Note that Rehoboam’s choice of whose advice he heeded was brought about by God. If God intervenes in such a way in men’s affairs, does it give you some ideas about how to pray for the people and situations that burden you?
Israel is truly distinctive for the mindset revealed by the actions recorded in this account. They wanted the king to be accountable to the people. When he refused, they rebelled against him and made someone else their king. Do you realize how unique that is in a time period when all kings were sovereign over their subjects, and the people lived to serve their king? That mindset was so ingrained that it was never questioned. Israel was unique in considering a ruler a servant of the people. That is a value we take for granted today because of the God-given gift of our republican form of government, but it wasn’t always so. We are truly blessed to live under a government that offers “liberty and justice for all.”
So the nation of Israel was split into two nations: Israel in the north, and Judah in the south. Judah retained David’s dynasty of kings; the north had a number of different dynasties beginning with Jereboam. King Jereboam chose a city in the territory of Ephraim for his capital. This is significant because for that reason the northern tribes of Israel were often referred to as Ephraim in prophecy, much like people refer to “Washington” when referring to the U.S.
God offered the same promise to Jereboam that He offered to David and his descendants: if you will serve me, you will remain on the throne. Jereboam failed miserably in that regard because he feared losing his power. He didn’t have a father whose memory God wanted to honor like Solomon did. During his reign God decided that He would root Israel out of their land, scatter them in distant lands, and give them up. He patiently waited hundreds of years to do that, but they did not get better; rather, they continued in their sin and grew progressively worse in it. That’s what sin does.
Judah did little better, so God allowed the king of Egypt to prevail against them. The wealth Solomon had accumulated was all taken away. So much for all Solomon had built and the alliances he had made.
What can you learn about God from His interactions with these men? What lessons for your life can you glean from their lives?