

10 First Kings 12:1-5 1Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. 2It happened, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was yet in Egypt, where he had fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam lived in Egypt, 3and they sent and called him), that Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came, and spoke to Rehoboam, saying, 4Your father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make you the grievous service of your father, and his heavy yoke which he put on us, lighter, and we will serve you. 5He said to them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. The people departed. (WEB/HNV)

10 First Kings 12:1-5 1AND Rehoboam went to Shechem; for all Israel came to Shechem to make him king. 2And when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, for he had fled from the presence of King Solomon, and Jeroboam lived in Egypt. 3Then they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the people of Israel came, and spoke to Rehoboam, saying, 4Your father made our yoke harsh; now therefore lighten some of the grievous service of your father, and his heavy yoke which he put on us, and we will serve you. 5And he said to them, Depart yet for 3 days, then come to me again. So all the people departed. (BRB)

The king goes off and thinks about the situation for three days, first consulting his father's advisors, then consulting the young men he grew up with. Rejecting the sound advice of his father's advisors, he proceeds to place a heavy yoke on Israel fostering a revolt.

10 First Kings 12:16-24 16וַיַּ֣רְא כָּל־ יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל כִּ֠י לֹֽא־ שָׁמַ֣ע הַמֶּלֶךְ֮ אֲלֵיהֶם֒ וַיָּשִׁ֣בוּ הָעָ֣ם אֶת־ הַמֶּ֣לֶךְ דָּבָ֣ר׀ לֵאמֹ֡ר מַה־ לָּנוּ֩ חֵ֨לֶק בְּדָוִ֜ד וְלֹֽא־ נַחֲלָ֣ה בְּבֶן־ יִשַׁ֗י לְאֹהָלֶ֙יךָ֙ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל עַתָּ֕ה רְאֵ֥ה בֵיתְךָ֖ דָּוִ֑ד וַיֵּ֥לֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לְאֹהָלָֽיו׃ 17וּבְנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל הַיֹּשְׁבִ֖ים בְּעָרֵ֣י יְהוּדָ֑ה וַיִּמְלֹ֥ךְ עֲלֵיהֶ֖ם רְחַבְעָֽם׃

18וַיִּשְׁלַ֞ח הַמֶּ֣לֶךְ רְחַבְעָ֗ם אֶת־ אֲדֹרָם֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר עַל־ הַמַּ֔ס וַיִּרְגְּמ֨וּ כָל־ יִשְׂרָאֵ֥ל בּ֛וֹ אֶ֖בֶן וַיָּמֹ֑ת וְהַמֶּ֣לֶךְ רְחַבְעָ֗ם הִתְאַמֵּץ֙ לַעֲל֣וֹת בַּמֶּרְכָּבָ֔ה לָנ֖וּס יְרוּשָׁלִָֽם׃ 19וַיִּפְשְׁע֤וּ יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ בְּבֵ֣ית דָּוִ֔ד עַ֖ד הַיּ֥וֹם הַזֶּֽה׃

20וַיְהִ֞י כִּשְׁמֹ֤עַ כָּל־ יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ כִּֽי־ שָׁ֣ב יָרָבְעָ֔ם וַֽיִּשְׁלְח֗וּ וַיִּקְרְא֤וּ אֹתוֹ֙ אֶל־ הָ֣עֵדָ֔ה וַיַּמְלִ֥יכוּ אֹת֖וֹ עַל־ כָּל־ יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל לֹ֤א הָיָה֙ אַחֲרֵ֣י בֵית־ דָּוִ֔ד זוּלָתִ֥י שֵֽׁבֶט־ יְהוּדָ֖ה לְבַדּֽוֹ׃ 21רְחַבְעָם֮ יְרוּשָׁלִַם֒ וַיַּקְהֵל֩ אֶת־ כָּל־ בֵּ֨ית יְהוּדָ֜ה וְאֶת־ שֵׁ֣בֶט בִּנְיָמִ֗ן מֵאָ֨ה וּשְׁמֹנִ֥ים אֶ֛לֶף בָּח֖וּר עֹשֵׂ֣ה מִלְחָמָ֑ה לְהִלָּחֵם֙ עִם־ בֵּ֣ית יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל לְהָשִׁיב֙ אֶת־ הַמְּלוּכָ֔ה לִרְחַבְעָ֖ם בֶּן־ שְׁלֹמֹֽה׃

