And Solomon the son of David strengthened himself concerning his kingdom, and Yahweh his God [was] with him and made him exceedingly great.

And Solomon and the whole assembly with him went to the high place that [was] at Gibeon, for the tent of assembly of God that Moses the servant of Yahweh had made in the desert was there.

And the bronze altar that Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, had made [was] there before the tabernacle of Yahweh. And Solomon and the assembly sought it out.

And Solomon went up there to the bronze altar before Yahweh, which [was] at the tent of assembly, and he offered upon it a thousand burnt offerings.

Now, O Yahweh God, let your word to David my father be fulfilled, for you yourself have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth.

And Solomon planned to build a house for the name of Yahweh and a {royal palace for himself}.

Look, I am building a house for the name of Yahweh my God to dedicate to him, to offer sweet spices of incense before him, and [for] the regular rows [of bread], and burnt offerings for mornings, evenings, Sabbaths, and new moon festivals, and for appointed feasts of Yahweh our God which [are] everlasting for Israel.

Then Huram king of Tyre answered in a letter, and he sent [word] to Solomon: "Because Yahweh loves his people, he has made you king over them."

Then Huram said, "Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, who has made the heavens and the earth, who has given to King David a wise son knowing discretion and understanding, who will build for Yahweh a house and a royal palace for himself.

Then Solomon began to build the house of Yahweh in Jerusalem, on Mount Moriah, where Yahweh had appeared to David his father, at the place that David had established, on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

And Huram-abi made for King Solomon the pots, the shovels, the three-pronged meat forks, and all the utensils of polished bronze for the house of Yahweh.

When all the work that Solomon did for the house of Yahweh was finished, Solomon brought the holy objects of David his father: the silver, the gold, and all the objects he had put into the storehouses of the house of God.

Then Solomon assembled all the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the {families} for the {Israelites}, to Jerusalem in order to bring up the ark of the covenant of Yahweh from the city of David, which [is] Zion.

Then the priests brought up the ark of the covenant of Yahweh to its place in the inner sanctuary of the house, into {the most holy place}, underneath the wings of the cherubim.

There was nothing in the ark but the two stone tablets that Moses had put [inside] at Horeb [on] which Yahweh had {made} a covenant with the {Israelites} when they went out from Egypt.

And it was the primary [duty] of the trumpeters and singers to make themselves heard [with] one voice, to praise and give thanks to Yahweh. And when a sound from the trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments of song was raised to Yahweh--for he [is] good, because his loyal love [is] everlasting--then the house, the house of Yahweh, was filled with a cloud.

And the priests were not able to stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of Yahweh filled the house of God.

Then Solomon said, "Yahweh has decided to dwell in the deep gloom.

And he said, "Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, who spoke with his mouth with David my father, and with his hands he has fulfilled [it], saying,

Now, it was in the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel.

But Yahweh said to David my father, 'Because it was in your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your heart,

Now Yahweh has fulfilled his word that he spoke. I have risen in the place of David my father and am seated on the throne of Israel as Yahweh has spoken. I have built the house for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel.

And I have there the ark [in] which [is] the covenant of Yahweh that he {made} with the {Israelites}."

Then Solomon stood before the altar of Yahweh before all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands.

And he said, "O Yahweh, God of Israel, there is none like you, a God in the heavens and on the earth, keeping the covenant and loyal love with your servants who walk before you with all their heart,

And now, O Yahweh, God of Israel, keep for your servant David, my father, what you have spoken to him, saying, '{You shall not lack} a man to sit on the throne of Israel before me, if only your sons keep their way, to walk in my law as you have walked before me.'

And now, O Yahweh, God of Israel, let your word that you have spoken to your servant David be confirmed.

But turn to the prayer of your servant and to his plea, O Yahweh my God, to hearken to the pleading and to the prayer that your servant is praying before you,

"And now arise, O Yahweh God, to your resting place, you and the ark of your strength! O Yahweh God, let the priests be clothed with salvation, and let your holy ones rejoice in your goodness!

O Yahweh God, do not turn away the face of your anointed one! Remember the loyal love of your servant, David!"

And when Solomon finished praying, then fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of Yahweh filled the house.

And the priests were not able to go into the house of Yahweh, for the glory of Yahweh had filled the house.

When all the {Israelites} saw the fire come down and the glory of Yahweh upon the house, they knelt down [with their] faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to Yahweh, for [he is] good, for his loyal love [is] everlasting.

Then the king and all the people were offering a sacrifice before Yahweh.

And the priests stood at their posts with the Levites, with the instruments of the song of Yahweh that King David had made to give thanks to Yahweh--for his loyal love [is] everlasting--whenever David offered praise by their hand. Now the priests sounded trumpets [standing] opposite them, and all Israel stood.

