王上12:1 罗波安往示剑去，因为以色列众人都到了示剑，要立他作王。
王上12:1 And Rehoboam went to Shechem, where all Israel had come together to make him king,
王上12:2 尼八的儿子耶罗波安那时因逃避所罗门的面，仍然住在埃及，他听见了这事。
王上12:2 And, hearing of it, Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who was still in Egypt, where he had gone in flight from Solomon, and was living there, came back to his town Zeredah, in the hill-country of Ephraim;
王上12:3 以色列人就派遣人去请他来，于是耶罗波安和以色列全体会众都来见罗波安，告诉他说：
王上12:3 And all the men of Israel came to Rehoboam and said,
王上12:4 “你父亲加给我们的重担，现在求你减轻你父亲使我们作的苦工和加在我们背上的重担，我们就服事你。”
王上12:4 Your father put a hard yoke on us: if you will make the conditions under which your father kept us down less cruel, and the weight of the yoke he put on us less hard, then we will be your servants.
王上12:5 罗波安回答他们：“你们暂时回去，三天以后再来见我。”众民就离开了。
王上12:5 And he said to them, Go away for three days and then come back to me again. So the people went away.
王上12:6 罗波安王请教他父亲所罗门在世的时候，侍立在他面前的长老说：“你们给我出个主意，我应该怎样回答这民呢？”
王上12:6 Then King Rehoboam took the opinion of the old men who had been with Solomon his father when he was living, and said, In your opinion, what answer am I to give to this people?
王上12:7 长老对他说：“今天如果王作这民的仆人，服事他们，用好话回答他们，他们就常作王的仆人。”
王上12:7 And they said to him, If you will be a servant to this people today, caring for them and giving them a gentle answer, then they will be your servants for ever.
王上12:8 可是王拒绝了老年人给他出的主意，反去请教那些与他一起长大，侍立在他面前的年轻人，
王上12:8 But he gave no attention to the opinion of the old men, and went to the young men of his generation who were waiting before him:
王上12:9 问他们：“你们的主意怎样，我应该怎样回复这民？他们对我说：‘请你减轻你父亲加在我们身上的重担。’”
王上12:9 And said to them, What is your opinion? What answer are we to give to this people who have said to me, Make less the weight of the yoke which your father put on us?
王上12:10 那些与他一同长大的年轻人回答他：“这民对王说：‘你父亲加重我们的重担，现在求你减轻我们的重担。’你要这样回答他们：‘我的小指头比我父亲的腰还粗！
王上12:10 And the young men of his generation said to him, This is the answer to give to the people who came to you saying, Your father put a hard yoke on us; will you make it less? say to them, My little finger is thicker than my father's body;
王上12:11 我父亲把一个重担加在你们身上，我要使你们负更重的重担；我父亲用鞭子责打你们，我要用蝎子鞭责打你们。’”
王上12:11 If my father put a hard yoke on you, I will make it harder: my father gave you punishment with whips, but I will give you blows with snakes.
王上12:12 耶罗波安和众民，照王所说“三天以后再来见我”的那话，第三天来见罗波安。
王上12:12 So all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day, as the king had given orders, saying, Come back to me the third day.
王上12:13 王严厉地回答众人。他拒绝了老年人给他所出的主意，
王上12:13 And the king gave them a rough answer, giving no attention to the suggestion of the old men;
王上12:14 却照着年轻人给他所出的主意，对他们说：“我父亲加重你们所负的重担，我要使你们负更重的重担；我父亲用鞭子责打你们，我要用蝎子鞭责打你们。”
王上12:14 But giving them the answer put forward by the young men, saying, My father made your yoke hard, but I will make it harder; my father gave you punishment with whips, but I will give it with snakes.
王上12:15 王不肯听从民众的请求，因为这个转变是出于耶和华，为要应验他藉示罗人亚希雅对尼八的儿子耶罗波安所说的话。
王上12:15 So the king did not give ear to the people; and this came about by the purpose of the Lord, so that what he had said by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam, son of Nebat, might be effected.
王上12:16 以色列众人见王不肯听从他们的请求，就回答王说：“我们在大卫里面有什么分呢？我们在耶西的儿子里面也没有产业；以色列人哪，回你们自己的家去吧！大卫啊，照顾你自己的家吧！”于是以色列人都回自己的家去了。
王上12:16 And when all Israel saw that the king would give no attention to them, the people in answer said to the king, What part have we in David? what is our heritage in the son of Jesse? to your tents, O Israel; now see to your people, David. So Israel went away to their tents.
王上12:17 不过住在犹大各城的以色列人，罗波安仍然作他们的王。
王上12:17 (But Rehoboam was still king over those of the children of Israel who were living in the towns of Judah.)
