Day #175

Sermon - Audio
1 Kings 12-14 - Audio
1 Kings 12-14 - Reading

Daily Insights - Please Comment

12

"Shechem" = is a place of covenant renewal (Josh. 24:1–27), and the place also where kingship first briefly intruded itself into the tribal life of Israel (Judges 9). It is the ideal place for a prospective king to be invited and confronted with the question of how he is going to exercise his kingship.

Good Summary by the ESVSB on 1-33 = "The Kingdom Torn Away. As Moses once led his people out from slavery under the Egyptian pharaoh, so Jeroboam now leads Israel out from “slavery” under the house of David; but “Jeroboam as Moses” is soon transformed into “Jeroboam as Aaron” as he fashions golden calves for Israel to worship. Such idolatrous worship will eventually result in disaster for Israel." Here is a map of where all this took place:

4 = The people of Israel don't feel freedom anymore because the end of Solomon's reign was painful. They are looking for relief.

6-14 = A CALL TO THE ELDERLY! The following verses are why we need older and wiser people in the church. Us young guys need guidance and direction from those who have gone before us. The men who stood by Solomon understood that a gentle word breaks a bone. King Rehoboam chooses to break the people instead. It does not turn out well.

"scorpions" - Probably a type of whip, or just an expression saying that it will be much worse.

15 - Found in 11:11 & 11:31-36

16 = One is only a king with the consent of the people.

18 = Rehoboam insulted “all Israel” by sending the man in charge of the Canaanite slave work force. By sending Adoram, Rehoboam implied that Israel was to be dealt with the same way.

21-24 = God's prophetic word ends up stopping a war that could have ended Israel.

25-33 = Archaeology = A ritual complex from the ninth century B.C. has been discovered at Tell Dan. It consists of a square enclosure with a raised platform inside, perhaps as a base for a temple, and a sacrificial altar. This sacred center is possibly what remains of what Jeroboam erected at the site of Dan. -ESVSB-

27 = Jeroboam invents his own type of worship, almost pointing directly back to the golden calf of Aaron's in Exodus. I'm once again appalled by the stupidity.

27-33 = Jeroboam just can't stop committing great sins against God...creating improper worship, improper sacrifices, idols, etc....ugghhh

13

1-10 = A prophecy against the Bethel altar which is part of a larger miracle story. Specific mention of Josiah connects this to the fulfillment narrative associated with that king in 2 Kings 23:15–16. Proof of the validity of long–range prediction is a short–range prediction in v. 3 fulfilled in v. 5. The story cannot have achieved its current form until after the reforms of Josiah, ca. 620 BCE. Like the following story, this narrative emphasizes the importance of divine obedience. -JSB-

17-18 = The man lies to the prophet saying "by the word of the LORD..."

24 = The man did not listen to the word of the LORD, but instead listened to someone leading him astray. He disobeys God.

33 = Jeroboam will not stop sinning against God.

14

8 = A portion of Israel was torn away and given to Jeroboam so that he would walk in God's ways...However, he has failed miserably.

10 = Since Jeroboam has failed to be like David (v. 8) and has worshiped other gods as Solomon did (v. 9), his dynasty will come to an end for lack of male descendants. The Hebrew behind “every male” is literally “he who urinates against a wall” (see also 1 Sam. 25:22, 34; 1 Kings 16:11; 21:21; 2 Kings 9:8), and the imagery is thus connected to that of God’s judgment (as a man burns up dung or excrement until it is all gone). God is going to clean up Jeroboam’s house. The Hebrew behind bond and free appears on four other occasions in the OT (Deut. 32:36; 1 Kings 21:21; 2 Kings 9:8; and, in a slightly different form, 2 Kings 14:26). It is a difficult phrase to interpret, but probably is an idiom for the ability of the males of the royal house to be of strong help to the king; neither those who are important to Jeroboam in this regard nor those who are not will be able to assist him. A contrast with David’s dynasty is seen here: David “shall not lack” (lit., “there shall not be cut off for David”) a descendant on the throne (1 Kings 2:4; 8:25; 9:5), but Jeroboam’s descendants will be cut off. -ESVSB-

11 = Jeroboam’s dynasty will come to a dishonorable end, since the bodies mentioned will not be buried but will be eaten by dogs and birds (cf. 1 Sam. 31:8–13 for the importance of proper burial in Israel). Only Jeroboam’s son Abijah will escape this fate (1 Kings 14:13). -ESVSB-

12-13 - Jeroboam's son will die in 14:17-18

14 - Fulfilled in 15:29

16 - Clearly the reason all these evil things come to pass is sin.

21-31 = The End of Rehoboam. The story of Rehoboam’s reign, begun in ch. 12, has been delayed as the authors have followed Jeroboam through rebellion to idolatry and judgment, and on to death. They now return to what has been happening in Judah in the meantime. -ESVSB-