He also made …: Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation have added the word also according to the sense required in this context (or perhaps also renders the common Hebrew conjunction). Good News Translation also makes it clear that the pronoun He refers to Jeroboam.
Houses on high places: Houses refers to “houses of worship” and not buildings in which people would live. This will certainly need to be made explicit in certain languages, saying, for example, “temple buildings” (Revised English Bible), “cult places” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), “shrines” (New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible), and “temples” (New American Bible). The Hebrew noun for houses is singular in the Masoretic Text and may refer to the place of worship in Bethel. Nearly all translations, however, have the plural, in agreement with the statement in 1 Kgs 13.32. Since high places is plural, this also allows for the translation houses rather than the singular “house.”
For high places, see the comments on 1 Kgs 3.2.
Appointed priests from among all the people: From among all the people is literally “from the ends of the people.” As in 1 Kgs 13.33 and 2 Kgs 17.32, “from the ends” means “from the whole,” “from one extreme to the other extreme.” Only descendants from Aaron were to be priests, but Jeroboam was willing to make people priests from other families and tribes. From among all the people is rendered “from the ranks of the people” in New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh and “from the rank and file of the people” in New Living Translation. Compare “from ordinary families” (New Jerusalem Bible).
Who were not of the Levites: A number of modern translations make it explicit that the Levites refers to “the tribe of Levi” (Good News Translation, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, New Century Version). Compare also New Jerusalem Bible, which says “who were not of levitical descent.” According to the law of Deut 18.1-8, only descendants of Levi were to serve as priests. If this information will not be known to most readers in the receptor language, it may be helpful to make it explicit. Bible en français courant (similarly New Living Translation) says “who were not part of the priestly tribe of Levi.” Another possible rendering is “who were not from the tribe of Levi, as the Law of Moses required.”
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .