When Israel split into two kingdoms after Solomon’s death, the Bible says the northern king made a dangerous move—and archaeology confirms it.
Jeroboam feared that if his people kept traveling to Jerusalem to worship, their loyalty would return to the house of David. So he created a rival religious system, setting up golden calves and temples in Dan and Bethel, declaring, “Here are your gods, O Israel” (1 Kings 12:28).
Excavations at Tel Dan in the north and Bethel in the south uncovered the remains of cultic temple sites *exactly where* Scripture says Jeroboam built them. He even altered the religious calendar to sever Israel from Jerusalem completely.
