1 Kings Chapter 12
By Bro David Petersen
12:1 And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king.
After Solomon went to be with the Lord his son Rehoboam suceeded him.
2 And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;)
3 That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying,
4 Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.
5 And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed.
Jeroboam comes with his whole army and has the power to turn all the northern tribes against Solomon's son. But he gives Rehoboam the opportunity to preserve the union.
"Your father's hand was heavy upon us" refers to the forced labor. And because of this the people were ready for a civil war. Jeroboam says that if they promise to end the oppression they will be loyal.
It's ironic that Solomon used much of this forced labor to build up fortified cities around the kingdom (2 Chron 8). He didn't really need to do that because the Lord had established his kingdom and would maintain it. This goes along with the point that Solomon "multiplied horses unto himself". We need to trust in the Lord for our protection and security and not trust in our own strength.
Rehoboam responds " let me think it over" and then he consults two different groups. First he consults the elders.
6 And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people?
7 And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.
The elders say for him to be a servant of the people. This was great wisdom. If you want them to serve you then you serve them. The role of the king is not to oppress, but to serve the people as the servant of God. The king is subservient to God and his law. But the history is of king after king who relegates to himself the authority that belongs to God.
8 But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood before him:
9 And he said unto them, What counsel give ye that we may answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke which thy father did put upon us lighter?
10 And the young men that were grown up with him spake unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto this people that spake unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father's loins.
11 And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father hath chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
It is commonly believed by scholars that the word scorpions refers to a type of whip with sharp objects tied to the ends of the cords.
Then Rehoboam consulted the young men. The young bucks said to lay down the law, to put down the hammer. They are full of themselves. They are high on Rehoboam's power.They say don't listen to those weak old men.
Rehoboam heeded the counsel of the young bucks and answered the people harshly.
12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me again the third day.
13 And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the old men's counsel that they gave him;
14 And spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
15 Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people; for the cause was from the LORD, that he might perform his saying, which the LORD spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
16 So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents.
17 But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.
18 Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the tribute; and all Israel stoned him with stones, that he died. Therefore king Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem.
19 So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day.
20 And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only.
21 And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, an hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men, which were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon.
22 But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying,
23 Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying,
24 Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from me. They hearkened therefore to the word of the LORD, and returned to depart, according to the word of the LORD.
25 Then Jeroboam built Shechem in mount Ephraim, and dwelt therein; and went out from thence, and built Penuel.
26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:
27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.
Jeroboam didn't trust in the promise of the Lord that "And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that is right in my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee." 1 Kings 11:38.
There is nothing about Jeroboam seeking the will of the Lord. Instead he sought to secure his kingdom by his own devices. He was afraid that if the people went up to Jerusalem to sacrifice the nation would re-unite and oust him. Jeroboam was a good politician. His main concern as a leader was his own career not the good of the people.
28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
29 And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan.
30 And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.
Jeroboam made an appeal to the lazy nature of the flesh. Verse 30 shows the hypocrisy because although Jeroboam said that it was too much for the people to go up to Jerusalem to worship, then managed to go a great distance to Dan to worship the calf. The appeal is to "what's in it for me?" "It is too much for you", not "here's what the Lord requires". This was a religion that didn't place the Lord's requirements on anyone. It wasn't about what the Lord commanded in his word but it was what the people wanted out of worship.
See how Jeroboam had a great marketing campaign. Here's the tag line: "It is too much for you". "Why waste your time driving all over town to find the right worship service?" "Let your fingers do the walking". "Save time and money with our new contemporary drive-thru worship service". "Have more free time for the things you love to do". "Hurray right down here to our conveniently located worship centers at Dan and Bethel." "The first five hundred visitors will get a free consultation with our fabulous golden calves". "Enjoy a latte." "Free pony rides for the kids."
It was a contemporary worship service that was marketed on the basis of what the people wanted. It was suitable for mass consumption. Some organizations operate like that today.
Today church is often "sold" on the the basis of meeting the needs of the people rather than serving the Lord. "Come to our worship service. We have exactly what you need." "Come and learn the 4 Steps To Happiness. "Raise well-adjusted children and have a satisfying marraige." The Lord is good and wants to meet our needs, but that should not be our motivation for worship. Assembling together and worship are more about us serving the Lord than him serving us.
Notice that the calves are not passed off as false gods. Instead they are supposed to be images of Jehovah the one true God. The nation hasn't backslidden into all out Baal (a false god) worship yet. Baal worship goes full bore under King Ahab in 1 Kings 16.
The calves are said to represent "thy gods which brought thee up out of Egypt". That statement would imply the God who gave the commandments: "I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage." Ex 20:2. And as such they violate the 2nd commandment of the God of the commandments "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth." Ex 20:4.
These golden calves are like the crucifixes, statues, pictures of Jesus and relics that people say remind them of God today.
This is false religion at its worst. An effective counterfeit must look like the real thing in order to be able to deceive. The early New Testament church contended with counterfeits as well: "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ." "And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light." "Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works." 2 Corin. 11:13-15.
31 And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.
Jeroboam built shrines on high places as alternatives to the temple. The worship was commanded to take place in the city where the Lord would place his name: Jerusalem. God had given the blueprint for the temple.
Every false religion needs men of low character to be its ministers. Jeroboam made priests from all sorts of people who were not of the sons of Levi. The commandment from the Lord was that descendants of Levi were to be priests.
32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made.
33 So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.
God had ordained the exact dates of his feasts. There were three feasts all of which were to be celebrated at the times commanded by God. Some Israelite might say "Hey, I like this new system. You get an extra week to bring in your crops before the feast." "That's a great idea".
This was something that he devised in his own heart. Man-made religion born out of the unregenerate heart will always be contrary to the will of God because "the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." 1 Cor 2:14.
The Book of 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles
Introduction |
1 Kings 1 |
1 Kings 2 |
1 Kings 3 |
1 Kings 4 |
1 Kings 5 |
1 Kings 6-7 |
1 Kings 8 |
1 Kings 9 |
1 Kings 10 |
1 Kings 11 |
1 Kings 12 |
2 Chronicles 13 |
1 Kings 13 |
1 Kings 14 |
1 Kings 15 |
2 Chronicles 15 |
1 Kings 16 |
1 Kings 17 |
1 Kings 18 |
1 Kings 19 |
1 Kings 20 |
1 Kings 21 |
1 Kings 22