Bible Strands
1 Kings 11:32
But one tribe will remain for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — God addresses Jeroboam during the prophetic declaration that the kingdom will be severed from Solomon. This announcement occurs at the precise moment of dynastic transition, explaining why the united monarchy will split.
The words — The phrase שֵׁבֶט אֶחָד (shevet echad) literally renders "one tribe," while לְמַעַן (lema'an) means "for the sake of." These terms specify that the remaining political entity survives only by divine stipulation.
The thread — The guarantee appears in 1 Kings 11:13, where God reserves one tribe for Solomon’s heir, and is realized in 1 Kings 12:20 when Jeroboam assumes leadership over the northern tribes. The surviving southern territory is later identified in 1 Kings 14:21 as the realm of Rehoboam.
Why it lands — The verse establishes that national continuity is contingent on covenant faithfulness to David and Jerusalem, not on human political strategy. A reader must accept that institutional preservation is granted by choice, not earned by merit.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
(But he shall have one tribe for my servant David’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:)
Cross-references
- 1 Kings 11:13 Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom away from him. I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”
- 1 Kings 12:20 When all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they summoned him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah followed the house of David.
- 1 Kings 14:21 Meanwhile, Rehoboam son of Solomon reigned in Judah. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the LORD had chosen from all the tribes of Israel in which to put His Name. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite.