As Solomon aged, and as his wealth and power increased, his heart strayed from Jehovah. So far does he drift that in the end he destroys his kingdom.
1 Kings 11:1-8> -- Moses warned specifically that the king should not gather up multiple foreign wives, nor pile up the gold and silver (Deuteronomy 17:17). The writer quotes this. Yet it is exactly what Solomon does. The warning had foreseen precisely what the danger would be: apostasy. Many pagan nations had a version of Astarte worship, from the mountains east of Babylon to the Phoenicians in the Mediterranean Sea, there were variations on the idea of a fertility goddess, usually symbolized by a carved tree stump. She was called Asherah, Ishtar, Esther, and so forth. There were also variations of Molech: Milcom, Melech, and it is believed Chemosh was related. Just below Jerusalem in the Valley of Hinnom, there had been an ancient shrine to Molech, where children were offered burned alive. During David's reign, the place had been defiled by garbage, burned from time to time to reduce its bulk. Solomon replaced the shrine at his own expense on the Mount of Olives.
All this was the result of marrying foreign women. They were offered by rulers as a means of making alliance with the most powerful man on earth at that time. It went to Solomon's head. He utterly failed to convert any of them to Judaism. Instead, he allowed them to lead him into pagan idolatry.
11:9-13 -- Here was a man who had spoken with God twice, yet lacked the power to remain faithful. Only because of David's own faithfulness was the wrath of God tempered. Solomon was told directly that he had broken the Kingdom of Israel. While it would remain united during his lifetime, his son would lose all but one tribe, Judah. Of course, that included Simeon, but the other Ten Tribes, who had long kept their own identity, would depart.
11:14-22 -- As a way of demonstrating His seriousness, the Lord raised up a couple of rebels during Solomon's reign. Back when David and Joab were decimating the adult male population of Edom (2 Samuel 8:13-14), the heir escaped to Egypt as a boy, carried off by some of the soldiers from Edom's royal court. It appears he did not first go to Egypt proper, but stayed in Midian for awhile. When it was safe to travel, he passed through the Wilderness of Paran and gathered up a few supporters and moved on to Egypt. There, he became a favorite of Pharaoh's court. He was permitted to marry Pharaoh's sister-in-law, and his son was raised with Pharaoh's. All of this signals very high honor. When David and Joab were dead, he begged leave to return to Edom. We aren't told what mischief he got into, but it gave Solomon trouble.
11:23-25 -- During David's battles with Zobah and Damascus, one of the chief officers of Hadadezer of Damascus deserted. This fellow, named Rezon ("Prince"), became a desert raider. Sometime later in Solomon's reign, he made a surprise attack on Damascus and drove out the Israeli garrison left by David. Solomon never managed to regain control, and the city became a haven for caravan raiders. This threatened the tolls Solomon collected in that area.
11:26-28 -- The real threat was a member of Solomon's own court. Just after rebuilding the Millo, restoring it to its function as fortress, an Ephraimite named Jeroboam ("The People Will Contend") came to Solomon's attention as a talented man of character. He took Jeroboam into his service as overseer of public works in the House of Joseph, a nickname for the northern Ten Tribes of Israel. This position was prophesied to become that of King of Israel, as separate from King of Judah.
11:29-40 -- We first meet here the Prophet Ahijah of Shiloh. He made himself a new garment, then went out to meet Jeroboam on his rounds. They met in an open field, and the prophet ripped his new robe into twelve pieces. Ten he gave to Jeroboam, and told him what God was about to do. After Solomon passed the scepter to his son, Jeroboam was to lead a revolt. He was told specifically the reason for this: Solomon's apostasy. The prophet related the long list of sins, and the various gods. He reminded Jeroboam that Jerusalem was the royal city and the Holy City. Then the Covenant of Kings was offered to him: if Jeroboam would be faithful, his reign would be secure, his dynasty could last forever. Further, the House of David would remain too weak to attack him. Solomon got wind of this and sought to execute his officer. He, too, fled to Egypt and took refuge with Pharaoh Shishak.
