⁵Now Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam, and to the princes of Judah, that were gathered together to Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said unto them, Thus saith the LORD, Ye have forsaken me, therefore have I also left you in the hand of Shishak. =5.= _Now Shemaiah the prophet came_] This intervention of Shemaiah is not mentioned in 1 Kings For an earlier appearance of the prophet see xi. 2 ff. = 1 Kings xii. 22 ff. _have I also left you in the hand_] Rather, =I also have forsaken you and delivered you into the hand=. ⁶Then the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves; and they said, The LORD is righteous. =6.= _princes of Israel_] Called “princes of Judah” in verse 5; compare note on xi. 3. _humbled themselves_] i.e. they fasted and put on sackcloth; compare 1 Kings xxi. 27, 29. _The LORD is righteous_] Compare Pharaoh’s confession (Exodus ix. 27), and the Psalmist’s address to God, “That thou mayest be justified (literally ‘mayest be righteous’) when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest” (Psalms li. 4). The “righteousness” of God is made known to man in His judgement, whether the judgement be of condemnation (as here) or of acquittal (as 1 John i. 9, Revised Version). ⁷And when the LORD saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the LORD came to Shemaiah, saying, They have humbled themselves; I will not destroy them: but I will grant them some deliverance¹, and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. ¹ Or, _deliverance within a little while_ Or, _a few that shall escape_. =7.= _some deliverance_] Render, as margin, =deliverance within a little while=. ⁸Nevertheless they shall be his servants; that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries. =8.= _that they may know my service_, etc.] i.e. that they may learn the difference between my service and other service. ⁹So Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, and took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king’s house; he took all away: he took away also the shields of gold which Solomon had made. =9.= _he took all away_] Shishak was bought off with a heavy present from attacking Jerusalem; compare the case of Sennacherib (2 Kings xviii. 13‒16). _shields_] Rather, =targets=, i.e. small shields; compare note on ix. 15. ¹⁰And king Rehoboam made in their stead shields of brass, and committed them to the hands of the captains of the guard¹, that kept the door of the king’s house. ¹¹And it was so, that as oft as the king entered into the house of the LORD, the guard came and bare them, and brought them back into the guard chamber. ¹ Hebrew _runners_. =10.= _the guard_] margin (more literally) =the runners=. These derived their name from the duty of running before the king’s chariot to clear the way for him; compare 2 Samuel xv. 1; 1 Kings i. 5.