Thank you for listening to this sermon from Seven Springs Presbyterian Church. If you want to learn more about us, please find us on Facebook or visit us at sevenspringspresbyterian.com. Like I said, we'll be in First Kings chapter 11 in the latter portion there. We come to a chapter that one commentator explains as one of the most important chapters in the Old Testament. And what the commentator is speaking of, not necessarily in height of joy, but the ramifications of this chapter have a long-lasting impact in the history of Israel. But also even to later on, even when Jesus comes to earth centuries later and millennia later, here he meets a woman at a well and they have a different understanding how they read the Old Testament. And a lot of that can be traced back to the divide that is about to come and happen here. One of those important hinges in history And that's what chapter 11 is as we begin this critical chapter that shapes the nation of Israel for some time to be able to follow. I noted last time that chapter 11 is an interesting way for the author to be able to choose and to be able to conclude the life of Solomon. We've hinted in what he's done and his great accomplishments but here this is where the author finishes Solomon's life and it merely just ends beginning in verse 41 with what happens to Solomon. But we know what's coming. We've been told already in the beginning of the chapter particularly there in verse 9 where the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. And he had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods. But he did not keep what the Lord commanded. Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, since this has been your practice, and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you. and will give it to your servant. Yet for the sake of David your father I will not do it in your days." but I will tear it out of the hand of your son." So here Solomon we find the demise because he did not keep the law that was commanded to him. He did not follow after God wholeheartedly but went after other gods. And the comparison there is what David his father did. We see that is kind of the mark of the kings to come. having a heart for God like David did. David had a similar situation where he had sinned against the Lord but his heart because it was for the Lord was turned back to him. Solomon we don't necessarily get that glimpse here. But we also know that this was going to happen in 2 Samuel chapter 7, that glorious promise of the Divinic Covenant. The Lord tells that he would be a father to To him he will be a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I shall discipline him with the rod of men and the stripes of sons of men. But my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you." And we often might read that passage and we think merely that, well, The king will always be on the throne that David was on because Saul's kingship was taken from him and given to his neighbor David. But here what we see is the Lord says that He is going to not take it from Solomon but He will take it from His Son. And this is the discipline of the Lord. The discipline through the rod of men and the stripes of the sons of men. And this is how the Lord is going to discipline the king that is wayward who goes away. When he commits iniquity he will walk And the Lord will discipline him through the rod of men and stripes of the sons of men. And the Lord tells Solomon, he is going to tear the kingdom out of your son's hand. And this is the judgment of God for Solomon, not following the Lord wholeheartedly. So God raises up adversaries. We saw the first two that he rose up, those rods of men, the stripes of the sons of men, We saw that with the Lord raised up an adversary against Solomon, Adad the Edomite. He was of the royal house in Edom. And not only that, God raised up an adversary to him, Rezon, the son of Elida, who had fled from his master, Haradiza, king of Zorba. But this prophecy that is told to Solomon is not that the kingdom will be torn from Solomon's son's hands from an adversary. Specifically, it says that his son will be taken from one of Solomon's servants. So we see these adversaries rise up as the Lord is disciplining Solomon. But the actual judgment that will come of the tearing of the kingdom will be of one of Solomon's servants. And that's why it's important in verse 11, where the Lord tells Solomon, Since this has been your practice, you have not kept my covenant and my statutes, and I have commanded you, I will surely tear from you and will give it to your servant." So here we see this warning. Saul was told by Samuel that the Lord would take the kingdom from him and give it to his neighbor. And here Solomon is told that Solomon's son, the kingdom will be torn from his hand and given to one of Solomon's servants. And why is this important? Because as we go through chapter 11, we've met two adversaries. And the adversary of Hadad, the Edomite, the adversary of Rezon, the son of Eliadah. But then in verse 26 and 28, we get introduced to the third. person, the third rod of men, the stripes of men that the Lord has raised up to be able to discipline Solomon, but also to be able to, who is a key player in the rest of the