111 Now when Rehoboam had come to Jerusalem , he assembled the house of Judah and Benjamin , 180,000 e e chosen men who were warriors , to fight against Israel to restore the kingdom to Rehoboam . 2 But the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah the man of God , saying , 3 "Speak to Rehoboam the son of Solomon , king of Judah , and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin , saying , 4 'Thus says the Lord , "You shall not go up or fight against your relatives ; return every man to his house , for this thing is from Me.""' So they listened to the words of the Lord and returned from going against Jeroboam .

The Prosperity of Rehoboam

5 Rehoboam lived in Jerusalem and built cities for defense in Judah . 6 Thus he built Bethlehem , Etam , Tekoa , 7 Beth-zur , Soco , Adullam , 8 Gath , Mareshah , Ziph , 9 Adoraim , Lachish , Azekah , 10 Zorah , Aijalon and Hebron , which are fortified cities in Judah and in Benjamin . 11 He also strengthened the fortresses and put officers in them and stores of food , oil and wine . 12 He put shields and spears in every city and strengthened them greatly e . So he held Judah and Benjamin .

13 Moreover, the priests and the Levites who were in all Israel stood with him from all their districts . 14 For the Levites left their pasture lands and their property and came to Judah and Jerusalem , for Jeroboam and his sons had excluded them from serving as priests to the Lord . 15 He set up priests of his own for the high places , for the satyrs and for the calves which he had made . 16 Those from all the tribes of Israel who set their hearts on seeking the Lord God of Israel followed them to Jerusalem , to sacrifice to the Lord God of their fathers . 17 They strengthened the kingdom of Judah and supported Rehoboam the son of Solomon for three years , for they walked in the way of David and Solomon for three years . 18 Then Rehoboam took as a wife Mahalath the daughter of Jerimoth the son of David and of Abihail the daughter of Eliab the son of Jesse , 19 and she bore him sons : Jeush , Shemariah and Zaham . 20 After her he took Maacah the daughter of Absalom , and she bore him Abijah , Attai , Ziza and Shelomith . 21 Rehoboam loved Maacah the daughter of Absalom more than all his other wives and concubines . For he had taken eighteen e wives and sixty concubines and fathered twenty-eight e sons and sixty daughters . 22 Rehoboam appointed Abijah the son of Maacah as head and leader among his brothers , for he intended to make him king . 23 He acted wisely and distributed some of his sons through all the territories of Judah and Benjamin to all the fortified cities , and he gave them food in abundance . And he sought many wives for them.

Solomon Builds the House of the LORD

31 Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah , where the Lord had appeared to his father David , at the place that David had prepared on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite . 2 He began to build on the second day in the second month of the fourth year of his reign . 3 Now these are the foundations which Solomon laid for building the house of God . The length in cubits , according to the old standard was sixty cubits , and the width twenty cubits . 4 The porch which was in front of the house was as long as the width of the house , twenty cubits , and the height 120 e ; and inside e he overlaid it with pure gold . 5 He overlaid the main room with cypress wood and overlaid it with fine gold , and ornamented e it with palm trees and chains . 6 Further, he adorned the house with precious stones ; and the gold was gold from Parvaim . 7 He also overlaid the house with gold -the beams , the thresholds and its walls and its doors ; and he carved cherubim on the walls . 8 Now he made the room of the holy of holies : its length across e the width of the house was twenty cubits , and its width was twenty cubits ; and he overlaid it with fine gold , amounting to 600 e talents . 9 The weight of the nails was fifty shekels of gold . He also overlaid the upper rooms with gold .

10 Then he made two sculptured e cherubim in the room of the holy of holies and overlaid them with gold . 11 The wingspan of the cherubim was twenty cubits ; the wing of one , of five cubits , touched the wall of the house , and its other wing , of five cubits , touched the wing of the other cherub . 12 The wing of the other cherub , of five cubits , touched the wall of the house ; and its other wing of five cubits was attached to the wing of the first cherub . 13 The wings of these cherubim extended twenty cubits , and they stood on their feet facing the main room . 14 He made the veil of violet , purple , crimson and fine linen , and he worked cherubim on it.

The Two Pillars

15 He also made two pillars for the front of the house , thirty-five e cubits high , and the capital on the top of each was five cubits . 16 He made chains in the inner sanctuary and placed them on the tops of the pillars ; and he made one hundred pomegranates and placed them on the chains . 17 He erected the pillars in front of the temple , one on the right and the other on the left , and named e the one on the right Jachin and the one on the left Boaz .