Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
1 Kings 11:13 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 13. 13Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
This verse closes the thought unit with its stated result or transition: “Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for….” Its responsible meaning belongs to the complete movement “The kingdom will be torn after Solomon.”
Anger is grounded in appearances Solomon did not keep
This verse is one part of that explanation in 1 Kings 11:9–13. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- 1 Kings 11:9–13
Read 1 Kings 11:13 with 11:9–13. The selected wording supplies one closing in the thought unit with its stated result or transition; the surrounding verses supply the causes, responses, and outcome summarized here: Grounds divine anger in Solomon's own turning after two personal appearances from the LORD; preserves one tribal territory for David and chosen Jerusalem rather than erasing the judgment.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Within “The kingdom will be torn after Solomon,” 1 Kings 11:13 closes the thought unit with its stated result or transition through the wording “Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for….” Its placement is governed by this reviewed relationship: 1 Kings 11:1–8 establishes this prior movement: Opens Solomon's decline with his attachment to many foreign royal women, including Pharaoh's daughter; adds that Solomon accommodated the worship practices of all his foreign wives. 1 Kings 11:9–13 continues the same royal, temple, household, prophetic, or military movement; that demonstrated relationship, rather than database adjacency alone, explains its placement.
Read 1 Kings 11:9–13 together
Why these verses belong together: The kingdom will be torn after Solomon is the complete reviewed scene, prayer, oracle, list, or regnal notice bounded at 11:9–11:13.
Verse 9. 9 And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice,
Verse 10. 10 And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded.
Verse 11. 11 Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.
Verse 12. 12 Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father’s sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son.
Verse 13. 13 Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.
Follow the Context
- Grounds divine anger in Solomon's own turning after two personal appearances from the LORD
- Preserves one tribal territory for David and chosen Jerusalem rather than erasing the judgment
What This Verse Is Not Saying
1 Kings 11:13 does not permit the wording “Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for…” to be read apart from the selected verse's context. Solomon's responsibility does not permit making foreign women or foreign peoples targets of misogyny, xenophobia, ethnic purity, or modern enemy mapping.
What Remains True
Public power and worship remain accountable to truth, covenant faithfulness, affected people, and consequences rather than title, success, wealth, or majority support. This unit tests that truth through grounds divine anger in Solomon's own turning after two personal appearances from the LORD; preserves one tribal territory for David and chosen Jerusalem rather than erasing the judgment. In 1 Kings 11:13, the concrete line “Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for…” keeps that truth accountable to the narrated evidence.
Teach It Back
In 70–220 words, explain 1 Kings 11:13's role in 11:9–13. Paraphrase “Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for…,” identify one agent or affected person, state one material source or historical limit, and name one conclusion the context does not authorize.
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Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read 1 Kings 11:9–13 — The kingdom will be torn after SolomonSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage.
Exact location: 1 Kings 11:9–13, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: 1 Kings
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Hebrew wording and morphology used for lexical, grammatical, name, clause, and older-English checks; this is not a critical apparatus or historical proof.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/1Kgs.xml, Masoretic words and morphology for 11:9–13
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible: 1 Kings with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2006
Supports: Only printed unit-level translation, lexical, grammatical, textual, historical, and verse-numbering notes; silence is not evidence.
Exact location: NET Bible 1 Kings PDF, printed pp. 605–608, translation and translator notes for 11:9–13
Open source ↗