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| 1 And Rehoboam goeth to Shechem, for to Shechem hath all Israel come to make him king. |
Rehoboam – Solomon's son by a heathen mother; had inherited personal beauty from both parents. R4722:3
To make him king – Rehoboam was about 21 when he came to the throne of a great kingdom; and he quickly dissipated a vast fortune. R4722:3
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| 2 And it cometh to pass, at Jeroboam son of Nebat's hearing (and he [is] yet in Egypt where he hath fled from the presence of Solomon the king, and Jeroboam dwelleth in Egypt), |
Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt – Where he had fled when Solomon suppressed his incipient rebellion. R4723:3
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| 3 that they send and call for him; and they come Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel and speak unto Rehoboam, saying, |
Called him – From exile in Egypt, to become leader and spokesman of the ten tribes. R4722:6
Spake unto Rehoboam – A council of all the tribes except the one to which the royal family belonged. R3384:3
They were not satisfied and would not acknowledge him as king unless he gave them what might be termed a bill of rights. R4722:6
Saying – They inquired what he would promise in the way of a reform government. R4722:6
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| 4 'Thy father made hard our yoke, and thou, now, make light [some] of the hard service of thy father, and his heavy yoke that he put upon us, and we serve thee.' |
Make our yoke grievous – By providing magnificent palaces for himself and his heathen wives, gardens, raiment, chariots and soldiers. R2046:5
The capital city had been favored out of all proportion to the remainder of the country, and the ten tribes had shared in a labor conscription at small compensation. R5723:1
They were ready to break out in open rebellion. R3384:3
Even today many of the best governed and most prosperous are discontented. R3384:3
Make . . . lighter – The Jews as a people have always zealously guarded their liberties. R2068:6
They wished assurance that there would be an abatement of demands of levies of men for public labor, of taxes, liberties, etc. R3384:3
A demand similar to that of the British public in connection with the Magna Charta. R5723:1
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| 5 And he saith unto them, 'Go yet three days, and come back unto me;' and the people go. |
Depart ... three days – He and all realized that a crisis had come, too weighty to be decided hastily. R4722:6
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| 6 And king Rehoboam consulteth with the elders who have been standing in the presence of Solomon his father, in his being alive, saying, 'How are ye counselling to answer this people ' |
King Rehoboam – Recognized as king by the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. R4722:6
Consulted – In every enterprise of life we should seek counsel. R4723:4
With the old men – His father's counselors; to know their advice. R4722:6
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| 7 And they speak unto him, saying, 'If, to-day, thou art servant to this people, and hast served them, and answered them, and spoken unto them good words, then they have been to thee servants all the days.' |
They spake unto him – Their recommendations were good, exactly what the ten tribes desired. R4723:1
If thou wilt be a servant – Proper advice--a ruler should be the servant of his people. R5723:5
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| 8 And he forsaketh the counsel of the elders which they counselled him, and consulteth with the lads who have grown up with him, who are standing before him; |
He forsook the counsel – The golden rule, laid down by the great head of Christianity, is rejected as impracticable. R5723:5
Consulted with the young – His friends, whom he was disposed to bring into power with himself. R4723:1
His course should have been to seek counsel from the Lord. R2324:4
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| 9 and he saith unto them, 'What are ye counselling, and we answer this people, who have spoken unto me, saying, Lighten [somewhat] of the yoke that thy father put upon us ' |
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| 10 And they speak unto him the lads who had grown up with him saying, 'Thus dost thou say to this people who have spoken unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, and thou, make [it] light upon us; thus dost thou speak unto them, My little [finger] is thicker than the loins of my father; |
Spake unto him – To intimidate, rule with a heavy hand. R4723:1
Shall be thicker – Unwise, boastful, vainglorious language, which no doubt was the abundant overflow of a heart in similar condition. R2324:4
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| 11 and now, my father laid on you a heavy yoke, and I add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, and I I chastise you with scorpions.' |
With scorpions – Whips with metal lumps on the strands. R3384:6, R5723:2
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| 12 And they come Jeroboam and all the people unto Rehoboam, on the third day, as the king had spoken, saying, 'Come back unto me on the third day.' |
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| 13 And the king answereth the people sharply, and forsaketh the counsel of the elders which they counselled him, |
Answered ... roughly – The young king had not been rightly taught the principles of justice in human affairs. Pride and ambition are dangerous counselors. R4723:1
Wealth, power, influence, gained through oppression and injustice, are unworthy of noble minds. R4723:4
Forsook the old men's – Made an unwise decision and lost the greater part of the kingdom. R4723:1
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| 14 and speaketh unto them, according to the counsel of the lads, saying, 'My father made your yoke heavy, and I add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, and I I chastise you with scorpions;' |
I will chastise you – The answer was a foolish one and precipitated the separation of the ten tribes from the two. R3384:6, R5723:2
Scorpions – Whip with metal pricks at the ends of the thongs. Drafted men were treated as the veriest slaves, under taskmasters with whips. R4723:1, R2324:3
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| 15 and the king hearkened not unto the people, for the revolution was from Jehovah, in order to establish His word that Jehovah spake by the hand of Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam son of Nebat. |
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| 16 And all Israel see that the king hath not hearkened unto them, and the people send the king back word, saying, 'What portion have we in David yea, there is no inheritance in the son of Jesse; to thy tents, O Israel; now see thy house, O David!' and Israel goeth to its tents. |
All Israel – Ten tribes, and the adjacent kingdom which had been under Solomon's sovereignty. R4723:1
