Rehoboam רחבעם

Rehoboam became king at forty-one and reigned seventeen years. The people came to Shechem to ask that his father's burden be lightened; the elders advised yielding, his young companions advised a harder answer. He chose the second: «My father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions» (1 Kings 12:11). Ten tribes departed, and only Judah and Benjamin remained to the house of David.

He gathered an army to march north, but the prophet Shemaiah stopped him with the words «do not go up and do not fight against your brothers» — and the army dispersed (1 Kings 12:24). In the fifth year of his reign Shishak, king of Egypt, came up against Jerusalem and took the treasures of the Temple and the palace, including Solomon's golden shields; Rehoboam replaced them with bronze. His reign was AM 2964–2981 traditionally, 931–913 BCE by the academic count.