And he did evil. — Syriac adds “before the Lord.” The nature of his evil-doing is explained immediately: “for he directed not his heart to seek Jehovah.” This estimate of Rehoboam’s conduct seems to refer to the early years of his reign, which ended in the catastrophe of Shishak’s invasion. 1 Kings 14:22, says, “And Judah did evil in the eyes of Jehovah “; and then goes on to tell of the acts of apostacy which brought that judgment upon the nation.
The phrase “direct or prepare the heart to seek the Lord,” recurs 2 Chronicles 19:3; 2 Chronicles 30:19; Ezra 7:10.
The book. — History.
Concerning genealogies. — For registration (lehithyahçsh). On the authorities here named, see the Introduction. The important particulars about the reign which are not given in Kings, e.g., the fortification of the southern cities, the migration of the priests, and Rehoboam’s private relations, were probably drawn by the chronicler from these sources.
First and last. — The former and the latter. (See on, 2 Chronicles 17:3.)
And there were wars. — And the wars of Rehoboam and Jeroboam [continued] all the days, i.e., throughout the reign. So 1 Kings 14:30, “Now there had been war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days.” Reuss is wrong in regarding this as “a contradiction” of 2 Chronicles 11:4. What Shemaiah forbade was a particular attempt to recover the obedience of the northern kingdom by force of arms. The permanent attitude of the rival kings could hardly be other than hostile, especially as Jeroboam appears to have instigated the Egyptian invasion of Judah; and this hostility must often have broken out into active injuries.