story of kings. But here in verse 26, Jehoram the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite from Zerda, a servant of Solomon, whose mother's name was Zerua, a widow, also lifted up his hand against the king. And this was the reason why he had lifted up his hand against the king. Solomon built the Milo and closed up the breach of the city of David his father. Jeroboam was very able. And when Solomon saw that the young man was industrious, he gave him charge over all the forced labor of the house of Joseph." So, in these very short verses we actually find out a lot about Jeroboam. We actually find out nine things about who Jeroboam is. The first is his name, Jeroboam. And often names in the Bible carry a particular weight. and what it actually means. And Jeroboam means may the people contend. So Jeroboam actually becomes what appears to be the voice of the people. He thinks about the people and how they're to worship and how they don't want to be able to be taken away to Rehoboam later. He thinks about the people as he meets with Rehoboam after Solomon passes away. And he is the voice of the people. And here, so Jeroboam means may the people content. His father's name, Nebat. He's from the tribe of Ephraim. So this is Joseph's second son, but he's the predominant tribe. Ephraim is the one that you might say Judah and Ephraim are the two major tribes in the story of Israel. We find out where he is from. Zerudah, which is northern parts of Israel, near Mount Ebal. We find out his occupation. He's a servant of Solomon. Again, that's very important because we've met two adversaries, but here the servant, one of Solomon's servants is going to be able to take away the kingdom. We're already clued in in this words that have come up. But he's a servant and what he actually does is Solomon sees that he becomes very industrious we find out is one of the points later. But he then is over all the tribes of the house of Joseph. So he oversees two households, two tribes, Ephraim and Joseph's other son. And we also find out his mother's name, Zeruah. And we find out she's a widow. Now, just briefly on the mother's name, why is this included in here? I think it's included because it's historical. We find out his father's name's Nebat. We don't know much more than what that actually means. It's a historical fact that this is how they would identify each other. We would use clan names, our last names is how we would identify, but often during biblical times it would be references to predominant people that people might know of and or just to be able to there's another Jeroboam another king that comes later in the lines so it's a way to be able to identify them. So we see that information, we find out about that information, it's important when we know about Solomon and David and his wife, Uriah the Hittite's wife, Bathsheba, is the origins of where Solomon comes from. But I don't necessarily think there's theological implications that can be found directly from this, just merely from a statistical standpoint. Some have more important factors than others. One of the queens, the only queen that happens in the tribe of, in Israel and Judah's history, Talia, Ahaziah's mother, is referenced, and it's important because she plays a major part in the story. It's her grandfather, Omri, the king, Ahab, a king in the Northern Kingdom in Israel. So there's a heritage there that is why that might be important. But out of the total of 39 kings, North and South, 20 kings of the South and 19 kings in the North, we know 20 kings' mothers, mainly in the Southern Kingdom. So 17 in the South, three in the North. So we know about 85% of the mothers in the Southern Kingdom, 16% in the Northern Kingdom. Of the mothers mentioned, six of them are from good kings, two of them are from kings that start off good, that end off bad, nine of them are from bad, from the southern kingdom, and three are from the bad in the northern kingdom. So I think that when we see this, I think it's hard to be able to formulate some theological understanding of exactly why they're mentioned other than merely just a historical reasoning of connecting them to someone. So I don't think that it's It's for us to be able to put a lot of weight into it, such as Jeroboam and Nebat or Joshua and Nun, the son of Nun, but we are given that information. The seventh thing that we find out about Jeroboam is the reason. The reason why he raises his hand against King Solomon, we're told very specifically it's because Solomon built Milo. And Milo is a part of a wall and he closed the breach of David. So there was a hole in the wall and Solomon filled the wall, built it out. Now this is possible, maybe, how his father died. You think maybe that would be mentioned here. But the reason how he did it, part 1, 1 Kings 12, verse 4, is when Jeroboam comes and meets with Rehoboam, Solomon's son, he speaks about what Solomon did. And in verse 4, he says that your father, speaking of Solomon, made our yoke heavy. And therefore, lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke on us, and we will serve you. So here Solomon is taking forced labor and setting tribes over them to be able to build all these projects. And so when they come, they speak of this hard