I Kings 12:1-17
“And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king.” (I Kings 12:1)
With a thousand wives, Solomon had an untold number of sons to take his place, but he had clearly designated Rehoboam to be the next king. He hoped that since Jeroboam was living in exile in Egypt, Rehoboam could seize control before Jeroboam heard and prevent the dividing of the Kingdom that Adonijah had prophesied.
“And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;) That they sent and called him.” (I Kings 12:2-3a)
There was a lot of disgruntled people in Israel who knew of Adonijah’s prophecy and others who felt Jeroboam had been treated unfairly. They immediately notified Jeroboam, and returned in time for the coronation.
“And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.” (I Kings 12:3b-4)
During the first part of his reign, Solomon had had no wars to fight and a tremendous economy, so that silver was almost as common as gravel, and considered of little value. During that time he developed a tremendous system of public works, and adopted an extravagant lifestyle. After he turned away from God, civil unrest in Syria and Edom, and efforts to destroy Jeroboam consumed a lot of the tax revenue, as well as disrupting some of the trade, and reducing the incomes of the people.
Unwilling to cut back on government spending, Solomon raised the tax rates to maintain the government’s income, and it became a serious burden to the people. The one thing the people asked the new administration was for tax reform to make it less burdensome, and Jeroboam was one of the emmisaries sent to make the request.
“And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed.
And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people?
And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.” (I Kings 12:5-7)
Hesitant to make such a sweeping decision, Rehoboam asked for three days to discuss it with his advisors. He started by consulting his father’s cabinet of advisors, who told him that he could secure the nations support by reducing the taxes, although it would mean they would have to cut back on some programs.
“But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood before him: And he said unto them, What counsel give ye that we may answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke which thy father did put upon us lighter?” (I Kings 12:8-9)
Like most people, Rehoboam didn’t think he should be expected to cut back, so he formed a new cabinet of advisors who were more in sympathy with his own philosophy, just as new presidents do. Essentially, they had the same situation that has occurred in the last four or five elections in the United States.
“And the young men that were grown up with him spake unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto this people that spake unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father's loins. And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father hath chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.” (I Kings 12:10-11)
Unfortunately, the young men Rehoboam listened to were not the ones paying the bills. They didn’t really understand how that every dollar they collected in taxes was a dollar the wage earner could not spend for things he needed. Taxes are not a problem when the economy is booming and people have plenty of money, but they make a poor economy worse. Cuts in government spending would mean that programs that benefited them would be cut and they weren’t willing to give up anything to help the country, just as many of the voters did in the last several elections in the US.
They advised him to show his power and authority. Instead of cutting taxes, they advised him to increase government spending, and to use force if necessary to collect it.
"So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me again the third day.
And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the old men's counsel that they gave him; And spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people; for the cause was from the LORD, that he might perform his saying, which the LORD spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat.” (I Kings 12:12-15)
Like most politicians, Rehoboam listened only to the group of his constituents whose ideas coincided with his own, never considering that they might have valid concerns. His response was very much like Obama and Congress’s response to the Tea Party. What they didn’t understand, was that God was using that attitude to split the nation and punish it for turning away from God.
“So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents.
But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.” (I Kings 12:16-17)
As a result of Rehoboam’s response to the request ofr tax reform, most of the tribes of Israel seceded from the union, refusing to accept him as king. The tribe of Judah had a sense of loyalty to Rehoboam because he was from their tribe. The tribe of Benjamin was next door to Judah, and because it was such a small group, was very dependent on Judah, so many of them lived in Judah, and they went along with Rehoboam. All the rest just walked away.
The refusal to consider other points of view or situations destroys families, businesses, churches, and governments. I think the parallels between what happened in Israel and what is happening in the United States are to great to be safely ignored, especially with the Supreme Court’s recent rulings. When people feel their ideas don’t matter, they tend to rebel. Our country is seriously divided, and as the old saying goes, “divide and conquer.” It may well be what destroys the United States.
