Friday, October 18 – 1 Kings 12, Proverbs 31

1. What was the cause of the division of the kingdom of Israel? (1 Kings 12:12-15)

2. What was Rehoboam’s foolishness? (1 Kings 12:13, 14)

3. Over which two tribes did Rehoboam rule? (1 Kings 12:21)

4. How did Jeroboam repeat the same sin of the golden calf at Sinai? (1 Kings 12:28-30)

Commentary and Reflection:

1 Kings 12 and Proverbs 31 present a contrasting portrait of Solomon’s reign. Just as David had a blemish on his reign during its height, so did his son Solomon. Solomon was seen as a promising monarch due to his humble relationship with God. What God promised him came to pass, granting Solomon wisdom, power, and abundant wealth. Yet, like every sinful mortal, when Solomon took his eyes off God, he fell into the most bottomless pit of both personal and national apostasy. However, the Holy Spirit touched him at some point during his downfall, and he changed the course of his life, though already advanced in years.

1 Kings 12 begins the section narrating the division of the kingdom, which concludes in chapter 22:53.

After Solomon’s death, his son Rehoboam succeeded him as king. All the people of Israel gathered in Shechem for his inauguration. The selection of Shechem as the site for the coronation was likely intended to secure the allegiance of Ephraim and the northern tribes.

Led by Jeroboam, the people asked Rehoboam to lighten the oppressive yoke that his father had imposed on them. Their complaint was well-founded. The people were unhappy with the heavy burden of taxes and forced labor that Solomon required for his ambitious and extensive public works. Rehoboam’s foolishness, senselessness, and immaturity began to emerge in response to this request. Rather than displaying a spirit of justice and prudence in addressing the people’s plea, Rehoboam followed his contemporaries’ terrible advice, rejecting the wise counsel of the elders.

Verse 15 could be misunderstood when it says: “So the king did not listen to the people; for the turn of events was from the LORD, that He might fulfill His word, which the LORD had spoken by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.” This does not mean that the young men’s advice was God’s counsel or that the Lord dictated the king’s response. God is a kind and wise God, but the king’s words came from foolish and hard-hearted individuals. “God brings judgment upon men by allowing them to reap the fruits of their own wickedness.” (See SDA Bible Commentary, Vol. 2, p. 790)

Verse 19 states: “So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.” The word “rebel” comes from the Hebrew word “pasha,” meaning a sin of rebellion against God.

Verses 25-28 reveal that Jeroboam, fearing that the people would return to the house of David, decided to prevent them from going to Jerusalem to worship God during the solemn feasts. Instead, he instituted a substitute idolatrous system in Bethel and Dan. This calf-worship, reminiscent of what the Israelites did at the foot of Sinai, plunged the northern kingdom into deep apostasy. Sadly, the refrain throughout the book of Kings is often: “And that king walked in the ways of Jeroboam, and his sin, making Israel sin.”

Jeroboam made religious decisions to serve his interests and for political convenience. This deep apostasy would ultimately lead to Israel’s downfall when, in 722 B.C., they were taken captive by Assyria.

It is remarkable to think that these tragic events resulted from Solomon’s sin, a man so abundantly blessed by God.

Solomon closes the Proverbs with the seventh collection of wisdom sayings. These are the sayings of Lemuel, king of Massa, which probably was not a region of Israel. This was the best legacy a mother left to her son. This beautiful poem, structured as a prophetic oracle, begins with the advice of a loving mother who desires the best for her son. The first nine verses urge the king not to succumb to the foolishness of lust and drunkenness: “My son, son of my womb, the answer to my prayers, what more can I say? Do not spend your strength on women, for they destroy kings.”

Another harmful influence a king must avoid is intoxicating drink, which Solomon likely indulged in. Intemperance is a poor counselor.

Here, I see the connection between 1 Kings 12 and Proverbs 31. The wise man acknowledges that he committed these mistakes. Though late in his life, Solomon recognized his errors, and God forgave him in His mercy, just as He did with his father David.

There is hope for every sinner who recognizes their mistake and repents.