12. So Jer o boam and all the people came back to Rehoboam two days later, as the king had instructed them.
13. The king answered them harshly. He ignored the older leaders’ advice.
14. He spoke to them as the young men advised. He said, “If my father made your burden heavy, I will add to it. If my father punished you with whips, I will use scorpions.”
15. The king refused to listen to the people because the Lord was directing these events to carry out the promise he had made to Jer o boam (Nebat’s son) through Ahijah from Shiloh.