2 Chronicles 11

1 And Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, and he called Judah and Benjamin together — a hundred and eighty thousand young men fit for war — and he was making war against Israel, to bring the kingdom back to Rehoboam. 2 And the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying, 3 “Speak to Rehoboam son of Solomon, and to all Judah and Benjamin, saying: 4 ‘This is what the Lord says: You are not to go up, and you are not to make war against your brothers. Return, each man to his own house, for this thing has come from me.’” And they listened to the word of the Lord, and they turned back from going against Jeroboam.

5 And Rehoboam lived in Jerusalem, and he built walled cities in Judea. [a] 6 He built Bethlehem, and Etam, and Tekoa, 7 and Beth-zur, and Socoh, and Adullam, 8 and Gath, and Mareshah, and Ziph, 9 and Adoraim, and Lachish, and Azekah, 10 and Zorah, and Aijalon, and Hebron, which belongs to Judah and Benjamin — walled cities. [b]

11 And he fortified them with walls, and he put leaders in them, and stores of food, oil and wine, [c] 12 city by city, shields and spears; and he strengthened them very greatly. And Judah and Benjamin were his.

13 And the priests and the Levites who were in all Israel gathered to him out of all their territory; 14 for the Levites left the dwellings they held and went to Judah, to Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons had thrown them out from serving the Lord. [d] 15 And he appointed for himself priests of the high places, and for the idols, and for the empty things, and for the calves that Jeroboam made. [e] 16 And he drove them out from the tribes of Israel — those who had given their heart to seek the Lord, the God of Israel; and they came to Jerusalem to sacrifice to the Lord, the God of their fathers. 17 And they strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and they strengthened Rehoboam son of Solomon for three years, because he walked in the ways of David and Solomon for three years.

18 And Rehoboam took for himself as wife Mollath daughter of Jerimoth son of David, and Abaia daughter of Eliab son of Jesse. [f] 19 And she bore him sons: Jaus, and Samariah, and Roollam. [g] 20 And after this he took Maacah daughter of Absalom, and she bore him Abijah, and Jetthi, and Ziza, and Emmoth. [h] 21 And Rehoboam loved Maacah daughter of Absalom more than all his wives and his concubines — for he had eighteen wives and thirty concubines — and he fathered twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters. [i]

22 And Rehoboam appointed Abijah son of Maacah as ruler, as leader among his brothers, for he intended to make him king. 23 And he grew greater than all his sons in all the territory of Judah and Benjamin, and in the strong cities; and he gave those cities food in great abundance; and he asked for many wives. [j]