These words of the prophet Ahijah are fulfilled in 1 Kgs 15.29.
Therefore: This transition word is significant because it introduces the reaction of Yahweh to Jeroboam’s unfaithfulness. It may be rendered in a variety of ways: “So” (International Children’s Bible), “Because of this” (Good News Translation), and “For this reason.”
Behold, I will bring: In Hebrew the particle behold is followed by a participle here. This grammatical construction in Hebrew creates a sense of immediacy that is lacking in Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation (see the comments on verse 5 and 1 Kgs 13.1). The sense of the Hebrew is more “Behold/look, I am about to bring.” If the receptor language has a construction that serves the same function, it may be used here.
Evil in this context means “disaster” (Good News Translation, New Jerusalem Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh) or “misfortune.” See the comments on this noun in 1 Kgs 9.9.
As in verse 8, where “the house of David” means David’s descendants, so here the house of Jeroboam means Jeroboam’s descendants. Note that Good News Translation says “your dynasty” and Contemporary English Version has “your family” since the LORD is addressing Jeroboam here. In many languages it will be more natural to use second person pronouns in verses 10-11 instead of the name Jeroboam because he is being addressed.
Cut off: See the comments on 1 Kgs 11.15-16.
Every male is literally “anyone urinating against a wall.” King James Version says “him that pisseth against the wall.” The same idiom occurs in 1 Kgs 16.11; 21.21; 2 Kgs 9.8; and 1 Sam 25.22, 34. While some modern versions translate this Hebrew idiom literally (so La Bible Pléiade, Osty-Trinquet), most attempt to express the meaning clearly and less offensively to the reader. As a footnote in Nouvelle Bible Segond states, some Jewish interpreters have understood these words to be referring to dogs, so the meaning of will cut off from Jeroboam every male is “in the house of Jeroboam, there will not remain even a dog.” Nearly all interpreters, however, understand this to be a reference to human males in general, regardless of age. Contemporary English Version, for example, says “every man and boy.” The notes in La Bible Pléiade and Osty-Trinquet, however, state that this is a reference to a male child who has not yet been trained to squat down and urinate in a more modest position as is done in the Middle East. The sense, then, is that even the youngest of males will be killed. While the interpretation expressed in the footnotes in La Bible Pléiade and Osty-Trinquet fits well in this verse, it does not seem to fit as well in all of the passages in 1–2 Kings cited above.
Many modern translations use a euphemism such as “every mother’s son” (Revised English Bible) or “every single male” to translate this idiom, since a literal translation will be considered too vulgar by some readers. New Jerusalem Bible renders this “every manjack,” which simply means “every individual man.”
Bond and free is literally “being detained and being set free.” The meaning of this expression, which occurs also in Deut 32.36; 1 Kgs 21.21; 2 Kgs 9.8 and 14.26 (in a slightly different form), is uncertain. It may mean (a) “slave or free” (Osty-Trinquet, New International Version, Contemporary English Version; similarly most other modern versions); (b) “young and old” (Good News Translation); or (c) “married or unmarried.” The rendering in Revised English Bible (“whether still under the protection of the family or not”) seems to presuppose meaning (b) or (c). The Hebrew probably does not refer literally to those who were slaves and those who were free. The sense seems to be those who were still under the control of their fathers (because they were young or unmarried) and those who were not. Whatever the exact meaning of each word, together they express the notion of totality, that is, every single male.
Will utterly consume the house of Jeroboam, as a man burns up dung until it is all gone: Animal manure (dung) was mixed with straw and allowed to dry. It was then used as a slow-burning fuel for cooking. According to Revised Standard Version (also New Revised Standard Version, New American Bible), the point of the simile here is that just as dung is completely burned up and destroyed when used for cooking, so God will completely consume or destroy the family of Jeroboam. So the use of an adverb meaning “completely” or “absolutely” in the receptor language may be advisable.
On the other hand, a different Hebrew verb, which has the same spelling as the Hebrew verb translated burns up, means “to sweep away.” Some translations follow this meaning (so Good News Translation, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, Bible en français courant, Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible). If this interpretation is followed, the meaning is that just as someone sweeps away dung, so God will sweep away Jeroboam’s family. Either of these interpretations is possible and both make good sense. Translators must simply choose one.
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 .