22וַיְהִי֙ דְּבַ֣ר הָֽאֱלֹהִ֔ים אֶל־ שְׁמַעְיָ֥ה אִישׁ־ הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים לֵאמֹֽר׃ 23אֱמֹ֗ר אֶל־ רְחַבְעָ֤ם בֶּן־ שְׁלֹמֹה֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ יְהוּדָ֔ה וְאֶל־ כָּל־ בֵּ֥ית יְהוּדָ֖ה וּבִנְיָמִ֑ין וְיֶ֥תֶר הָעָ֖ם לֵאמֹֽר׃ 24כֹּ֣ה אָמַ֣ר יְהוָ֡ה לֹֽא־ תַעֲלוּ֩ וְלֹא־ תִלָּ֨חֲמ֜וּן עִם־ אֲחֵיכֶ֣ם בְּנֵֽי־ יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל שׁ֚וּבוּ אִ֣ישׁ לְבֵית֔וֹ כִּ֧י מֵאִתִּ֛י נִהְיָ֖ה הַדָּבָ֣ר הַזֶּ֑ה וַיִּשְׁמְעוּ֙ אֶת־ דְּבַ֣ר יְהוָ֔ה וַיָּשֻׁ֥בוּ לָלֶ֖כֶת כִּדְבַ֥ר יְהוָֽה׃ (WLC)

10 First Kings 12:16-24 16So 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. 17But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. 18Then 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. 19So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day. 20And 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.

21And 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. 22But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying, 23Speak 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, 24Thus 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.(KJV)

10 First Kings 12:16-24 16So 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. 17But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. 18Then 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. 19So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day. 20And 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.

21And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, 180000 chosen men, which were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying, 23Speak 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, 24Thus 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.(KJV/NC)

10 First Kings 12:16-24 16And 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. 17But as for the children of Israel that dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. 18Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the men subject to taskwork; and all Israel stoned him to death with stones. And king Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. 19So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day. 20And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was returned, 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.

21And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men, that were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying, 23Speak unto Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, saying, 24Thus saith Jehovah, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is of me. So they hearkened unto the word of Jehovah, and returned and went their way, according to the word of Jehovah.(ASV)

10 First Kings 12:16-24 16¶ So when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, saying, We have no portion in David, neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse; to your tents, O Israel; now see to your own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents. 17And the children of Israel dwelt in their cities; but Judah made Rehoboam the son of Solomon king over them. 18Then King Rehoboam sent Adoniram, who was over the tribute; and all Israel stoned him with stones, and he died. Therefore King Rehoboam made haste to ride in his chariot to flee to Jerusalem. 19So Israel has rebelled against the house of David to this day. 20And when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the congregation and made him king over all Israel; there was none that followed the house of David but the tribe of Judah only. 21And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin a hundred and eighty thousand chosen men of war to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22But the word of the LORD came to Shemaiah the prophet of God, saying, 23Speak to Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying, 24Thus says the LORD: You 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 according to the word of the LORD. (LAM)

10 First Kings 12:16-24 16And when all Israel saw that the king did not hearken to them, the people answered the king, "What portion have we 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 departed to their tents. 17But Rehobo'am reigned over the people of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah. 18Then King Rehobo'am sent Ador'am, who was taskmaster over the forced labor, and all Israel stoned him to death with stones. And King Rehobo'am made haste to mount his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. 19So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day. 20And when all Israel heard that Jerobo'am 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.

21When Rehobo'am came to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to restore the kingdom to Rehobo'am the son of Solomon. 22But the word of God came to Shemai'ah the man of God: 23"Say to Rehobo'am 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 kinsmen the people of Israel. Return every man to his home, for this thing is from me.'" So they hearkened to the word of the LORD, and went home again, according to the word of the LORD.(RSV)

10 First Kings 12:16-24 16When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king: "What share do we have in David, what part in Jesse's son? To your tents, O Israel! Look after your own house, O David!" So the Israelites went home. 17But as for the Israelites who were living in the towns of Judah, Rehoboam still ruled over them.

18King Rehoboam sent out Adoniram, who was in charge of forced labor, but all Israel stoned him to death. King Rehoboam, however, managed to get into his chariot and escape to Jerusalem. 19So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.

20When all the Israelites heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the house of David.

21When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mustered the whole house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin -- a hundred and eighty thousand fighting men -- to make war against the house of Israel and to regain the kingdom for Rehoboam son of Solomon.

22But this word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God: 23"Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah, to the whole house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, 24`This is what the LORD says: Do not go up to fight against your brothers, the Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.'" So they obeyed the word of the LORD and went home again, as the LORD had ordered.(NIV)

10 First Kings 12:16-24 16When all Israel saw that the king didn't listen to 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, Israel: now see to your own house, David. So Israel departed to their tents. 17But as for the children of Israel who lived in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. 18Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the men subject to forced labor; and all Israel stoned him to death with stones. King Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. 19So Israel rebelled against the house of David to this day. 20It happened, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was returned, that they sent and called him to the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none who followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only. 21When Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen men, who were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying, 23Speak 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, saying, 24Thus says Yahweh, YouP shall not go up, nor fight against your brothers the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is of me. So they listened to the word of Yahweh, and returned and went their way, according to the word of Yahweh. (WEB)

10 First Kings 12:16-24 16When all Israel saw that the king didn't listen to 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, Israel: now see to your own house, David. So Israel departed to their tents. 17But as for the children of Israel who lived in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. 18Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the men subject to forced labor; and all Israel stoned him to death with stones. King Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. 19So Israel rebelled against the house of David to this day. 20It happened, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was returned, that they sent and called him to the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none who followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only. 21When Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen men, who were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying, 23Speak 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, saying, 24Thus says the LORD, You shall not go up, nor fight against your brothers the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is of me. So they listened to the word of the LORD, and returned and went their way, according to the word of the LORD. (WEB/HNV)

10 First Kings 12:16-24 16So when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, saying, We have no portion in David, nor do we have any inheritance in the son of Jesse; to your tents, oh Israel; now see to your own house, David. So Israel departed to their tents. 17And the children of Israel lived in their cities; but Judah made Rehoboam the son of Solomon king over them. 18Then King Rehoboam sent Adoniram, who was over the tribute; and all Israel stoned him with stones, and he died. Therefore, King Rehoboam made haste to ride in his chariot to flee to Jerusalem. 19So Israel has rebelled against the house of David to this day. 20And when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the congregation and made him king over all Israel; only the tribe of Judah followed the house of David. 21And when Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin; 180,000 chosen men of war to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22But the word of Yahvah came to Shemaiah the prophet of God, saying, 23Speak to Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying, 24Thus says Yahvah, You will not go up, nor fight against your brothers the children of Israel; return every man to his house; for this thing is from me. They listened therefore to the word of Yahvah, and returned according to the word of Yahvah. (BRB)

Pay attention to a couple important points. Verse 19 indicates that this is so "to this day", probably originally indicating after the fall of Jerusalem when these scrolls are believed to have been organized into the Bible. But, this separation remains in place even to modern times and will remain so for several more years. Verse 24 indicates that this is God's doing, that Judah and Israel are now two countries.

The northern kingdom, who retained the name Israel, established a new capital at Tirzah, and would later purchase land for construction of a new capital at Samaria. At this point, the northern Kingdom, Israel, consists of 10 of the original tribes, the southern Kingdom, Judah, consists of the tribes of Benjamin and Judah.

A record of the kings of both kingdoms is given in the Bible. This record turns out to have problems, ones which we must overcome before we can get to the bottom of our quest for an overarching timeline.

Problems

It would seem that tracking the reigns of the kings of Judah and Israel should not be particularly difficult. The problems become apparent as soon as we start to read the text. The two kingdoms, Israel and Judah, each have a throne. When there is a change in rulership on one throne, the Bible usually records the year of the other throne.

So far, so good, but there turns out to be absurdities in the data. The following is one example:

  • Asa reigns over Judah for 41 years.1 2
  • In Asa's 3rd year, Baasha becomes king of Israel.3
  • Baasha reigns over Israel 24 years.4
  • Israel attacks Judah in the 36thyear of Asa's reign. 5
  • To stop the attack, Asa negotiates a peace deal, with Baasha in that 36thyear.6

The thing to notice about this is that Baasha's reign over Israel is only 24 years long, so he could not have made peace with Asa in Asa's 36th year if Baasha's reign started in Asa's 3rd year.

Given a start in the 3rd year he could have only lived through Asa's 27th year. Given that there may be different ways of putting ends on this sort of thing, we could have a couple years of slop, but that would get us to Asa's 29 or 30th year, but not to his 36th year. We have 6 years or more that appear simply wrong.

This is just one example of many such problems through the record.

To get through this passage we'll need to notice some things. First, Chronicles provides dates for only the kings of Judah. It does not attempt to provide the spans of kings reigns for the kings of Israel.

Kings agrees with Chronicles on all the Judean kings, and then attempts to add the kings of Israel. This leaves all the Judean kings with two references asserting their individual time in office.

Since one of our Bible study strategies is to look for duplication and second references, we can start with the position that the Judean king sequence is the one to be trusted. The kings of Israel, recorded in Kings along with the kings of Judah, are the ones without seconds and thus cannot be trusted.

