King Rehoboam sent Adoram: Regarding the identity of Adoram, see the comments on 1 Kgs 4.6, which will also explain the reason for the rendering “Adoniram” in Good News Translation. The text does not state why Rehoboam sent Adoniram, but the meaning is clearly “to restore order” (New Living Translation).

Who was taskmaster over the forced labor: The word taskmaster is supplied by Revised Standard Version. Similarly, Revised English Bible adds the word “commander” in translation and New American Bible has “superintendent.” The Hebrew text, however, says simply “who was over the forced labor.” In many languages something will need to be added in order to make the sentence complete, as in Revised Standard Version and Revised English Bible.

For forced labor, see the comments on 1 Kgs 4.6.

As in the two previous verses, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch identifies Israel as “the northern tribes” and this will be a good model for other languages as well. Compare also “the Israelites of the North” (Bible en français courant, Parole de Vie).

Stoned him to death with stones: In English it is redundant to add the words with stones, since the action of stoning someone implies that it was with stones or rocks. For this reason Good News Translation omits the words with stones (also New Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible). Many languages will say simply “executed him with stones” or “killed him by throwing stones on him.”

And King Rehoboam made haste to mount his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem: The Hebrew does not state that Rehoboam had also gone from Jerusalem into the northern kingdom, but the end of the verse implies that he must have gone with Adoram.

Made haste is literally “strengthened himself” or “proved to be strong.” Most interpreters understand this form of the Hebrew verb to mean “with haste” or “hurriedly” (Good News Translation, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). Others understand it to mean “to persist in something.” For made haste to mount, HALOT suggests the translation “managed to mount,” that is, Rehoboam persisted (and succeeded) in mounting his chariot. This is the interpretation followed by New American Bible. For the whole sentence, compare also “and King Rehoboam had to struggle to get up into his chariot in time to flee to Jerusalem” (De Vries) and “With effort, King Rehoboam had mounted his chariot to flee to Jerusalem” (Anchor Bible).

Both Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation seem to suggest that Rehoboam got into his chariot to flee after Adoram had been stoned to death. New Revised Standard Version, in fact, clearly makes the one action follow the other action in time by using the adverb “then” as follows: “King Rehoboam then hurriedly mounted his chariot to flee….” New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh is similar with “Thereupon King Rehoboam hurriedly mounted his chariot and fled….”

The form of Hebrew verb for made haste, however, may be understood as expressing simultaneous action; that is, while the people were in the process of stoning Adoram, Rehoboam hurried to mount his chariot and flee. If this understanding of the Hebrew verb is correct, then Rehoboam did not wait to flee until after Adoram had been killed, as New Revised Standard Version states.

Cogan (2000) provides another interpretation of the Hebrew verb. He says it is used here to introduce a parenthetical remark describing what Rehoboam did during the previous assembly at Shechem. If this interpretation is followed, then the following translation of the whole verse expresses the intended meaning:

• Later, King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was taskmaster over the forced labor, and all Israel stoned him to death with stones. [Earlier when King Rehoboam had been in Shechem, he himself had mounted his chariot with effort to flee to Jerusalem.]

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 .