1 Kings 11:26
in 1 Kings 11Now Jeroboam son of Nebat was an Ephraimite from Zeredah whose mother was a widow named Zeruah. Jeroboam was a servant of Solomon, but he rebelled against the king,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah, a servant of Solomon, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow, he also lifted up his hand against the king.
KJV
And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon’s servant, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king.
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This verse in 1 Kings 11
Commentary
6 notes on this verseAnd Jeroboam the son of Nebat,.... According to some Jewish writers (r), this was Sheba the son of Bichri; but, as Kimchi observes, he was of the tribe of Benjamin, this of Ephraim; and besides, his head was cut off, and thrown over the wall to Joab, 2Sa 20:1, an Ephrathite of Zereda; some where in the tribe of Ephraim, but nowhere else mentioned.
This site's exposition
Jeroboam the son of Nebat
on 1 Kings 11:26-28
Jeroboam is introduced by tribe, town, and a widow's son's poverty, then by Solomon's own promotion of him, ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph, on the strength of his industry. The third adversary is not foreign but homegrown, raised by the king's own hand before he is raised against it. Solomon builds Millo and repairs the breaches of the city of David in these same verses, public works that will shortly be paid for in forced labor, the grievance Jeroboam's own tribe carries into chapter 12.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
He was of the tribe of Ephraim, he next in honour to Judah. His mother was a widow, to whom Providence had made up the loss of a husband in a son that was active and ingenious, and (we may suppose) a great support and comfort to her.
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
He was a young man of talent and energy, who, having been appointed by Solomon superintendent of the engineering works projected around Jerusalem, had risen into public notice, and on being informed by a very significant act of the prophet Ahijah of the royal destiny which, by divine appointment, awaited him, his mind took a new turn.
Jeroboam the son of Nebat - From the context we learn that Jeroboam while a young man was employed by Solomon to superintend the improvements and buildings at Millo, and had so distinguished himself there by his industry and good conduct as to attract general notice, and to induce Solomon to set him over all the laborers employed in that work, belonging to the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, called here the house of Joseph.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Zereda - See Jdg 7:22. Lifted up his hand against the king - i. e., “he rebelled.” Compare marginal reference.
The words behind it
16 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְיָרָבְעָם֩ | veyaraveam | and Jeroboam | H3379 → | 104 times |
| בֶּן־ | ben- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| נְבָ֨ט | nevat | Nebat | H5028 → | 25 times |
| אֶפְרָתִ֜י | ʾefrati | an Ephrathite | H673 → | |
| מִן־ | min- | from | H4480 → | 1188 times |
| הַצְּרֵדָ֗ה | hatzeredah | <the> Zeredah | H6868 → | |
| וְשֵׁ֤ם | veshem | and [the] name of | H8034 → | 864 times |
| אִמּוֹ֙ | ʾimo | mother his | H517 → | 220 times |
| צְרוּעָה֙ | tzeruah | [was] Zeruah | H6871 → | |
| אִשָּׁ֣ה | ʾishah | a woman | H802 → | 781 times |
| אַלְמָנָ֔ה | ʾalmanah | a widow | H490 → | 56 times |
| עֶ֖בֶד | ʾeved | a servant | H5650 → | 799 times |
| לִשְׁלֹמֹ֑ה | lishlomoh | of Solomon | H8010 → | 291 times |
| וַיָּ֥רֶם | vaiyarem | and he raised | H7311 → | 190 times |
| יָ֖ד | yad | a hand | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| בַּמֶּֽלֶךְ׃ | bamelekh | on the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
וְיָרָבְעָם֩and Jeroboam
veyaraveamH3379 →104 times
בֶּן־[the] son of
ben-H1121 →4930 times
נְבָ֨טNebat
nevatH5028 →25 times
אֶפְרָתִ֜יan Ephrathite
ʾefratiH673 →
מִן־from
min-H4480 →1188 times
הַצְּרֵדָ֗ה<the> Zeredah
hatzeredahH6868 →
וְשֵׁ֤םand [the] name of
veshemH8034 →864 times
אִמּוֹ֙mother his
ʾimoH517 →220 times
צְרוּעָה֙[was] Zeruah
tzeruahH6871 →
אִשָּׁ֣הa woman
ʾishahH802 →781 times
אַלְמָנָ֔הa widow
ʾalmanahH490 →56 times
עֶ֖בֶדa servant
ʾevedH5650 →799 times
לִשְׁלֹמֹ֑הof Solomon
lishlomohH8010 →291 times
וַיָּ֥רֶםand he raised
vaiyaremH7311 →190 times
יָ֖דa hand
yadH3027 →1618 times
בַּמֶּֽלֶךְ׃on the king
bamelekhH4428 →2525 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Samuel 1:1Now there was a man named Elkanah who was from Ramathaim-zophim in the hill country of Ephraim. He was the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of…
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 6:34
Heman the singer, the son of Joel, the son of Samuel, the son of Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Eliel, the son of Toah,
- 1 Chronicles 6:25–27
The descendants of Elkanah:
- 1 Samuel 1:19
The next morning Elkanah and Hannah got up early to bow in worship before the LORD, and then returned home to Ramah. And Elkanah had relations with his wife Hannah, and the LORD remembered…
- Judges 17:1
Now a man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim
- Ruth 1:2
The man’s name was Elimelech, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah, and they entered the land of…
- 1 Chronicles 6:34
Through
1 Kings 12:2When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard about this, he was still in Egypt where he had fled from King Solomon and had been living ever since.
it leads to
- 1 Kings 11:40
Solomon therefore sought to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose and fled to Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, where he remained until the death of Solomon.
- 1 Kings 11:40
Through
1 Kings 11:28Now Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor. So when Solomon noticed that the young man was industrious, he put him in charge of the whole labor force of the house of Joseph.
it leads to
- Proverbs 22:29
Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will be stationed in the presence of kings; he will not stand before obscure men.
- Proverbs 22:29
Through
Ruth 1:2The man’s name was Elimelech, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah, and they entered the land of…
it leads to
- Genesis 35:19
So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).
- Genesis 35:19
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About 1 Kings

Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); F. W. Farrar, The First Book of Kings (Expositor's Bible); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
