April
28th 1
Kings 11
Solomon’s sins
1:
But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter
of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians,
and Hittites; 2:
Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of
Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto
you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods:
Solomon clave unto these in love. 3:
And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred
concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. 4:
For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away
his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the
LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. 5:
For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and
after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6:
And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully
after the LORD, as did David his father. 7:
Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of
Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the
abomination of the children of Ammon. 8:
And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense
and sacrificed unto their gods.
Solomon’s
troubles
9:
And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned
from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, 10:
And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go
after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded. 11:
Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of
thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I
have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and
will give it to thy servant. 12:
Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father's
sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. 13:
Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe
to thy son for David my servant's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake
which I have chosen. 14:
And the LORD stirred up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite:
he was of the king's seed in Edom. 15:
For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of
the host was gone up to bury the slain, after he had smitten every
male in Edom; 16:
(For six months did Joab remain there with all Israel, until he had
cut off every male in Edom:) 17:
That Hadad fled, he and certain Edomites of his father's servants
with him, to go into Egypt; Hadad being yet a little child. 18:
And they arose out of Midian, and came to Paran: and they took men
with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt, unto Pharaoh king of
Egypt; which gave him an house, and appointed him victuals, and gave
him land. 19:
And Hadad found great favour in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave
him to wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the
queen. 20:
And the sister of Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes
weaned in Pharaoh's house: and Genubath was in Pharaoh's household
among the sons of Pharaoh. 21:
And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and
that Joab the captain of the host was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh,
Let me depart, that I may go to mine own country. 22:
Then Pharaoh said unto him, But what hast thou lacked with me, that,
behold, thou seekest to go to thine own country? And he answered,
Nothing: howbeit let me go in any wise. 23:
And God stirred him up another adversary, Rezon the son of Eliadah,
which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah: 24:
And he gathered men unto him, and became captain over a band, when
David slew them of Zobah: and they went to Damascus, and dwelt
therein, and reigned in Damascus.
Jeroboam
is to be the Northern King
25:
And he was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, beside the
mischief that Hadad did: and he abhorred Israel, and reigned over
Syria. 26:
And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon's
servant, whose mother's name was Zeruah, a widow woman, even he
lifted up his hand against the king. 27:
And this was the cause that he lifted up his hand against the king:
Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breaches of the city of David
his father. 28:
And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing
the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the
charge of the house of Joseph. 29:
And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem,
that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he
had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the
field: 30:
And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in
twelve pieces: 31:
And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the
LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the
hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee: 32:
(But he shall have one tribe for my servant David's sake, and for
Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes
of Israel:) 33:
Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the
goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom
the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to
do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my
judgments, as did David his father. 34:
Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand: but I will
make him prince all the days of his life for David my servant's sake,
whom I chose, because he kept my commandments and my statutes: 35:
But I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand, and will give it
unto thee, even ten tribes. 36:
And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may
have a light alway before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have
chosen me to put my name there. 37:
And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all that thy
soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel. 38:
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. 39:
And I will for this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever. 40:
Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. And Jeroboam arose, and
fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until
the death of Solomon.
Solomon’s death
41:
And the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he did, and his
wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon? 42:
And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was
forty years. 43:
And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of
David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.
1
Kings 12
C. The Division of the Kingdom
The Northern tribes revolt
1:
And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to
make him king. 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. 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. 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. 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.
War
is averted
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.
Jeroboam’s
false religion
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. 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. 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. 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.