“And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king.” (I Kings 12:1)
With a thousand wives, Solomon had an untold number of sons to take his place, but he had clearly designated Rehoboam to be the next king. He hoped that since Jeroboam was living in exile in Egypt, Rehoboam could seize control before Jeroboam heard and prevent the dividing of the Kingdom that Adonijah had prophesied.
“And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;) That they sent and called him.” (I Kings 12:2-3a)
There was a lot of disgruntled people in Israel who knew of Adonijah’s prophecy and others who felt Jeroboam had been treated unfairly. They immediately notified Jeroboam, and returned in time for the coronation.
“And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.” (I Kings 12:3b-4)
During the first part of his reign, Solomon had had no wars to fight and a tremendous economy, so that silver was almost as common as gravel, and considered of little value. During that time he developed a tremendous system of public works, and adopted an extravagant lifestyle. After he turned away from God, civil unrest in Syria and Edom, and efforts to destroy Jeroboam consumed a lot of the tax revenue, as well as disrupting some of the trade, and reducing the incomes of the people.
Unwilling to cut back on government spending, Solomon raised the tax rates to maintain the government’s income, and it became a serious burden to the people. The one thing the people asked the new administration was for tax reform to make it less burdensome, and Jeroboam was one of the emmisaries sent to make the request.
“And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed.
And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people?
And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.” (I Kings 12:5-7)
Hesitant to make such a sweeping decision, Rehoboam asked for three days to discuss it with his advisors. He started by consulting his father’s cabinet of advisors, who told him that he could secure the nations support by reducing the taxes, although it would mean they would have to cut back on some programs.
“But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood before him: And he said unto them, What counsel give ye that we may answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke which thy father did put upon us lighter?” (I Kings 12:8-9)
Like most people, Rehoboam didn’t think he should be expected to cut back, so he formed a new cabinet of advisors who were more in sympathy with his own philosophy, just as new presidents do. Essentially, they had the same situation that has occurred in the last four or five elections in the United States.
“And the young men that were grown up with him spake unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto this people that spake unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father's loins. And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father hath chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.” (I Kings 12:10-11)
Unfortunately, the young men Rehoboam listened to were not the ones paying the bills. They didn’t really understand how that every dollar they collected in taxes was a dollar the wage earner could not spend for things he needed. Taxes are not a problem when the economy is booming and people have plenty of money, but they make a poor economy worse. Cuts in government spending would mean that programs that benefited them would be cut and they weren’t willing to give up anything to help the country, just as many of the voters did in the last several elections in the US.
They advised him to show his power and authority. Instead of cutting taxes, they advised him to increase government spending, and to use force if necessary to collect it.
"So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me again the third day.
And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the old men's counsel that they gave him; And spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people; for the cause was from the LORD, that he might perform his saying, which the LORD spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat.” (I Kings 12:12-15)
Like most politicians, Rehoboam listened only to the group of his constituents whose ideas coincided with his own, never considering that they might have valid concerns. His response was very much like Obama and Congress’s response to the Tea Party. What they didn’t understand, was that God was using that attitude to split the nation and punish it for turning away from God.
“So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents.
But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.” (I Kings 12:16-17)
As a result of Rehoboam’s response to the request ofr tax reform, most of the tribes of Israel seceded from the union, refusing to accept him as king. The tribe of Judah had a sense of loyalty to Rehoboam because he was from their tribe. The tribe of Benjamin was next door to Judah, and because it was such a small group, was very dependent on Judah, so many of them lived in Judah, and they went along with Rehoboam. All the rest just walked away.
The refusal to consider other points of view or situations destroys families, businesses, churches, and governments. I think the parallels between what happened in Israel and what is happening in the United States are to great to be safely ignored, especially with the Supreme Court’s recent rulings. When people feel their ideas don’t matter, they tend to rebel. Our country is seriously divided, and as the old saying goes, “divide and conquer.” It may well be what destroys the United States.
Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Excellent post describing the parallels to today's government and society, and the danger of the "enemy within."
ReplyDeleteGod bless,
Laurie
Thanks, Laurie.
DeleteThese things apply in every area of life from the smallest family group to the international level. It is too bad they haven't been taught more carefully in our churches.