Introduction: God is displeased with King Solomon. Where will the
kingdom go after Solomon dies? What kind of a king will follow
Solomon? What lessons can we learn about the leading of God and the
making of wise choices in our life? Let’s jump into the lesson and
find out!
- Jeroboam
- Read 1 Kings 11:26. What do we learn about the background
of Jeroboam? (Sounds like he was raised by his mother. He
was a “public employee” and he is from the tribe of
Ephraim.) - Jeroboam’s mother was named Zereda. Depending on
which Hebrew dictionary you use, her name means
either “full breasted” or “leprous.” Needless to
say, this makes quite a difference in considering
Jeroboam’s childhood life. If he lived with a leper,
what kind of life would he have? (Being raised by
a single mother who was a leper would be hard.) - The JFB Commentary tells us that Jewish tradition
says Shimei (the one David told Solomon to kill) was
Jeroboam’s father. That would also give us a picture
of a difficult childhood for Jeroboam. Frankly, I
doubt the accuracy of the Jewish tradition because
the information about Jeroboam’s lineage does not
line up with that of Shimei. - Read 1 Kings 11:27-28. What kind of a worker was Jeroboam?
(He seems to have had a position of some importance in
Solomon’s employ. However, when Solomon saw what a good
worker he was, he made him a manager. Jeroboam is
obviously ambitious.) - Is Jeroboam in charge of the people working on the
house of a guy name Joseph? (No. Remember that
Jeroboam was an “Ephraimite.” You will recall that
Ephram was one of two sons of Joseph. ( Genesis 41:51-52) What this text means is that he was in charge of
the work of the entire tribe. He is a very important
man.)
- Read 1 Kings 11:29-31. What is the message of the prophet?
- Why not just tell Jeroboam? Why waste a new coat?
- Do you think Jeroboam kept the ten pieces the prophet
gave him? - Remember we started out in v.27 with “this is the
account of how [Jeroboam] rebelled against the king.”
Is this rebellion? Can you be a rebel and led by God? - Read 1 Kings 11:37-38. On what does Jeroboam’s future and
the future of his descendants depend? - Read 1 Kings 11:40. Why do you think Solomon tried to kill
Jeroboam? (He apparently heard the prophecy about
Jeroboam.) - What does this show us about the current character of
Solomon? (If God has decreed that Jeroboam will be
the successor for the ten tribes, this shows that
Solomon is resisting God. He has sunk to a very low
point.) - Rehoboam
- Read 1 Kings 11:42-43. Who succeeds Solomon as king? (His
son, Rehoboam.) - Read 1 Kings 12:1-3. Who is the “they” who sent for
Jeroboam to come back? (Seems to be the assembly of
Israel.) - How do you explain that (v.1) “all the Israelites” went
to Shechem to make Rehoboam king, while at the same time
they sent for Jeroboam to come back? (It seems the people
were uncertain what to do. There must have been some
debate.) - Read 1 Kings 12:4-5. Is it obvious to you the Israelites
were all Republicans? (They were complaining about taxes
being too high!) - Why didn’t the Israelites say to Rehoboam, “We are
tired of all of these false Gods. Destroy them and we
will serve you?” (This shows the people were more
interested in economic than spiritual matters.) - Is this a warning to us in our political
choices? - Since when do “the people” get to tell a King that if
he shapes up they will serve him? (Our next texts
give us a fuller picture, but I think this text shows
us the standing of Jeroboam with the people. These
people figured they actually had an alternative – and
that alternative was Jeroboam.) - Read 1 Samuel 11:15, 2 Samuel 5:3 and 1
Chronicles 29:22. What traditional authority did
the people of Israel possess? (The people were
used to “confirming” the king. They thought they
had the right to ask the potential king a few
questions and to make a decision.) - What do you think about Rehoboam’s answer in 1 Kings
12:5? (I think Rehoboam could consider the response
of the people rather insulting. He showed
intelligence and restraint when he said, “Let me
think about it.”) - Read 1 Kings 12:6-7. People came to Solomon for wisdom.