1
Kings 13 A Prophet warns Jeroboam
1:
And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the
LORD unto Bethel: and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense. 2:
And he cried against the altar in the word of the LORD, and said, O
altar, altar, thus saith the LORD; Behold, a child shall be born unto
the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the
priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's
bones shall be burnt upon thee. 3:
And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the
LORD hath spoken; Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that
are upon it shall be poured out. 4:
And it came to pass, when king Jeroboam heard the saying of the man
of God, which had cried against the altar in Bethel, that he put
forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay hold on him. And his hand,
which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not pull
it in again to him. 5:
The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar,
according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of
the LORD. 6:
And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Intreat now the
face of the LORD thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be
restored me again. And the man of God besought the LORD, and the
king's hand was restored him again, and became as it was before. 7:
And the king said unto the man of God, Come home with me, and refresh
thyself, and I will give thee a reward. 8:
And the man of God said unto the king, If thou wilt give me half
thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor
drink water in this place: 9:
For so was it charged me by the word of the LORD, saying, Eat no
bread, nor drink water, nor turn again by the same way that thou
camest. 10:
So he went another way, and returned not by the way that he came to
Bethel.
The
Prophet killed
11:
Now there dwelt an old prophet in Bethel; and his sons came and told
him all the works that the man of God had done that day in Bethel:
the words which he had spoken unto the king, them they told also to
their father. 12:
And their father said unto them, What way went he? For his sons had
seen what way the man of God went, which came from Judah. 13:
And he said unto his sons, Saddle me the ass. So they saddled him the
ass: and he rode thereon, 14:
And went after the man of God, and found him sitting under an oak:
and he said unto him, Art thou the man of God that camest from Judah?
And he said, I am. 15:
Then he said unto him, Come home with me, and eat bread. 16:
And he said, I may not return with thee, nor go in with thee: neither
will I eat bread nor drink water with thee in this place: 17:
For it was said to me by the word of the LORD, Thou shalt eat no
bread nor drink water there, nor turn again to go by the way that
thou camest. 18:
He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake
unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee
into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied
unto him. 19:
So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank
water. 20:
And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the word of the
LORD came unto the prophet that brought him back: 21:
And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus
saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the
LORD, and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God
commanded thee, 22:
But camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place,
of the which the LORD did say to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no
water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers.
23:
And it came to pass, after he had eaten bread, and after he had
drunk, that he saddled for him the ass, to wit, for the prophet whom
he had brought back. 24:
And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him: and
his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it, the lion
also stood by the carcase. 25:
And, behold, men passed by, and saw the carcase cast in the way, and
the lion standing by the carcase: and they came and told it in the
city where the old prophet dwelt. 26:
And when the prophet that brought him back from the way heard
thereof, he said, It is the man of God, who was disobedient unto the
word of the LORD: therefore the LORD hath delivered him unto the
lion, which hath torn him, and slain him, according to the word of
the LORD, which he spake unto him. 27:
And he spake to his sons, saying, Saddle me the ass. And they saddled
him. 28:
And he went and found his carcase cast in the way, and the ass and
the lion standing by the carcase: the lion had not eaten the carcase,
nor torn the ass. 29:
And the prophet took up the carcase of the man of God, and laid it
upon the ass, and brought it back: and the old prophet came to the
city, to mourn and to bury him. 30:
And he laid his carcase in his own grave; and they mourned over him,
saying, Alas, my brother! 31:
And it came to pass, after he had buried him, that he spake to his
sons, saying, When I am dead, then bury me in the sepulchre wherein
the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones: 32:
For the saying which he cried by the word of the LORD against the
altar in Bethel, and against all the houses of the high places which
are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely come to pass. 33:
After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil way, but made
again of the lowest of the people priests of the high places:
whosoever would, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests
of the high places. 34:
And this thing became sin unto the house of Jeroboam, even to cut it
off, and to destroy it from off the face of the earth.
In the next few
chapters we see the sad decline of Solomon – his sins and his
troubles. During the closing days of his life Jeroboam revolts
against his reign and faces the spectre of a divided kingdom. But
after Solomon’s death the northern tribes revolt against the south.
