Ahijah’s Prophecy against Jeroboam
1At that time Abijah son of Jeroboam became ill, 2and Jeroboam said to his wife, “Now get up, disguise yourself so they will not recognize you as my wife, and go to Shiloh. For Ahijah the prophet is there; it was he who spoke about my kingship over this people. 3Take with you ten loaves of bread, some cakes, and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will become of the boy.”
4Jeroboam’s wife did as instructed; she arose and went to Shiloh and arrived at Ahijah’s house. Now Ahijah could not see, for his eyes were dim because of his age. 5But the LORD had said to Ahijah, “Behold, the wife of Jeroboam is coming to ask you about her son, for he is ill. You are to say such and such to her, because when she arrives, she will be disguised.”
6So when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet entering the door, he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam! Why are you disguised? For I have been sent to you with bad news. 7Go, tell Jeroboam that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I raised you up from among the people and appointed you ruler over My people Israel.
Unlike David, who truly repented for his sins...
Unlike David, who truly repented for his sins (2 Samuel 12:13; Psalm 51:2–4), Jeroboam did more evil than those before him. Even with clear signs of God's displeasure and warnings of judgment (1 Kings 13:33), he did not change his ways. His sins would lead to serious consequences for his family and descendants (1 Kings 13:34; 14:10–11, 14) and eventually affect the entire northern kingdom (14:16).
molten images: see 1 Kings 12:26–30.
Unlike David, who truly repented for his sins (2 Samuel 12:13; Psalm 51:2–4), Jeroboam did more evil than those before him. Even with clear signs of God's displeasure and warnings of judgment (1 Kings 13:33), he did not change his ways. His sins would lead to serious consequences for his family and descendants (1 Kings 13:34; 14:10–11, 14) and eventually affect the entire northern kingdom (14:16).
molten images: see 1 Kings 12:26–30.
8I tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you. But you have not been like My servant David, who kept My commandments and followed Me with all his heart, doing only what was right in My eyes.
9You have done more evil than all who came before you. You have proceeded to make for yourself other gods and molten images to provoke Me, and you have flung Me behind your back. 10Because of all this, behold, I am bringing disaster on the house of Jeroboam:
I will cut off from Jeroboam every male,†both slave and free,in Israel;I will burn up the house of Jeroboamas one burns up dung until it is gone!11Anyone belonging to Jeroboam who dies in the citywill be eaten by dogs,and anyone who dies in the fieldwill be eaten by the birds of the air.’For the LORD has spoken.12As for you, get up and go home. When your feet enter the city, the child will die. 13All Israel will mourn for him and bury him. For this is the only one belonging to Jeroboam who will receive a proper burial,† because only in him has the LORD, the God of Israel, found any good in the house of Jeroboam.
14Moreover, the LORD will raise up for Himself a king over Israel who will cut off the house of Jeroboam. This is the day—yes, even today! 15For the LORD will strike Israel as a reed is shaken in the water. He will uproot Israel from this good land that He gave their fathers, and He will scatter them beyond the Euphrates,† because they have made their Asherah poles, provoking the LORD to anger. 16So He will give Israel over on account of the sins Jeroboam has committed and has caused Israel to commit.”
Tirzah was located on the road from Shechem...
Tirzah was located on the road from Shechem to Beth-shan. Known for its beauty (Song of Solomon 6:4), the city served as a royal retreat and became the capital of the northern kingdom (1 Kings 16:6, 8).
The child died, as Ahijah had predicted.
Tirzah was located on the road from Shechem to Beth-shan. Known for its beauty (Song of Solomon 6:4), the city served as a royal retreat and became the capital of the northern kingdom (1 Kings 16:6, 8).
The child died, as Ahijah had predicted.
17Then Jeroboam’s wife got up and departed for Tirzah, and as soon as she stepped over the threshold of the house, the boy died. 18And they buried him, and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word that the LORD had spoken through His servant Ahijah the prophet.
Nadab Succeeds Jeroboam
how he waged war: Jeroboam often fought border...
how he waged war: Jeroboam often fought border battles with Rehoboam (1 Kings 14:30).
The Book of the History of the Kings of Israel is mentioned seventeen times in 1 Kings 14:19—2 Kings 15:31. It includes information that may have come from official records written by the court recorder (see 1 Kings 4:3). The original readers of 1–2 Kings knew this book, but it is now lost.
how he waged war: Jeroboam often fought border battles with Rehoboam (1 Kings 14:30).
The Book of the History of the Kings of Israel is mentioned seventeen times in 1 Kings 14:19—2 Kings 15:31. It includes information that may have come from official records written by the court recorder (see 1 Kings 4:3). The original readers of 1–2 Kings knew this book, but it is now lost.
19As for the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he waged war and how he reigned, they are indeed written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
20And the length of Jeroboam’s reign was twenty-two years, and he rested with his fathers, and his son Nadab reigned in his place.
Rehoboam Reigns in Judah
Between the start and end details of Rehoboam’s...
Between the start and end details of Rehoboam’s rule (1 Kings 14:21, 29–31), the account highlights the declining spiritual state of God’s people in Judah (1 Kings 14:22–24) and an invasion by Egypt (1 Kings 14:25–28).
21Meanwhile, Rehoboam son of Solomon reigned in Judah. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the LORD had chosen from all the tribes of Israel in which to put His Name. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite.
22And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and by the sins they committed they provoked Him to jealous anger more than all their fathers had done.
Solomon married foreign wives, which led his family...
Solomon married foreign wives, which led his family into idol worship. Under Rehoboam's leadership, Judah continued the offensive practices of the pagan nations that lived in the land before the Israelites. When leaders are corrupt, a nation's spiritual decline often follows, leading to shame and ruin (Proverbs 14:34).
Shrine prostitutes were common in Canaan but were forbidden for Israel (see study notes on Leviticus 17:7; Deuteronomy 23:17–18). They became part of Israelite society as the people adopted Canaanite culture.
Solomon married foreign wives, which led his family into idol worship. Under Rehoboam's leadership, Judah continued the offensive practices of the pagan nations that lived in the land before the Israelites. When leaders are corrupt, a nation's spiritual decline often follows, leading to shame and ruin (Proverbs 14:34).
Shrine prostitutes were common in Canaan but were forbidden for Israel (see study notes on Leviticus 17:7; Deuteronomy 23:17–18). They became part of Israelite society as the people adopted Canaanite culture.
23They also built for themselves high places, sacred pillars, and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree. 24There were even male shrine prostitutes in the land. They imitated all the abominations of the nations the LORD had driven out before the Israelites.
Shishak Raids Jerusalem
25In the fifth year of Rehoboam’s reign, Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem.
When Rehoboam replaced Solomon's gold shields with bronze...
When Rehoboam replaced Solomon's gold shields with bronze ones, it showed the kingdom's declining spiritual state. Judah and Jerusalem avoided complete destruction only after Rehoboam repented in response to the Lord's message through the prophet Shemaiah (2 Chronicles 12:5–6, 12).
26He seized the treasures of the house of the LORD and of the royal palace. He took everything, including all the gold shields that Solomon had made.
27Then King Rehoboam made bronze shields in their place and committed them to the care of the captains of the guard on duty at the entrance to the royal palace. 28And whenever the king entered the house of the LORD, the guards would bear the shields, and later they would return them to the guardroom.
The final report about Rehoboam's rule mentions his...
The final report about Rehoboam's rule mentions his ongoing conflict with Jeroboam.
29As for the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, along with all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?
30There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam throughout their days. 31And Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried with them in the City of David; his mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite. And his son Abijam† reigned in his place.