Page 248 - Bible History

THE DIVISION OF SOLOMON'S KINGDOM 221
rebels to obey him, but the prophet Se­ meias forbade him to do so. .Roboam obeyed the prophet. The tribes of Juda and Benjamin remained loyal to Roboam, but the o the r t en tribes made Jeroboam
theirking. Theyfell into idolatry and worshiped false gods, so the Levites left their territory and allied them­ selves with Roboam. Roboam now forti­

ed the towns of
Juda and Benjamin,
which were all that
was left to him of
the great kingdom of hi s father. Henceforth it was known as the Kingdom of Juda. The kingdom which Jeroboam set up was known as the Kingdom of Israel.
Jeroboam would not permit the people of the ten Jeroboam tribes to worship in the Temple at Jerusalem. He :! thought it was necessary to keep them from the Tem-
ple ni order to keep them attached to himself. To
make the division of the tribes lasting, he founded a
©
1931, BY BENZIQEA BROTHE
THE KINGDOMS OF ISRAEL AND JUDA