Jeroboam son of Nebat ירבעם בן נבט
first king of the Northern Kingdom, who set up the golden calves
Yarovam was appointed by Solomon over the labour of the house of Yosef — «a man of valour», noticed for competence. The prophet Achiya of Shiloh met him in a field, tore his new cloak into twelve pieces and gave him ten: the kingdom would be split.
After Solomon's death in 2964 the ten tribes asked Rechavam to lighten their taxes; he answered harshly on his young advisers' counsel, and the people seceded. Yarovam became king of Israel.
His decisive calculation was political: if the people go up to Jerusalem three times a year, they will return to the house of David. So he set up two golden calves, at Beit-El and at Dan, saying «behold your gods, Israel». He shifted the festival calendar by a month and appointed priests who were not Levites.
The arrangement outlived him by two centuries: of almost every northern king Scripture repeats that he walked in the ways of Yarovam who made Israel sin. He reigned twenty-two years.