2 Chronicles 12:13-16·~1 min

Rehoboam’s Reign and Death

Rehoboam reigns seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the LORD chose for his Name, yet the verdict on his rule is plain: he does evil because he does not set his heart to seek the LORD.

T¹³hus King Rehoboam established himself in Jerusalem and reigned. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the LORD had chosen from all the tribes of Israel in which to put His Name. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite. ¹⁴And Rehoboam did evil because he did not set his heart to seek the LORD.

The record of Rehoboam’s acts is preserved in prophetic writings, and his reign remains marked by war with Jeroboam. He dies, is buried in the City of David, and Abijah succeeds him.

¹⁵Now the acts of Rehoboam, from first to last, are they not written in the records of Shemaiah the Prophet and of Iddo the Seer concerning the genealogies? There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam throughout their days. ¹⁶And Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David. And his son Abijah reigned in his place.

Section summaryThe chapter closes with a brief notice of Rehoboam’s reign in Jerusalem and its final assessment. For all his stability and long rule, the judgment falls on the bent of his heart: he does evil because he does not set himself to seek the LORD.

Role in the chapterThis final section steps back from the invasion to place Rehoboam’s whole reign under a single verdict. It closes the chapter in the Chronicler’s usual way, with record, warfare, burial, and succession, but centers the moral measure of the king.