Why is Rehoboam going to others for wisdom? (Read Proverbs
11:1 4 and 15:22. These are two of several texts in
Proverbs that tell us that we should seek advice from
others. “Lone Ranger” decisions are dangerous. Rehoboam is
doing exactly the right thing.) - Seeking advice is a good thing, but seeking advice
from the right people is more important. Would you
seek advice from your father’s counselors if you were
Rehoboam? (Aren’t they the people that got Rehoboam
into the mess he was in? Were they not the people in
power during the “tax and spend” days of Solomon?) - What do you think about the advisors’ advice?
(Rehoboam might have been concerned about the source
of the advice, but I think it was golden. If you are
kind and helpful to someone, they will remember it.
On the other hand, if you assert your “authority”
over someone, they will remember that too. Sometimes
it is hard to avoid a clash of “authority,” but it is
helpful to try.) - Are the advisors saying that Rehoboam should
give up his authority to the people? Isn’t that
a bad idea for a king? (They are really saying
that if he gives up his authority this day on
this issue, the people will give up their
authority to him for the rest of the time and
the rest of the issues.) - Can you apply this advice to your decisions at
work? - Read 1 Kings 12:8-9. Was Rehoboam really seeking the
advice of the younger men?(He was not really seeking their
advice. Verse 8 tells us he rejected the advice of the
old-timers before he consulted the younger men. Since
there were only two solutions to this problem, this shows
his mind was made up. Rehoboam was only asking the young
men to agree with him. He was not actually looking for
advice any longer.) - Read 1 Kings 12:10-11. What kind of young men were these?
How would you guess they grew up? Were their parents
worried about taxes? (These are no doubt the sons of
“royalty,” sons of the rich. These guys give the arrogant
“we don’t have to listen to you” response that you would
normally associate with a king.) - Read 1 Kings 12:13-14. Here is some “kingly” talk! Tough,
no-nonsense, take charge kind of stuff. Do you agree this
is a good idea for a king? - What would you say if you were one of the people
complaining about your taxes? (Read 1 Kings 12:16.
The people said, “We are not going to make you king.
We are going home.”) - Did Rehoboam accept this rebellion? (Read 1 Kings 12:18.
Later we read, in 1 Kings 12:21-24, that Rehoboam
assembled an army to take back the ten tribes, but God
intervened and stopped it.) - King Jeroboam
- Read 1 Kings 12:20. Jeroboam becomes king over the ten
tribes and God’s prophecy to Solomon and Jeroboam is
fulfilled. What kind of attitude should Jeroboam have had
towards God? - Read 1 Kings 12:26-28. Is Jeroboam’s worry well-founded?
Will the people return to Rehoboam because Jerusalem is
within his kingdom? (No. God told Jeroboam he would become
king of the ten tribes and he did.) - What do you think about Jeroboam’s solution to his
worries? - What (v.28) advisors did he consult?
- Re-read what God said to Jeroboam were the reasons
for taking the kingdom away from Solomon’s
descendants in 1 Kings 11:33. Re-read what God told
Jeroboam in 1 Kings 11:38. If God has already told us
what to do, why consult advisors? - Read 1 Kings 12:28. How great an insult is this to God?
How do you explain Jeroboam’s decision? (This is a huge
insult. God’s primary claim to His people was that He had
lead them out of Egypt. This is a cross between someone
taking credit for your work and your spouse running off
with someone who is dog-ugly. Jeroboam not only takes
credit away from God, he gives credit to fake cows!) - Read 1 Kings 14:1-3. Why is it when we really face
distress we turn back to God? - Read 1 Kings 14:6-10, 12-14. Does it make any sense to you
that Jeroboam followed after other gods? - Again, what was Jeroboam’s reason for instituting the
worship of other gods? (He did not want to lose his
kingdom.) - What is the result of instituting the worship of
other gods? (Exactly what Jeroboam feared would
happen, came to pass because he did not follow God.) - Look at the situation of the little boy who died. Was
it a blessing for him to die? (This is a very
interesting passage. God let him die as a favor to
him!) - Why was it a favor? (Apparently the rest of
Jeroboam’s family was going to die in battle and
be left on the ground.) - Does anyone believe, after reading this, that our God will
not execute judgment on the wicked? (Our God is a God of
love, but He is also a God of judgment.) - Friend, who do you rely on in times of trouble? God, or
“idols?” I invite you today to place your trust only in
God. - Next Week: The Rise of the House of Asa