And Solomon consecrated the middle of the courtyard that [was] before the house of Yahweh, for there he had made the burnt offerings and the fat of the fellowship offerings, for the bronze altar that Solomon had made was not able to hold the burnt offerings, cereal offerings, and the fat.

And on the twenty-third day of the seventh month he sent the people away to their tents rejoicing and festive of heart on account of the goodness that Yahweh had done for David, Solomon, and Israel his people.

And Solomon finished the house of Yahweh and the house of the king. And all that came into the heart of Solomon to do with respect to the house of Yahweh and his own house he accomplished.

Then Yahweh appeared to Solomon at night and said to him, "I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a house of sacrifice.

And [as for] this house, which was exalted, all who pass by it will be appalled and will say, 'Why has Yahweh done thus to this land and to this house?'

Then they will say, 'Because they forsook Yahweh, the God of their ancestors, who brought them out from the land of Egypt, and [they] laid hold of other gods and worshiped them and served them. Therefore he has brought upon them all this evil.'"

And it happened [that] at the end of twenty years [in] which Solomon had built the house of Yahweh and his own house,

And Solomon brought up the daughter of Pharaoh from the city of David to the house that he had built for her, for he said, "My wife shall not dwell in the house of David, king of Israel, for those [places] to which the ark of Yahweh has come [are] holy.

Then Solomon offered burnt offerings to Yahweh on the altar of Yahweh that he had built before the portico,

And Solomon accomplished all the work from the day the foundation stone [was laid for] the house of Yahweh until its completion, and the house of Yahweh was finished.

and the food of his table, and the position of his officers, the duty of his servants and their clothing, his cupbearers and their clothing, and his burnt offerings that he offered at the house of Yahweh, there was no longer any breath in her.

Blessed be Yahweh your God who took delight in you, to put you on his throne as king for Yahweh your God! Because your God loved Israel, he established him forever and has put you over them as king to do justice and righteousness!"

And the king made steps for the house of Yahweh and the house of the king, and lyres and harps for the singers [from] the algum wood. And there was not seen [anything] like them before in the land of Judah.

So the king did not listen to the people, for it was a turning [of events] from God, so that Yahweh might fulfill his word that he had spoken by the hand of Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat.

But the word of Yahweh came to Shemaiah, the man of God, saying,

'Thus says Yahweh: "Do not go up, and do not fight against your brothers. Return, each man to his house, for this matter has come from me." '" So they obeyed the words of Yahweh and turned back from going against Jeroboam.

For the Levites left their pasturelands and their property and came to Judah and to Jerusalem, for Jeroboam and his sons had rejected them from serving as priests to Yahweh.

Then after them, from all the tribes of Israel, those who set their heart to seek Yahweh, the God of Israel, came to Jerusalem to offer to Yahweh, the God of their ancestors.

And when the kingdom of Rehoboam was established and when he was strengthened, he forsook the law of Yahweh, and all Israel with him.

And it happened [that] in the fifth year of King Rehoboam (for they had acted unfaithfully against Yahweh), Shishak the king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem

Then Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and the princes of Judah who had gathered at Jerusalem from before Shishak. And he said to them, "Thus says Yahweh: 'You yourselves have abandoned me, and I myself have surely abandoned you into the hand of Shishak.'"

Then the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, "Yahweh [is] righteous."

And when Yahweh saw that they humbled themselves, the word of Yahweh came to Shemaiah, saying, "They have humbled themselves; I will not destroy. I will give to them some way of escape, that my anger not be poured out against Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak.

Then Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, and he took the treasures out of the house of Yahweh and the treasures out of the king's house. He took everything. He also took the small shields of gold that Solomon had made.

And whenever the king went into the house of Yahweh, the guards came and carried them, and then they returned them to the alcove of the guards.

And when he humbled himself, the anger of Yahweh was turned away from him, so that he did not destroy [the city] completely. Moreover, matters were well in Judah.

So King Rehoboam was strengthened in Jerusalem, and he reigned [there]. Now, Rehoboam [was] forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city where Yahweh had chosen to put his name out of all the tribes of Israel. And the name of his mother [was] Naamah the Ammonite.

And he did evil, for he did not set his heart to seek Yahweh.

Do you not all know that Yahweh the God of Israel gave the kingdom to David over Israel forever, to him and to his sons [by] a covenant of salt?

So now you yourselves are considering [that you are] strong before the kingdom of Yahweh [which is] in the hand the sons of David, since you yourselves are a great multitude and you have bull calves of gold that Jeroboam has made for idols.

Did you not drive out the priests of Yahweh, the sons of Aaron, the Levites? Have you [not] made for yourselves priests like all the peoples of the lands? All who come {to be consecrated for priestly service} with a young bull or seven rams becomes a priest of [what is] not a god.