12:1-5 -- The year was approximately 931 BC. Our parallel passage is 2 Chronicles 10-11:4. The coronation was to be held at Shechem, in Ephraim, the one city that had been allied to Israel from before the Conquest. Just before the ceremony, the elders of Israel called for Jeroboam from Egypt. In his office as Chief of Public Works over the Ten Tribes, he had formed a strong bond of leadership. He was their representative to present their complaint to Rehoboam. Before crowning him, they demanded to know if he would lighten the painful load of his father Solomon. With such a promise, the coronation would go off without a hitch. Rehoboam decided to consult with his advisers, and promised an answer in three days.
12:6-11 -- The elder statesmen from his father's court advised him Jeroboam was right, that Solomon had been altogether excessive in his taxation. They told him his task as king was to serve the people, not the other way around. Rehoboam didn't like the sound of that, and discussed it with his peers. They advised him to act the mighty king and arrogantly tell Jeroboam they had seen nothing yet. Solomon had been pretty light compared to Rehoboam's plans.
12:12-15 -- Deeply bitten with the arrogance of his father, Rehoboam told them to stop whining and get ready to work even harder. His tone was distinctly abusive and contemptuous. His father's rule was likened to a plain whip of leather straps, typically used judiciously on horses and the like merely to urge them on. The "scorpion" had metal studs in the straps, and was used to discipline slaves. This was deeply insulting. The scribe reminds us this was what God had expected.
12:16-20 -- In reply, the elders of Israel raised the old chant, rejecting the House of David as their ruler, as they had once before. The resounding refrain, "every man to his tent" was the same rejection David had faced more than once. It was a signal to go home; stop serving this man and let him take care of himself. As if the division had not previously been bad enough, from here on we must keep in mind a sharp division: "Israel" is the Northern Tribes, and "Judah" the Southern.
We need not envision everyone suddenly turning and walking away. The two groups would have been camping out, assuredly in separate areas. During the aftermath, before departing Shechem, Rehoboam called out Adoram to go and present a demand for the next corvée for work. When he got to the camp of the elders of Israel, he was stoned to death. On seeing this, Rehoboam realized the seriousness of things. He mounted his chariot and fled to Jerusalem.
12:21-24 -- Upon gaining the safety of the City, Rehoboam called out the troops. We are told the troops of Benjamin joined them, which leaves Jeroboam with nine tribes, to be precise, but the term Ten Tribes remains symbolic of Israel. While preparations were under way, a prophet named Shemaiah brought a message from God that this was His doing, and He would not bless any battles with their brethren to the north. They obeyed and called off the attack.
12:25-33 -- However, Jeroboam wasted no time in defying Jehovah. First, he fortified Shechem as his capital. He also went across the Jordan and fortified Penuel. Next, to prevent the hearts of Israel from longing for the Temple in Jerusalem, he built two rival temples. The first was at Bethel, a mere 12 miles north of Jerusalem. The other was far to the north at Dan. The problem was that he chose the old pre-Mosaic motif of golden calves. While it is widely understood folks did not worship the calves, but used them as symbolic mounts for their invisible God, this was clearly a departure from God's revealed will. Forever after, this would gain him the nickname of "he who made Israel sin."
He also built numerous shrines throughout the land. Then, with all the Levites now tied to Solomon's Temple, he ordained priests from every tribe. There was now no reason at all for his people to travel to Jerusalem for worship. Then, to top it off, he made a celebration to rival the Feast of Tabernacles. Tabernacles was in early October, and signaled the beginning of plowing season. Jeroboam moved his version to the end of October, during grain planting and the early rains.
Thus, we come to the end of era normally called the United Monarchy. This next period is, obviously, the Divided Monarchy.
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Ed Hurst
06 November 2004
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