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674 B
674 B
made our yoke difficult
"treated us cruelly" or "forced us to work very hard". The people asked Solomon's son, Rehoboam, to reduce the heavy taxes and the forced labor Solomon had demanded but Rehoboam refused. He lacked the wisdom to follow the advice of the men who had been councilors of his father Solomon. So the ten northern tribes broke off and made Jeroboam their king. They were called "Israel" and Rehoboam's kingdom was called Judah. This will cause confusion between the two.
make your father's hard work easier, and lighten the heavy yoke that he put on us
"make the hard work that your father gave us easier, and do not treat us as harshly as he did"