But as for us, Yahweh [is] our God, and we have not forsaken him. The priests serving Yahweh [are] the sons of Aaron, the Levites, according to their service.

They offer burnt offerings to Yahweh {every morning} and {every evening}, sweet spices of incense, and the rows of bread upon the pure table. And the golden lampstand with its lamps [they] keep kindled {every evening}, for we are keeping the requirement of Yahweh our God, but you yourselves have forsaken him.

And look, God [is] with us at the head, and his priests [have] the trumpets for sounding blasts against you, O sons of Israel. Do not fight against Yahweh, the God of your ancestors, for you will not succeed."

When Judah turned, then behold, the battle against them [was] in front and behind, and they cried to Yahweh, and the priests blew on the trumpets.

And the {Israelites} were subdued at that time, and the people of Judah were victorious, for they relied upon Yahweh the God of their ancestors.

And Jeroboam did not regain strength again in the days of Abijah. And Yahweh plagued him and he died.

Asa did that which [was] good and right in the eyes of Yahweh his God.

And he commanded Judah to seek Yahweh, the God of their ancestors, and to keep the law and the commandment.

And he built fortified cities in Judah, for the land was at rest. Under him there was no war in those years, for Yahweh had given rest to him.

And he said to Judah, "Let us build these cities and surround [them with] walls, towers, gates, and bars while the land [is] before us, because we have sought Yahweh our God. We have sought and he has given rest to us on every side." So they built and had success.

Then Asa cried out to Yahweh his God. And he said, "O Yahweh, there is none with you to help between the great and the powerless. Help us, O Yahweh our God, for we rely upon you, and in your name we have come against this multitude. O Yahweh, you [are] our God! Let no man prevail against you!"

So Yahweh defeated the Cushites before Asa and before Judah, and the Cushites fled.

Then Asa and the army with him pursued them to Gerar. And [many] from the Cushites fell, for they had no deliverance, for they were shattered before Yahweh and before his army. And they carried away much war booty.

And they struck all the cities around Gerar, for the fear of Yahweh was upon them. And they plundered all the cities, for there was much plunder in them.

And he went out before Asa and said to him, "Hear me, O Asa and all of Judah and Benjamin! Yahweh [is] with you while you are with him. And if you will seek him he will be found by you. But if you forsake him he will forsake you.

but at its trouble he returned to Yahweh, the God of Israel. They sought him, and he was found by them.

And when Asa heard these words, the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he took courage and removed the vile idols from all the lands of Judah and Benjamin, and from the cities that he had taken in the hill country of Ephraim, and he repaired the altar of Yahweh that was in front of the portico of Yahweh.

And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin and those sojourning with them, from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon, for many had deserted to him from Israel when they saw that Yahweh his God [was] with him.

And they sacrificed to Yahweh on that day from the war booty they brought back: seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep.

And they entered into a covenant to seek Yahweh, the God of their ancestors, with all their heart and with all their inmost being,

but all who will not seek Yahweh the God of Israel should be killed, from young to old, from men to women.

And they took an oath to Yahweh with a great voice, with shouting, with trumpets, and with horns.

And all Judah rejoiced over the oath, for they swore with all their heart. And they sought him with their whole desire, and he was found by them, and Yahweh gave rest to them all around.

Then Asa brought out silver and gold from the storehouses of the house of Yahweh and the house of the king, and he sent [them] to Ben-Hadad, king of Aram, who lived in Damascus, saying,

And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him, "On account of your reliance upon the king of Aram, and [since] you did not rely on Yahweh your God, therefore the troops of the king of Aram escaped from your hand.

Were not the Cushites and Libyans a mighty army with very abundant chariots and horsemen? And because of your reliance on Yahweh he gave them into your hand.

For the eyes of Yahweh roam throughout all the earth to strengthen those whose heart is fully devoted to him. You have been foolish in this, for from now on you will have wars."

And in the thirty-ninth year of his reign, he fell {severely} ill in his feet. But even in his illness he did not seek Yahweh, but [only] among the healers.

And Yahweh was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the former ways of David his father and did not seek after the Baals,

So Yahweh established the kingdom in his hand. And all Judah gave tribute to Jehoshaphat, and he had much wealth and honor.

And his heart was courageous in the ways of Yahweh. Moreover, he removed the high places and the Asherahs from Judah.

And they taught in Judah, and the scroll of the law of Yahweh [was] with them when they went around in all the cities of Judah, and they taught the people.

And the fear of Yahweh was upon all the kingdoms of the lands surrounding Judah, and they did not make war against Jehoshaphat.

and at his side, Amasiah the son of Zicri, who had made a freewill offering to Yahweh, and with him [were] two hundred thousand mighty armed warriors.