Chapter 6—The Rending of the Kingdom
“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
11:43
.
Soon after his accession to the throne, Rehoboam went to Shechem,
where he expected to receive formal recognition from all the tribes.
“To Shechem were all Israel come to make him king.”
2 Chronicles
10:1
.
Among those present was Jeroboam the son of Nebat—the same
Jeroboam who during Solomon’s reign had been known as “a mighty
man of valor,” and to whom the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite had
delivered the startling message, “Behold, I will rend the kingdom out
of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee.”
1 Kings
11:28, 31
.
The Lord through His messenger had spoken plainly to Jeroboam
regarding the necessity of dividing the kingdom. This division must
take place, He had declared, “because that they have forsaken Me, and
have worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the
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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.”
Verse
33
.
Jeroboam had been further instructed that the kingdom was not to
be divided before the close of Solomon’s reign. “I will not take the
whole kingdom out of his hand,” the Lord had declared; “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:
but I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand, and will give it unto
thee, even ten tribes.”
Verses 34, 35
.
Although Solomon had longed to prepare the mind of Rehoboam,
his chosen successor, to meet with wisdom the crisis foretold by the
prophet of God, he had never been able to exert a strong molding
influence for good over the mind of his son, whose early training had
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