Israel departed – The ten tribes revolted and maintained the title, "kingdom of Israel." The two tribes were called the "kingdom of Judah" for over 500 years. R3385:4, R5723:2
393 years before the overthrow of Zedekiah, corresponding to the division of Christendom into Papacy and Protestantism in the year 1521, when Luther was excommunicated. R3574:1*
Unto their tents – Splits in the nominal mass, and the resulting benefits, do not justify splits among those faithful to the Lord. R2325:4
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| 17 As to the sons of Israel, those dwelling in the cities of Judah over them reign doth Rehoboam. |
Children of Israel – Refers to the Israelites from all those tribes which dwelt in the cities of Judah who were not moved to join with their tribes in the rebellion. C292; R3385:4, R1341:1
Judah – In which God, through the prophet, had declared that his blessings should come. R3385:4
Reigned over them – Thus loyal to the Lord whose worship centered in Jerusalem, and to the tribes of Judah, from which the promised king was to come; typifying the siftings of spiritual Israel. R3385:2
Spiritual Israelites should notice that the Lord overruled in all the affairs of the typical people for the welfare of the true-hearted and should expect the same. R3385:4
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| 18 And king Rehoboam sendeth Adoram who [is] over the tribute, and all Israel cast at him stones, and he dieth; and king Rehoboam hath strengthened himself to go up into a chariot to flee to Jerusalem; |
Adoram – Secretary of the treasury, the one having charge over the assessments, etc., same as in 1 Kings 4:6. R3385:4
Stoned him – After the manner of their time. R3385:5
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| 19 and Israel transgresseth against the house of David unto this day. |
Israel – The ten tribes maintained the title "kingdom of Israel" for over 500 years, until the return from captivity. R5723:2, R3384:6
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| 20 And it cometh to pass, at all Israel's hearing that Jeroboam hath returned, that they send and call him unto the company, and cause him to reign over all Israel; none hath been after the house of David save the tribe of Judah alone. |
Made him king – The ten tribes chose Jeroboam for their king and supported a separate government. R3385:5
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| 21 And Rehoboam cometh to Jerusalem, and assembleth all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen warriors, to fight with the house of Israel, to bring back the kingdom to Rehoboam son of Solomon. |
To fight – King Rehoboam, loath to lose so large a part of his empire, at first thought to compel the union by putting down the rebellion. R3385:5
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| 22 And the word of God is unto Shemaiah a man of God, saying, |
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| 23 'Speak unto Rehoboam son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and the rest of the people, saying, |
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| 24 Thus said Jehovah, Ye do not go up nor fight with your brethren the sons of Israel; turn back each to his house, for from Me hath this thing been;' and they hear the word of Jehovah, and turn back to go according to the word of Jehovah. |
Ye shall not – It was part of the divine plan that the nations should be divided. R3385:5
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| 25 And Jeroboam buildeth Shechem in the hill-country of Ephraim, and dwelleth in it, and goeth out thence, and buildeth Penuel; |
Jeroboam – Of the tribe of Ephraim, a man of large natural ability but inclined to be worldly-wise and to neglect his God and his religion. R4723:2
Possessed more of confidence in himself than of trust in God, more of impatience to be king than of loyalty. R4723:3, R3385:3
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| 26 and Jeroboam saith in his heart, 'Now doth the kingdom turn back to the house of David |
Said in his heart – Decided to take the selfish course. R4723:5
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| 27 if this people go up to make sacrifices in the house of Jehovah in Jerusalem, then hath the heart of this people turned back unto their lord, unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they have slain me, and turned back unto Rehoboam king of Judah.' |
If this people go – To worship yearly, they would again draw back to the kings of the line of David. R5732:2
At Jerusalem – By divine order, the center of religious service. R3385:6
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| 28 And the king taketh counsel, and maketh two calves of gold, and saith unto them, 'Enough to you of going up to Jerusalem; lo, thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.' |
Two calves – Probably because the people, while in Egypt, were accustomed to the worship of the sacred bull, Apis, of Egyptian mythology. R2325:5
One of the first arrangements was to break the religious tie. R3386:1, R2325:3
For policy's sake, he led the nation directly into idolatry. R4723:6
Of gold – Probably made of wood, overlaid with gold. R3386:2
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| 29 And he setteth the one in Beth-El, and the other he hath put in Dan, |
The one in Beth-el – Where Jacob had his dream, and which was therefore somewhat sacred to the minds of the children of Israel. R3386:1
In the southern part of the territory. R5732:3
Dan – In the northern part of the territory. R5732:3
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| 30 and this thing becometh a sin, and the people go before the one unto Dan. |
Became a sin – Because it was contrary to the divine arrangement and led them gradually into idolatry. R3386:2, R5732:3
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| 31 And he maketh the house of high places, and maketh priests of the extremities of the people, who were not of the sons of Levi; |
The sons of Levi – Probably, though not so stated, the Levites refused in the establishment of these unauthorized religious services. Consequently many of them removed to the kingdom of Judah. R3386:3
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| 32 and Jeroboam maketh a festival in the eighth month, in the fifteenth day of the month, like the festival that [is] in Judah, and he offereth on the altar so did he in Beth-El to sacrifice to the calves which he made, and he hath appointed in Beth-El the priests of the high places that he made. |
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| 33 And he offereth up on the altar that he made in Beth-El, on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in the month that he devised of his own heart, and he maketh a festival to the sons of Israel, and offereth on the altar to make perfume. |
And burnt incense – Similarly the emperors of Rome took to themselves the priestly office that they might the more effectually bind the people to them. R3386:4
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