To this point in the chronology, only the time from Noah to Abraham did not have seconds, and so far we've "trusted" it without a second, so why should we change the rule here? The difference is that in that period there were no contradictory parallel passages pushing us to strange results. Also, as we'll see once we start looking at the overall chronology, there are plenty of overarching "seconds" which suggest that the time from Noah to Abraham was correct. As we look further here we will find similar parallels which supports that the Judean king sequence is the correct, and trustworthy one.

Kings With 2 Names

There are three places in the biblical record where there are two names recorded for specific kings. The following is a list.

Uzziah/Azariah

The first king, Uzziah, entered the temple when he should not and leprosy broke out on his forehead.7 Because of this he could neither enter the temple, nor be approached by his subjects, and so he lived in a separate house until he died.

There are two important parallel names for Uzziah's reign. The first is that of Azariah, the head priest, who is named explicitly in Kings as the leader for Uzziah's reign, and that Uzziah's son Jotham is specifically mentioned as taking over responsibility for the palace and governed the land until Uzziah's death.

Azariah was able to approach the king, even though he was leprous, because he was a priest. The law allows the priest to approach a leprous person to inspect the leprosy. Since he would retain this ability he became in effect a prime minister. Kings emphasizes this role by using Azariah's name for a substitute in its chronology.8

Eliakim/Jehoiakim

Eliakim reigned over Judah 11 years. He was placed on the throne by Pharaoh Neco, and as a sign of Pharaoh's power over Eliakim, his name was changed to Jehoiakim.

The name change is significant, because it is indicating the the control Pharaoh has over the throne of Judah, indication that the country at this time is now a servant state of Egypt.

Mattaniah/Zedekiah

Mattaniah, who was Eliakim's brother and uncle of the previous king Jehoiachin, was placed on the throne by Nebuchadnezzar after Jehoiachin surrendered to the Babylonians after only 100 days on the throne.

Like Pharaoh Neco with Eliakim, Nebuchadnezzar changed Mattaniah's name to Zedekiah, indicating the Babylonian control of Judah and her kings.

Summary Chronology of Judah's Ancient Kings

Recall that Solomon's reign ended with the year 10016 from Adam, or 516 from the Exodus. The following table picks up and charts all the Judean kings, the kings of the southern kingdom.

Recall also, the priest of the northern kingdom supported Rehoboam through his 3rd year in office, or through the year 10019 from Adam, or 519 from the Exodus. The first year of the split kingdom, 10020 AA or 520 FE is 4000 years from Noah's flood.

King's Name Age at Reign Time in Office First Year Last Year
Rehoboam 419 1710 11 10017 AA
517 FE		 10033 AA
533 FE
Abijah Not given 312 13 10034 AA 10036 AA
Asa Not given 4114 15 10037 AA 10077 AA
Jehoshephat 3516 2517 18 10078 AA 10102 AA
Jehoram 3219 20 821 22 10103 AA 10110 AA
Ahaziah 2223 24 125 26 10111 AA 10111 AA
Queen Athaliah Not given 627 28 10112 AA 10117 AA
Joash 729 30 4031 32 10118 AA 10157 AA
Amaziah 2533 34 2935 36 10158 AA 10186 AA
Uzziah/Azariah 1637 38 5239 40 10187 AA 10238 AA
Jotham 2541 42 1643 44 10239 AA 10254 AA
Ahaz 2045 46 1647 48 10255 AA 10270 AA
Hezekiah 2549 50 2951 52 10271 AA 10299 AA
Manasseh 1253 54 5555 56 10300 AA 10354 AA
Amon 2257 58 259 60 10355 AA 10356 AA
Josiah 861 62 3163 64 10357 AA 10387 AA

Special Cases

At the end of the monarchy in Jerusalem, the world starts to unravel. Over a period of 20 years the Lord causes Judah to be carried away in pieces. Establishing the chronology over this period can't be done from the king's reigns since there are two kings who don't reign for whole numbers of years. There are other references which pick up the details we need to piece the kings reigns together as shown above. The following table summarizes these references.

Name Year
Name Year Ref
Josiah's 13 is Jeremiah's 1 Jer. 25:3
Jeremiah's 23 is Nebuchadnezzar's 1 Jer. 25:1-3
Jeremiah's 23 is Jehoiakim's 4 Jer. 25:1-3
Nebuchadnezzar's 18 is Zedekiah's 10 Jer. 32:1
Nebuchadnezzar's 8 is Jehoiachin's time 2 Ki 24:12

The references in this table allow us to construct the chronology across this difficult time in Judah's history. Jeremiah's first year is Josiah's 13th. Since we already know Josiah's first year is 10357, we can compute Jeremiah's first as 10369. Jeremiah's 23rd year is thus computed as 10391, which is also Nebuchadnezzar's first. Jehoiakim's 4th is also 10391, so Jehoiakim's first year is 10388.

