All these fighting men offered to serve in the army. Before they came to Hebron, they had agreed completely to make David king over all the Israelites. All the rest of the people also agreed to make David king.
Jeroboam heard about it. He was the son of Nebat. Jeroboam was in Egypt at that time. He had gone there for safety. He wanted to get away from King Solomon. But now he returned from Egypt.
Then he joined the members of his family who had already died. He was buried in the city of his father David. Solomon’s son Rehoboam became the next king after him.
So the Israelites set apart Kedesh in Galilee. It’s in the hill country of Naphtali. They set apart Shechem. It’s in the hill country of Ephraim. They set apart Kiriath Arba. It’s in the hill country of Judah. Kiriath Arba is also called Hebron.
Joshua gathered all Israel’s tribes together at Shechem. He sent for the elders, leaders, judges and officials of Israel. They came and stood there in the sight of God.
Abimelek was the son of Jerub-Baal. He went to his mother’s brothers in Shechem. He spoke to them and to all the members of his mother’s family group. He said,