for the high places, and for the [1]he-goats, and for the calves which he had made. 16And after them, out of all the tribes of Israel, such as set their hearts to seek the LORD, the God of Israel, came to Jerusalem to sacrifice unto the LORD, the God of their fathers. 17So they strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and made Rehoboam the son of Solomon strong, three years: for they walked three years in the way of David and Solomon. 18And Rehoboam took him a wife, Mahalath the daughter of Jerimoth the son of David, [2]and of Abihail the daughter of Eliab the son of Jesse; 19and she bare him sons; Jeush, and Shemariah, and Zaham. 20And after her he took [3]Maacah the daughter of Absalom; and she bare him
to the North is really directed against the Samaritans: see Introd. § 6.
15. the he-goats] The heathen Arabs believed in the existence of demons (called jinn) having various animal forms and inhabiting deserted places, and this belief was shared by the Hebrews (cp. Is. xiii. 21). In this verse and in Lev. xvii. 7, the writers seem to identify the gods worshipped by the heathen with these demons. (Cp. W. R. Smith, Religion of the Semites2, pp. 120 ff.)
the calves] Not previously mentioned in Chron.; 1 Kin. xii. 28.
17. three years] There were three years of prosperity, in the fourth year Judah fell away into idolatry, and in the fifth year chastisement overtook them by the hand of Shishak (xii. 1—3). For the significance of this, see the note on xii. 14.
of David and Solomon] The Chronicler here as elsewhere ignores the fall of Solomon. In 1 Kin. xi. 4—6 an express distinction is made between the way of David and the way of Solomon.
18. Jerimoth] Nothing is known regarding a son of David of this name. He may have been the son of a concubine (1 Chr. iii. 9).
and of Abihail] i.e. Mahalath's father was Jerimoth, her mother Abihail. The A.V. "and Abihail" wrongly implies that Abihail was, like Mahalath, a wife of Rehoboam.
Eliab] David's eldest brother; 1 Sam. xvi. 6, xvii. 13.
20. Maacah] Perhaps the grand-daughter of Absalom, since she is called the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah in xiii. 2 (where, with LXX., read "Maacah" for "Michaiah"; and see the note there). According to 2 Sam. xviii. 18 Absalom had "no son to keep his name in remembrance" but he may have had a daughter who married Uriel and became the mother of this Maacah; and further in 2 Sam. xiv. 27 it is said that Absalom had three sons and a daughter named Tamar.
