Jeroboam | Israel's Split Kingdom Kings to Captivity | Episode 2
Following the death of Solomon, his son Rehoboam reigned in his stead,
but this would prove the beginning of the end
of Israel as one united nation.
Prior to Solomon's death, one of his mighty men, Jeroboam,
had been told by a prophet that the kingdom would be split
and that he would become the ruler of ten of the northern tribes,
but that this wouldn't happen until Solomon died.
Solomon had tried to prepare his son for his role,
but the history of his life shows the impact
of Solomon's union with idolatrous women
and the failure of proper guidance in parenting.
[music]
As Rehoboam took to the throne, he was approached soon after
by some leading men from the various tribes.
They came to ask him if things would get easier under his rulership.
In the closing years of Solomon's reign,
things had been quite difficult and he had taxed the people heavily.
Rehoboam told them to come back in three days.
Firstly, he approached some older men
and they told him to be kind to the people,
to ease their burdens, and they would serve him forever.
He wasn't happy with this advice, so he asked some younger men.
They told him to deal sternly with his people
and let them know right from the start who was in charge.
[music]
Flattered by the prospect of consolidating power,
he made these younger men his advisers.
When after three days he was approached by these men,
he told them he was going to increase their burdens and taxes.
This was never God's plan.
He never intended that his people would be treated by the king in such a way.
The irreparable result of this action
meant that the ten northern tribes separated
and formed a government under Jeroboam,
and the two southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin
stayed under the rulership of Rehoboam.
[music]
Newly placed on the throne, Jeroboam's greatest fear
was that the heart of the people would one day be won over
by the ruler of the throne in Jerusalem.
At that time there was only one temple in Jerusalem
and he wanted to remove any possible reason
for the people to need to go there
and possibly have their allegiance to the king renewed.
He built two centres of worship,
one in the north here in Dan and one in the south.
Here the ten tribes could worship
and they didn't have to go to Jerusalem.
[music]
Here in Tel Dan right behind me,
we have the temple that he built, with both a holy and a most holy place.
Tel Dan today lies on the border with modern-day Lebanon
and is an archaeological site.
They found the Tel Dan inscription
which is the first mention of David outside of the Bible.
He then put in the most holy place two calves of gold
but in so doing, he violated the plain command of God
in the ten commandments not to make any graven images.
He tried to persuade some Levites to serve as priests,
but out of principle they refused,
and so he chose men from the lowest rungs of society to act as priests.
The people were encouraged to come and worship,
that it was too far to go to Jerusalem.
[music]
Thus began a sad and sorry decline of the ten northern kingdoms
into apostasy and ruin until they were scattered.
God did not leave them without witness, though,
and sent them prophets such as Elijah, Elisha, Hosea, Amos, and Obadiah;
all appealed to the northern kingdom.
This terrible split in Israel
started with a young king listening to the wrong advice.
Instead of listening to those who were wiser in years,
he listened to advice that appealed to his pride, ambition, and ego.
When we are in positions of influence and power,
may we never lead with selfish ambition
and always look for the good of those we serve and have humility.