Josiah's last year was his 31st and that year was 10387.

King Jehoahaz has no year assigned to him at all. Since these are probably assigned at Passover, we can assume that Jehoahaz must have reigned in what was Josiah's last, 31st, year.

A similar issue arises with Jehoiachin's reign, but we are told it is within Nebuchadnezzar's 8th year, which sets it to be 10398, which is also the last year of Jehoiakim's reign, provided confirmation that we handled Jehoahaz correctly. These dates are reflected in the following table.

King's Name Age at Reign Time in Office First Year Last Year
Jehoahaz 2365 66 3 months67 68 10387 AA 10387 AA
Eliakim/Jehoiakim 2569 70 11 years71 72 10388 AA 10398 AA
Jehoiachin 1873 74 3 months, 10 days75 76 10398 AA 10398 AA
Mattaniah/Zedekiah 2177 78 11 years79 80 10399 AA 10409 AA

Note some curious features from the above data. Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian king starts his reign over Judah, using Judean kings as vassals, in the year 10391. This is 390 years after the year 10000, which was the date of Solomon's temple. Note that this is the same number of years as there are days in a Sabbath or Jubilee year.

Note also that the last year that there is a Judean king in Jerusalem is the 390th year after the priests from the northern kingdom of Israel broke their support for Rehoboam, the first king of the divided kingdom.81 This is again, the same number of years as there are days in a Sabbath or Jubilee year.

The inference here is that the people of the kingdom of Judah were given a "Sabbath's rest" as they were allowed to live in their own land for the number of years as there are days in a Sabbath year.

Note also that Nebuchadnezzar initially attacked in Jehoiakim's 3rd year82 , which was 10390, and that his last attack was in the year 10409, the last year of Zedekiah's reign and the last year of a 20 year interval. The same interval, that had marked the time from Solomon's temple in 10000 to the last year David's house was supported by the priests of the northern kingdom in 10019.83

1First Kings 15:19    
2First Chronicles 16:13    
3First Kings 15:33    
4First Kings 15:22    
5Second Chronicles 16:1    
6Second Chronicles 16:2    
7Second Chronicles 26:16 -21   
8Second Kings 15:1 -7   
9Second Chronicles 12:13    
10First Kings 14:21    
11Second Chronicles 12:13    
12First Kings 15:1    
13Second Chronicles 13:1    
14First Kings 15:10    
15Second Chronicles 16:13    
16First Kings 22:24    
17First Kings 22:24    
18Second Chronicles 20:34    
19Second Kings 8:17    
20Second Chronicles 21:5    
21Second Kings 8:17    
22Second Chronicles 21:5    
23Second Kings 8:25    
24Second Chronicles 27:2    
25Second Kings 8:26    
26Second Chronicles 22:2    
27Second Kings 11:6    
28Second Chronicles 22:12    
29Second Kings 11:21    
30Second Chronicles 24:1    
31Second Kings 12:1    
32Second Chronicles 24:1    
33Second Kings 14:2    
34Second Chronicles 25:1    
35Second Kings 14:2    
36Second Chronicles 25:1    
37Second Kings 15:2    
38Second Chronicles 26:3    
39Second Kings 15:2    
40Second Chronicles 26:3    
41Second Kings 15:32    
42Second Chronicles 27:1 8   
43Second Kings 15:32    
44Second Chronicles 27:1 8   
45Second Kings 16:2    
46Second Chronicles 28:1    
47Second Kings 16:2    
48Second Chronicles 28:1    
49Second Kings 18:2    
50Second Chronicles 29:1    
51Second Kings 18:2    
52Second Chronicles 29:1    
53Second Kings 21:1    
54Second Chronicles 1    
55Second Kings 21:1    
56Second Chronicles 1    
57Second Kings 21:9    
58Second Chronicles 21    
59Second Kings 21:9    
60Second Chronicles 21    
61Second Kings 22:1    
62Second Chronicles 34:1    
63Second Kings 21:9    
64Second Chronicles 21    
65Second Kings 23:31    
66Second Chronicles 36:5    
67Second Kings 23:31    
68Second Chronicles 36:5    
69Second Kings 23:36    
70Second Chronicles 35:5    
71Second Kings 23:36    
72Second Chronicles 35:5    
73Second Kings 24:8    
74Second Chronicles 36:9    
75Second Kings 24:8    
76Second Chronicles 36:9    
77Second Kings 24:18    
78Second Chronicles 36:11    
79Second Kings 24:18    
80Second Chronicles 36:11    
81Second Chronicles 1:17    
82Daniel 1:1    
83Second Chronicles 1:17    
 

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