Bible Strands
2 Chronicles 10:13
And the king answered them harshly. King Rehoboam rejected the advice of the elders
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — King Rehoboam addresses the assembled people and their spokesperson Jeroboam after a three-day delay. He responds to their petition for relief by dismissing the counsel of the older advisors.
The words — The text highlights קָשָׁה (kaShah), meaning "hard" or "harsh," describing his reply, and עֲצָת (atzat), "counsel," which he actively abandons.
The thread — The motif of harsh royal speech recurs in Genesis 42:7 and 42:30, where Joseph addresses his brothers in a similarly severe tone.
Why it lands — The passage records a deliberate political choice to prioritize immediate authority over established wisdom. It places the burden of discernment on the reader to evaluate whether firmness serves justice or merely entrenches pride.
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
And the king answered them roughly; and king Rehoboam forsook the counsel of the old men,
Cross-references
- Genesis 42:7 And when Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he treated them as strangers and spoke harshly to them. “Where have you come from?” he asked. “From the land of Canaan,” they replied. “We are here to buy food.”
- Genesis 42:30 “The man who is lord of the land spoke harshly to us and accused us of spying on the country.
- Exodus 10:28 “Depart from me!” Pharaoh said to Moses. “Make sure you never see my face again, for on the day you see my face, you will die.”
- 1 Samuel 25:10 But Nabal asked them, “Who is David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants these days are breaking away from their masters.
- 1 Kings 20:6 But about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to search your palace and the houses of your servants. They will seize and carry away all that is precious to you.’”
- 2 Chronicles 10:8 But Rehoboam rejected the advice of the elders; instead, he consulted the young men who had grown up with him and served him.
- Proverbs 15:1 A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
- Proverbs 19:27 If you cease to hear instruction, my son, you will stray from the words of knowledge.