service. that Solomon has put upon there, later in there it says that, The Rehoboam is, your father used whips. Well, Rehoboam's gonna use scorpions. So whether that's an imagery that here Solomon is abusing the people of Israel, but here, as he's building this milo, this wall, it's most likely that here, Jeroboam starts to be able to see the oppression of what King Solomon is doing to the people of Israel. Here again, why it's important about his name. May the people content hear the voice of, hear Jeroboam is. So he sees that, he's over the household of Joseph. He might probably have, Solomon sees his work. He sees that he's industrious. So there's some form of close relationship there. that Jeroboam sees maybe a side of Solomon he does not like, whatever it is, we're not told specifically but we're told the reason is because of this wall that Solomon built. The eighth thing that we learn about him is his ability, that he is very able. This is the same Hebrew word that is used to describe Saul, and it's also used to describe David. Saul, and when we first meet him, the man of Benjamin, whose name was Kish, and the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, a Benjamite, a man of wealth. That word there, a man of wealth, is the same word there of what is translated Jeroboam. Some believe that Jeroboam is a wealthy man, and his father is a man of wealth, nabot, a man of wealth. So Jeroboam is a man of wealth, value. The same word is used to speak of David when that young servant is mentioning and instructing who David is. This young man answered Saul and said, Behold, I have seen the son of Jesse of Bethlehem a height, who is skillful in playing, a man of valor, It's the same word here, able. He's a man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech. He can be translated in different ways, strong man, mighty man. It's used to speak of the mighty men in 2 Samuel chapter 23. So it could either be that he's a man of wealth, that he's a man of He's able in strength, there can be many different understandings but here he stands out, you might say, as a person that other kings have looked like and therefore he's kingly in how he functions. The ninth thing that we learn about him is his ability in a different way, he's industrious. He works in the trade. In 2 Kings chapter 12 and 22, we'll see it's used of the term of workmen. Maybe Jeroboam was a hard worker who was on the ground building the wall of Melo and he was working very hard on the ground in a blue collar job and here Solomon sees him, he sees this in verse 28, he sees him working, he sees how industrious he is and he promotes him to be a servant to be able to be over the forced labor of the house of Joseph. So here we learn that a lot of Jeroboam is just in these few verses. There's a lot of things that stand out. So we have some of the pieces of the puzzle, but not the whole picture. So we know a little bit about Jeroboam and what the Lord told Solomon, again, that he's going to give it to his servant. Now, so Solomon knows that this is coming. And so maybe Dear Bohem rises to the point where Solomon is on edge right from the very start. Saul is told very early that the kingdom is going to be torn and given to his neighbor. And then what happens? David rises up. And then David comes back from battle, and everyone sings the great and glorious hit song that hears Saul killed his thousands, but David killed his tens of thousands. And what happens in Saul's heart is he's envious. He's jealous. So here Solomon might be on edge and he sees Jeroboam and he sees, oh, he's a person of the people. He sees his heart or whatever. It's hard to be able to understand of all the timing of this. It seems to be somewhat to the conclusion of Solomon's reign, but we don't know particularly. But here in verse 29, We're told that here at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah, the Shilonite, found him on the road. Now Ahijah had dressed himself in a new garment and the two of them were alone in the open country. So at that time, there's a transition here of now Jeroboam is leaving Jerusalem and Ahijah comes. So there is movement. We are not told specifically when this movement is. Why is he going out of Jerusalem? Is it merely just a daily routine that he is going out to be able to check on those whom he is over? It is possible regular movement. It might be he is leaving Jerusalem because in chapter 5 we learned that here Solomon set up kind of shifts that he had people work in certain places. King Solomon drafted forced labor out of all of Israel. He drafted a number of 30,000 men. He sent them to Lebanon, 10,000 a month in shifts. They would be a month in Lebanon and two months at home. So here, Maybe Jeroboam is leaving because he's now on this routine or maybe Solomon is already on the edge. And what we find out in verse 20 is actually what's happened here at this time. In verse 40, Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. Jeroboam arose and fled into Egypt. So here, maybe Jeroboam is leaving because he knows that Solomon is after him. We don't know specific about the timing. But I think what is key now is about the prophecy that comes up. There has been no mention of prophets since Solomon came to the throne. And doesn't mean they're not there. But Nathan played a part in Solomon's ascension to the throne. Remember in chapter 2 where he met with Bathsheba and went and stood before David and he was there at his coronation. But what we find out in 2 Chronicles is the rest of the acts of Solomon from first to last are they not written in the history of Nathan the prophet? and the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite and the visions of Adu the seer concerning Jeroboam the son of Nebat. So here we see three prophets that are listed here that were during this period of reign. Nathan at the beginning, Ahijah and Adu somewhere in there as well. So it's not to say there's no prophets, it's just we don't have a record of what they're saying during this time besides say in chapter 11. So what does this prophet say? We'll read the large portion of text from verse 29 to 30 and then we'll break it down. At that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him on the road and Ahijah had dressed himself in a new garment and the two of them were alone in open country. Then Ahijah laid hold of the new garment that was on him and he tore it into twelve pieces. And he said to Jeroboam, Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the Lord the God of Israel, Behold, I am about to tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon, and will give you ten tribes. But he shall have one tribe for the sake of my servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem, a city that I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel. Because they have forsaken me and worshipped Ashtaroth, the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh, the god of Moab, and Milcom, the god of the Ammonites, and they have not walked in my ways, doing what is right in my sight and keeping my statutes and my rules as David his father did, nevertheless I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, but I will make him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of David my servant whom I chose, whom kept my commandments and my statutes. But I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand and will give it to you, ten tribes. Yet to his son I will give one tribe that David my servant may always have a lamp before me in Jerusalem, the city where I've chosen to put my name. and I will take you. And you shall reign over all that your soul desires, and you shall be a king over Israel. And if you will listen to all that I command you, and will walk in my ways, and do what is right in my eyes by keeping my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did, I will be with you, and will build you a sure house as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you, and I will afflict the offspring of David because of this, but not forever." So, here Ahijah is from Shiloh. We met this place before. This is where Eli was from. This is where the ark dwelt. This is where Samuel became a prophet as he heard from the Lord. He woke up those three times. Eli, did you call for me? No, no, no. Wait and hear from the Lord. So, this is where he grew up. And we have this image as they're going out and they meet in open country and he meets with them. He has a new garment and he takes this new garment off and he rips it up into twelve pieces and he gives ten to Jeroboam. And one gets given to Solomon. So if you do the math, you're missing one. Benjamin often is joined. It's a smaller tribe down the lower parts of Judah. So often they're combined with the tribe of Judah, particularly if you think about the two tribes that have been gone before with the tribe of Benjamin and Saul and the tribe of Judah with David and Solomon. that here you have these two tribes that have this history together. So here this image of this garment being ripped. Now this should give us more images in our mind of that image of Saul and the garment as he's ripped out of his hand. Here as Saul, Samuel says that I'm going to give the kingdom to your neighbor and Saul reaches out and tries to grab the kingdom. grabs Samuel's robe and what happens, he tears it and Samuel turns around and says, just as this is torn, the kingdom will be torn from your hands. So this imagery comes up again in this matter. But instead of the imagery of the whole kingdom being torn, it's partially torn. So here, 10 pieces is what is given to Jeroboam. So thus says the Lord to God, Behold, I am about to tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon and give you ten tribes." Now what Solomon has been told at this point is that the kingdom is going to be torn from Solomon's son's hands, but not during Solomon's lifetime. So maybe this is why the threat is there that we understand now through this prophecy that what is going to happen is the kingdom is going to be divided. that one of the tribes is going to go with Rehoboam, Solomon's son, which we don't know his name yet, but one of the tribes is gonna go with Solomon's son, and then the 10 tribes are gonna go with Jeroboam. And so we find this, he says it again in verse 35, I'll take from the kingdom out of his son's hand and give it to you, 10 tribes. So we find out what is going to happen. The next thing we find out why this is going to happen. Now