王上12:18 罗波安王差派掌管作苦工之人的亚多兰往以色列人那里去，以色列众人却用石头打死他。罗波安王急忙上车逃回耶路撒冷去了。
王上12:18 Then King Rehoboam sent Adoniram, the overseer of the forced work; and he was stoned to death by all Israel. And King Rehoboam went quickly and got into his carriage to go in flight to Jerusalem.
王上12:19 这样，以色列人背叛了大卫家，直到今日。
王上12:19 So Israel was turned away from the family of David to this day.
王上12:20 以色列众人听说耶罗波安回来了，就派人去请他到会众面前，立他作以色列的王；除了犹大支派以外，没有跟随大卫家的。
王上12:20 Now when all Israel had news that Jeroboam had come back, they sent for him to come before the meeting of the people, and made him king over Israel: not one of them was joined to the family of David but only the tribe of Judah.
王上12:21 罗波安来到耶路撒冷，就召集了犹大全家和便雅悯支派精选的战士十八万人，要与以色列家争战，好把国夺回，重归所罗门的儿子罗波安。
王上12:21 When Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he got together all the men of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand of his best fighting-men, to make war against Israel and get the kingdom back for Rehoboam, the son of Solomon.
王上12:22 但是， 神的话临到神人示玛雅，说：
王上12:22 But the word of God came to Shemaiah, the man of God, saying,
王上12:23 “你去告诉所罗门王的儿子犹大王罗波安、犹大全家和便雅悯，以及其余的人民，说：
王上12:23 Say to Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the men of Judah and Benjamin and the rest of the people:
王上12:24 ‘耶和华这样说：你们不可上去，不可与你们的兄弟以色列人争战。你们各自回家去吧！因为这事是出于我。’”众人就听从了耶和华的话，照着耶和华的话回家去了。
王上12:24 The Lord has said, You are not to go to war against your brothers, the children of Israel; go back, every man to his house, because this thing is my purpose. So they gave ear to the word of the Lord, and went back, as the Lord had said.
王上12:25 耶罗波安在以法莲山地修筑了示剑城，就住在城中，又从那里出去，修建了毗努伊勒。
王上12:25 Then Jeroboam made the town of Shechem in the hill-country of Ephraim a strong place, and was living there; and from there he went out and did the same to Penuel.
王上12:26 耶罗波安心里说：“现在这国仍然要归回大卫家。
王上12:26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now the kingdom will go back to the family of David:
王上12:27 这民若是上去，在耶路撒冷耶和华的殿里献祭，这民的心就必归向他们的主犹大王罗波安，他们必把我杀了，然后回到犹大王罗波安那里去。”
王上12:27 If the people go up to make offerings in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, their heart will be turned again to their lord, to Rehoboam, king of Judah; and they will put me to death and go back to Rehoboam, king of Judah.
王上12:28 王打定了主意，就做了两个金牛犊，对众民说：“以色列人哪，你们上耶路撒冷去实在够了。看哪，这是你们的神，就是从埃及地领你们上来的那位。”
王上12:28 So after taking thought the king made two oxen of gold; and he said to the people, You have been going up to Jerusalem long enough; see! these are your gods, O Israel, who took you out of the land of Egypt.
王上12:29 他就把一个牛犊安放在伯特利，一个安放在但。
王上12:29 And he put one in Beth-el and the other in Dan.
王上12:30 这事成了以色列人的罪，因为众民都到但那个牛犊面前敬拜。
王上12:30 And this became a sin in Israel; for the people went to give worship to the one at Beth-el, and to the other at Dan.
王上12:31 耶罗波安在邱坛那里建殿，把不是利未子孙的平民立为祭司。
王上12:31 And he made places for worship at the high places, and made priests, who were not Levites, from among all the people.
王上12:32 耶罗波安又定了八月十五日为节期，像在犹大的节期一样，他自己在祭坛上献祭，他在伯特利也是这样向他所铸造的牛犊献祭；他又在伯特利为他所建造的邱坛设立祭司。
王上12:32 And Jeroboam gave orders for a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like the feast which is kept in Judah, and he went up to the altar. And in the same way, in Beth-el, he gave offerings to the oxen which he had made, placing in Beth-el the priests of the high places he had made.
王上12:33 八月十五日，就是他心里私定作为以色列人节期的日子，他在伯特利在自己所建的祭坛上献祭烧香。
王上12:33 He went up to the altar he had made in Beth-el on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, the month fixed by him at his pleasure; and he gave orders for a feast for the people of Israel, and went up to the altar, and there he made the smoke of his offerings go up.