Jeroboam, the young prophet and the old prophet of Bethel (P1): the context

Kalai vaṇakkam strength! Ouaembê wisdom! It is a time of judgment for some. A time of testing for some and a time of elevation for others. Keep piety, justice, and faith (Hosea 12:7). After the king, the most powerful men are the one who advises the King and the one who has the favor of the people. They too will be tempted, judged, struck, or rewarded.

May there be no attack in your country. But if it does happen, may GOD preserve you. Your ears are not dustbins for receiving discussions that do not edify. Stay away from bad company. " Behold, the happy man! He does not listen to the advice of evil people, he does not follow the example of evildoers, he does not sit with mockers. On the contrary, he loves the teaching of the LORD. " (Psalm 1:1-2, NKJV)

Our study text is chapter 13 of the 1st book of Kings. Before we get there, I'll give you the context of this story. 🙂 In several Bible translations, the one who is called " a man of GOD " is called "a young prophet." In the original Hebrew texts and in the French Jewish Bible it is written " a man of GOD " and "not a young prophet ."

1. The context (1 Kings, chapters 11 and 12)

Solomon, son of David, turned away from the LORD. At the end of his life, he was an idolater (1 Kings 11:1-41). After his death, GOD did not allow his son Rehoboam to reign over all 12 tribes of Israel. In the south, two tribes (Judah and Benjamin) remained loyal to Rehoboam. They formed the Kingdom of Judah, with Jerusalem as its capital. In the north, ten tribes formed the Kingdom of Israel, also called the Kingdom of Samaria or the Northern Kingdom. They chose Jeroboam, a former officer of Solomon, as their king (1 Kings 12:1-33).

The capital of this kingdom was Shechem, also spelled Shechem (near Samaria), then Penuel. The Northern Kingdom had several capitals: Shechem, Penuel, and Samaria. Shechem was initially the capital. But during his reign, Jeroboam moved the capital to Penuel. Samaria became the capital long after Jeroboam's reign. In Jeroboam's time, Samaria was not yet a city , and the Northern Kingdom was not yet called the Kingdom of Samaria.

Note that Jeroboam did not raise the people against Rehoboam. GOD chose him. Through the prophet Ahijah, GOD announced that he will entrust 10 tribes to Jeroboam (1 Kings 11:29-40). Solomon, having learned of this, tried to have him killed, but Jeroboam hid in Egypt until Solomon's death. Upon King Solomon's death, Jeroboam returned to Israel. The 10 tribes, remembering the words of the prophet Ahijah, chose him as king. The tribe of Levi had a special status. Unlike the other tribes, it did not have a dedicated region but cities scattered throughout the regions of the other tribes. The tribe of Levi was dedicated to the LORD and to the service of the temple. It is therefore very likely that many of them, if not all, settled in Jerusalem.

❖ (Deuteronomy 18:1-8, NKJV) Moses said, " The Levitical priests and the rest of the people of Levi will not inherit land like the rest of Israel. They will eat the sacrifices offered to the LORD and the rest of his possessions. The Levites will not have territory among the rest of Israel . " (Deuteronomy 18:1-8, NKJV)

❖ (1 Kings 11:37-40, Segond 21) : “ 37 I will take you to reign over all the territory you want and you will be king of Israel. 38 If you obey all that I command you, and walk in my ways and do what is right in my eyes, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as my servant David did, then I will be with you and build you a stable house, as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you. 39 I will thus humble the descendants of David, but it will not be forever. ' 40 Solomon sought to kill Jeroboam, but he rose up and fled to Egypt to Shishak, king of Egypt. He remained in Egypt until Solomon's death. "

Despite the division of the Kingdom, Jerusalem remained the religious capital of the 12 tribes. The LORD's temple was located there. Jeroboam thought that if the 10 tribes of his kingdom continued to go to Jerusalem (capital of the Kingdom of Judah), they would either commit themselves to Rehoboam or reconcile with the other 2 tribes and kill him and his son.

With the encouragement of his advisors, he decided to institute idolatry to divert and manipulate the people (1 Kings 12:25-33). He erected two statues of golden calves, which he placed in Bethel and Dan. He told the people that these statues represented the LORD. He was inspired by what Aaron had done in the desert (Exodus 32:1-10). Jeroboam went further, he built false places of worship (called high places). He established priests who did not belong to the tribe of Levi, the tribe dedicated to the service of GOD and the temple of Israel. He established himself as a priest. To discourage the people from going to Jerusalem, he established celebrations on dates identical to the festivals celebrated in Jerusalem.

🙂 I think it is useful to stop to highlight and reflect on a few points.

• Solomon's decisions and actions led the LORD to remove his kingship over 10 tribes. It was because of the promise that GOD had made to David that the tribes of Judah and Benjamin remained faithful to Rehoboam (David's grandson).

• GOD is the one who chose Jeroboam as king over 10 tribes. Jeroboam did not become king by his own efforts.

• GOD had warned Jeroboam, and therefore all 12 tribes, that the division was to be temporary.

• GOD had promised Jeroboam that if he walked in the ways of the LORD, he would establish him permanently. This was clearly stated from the beginning .

• Despite this, Jeroboam accepted the devil's thoughts, convincing him that he could remain king without GOD's help. Jeroboam became so proud that he decided to establish a new cult.

Questions

• What should have been Jeroboam's attitude?

• Were Jerobam's advisors good advisors?

• What does the Bible say about idolatry?

• Can we serve GOD in any way?

• What should have been the attitude of the ten tribes when Jeroboam began to build high places?

• What should be our attitude toward idolatry, false teachings, and pagan customs?

• How can we avoid repeating the mistakes of Jeroboam and the people?

** Kalai vaṇakkam (காலை வணக்கம்) = Hello (good morning) in Tamil (Sri Lanka, Singapore, India, Malaysia, Mauritius)

** Ouaembê = Hello in Bafia (Cameroon)