A prophet of the LORD speaks to Jeroboam but looses his life in the
process. From the glories of the previous passages this is a sad
comedown. From the beginning of these chapters we see that Solomon
loved many strange women. Solomon sin was outright idolatry and this
came from the wives that he married from nations which were not
allowed to the Jews. He had Pharaohs daughter and then wives from the
Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites. Solomon’s
heart (mind) was turned away from the LORD by wives that were not
godly. He had 700 wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines and
they distracted him from complete devotion to the LORD. Ever
Christian man should take note and pray that he marries the right
woman and that her heart is faithful to the Lord. Solomon was a great
influence on his wives but when he was old they were a great
influence on him. He was not like his father who always remained
faithful to the LORD. In the end Solomon sought after Ashtoreth the
goddess of the Zidonians, and Milcom the abomination of the
Ammonites. And so the epitaph reads that Solomon did evil in the
sight of the LORD. Solomon even went so far as to build a place of
worship to Chemosh, the abomination of Moab and it was in full view
of Jerusalem, and he did the same for the god Molech, the abomination
of the children of Ammon. The LORD was angry with Solomon and
commanded him to not go after idols yet he refused to hear the LORD.
The LORD told him that he would tear away the kingdom from him and
give the kingdom to his servant. Solomon must have been shocked;
however in respect to your father David l will do this when you are
dead. The LORD stirred up an enemy to Solomon Hadad the Edomite. In
the days of David Joab had gone down to Edom and killed every male
except one – Hadad. Hadad had run away to Egypt he was just a
child. Hadad was very much liked by the Egyptian king who gave him
food and a house with land. He married the sister of Pharaohs wife.
When David heard that David and Joab were dead he asked for
permission to go to his home country. Pharaoh asked why he wanted to
leave but Hadad said l want to go home. The Lord also stirred up
another enemy called Rezon who ran away when David killed his King
Zobah. He gathered a band of men and was a sort of king over them in
Damascus. He was an enemy to Solomon all his days like Hadad was.
Also a man called Jeroboam started to rebel against Solomon. He hated
Solomon because he had met a prophet of the Lord called Ahijah, who
took hold of Jeroboam and ripped his cloak into 12 pieces and told
him to take 10 of them because the Lord says he will take away the
kingdom from Solomon and give the 10 tribes to you. This was because
Solomon had worshipped Ashtoreth, Chemosh and Milcom. Then the Lord
promised the same blessing if he will serve the Lord his God as David
had done. The Lord promised to be with him and to build up his house
as he did with David. Solomon sought opportunity to kill Jeroboam so
Jeroboam ran away to Egypt and lived there until the death of
Solomon. Solomon reigned for 40 yrs and then he died and Rehoboam
reigned in his place. The kingdom was now ripe for division. Rehoboam
went to Shechem and the whole of Israel gathered to make him king and
they advised him to be kind and lenient with his people but to take a
very hard line and this split his kingdom. The old men counselled
wisdom and the young men foolishness. (No wander the rulers were
elders) The northern tribes rebelled and Judah gathered for war
180,000 chosen men. But a man of God Shemaiah told Rehoboam not to go
to war against the northern tribes. Jeroboam had to build a rival
religion in the north to prevent the people going to Jerusalem. So
Jeroboam turned the people away from worshipping the Lord in the
south because they had forsaken the Lord however he then set up a
religion based on two golden calves, one in Bethel and the other in
Dan. He also set up a false priesthood and false feasts. Then a
prophet of the Lord came to warn Jeroboam of his sin to prophesy that
a child would be born called Josiah who would offer burnt offerings
with human sacrifice. When Jeroboam heard this he put out his hand
and when he withdrew it was dried up so he pleaded with the Lord and
his hand was restored. But the altar was broken and the ash fell to
the earth. The prophet was offered food and drink but it was refused.
Then an old prophet lied to him saying that the Lord had told him to
eat. Then the word of the Lord came to him and he left on an ass but
a lion met him and killed him and the ass and lion stood by his body.
The old prophet when he heard of it went and took his body and
brought it back and mourned over him and buried him in his own grave
but he left instructions to be buried with him.
- What were the sins of Solomon?
- How did God respond to Solomons sin?
- What happened to Solomons glorious kingdom?
No comments:
Post a Comment