Populist Revolt

(17) But Rehoboam continued to reign over the Israelites who lived in the towns of Judah. (18) King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was in charge of the forced labor, but all Israel pelted him to death with stones. Thereupon King Rehoboam hurriedly mounted his chariot and fled to Jerusalem. (19) Thus Israel revolted against the House of David, as is still the case.

(20) When all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent messengers and summoned him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the House of David. (21) On his return to Jerusalem, Rehoboam mustered all the House of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, 180,000 picked warriors, to fight against the House of Israel, in order to restore the kingship to Rehoboam son of Solomon. (22) But the word of God came to Shemaiah, the man of God: (23) “Say to King Rehoboam son of Solomon of Judah, and to all the House of Judah and Benjamin and the rest of the people: (24) Thus said the LORD: You shall not set out to make war on your kinsmen the Israelites. Let every man return to his home, for this thing has been brought about by Me.” They heeded the word of the LORD and turned back, in accordance with the word of the LORD.

(25) Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and resided there; he moved out from there and fortified Penuel. (26) Jeroboam said to himself, “Now the kingdom may well return to the House of David. (27) If these people still go up to offer sacrifices at the House of the LORD in Jerusalem, the heart of these people will turn back to their master, King Rehoboam of Judah; they will kill me and go back to King Rehoboam of Judah.” (28) So the king took counsel and made two golden calves. He said to the people, “You have been going up to Jerusalem long enough. This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!”

(3) They combined against Moses and Aaron and said to them, “You have gone too far! For all the community are holy, all of them, and the LORD is in their midst. Why then do you raise yourselves above the LORD’s congregation?” ... (6) Do this: You, Korah and all your band, take fire pans, (7) and tomorrow put fire in them and lay incense on them before the LORD. Then the man whom the LORD chooses, he shall be the holy one. You have gone too far, sons of Levi!”

(26) But the LORD was wrathful with me on your account and would not listen to me. The LORD said to me, “Enough! Never speak to Me of this matter again!

(4) This he took from them and cast in a mold, and made it into a molten calf. And they exclaimed, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt!”

Jeroboam's rhetoric convinced them: "Don't you know that the kingdom has been split by God's desire, as transmitted by Ahijah the Shilonite? Therefore, God has rejected the rule of the house of David and also Jerusalem, so we need an alternative place to worship." And why a calf? He said, "When Moses was absent and they sought an alternative, didn't Aaron create a calf upon which to rest God's presence? Now, in the absence of Jerusalem, let us make a calf to receive the Shechina".

(29) He set up one in Bethel and placed the other in Dan. (30) That proved to be a cause of guilt, for the people went to worship [the calf at Bethel and] the one at Dan.

(16) Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is present in this place, and I did not know it!” (17) Shaken, he said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the abode of God, and that is the gateway to heaven.” (18) Early in the morning, Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. (19) He named that site Bethel; but previously the name of the city had been Luz.

(1) God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel and remain there; and build an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.” (2) So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Rid yourselves of the alien gods in your midst, purify yourselves, and change your clothes. (3) Come, let us go up to Bethel, and I will build an altar there to the God who answered me when I was in distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.” (4) They gave to Jacob all the alien gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears, and Jacob buried them under the terebinth that was near Shechem. (5) As they set out, a terror from God fell on the cities round about, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. (6) Thus Jacob came to Luz—that is, Bethel—in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him. (7) There he built an altar and named the site El-bethel, for it was there that God had revealed Himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother.

