1 Kings 12:4

1 Kings 12:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.
• New International Version (NIV)“Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)"Your father made our yoke heavy. Now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke on us, and we will serve you."
• New King James Version (NKJV)“Your father made our yoke heavy; now therefore, lighten the burdensome service of your father, and his heavy yoke which he put on us, and we will serve you.”

Context of 1 Kings 12:4

2At this time, Nebat's son Jeroboam was still in Egypt. He had been living there since he ran away from King Solomon. When he heard the news about Rehoboam, he returned home. 3The Israelites sent a message to Jeroboam to meet with them. Then Jeroboam and the whole group of Israelites went to speak to Rehoboam. They said to him, ‘Your father caused us to work too hard. Please make the work easier for us. If you do that, we will serve you as our king.’ 5Rehoboam answered them, ‘Go away for three days. Then come back to me.’ So the people went away. 6Then King Rehoboam went to talk to the older advisors who had served his father Solomon. He asked them, ‘What answer should I give to these people?’

1 Kings 12:4 word by word

אָבִ֖יךָ הִקְשָׁ֣ה אֶת־עֻלֵּ֑נוּ וְאַתָּ֡ה עַתָּ֣ה הָקֵל֩ מֵעֲבֹדַ֨ת אָבִ֜יךָ הַקָּשָׁ֗ה וּמֵעֻלּ֧וֹ הַכָּבֵ֛ד אֲשֶׁר־נָתַ֥ן עָלֵ֖ינוּ וְנַעַבְדֶֽךָּ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Thy fatherאָב'âb · fatherH1
• madeקָשָׁהqâshâh · to hardenH7185
• our yokeעֹל‛ôl ‛ôl · yokeH5923
• now therefore make thou the grievousקָשֶׁהqâsheh · severeH7186
• serviceעֲבֹדָה‛ăbôdâh ‛ăbôdâh · serviceH5656
• and his heavyכָּבֵדkâbêd · heavyH3515
• which he putנָתַןnâthan · to give: putH5414
• upon us, lighterקָלַלqâlal · to lightenH7043
• and we will serveעָבַד‛âbad · to serveH5647

Cross-references for 1 Kings 12:4

• 1 Kings 4:7Solomon had 12 officers with authority in the regions of Israel. They supplied food for the king and for the people who lived in his palace. Each officer had to supply food to the king for one month in each year.
• 1 Kings 9:15Solomon made people work on the buildings for him. This is how he used them to build the Lord's temple, the king's palace, the Millo and the wall around Jerusalem. They also did work on the towns called Hazor, Megiddo and Gezer.
• 1 Samuel 8:11Samuel said to them, ‘This is how the king will rule over you: He will take your sons to be his soldiers. They will ride his horses and they will drive his chariots. They will have to run in front of his own chariot.
• 2 Chronicles 10:4‘Your father caused us to work too hard. Please make the work easier for us. If you do that, we will serve you as our king.’
• Matthew 11:29Do what I teach you to do. Listen to my message and learn from me what is true. I am very kind and I do not make myself important. I will help you. Then you will have peace in your mind.
• Matthew 23:4The rules that they give you are difficult to obey. Their rules are like heavy luggage, which they make you carry. But they themselves will not help you to carry that luggage. They will not agree to use even one finger to help you.
• 1 John 5:3Because, if we really love God, we will obey his commands. And those commands are not difficult for us to obey.

Commentaries on 1 Kings 12:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4The grievous service - and - heavy yoke - They seem here to complain of two things - excessively laborious service, and a heavy taxation. At first it is supposed Solomon employed no Israelite in drudgery: afterwards, when he forsook the God of compassion, he seems to have used them as slaves, and to have revived the Egyptian bondage.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4The complaint was probably twofold. The Israelites no doubt complained in part of the heavy weight of taxation laid upon them for the maintenance of the monarch and his court 1 Kings 4:19-23. But their chief grievance was the forced labor to which they had been subjected 1 Kings 5:13-14; 1 Kings 11:28. Forced labor has been among the causes leading to insurrection in many ages and countries. It helped to bring about the French Revolution, and it was for…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4the burden of your father’s service and the heavy yoke: See 1 Kings 4:7, 22–23; 5:13–18; 9:20–23; 11:27–28.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. Thy father made our yoke grievous--The splendor of Solomon's court and the magnitude of his undertakings being such, that neither the tribute of dependent states, nor the presents of foreign princes, nor the profits of his commercial enterprises, were adequate to carry them on, he had been obliged, for obtaining the necessary revenue, to begin a system of heavy taxation. The people looked only to the burdens, not to the benefits they derived from…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Kings 12:4

• Government
• Israel
• Jeroboam
• Petition
• Rehoboam
• Revolt
• Rulers
• Solomon

In the dictionaries

• Add
• Consult
• Ephraim, The tribe of
• Heavy
• Israel, Kingdom of
• Jeroboam
• Ordain
• Rehoboam
• Scorpion
• Taxes

Commentaries on 1 Kings 12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings