1 Kings 11:38

“ And it shall be, if you will listen to all that I command you, and will walk in my ways, and do what is right in my eyes, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did, that I will be with you, and will build you a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you.”

This was, however, conditional upon obedience. If he was fully obedient, and walked in YHWH's ways, and did what was right in His eyes, keeping His statutes and commandments as David had, then YHWH would be with him and would build him a sure house, just as He had built one for David, and his kingship would be over Israel (the tent tribes). Thus Jeroboam was being offered an equal blessing with David, if he was willing to obey Him like David had. We must not underestimate this covenant. It conditionally put him in the same covenant position as David was. That is why his subsequent fall was seen as so heinous. It was a total rejection of YHWH's covenant such as even Saul had not achieved.

This promise suggests that there were good grounds, outwardly and humanly speaking, for seeing Jeroboam as having been looked on as a promising king, another David. This would serve to confirm that Jeroboam in his previous behaviour had not been simply a power-seeker, but was to be seen as having demonstrated a genuine concern for the needs of God's people. This would tie in with his main effort having been to obtain some relief for the labourers over whom he had been appointed, rather than his having raised a specific rebellion. The later tradition of such a rebellion found in one strand of LXX (as given in the Vatican MS B) was probably an expansion on the reality. It bears the marks of ‘invention'. (The Lucianic recension of LXX is much closer to the Hebrew text). But it is nowhere supported by MT.