(14) Here the five men who had gone to spy out the Laish region remarked to their kinsmen, “Do you know, there is an ephod in these houses, and teraphim, and a sculptured image and a molten image? Now you know what you have to do.” (15) So they turned off there and entered the home of the young Levite at Micah’s house and greeted him. (16) The six hundred Danite men, girt with their weapons of war, stood at the entrance of the gate, (17) while the five men who had gone to spy out the land went inside and took the sculptured image, the ephod, the teraphim, and the molten image. The priest was standing at the entrance of the gate, and the six hundred men girt with their weapons of war, (18) while those men entered Micah’s house and took the sculptured image, the molten image, the ephod, and the household gods. The priest said to them, “What are you doing?” (19) But they said to him, “Be quiet; put your hand on your mouth! Come with us and be our father and priest. Would you rather be priest to one man’s household or be priest to a tribe and clan in Israel?” (20) The priest was delighted. He took the ephod, the household gods, and the sculptured image, and he joined the people. (21) They set out again, placing the children, the cattle, and their household goods in front. (22) They had already gone some distance from Micah’s house, when the men in the houses near Micah’s mustered and caught up with the Danites. (23) They called out to the Danites, who turned around and said to Micah, “What’s the matter? Why have you mustered?” (24) He said, “You have taken my priest and the gods that I made, and walked off! What do I have left? How can you ask, ‘What’s the matter’?” (25) But the Danites replied, “Don’t do any shouting at us, or some desperate men might attack you, and you and your family would lose your lives.” (26) So Micah, realizing that they were stronger than he, turned back and went home; and the Danites went on their way, (27) taking the things Micah had made and the priest he had acquired. They proceeded to Laish, a people tranquil and unsuspecting, and they put them to the sword and burned down the town. (28) There was none to come to the rescue, for it was distant from Sidon and they had no dealings with anyone; it lay in the valley of Beth-rehob. They rebuilt the town and settled there, (29) and they named the town Dan, after their ancestor Dan who was Israel’s son. Originally, however, the name of the town was Laish. (30) The Danites set up the sculptured image for themselves; and Jonathan son of Gershom son of Manasseh, and his descendants, served as priests to the Danite tribe until the land went into exile. (31) They maintained the sculptured image that Micah had made throughout the time that the House of God stood at Shiloh.

(10) Each of them had a human face [at the front]; each of the four had the face of a lion on the right; each of the four had the face of an ox on the left; and each of the four had the face of an eagle [at the back].

(14) Each one had four faces: One was a cherub’s face, the second a human face, the third a lion’s face, and the fourth an eagle’s face.

(4) Before the Tabernacle was set up bamot (local altars) were permitted and the service was performed by the firstborn. After the Tabernacle was set up bamot were forbidden and the service was performed by priests...

(5) When they came to Gilgal, bamot (local altars) were [again] permitted....

(6) When they came to Shiloh, bamot were forbidden....

(7) When they came to Nov and to Givon, bamot were [again] permitted...

(8) When they came to Jerusalem, bamot were forbidden and were never again permitted, and that was the ‘inheritance’...

(31) He also made cult places and appointed priests from the ranks of the people who were not of Levite descent.

(13) The priests and the Levites, from all their territories throughout Israel, presented themselves to Reheboam (14) The Levites had left their pasturelands and their holdings and had set out for Judah and Jerusalem, for Jeroboam and his sons had prevented them from serving the LORD,

(32) He stationed at Bethel the priests of the shrines that he had appointed to sacrifice to the calves that he had made. And Jeroboam established a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month; in imitation of the festival in Judah, he established one at Bethel, and he ascended the altar [there]. (33) On the fifteenth day of the eighth month—the month in which he had contrived of his own mind to establish a festival for the Israelites—Jeroboam ascended the altar that he had made in Bethel.

The Gemara continues to cite explanations for the significance of the fifteenth of Av. Ulla says: The fifteenth of Av was the day when King Hoshea, son of Ela, removed the guards [pardesaot] that Jeroboam, son of Nevat, placed on the roads so that Israel would not ascend to Jerusalem for the pilgrimage Festival. By doing so, King Hoshea renewed the access to Jerusalem for pilgrims.

The Sages taught: King Hezekiah performed six innovative actions. With regard to three the Sages agreed with him, and with regard to three they did not agree with him. With regard to three actions the Sages agreed with him:...
He intercalated Nisan in Nisan, creating a leap year by adding an extra month during the month of Nisan. That intercalation must be performed before the end of Adar...