Jeroboam Refuses To Listen

God’s prophet had specifically warned Jeroboam about the consequences of changing the jewish religion he had given them for their own ideas.ven though he recognized the prophet came from God, Jeroboam refused to change what he was doing, leading Israel into sin as I Kings 13:33-34 tells us.  “After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil way, but made again of the lowest of the people priests of the high places: whosoever would, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of the high places.  And this thing became sin unto the house of Jeroboam, even to cut it off, and to destroy it from off the face of the earth.”

Many people think we need strong leaders to get people to follow God.  Unfortunately such strong leaders can also lead people away from God.  Jeroboam had made it so hard to worship God as they were supposed to that all the priests and Levites were forced to give up their land and move to Judah, according to II Chronicles 11:13-16.  “And the priests and the Levites that were in all Israel resorted to him out of all their coasts.  For the Levites left their suburbs and their possession, and came to Judah and Jerusalem: for Jeroboam and his sons had cast them off from executing the priest's office unto the LORD: And he ordained him priests for the high places, and for the devils, and for the calves which he had made.  And after them out of all the tribes of Israel such as set their hearts to seek the LORD God of Israel came to Jerusalem, to sacrifice unto the LORD God of their fathers.”

Having his hand shrivel up and become paralyzed hadn’t made Jeroboam stop, so God allowed his son to get sick in an attempt to get his attention.  Jeroboam wanted God’s approval but was unwilling to do what God wanted.  He sent his wife down to the prophet who had first told him he would be king to see if he would bless him.  Apparently, he thought he could change what God wanted by consulting a different prophet, much like people today switching churches to find a pastor who tells them what they want to hear.   They tried to trick the prophet to improve their chances, as we see in I Kings 14:1-3. Tells us.  “At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick.  And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh: behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, which told me that I should be king over this people.  And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him: he shall tell thee what shall become of the child.”

Their efforts to fool Ahijah the prophet were wasted.  He was blind, but God let him know what was going on, In I Kings 14:4-6.  “And Jeroboam's wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age.  And the LORD said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he is sick: thus and thus shalt thou say unto her: for it shall be, when she cometh in, that she shall feign herself to be another woman. And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings.”

Ahijah told her that because God had given Jeroboam a special opportunity and he had refused to follow the Lord he would be judged more severely than Solomon, in I Kings 14:7-16.  “Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel, And rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee: and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes; But hast done evil above all that were before thee: for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back: Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone.  Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat: for the LORD hath spoken it. Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die.  And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him: for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam.

Moreover the LORD shall raise him up a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam that day: but what? even now.  For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger.  And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin.”

While Solomon had worshipped other gods, Jeroboam had actively tried to get the people to worship another religion.  Because Israel had followed Jeroboam, God displace them from their land and scatter tehm among the nations.  Jeroboam’s family would be wiped out, and so little thought of that they wouldn’t even bother to bury them.  The child woule be the only one who would be mourned.  Everything turned out exactly as Ahijah had prophesied, according to I Kings 14:17-20.  “And Jeroboam's wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah: and when she came to the threshold of the door, the child died; And they buried him; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the prophet.  And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred, and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.  And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years: and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his stead.”