Who were the two kings after the kingdom divided?
After the kingdom divided, Rehoboam, Solomon's son, ruled the southern kingdom of Judah and Benjamin from Jerusalem, while Jeroboam became king over the ten northern tribes of Israel. The ten tribes seceded when Rehoboam refused to lower taxes, and they chose Jeroboam, who was not of the royal family line.
Les explains that Rehoboam was Solomon's son who set up his throne in Jerusalem, where the temple was. The ten tribes of the north, other than Judah and Benjamin, seceded when Rehoboam refused to lower the heavy taxes and instead taxed them more. They said they would have their own king, and that turned out to be Jeroboam, a man not in the kingly or royal family line. So Rehoboam reigned over Judah and Benjamin in the south, and Jeroboam became king of the northern ten tribes, often called Israel or the northern kingdom.