we've been told specifically it's because of Solomon's worship and his love for these other gods and following, not following the Lord and following His commandments, following the Lord wholeheartedly. But we're told in verse 33, the reason, because they have forsaken me and worshipped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh, the god of Moab, the Milcom, the god of the Ammonites. And they have not walked in my ways, doing what is right in my sight, and keeping my statutes and my rules." David did. So interestingly here what we see is Solomon's judgment is about his heart not following after this, but here Ahijah uses the word they. Now he's speaking of they, speaking of all of Israel, all of the nation. Now I think what you see is often how the king goes, the people go. It's an often pattern, I think, is the king reforms and people start to worship the Lord again. If the king follows after false gods, then that's what the people do. Or maybe it is more specifically speaking about Solomon's household. I think it speaks generally more about the nation, but it could speak about the royal kind of household of Solomon. But the main thing is they've forsaken the Lord. They have not walked in my ways, they've walked in their own ways. Now this again should bring up all this imagery of what happens. What happens right before we get to 1 Samuel? The very closing verse in Judges chapter 21, in those days there was no king in Israel and everyone did what was right in his own eyes. Well, that's what happened with Saul, right? Saul did what was right in his own eyes. The king problem was solved, but the problem wasn't necessarily there was no king. The problem was there was no king who did what was right in the Lord's eyes. And so this is what's happening underneath the reign of Solomon is that all the people are doing what is ever right. They're not following the Lord's ways. And this is exactly what is promised in Deuteronomy chapter 28, the blessings and the cursed mountains there in Deuteronomy chapter 28. The Lord will send you curses, confusion, frustration and all that you undertake to do until you are destroyed and perish quickly on account of the evil of your deeds because you have forsaken me. Here this is what's going to happen. The two nations will be divided and all these things. Curses, confusion, frustration. You'll be destroyed, you'll perish quickly on account of all these evil deeds because you have forsaken me. Just repeating itself in Judges chapter 10. People cried out saying, we have sinned against you because we have forsaken our God and served Baals. A couple of verses later, if you have forsaken me and served other gods, therefore I will not save you no more. Again, they were walking away from the Lord and following false gods. And this is exactly what they've done since they've left Egypt. Samuel in chapter 8, that great pinnacle of what happens as the whole nation turns. But according to all the deeds they have done, from the day I brought them out of Egypt, even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. Here's the pattern, the repetition, maybe 10 times you can count from once they're leaving Exodus, leaving Egypt, they truly, as a nation, worship the Lord. And this is what happens underneath Solomon. They're worshiping just like Solomon. The people are doing exactly like that. And so what's gonna happen is the Lord's gonna take out the kingdom, give it to Jeroboam, 10 tribes, because they're forsaken the Lord. They've turned to worship false gods. And what's the promise here in this? That God says that he will take you, Jeroboam, and Jeroboam shall reign over all that Jeroboam's soul desires. Jeroboam shall be king over Israel. And if you listen to all that I have commanded you and walk in my ways, do what is right in my eyes, keeping the statutes of my commandment as David my servant did, I will be with you and build you a sure house as I built for David. And I will give Israel to you and I will afflict the offspring of David because of this." So here the promise is twofold. The first is that God is going to take Jeroboam. He is going to make him reign over the soul desires. and he'll be king over Israel. That's the promise that the Lord is going to do. We see that carried out. We'll get reminded of this. This happens because of Adonijah the prophet, the Shilohite told Jeroboam this is what's going to happen. But verse 38 gives a very important verse that says, you listen to what I've commanded, if you walk in my ways, if you do what is right in my eyes, by keeping my commandments and my statutes, as David did. Now Solomon had an if condition as well, that big if that was given. These conditional aspects, if you listen, if you walk, if you do what is right, if you keep them as David did, then what will happen? The promise of this conditional if is based upon, then I will be with you, then I will build you a sure house, then I will give Israel to you, then I will afflict the offspring of David. Now sometimes the promises in the Bible are conditional. You see that in this case, if you walk in my ways, this is what's going to happen. They're dependent on actions. But that's not all the promises of God. Most of the promises of what we call the covenant