"Then Jeroboam built Shechem in Mount Ephraim, and dwelt therein;
and went out from thence, and built Penuel."

Jeroboam did not build Shechem. There had been a town there from the
earliest times, but the meaning is that he rebuilt it, enlarged it,
beautified it, and made it the capital city.

It was especially adapted for this, as it was right in the centre of the
territory of the ten tribes and the leader of the revolt. It was the
most ancient sanctuary in the land, and the ancestors of the Israelites
had worshiped there long before they became a nation.

In 1 Kings 14: 17, we are informed that after a time Jeroboam left
Shechem, and set up his capital in Tirzah, where he built a palace and
other buildings on so grand a scale that the place became even a rival
of Jerusalem (Sol. Song 6: 4).

After having established himself in Shechem, he began to give attention
to the outlying territory, and, in order to protect it, he built a
fortification at Penuel. The name of this place means "the face of God."
It received this name from the meeting here of Jacob with the angel, and
his wrestling with the angel (Gen. 32: 24-32). It is located on a little
stream called Jabbok, and is twenty miles east of the Jordan. It was an
important point, as it was situated on the road over which all the
caravans passed first to Damascus and then on east to the countries of
Babylon and Nineveh.

A fortress here would defend the kingdom of Israel from the attacks of
Assyria on the east and north, and from Judah on the south.