of grace are actually not based on how we act. In Genesis chapter 12 here, Abraham leaves Haran and the Lord gives him a promise. It's not based upon what Abraham does and that's Paul's point is that the promise of circumcision is later. The Lord promises in chapter 12 and chapter 15 before circumcision happens later in chapter 17, or in 2 Samuel chapter 7. The promise isn't based upon David. The promise is actually reversed. David says, I want to build you a house, and the Lord says, no, I'm going to build you a house. It's not based upon David building a house. It's based upon what the Lord is going to do. But back to the start, that promise which the Lord says of what will happen, that when he commits iniquity, not if, but when he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men and the stripes of the sons of men. But my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before you. Here there's a promise within this that God will discipline him, but it will not be to the extent of what's happened to Saul. that his steadfast love would not depart from him." See that in the end there, verse 39, I'll afflict the offspring of David because of this, but not forever. Or he says in verse 32, But he shall have one tribe for the sake of my servant David, for the sake of Jerusalem, the city that I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel." Or verse 34, Nevertheless I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, but I will make him ruler all the days of his life. And for the sake of David my servant whom I chose, who kept my commandments and my statutes. Or verse 36, To his son I will give one tribe, that David my servant may always have a land before me in Jerusalem, the city chosen to put my name." So not only do we see David as the example in which all the kings are set apart, we also see the promise carried on that God is not going to rip the kingdom out of Rehoboam's hand, Solomon's son's hand, completely, wholly. And the reason is not because of Solomon, not because of Rehoboam, but because of the promise God had made to David. In Psalm 89, the psalmist writes, you have said, I have made a covenant with my chosen one. I have sworn to David my servant. I will establish your offspring forever and build your house for all generations. Later in verse 34 and 37, I will not violate my covenant or alter the word that went forth from my lips. Once for all I have sworn by my holiness, I will not lie to David. His offspring shall endure forever His throne, as long as the sun before me, like the moon, it shall be established forever, a faithful witness in the skies." And here the reason why the Lord is not just ripping the kingdom out of Rehoboam's hand is because of the promise he made to David. Again, it's not based on David. The promise was made before David had kept his commandments and walked in his ways. The promise was made to David because of who the Lord is. This is a principle that the author picks up on in Hebrews chapter 6. The author of Hebrews uses the example of Abraham. Here the Lord swears and makes a promise to Abraham. Since there is no one greater for the Lord to be able to swear by, He swears by Himself, saying, surely I will bless you and multiply you. You might say, and apply that same logic to this situation here, as Psalm 89 explains, that here the Lord makes a promise. He says, I'm not going to lie to David. I made a promise to David that he will have a son that sits on the throne forever. And so here we see that constant grace that appears throughout all of this. So what happens after all of this? In verse 40 we find out that Solomon sought, therefore, to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose and fled to Egypt of Shishak, the king of Egypt, and was Egypt until the death of Solomon. The problem is that a part of the promise that is given in 2 Samuel chapter 7 is that David's son would live forever. And one constant refrain that comes up throughout 1 and 2 Kings is the refrain that the king dies, that he's laid with his fathers, and then someone else reigns in his place. There's a movement, there's a change. And so we're looking for that king, the son of David, who's going to rule forever. And we know it doesn't come in 1 and 2 Kings. But here's how the life of Solomon ends. All of his great grandeur of what he does and accomplishes. The author records it this way in verse 41 and 43. Now the rest of the acts of Solomon and all that he did. And his wisdom are they not written in the book of Acts of Solomon. And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all of Israel was forty years. And Solomon slept with his father and was buried in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam his son reigned in his place." We're looking for that son of David who's going to sit on his throne righteously, justly, who rules forever. And we find out that Solomon is not that king. We long for that time when we see the King and we know when it comes. In the Gospel accounts where Jesus comes, not born into a royal household, but He rules over all creation. He conquers sin, death, and Satan, our enemies. He brings us peace. Unlike the peace of Solomon which only lasts for a lifetime, the peace of Christ which reigns forever.