1 Kings 11 – Ignoring God
God had gifted King Solomon with wisdom and wealth, but he was slowly turning away from God. In chapter 11 we see his failure described. He married many wives: 700 royal wives and 300 concubines. God clearly stated in Deuteronomy 17:17 that this was against what God wanted for Israel’s kings. “He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray.”
It seemed Solomon desired many wives because of his lust, but it was also for power and prestige. Maybe Solomon had become drunk with his fame throughout the world, because in those days a large harem was a status symbol. He was never really satisfied. The more he had, the more he wanted.
Solomon’s wives worshipped foreign gods and to keep them happy Solomon built places of worship for them and with time he joined them in worship. Age didn’t make him any wiser. He didn’t lose his faith entirely, but just added sinful things to his life. He compromised. His heart was not fully devoted to the Lord as the heart of David his father had been. For the wisest man on earth, he was very foolish. If this was the case with the wisest man who ever live, then what hope do we have apart from dependence upon Jesus? I hope Solomon’s example drives us all to greater dependence on Jesus.
“So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.” – 1 Kings 11:6
In what areas of your life do you compromise?
Is your heart fully devoted to God?
The Lord spoke to Solomon three times warning him of the dangers of disobedience. On the third time the Lord became angry, because Solomon’s heart had turned away from Him. Now that Solomon had disobeyed again, the Lord said, “Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates.” – 1 Kings 11:11 For David’s sake, this wouldn’t be done in Solomon’s lifetime. Instead it would be torn out of the hand of Solomon’s son.
How are you ignoring God?
Principle: Ignoring God brings judgment.
God raised up adversaries who opposed Solomon – Hadad the Edomite, Rezon son of Eliada, and Jeroboam son of Nebat, who would eventually rule over the 10 northern tribes called Israel. God left one tribe to the House of David. The small tribe of Benjamin was absorbed into the tribe of Judah.
The Lord was very patient with Solomon, because his sin didn’t happen all at once. It happened over time. That’s the way sin works. You start out with a little sin and all of a sudden it turns into more sin and bigger sins. Solomon disobeyed almost every rule that God had said kings should follow. He increased his number of horses and chariots; he gathered great riches to himself; he married many women, even foreign women. Worst of all, he worshiped false gods. He knew his disobedience would bring judgment.
I think Solomon realized what was important and that all his power and possessions were useless when he wrote the book of Ecclesiastes. He summed up his life in Ecclesiastes 13:8 – “Everything is meaningless”.
Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel for 40 years. Then he rested with his fathers and was buried. We don’t know if he is heaven or not; however 2 Chronicles 11:17 may be a clue. But we do know that God can forgive any sin and maybe Solomon came to his senses at the end. His son Rehoboam succeeded him as king.
Solomon’s life began with great purpose. It began with his heart following God and obeying His ways, but somewhere along the way he stopped guarding his heart and was led astray. Jesus warns us in Mark 8:36-37 – “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?”
Solomon’s life is a warning for our lives. Solomon had it all and fell. Watch out if you think you are doing well. This is an opportunity for Satan to steal your heart from God. Guard your heart against compromise. Guard your heart against what seems to be small choices that show love for someone or something other than the Lord your God. “Now these things happened to them as an example and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!” – 1 Cor. 10:11-12
We can learn a lot from Solomon. His disobedience to God also reveals our sins to us. He worshipped both God and false gods. We too have placed the things of this world in front of God. He suffered because of his sins, but others did also. The same is true for all people. Sin affects everyone. A proper response to this lesson is to be devoted to complete obedience to God. We should completely surrender to His will, but unfortunately all Christians fall short; however it’s something that we should all continually strive for.
How are you like Solomon?
Jeroboam was one of Solomon’s officials and was put in charge of the whole labor force. God told Jeroboam through the prophet Ahijah that we would rule over a portion of a divided Israel.
David waited on the Lord to make the throne clear and God blessed his reign. Jeroboam didn’t wait on the Lord, but made his own way to the throne and God didn’t bless his reign. Jeroboam fled to Egypt because Solomon was trying to kill him. He stayed there until Solomon’s death.
Principle: God lovingly uses consequences to turn us back to Him.
1 Kings 12-14 – Rehoboam and Jeroboam (The Divided Kingdom)
Jeroboam’s Reign in Israel
After Solomon’s death his son, Rehoboam became Judah’s King. His leadership was not the best. He exercised poor discernment and leadership by not listening to the people; he was rejected as king over the ten northern tribes. He didn’t seek God nor did he pray. He sought advice of his peers. His pride and foolishness cost him greatly. His kingdom did however gain strength as he established military defenses. Rehoboam turned away from God and God’s law and led the people astray. They rebelled and made Jeroboam their king. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to Rehoboam.
God’s plan was at work. This division is significant in Israel’s history and God’s redemptive plan because God would send His Son Jesus to redeem the world. We see this prophesied in Genesis 49:10 and in the birth of Jesus in Matthew 1:2-16.
Jeroboam, now Israel’s king, became fearful that the people would go back to their old allegiance so he led the people into idolatry and built shrines and appointed priests desecrating the purity of worship that God intended for His people. Rehoboam, Judah’s king, didn’t listen to the people and ignored the prophets. Neither fully surrendered to God.
When has someone older and wiser offered you advice and you rejected it?
In 1 Kings 13 God persistently called Jeroboam to Himself. God warned Jeroboam that he was doing wrong so He sent a prophet who prophesied what would happen in the future. Jeroboam tried to arrest the prophet, but Jeroboam’s arm became shriveled up and the altar split apart into ashes. God was showing everyone that Jeroboam had no power over the prophet. The prophet had authority from God and no king had authority greater than God. Jeroboam asked for God to cure him, which He did. Then to reward the prophet, Jeroboam invited the prophet to a meal and offered him gifts. The prophet refused. He didn’t want rewards, but for Jeroboam to change his heart. God doesn’t forgive us because of the things we do or the gifts we bring, but He wants us to have a change of heart and trust in Jesus.
In 1 Kings 14 Jeroboam’s son became sick so he told his wife to disguise herself and take gifts to the prophet Ahijah to find out if his son would recover. He prophesied the son would not live, because he had pleased God and his death would save him from the awful coming judgment against Jeroboam’s family. Everyone else in the family would die because of sin. The son’s death proved the prophecy was correct, but Jeroboam didn’t turn back to God. He continued to rule by strength and worship false gods. Jeroboam served 22 years before he died. His other son Nadab succeeded him as king. His reign wasted many opportunities and led his nation to reject God.
Do you pretend to be someone else before God? We live our lives the way we want but think we can fool God. We think by going to church we have somehow tricked God. This problem goes all the way back to the very beginning to Adam and Eve. They attempted to hide themselves from the Lord, but no one can hide their true selves from God. He knows our actions and He knows our hearts.
We may not rule an entire nation, but the decisions we make affect the people round us. We need to be sure of the decisions we make. It’s important to listen and consider the advice of others whose experience is similar, but ultimately we should turn to God for direction. Their advice may have good intentions, but it should match God’s will for your life. Seeking God’s will isn’t always easy. It requires much Bible study and much prayer.
Sin corrupts people’s hearts and appetites. It makes them choose destructive paths and ignore God’s calls to repentance and restoration. Rejecting God and choosing sin brings consequences. God blesses those who live obedient and faithful lives while others rebel and live with tragic consequences.
Principle: We can’t hide from God; he knows our actions and our hearts.
Rehoboam’s Reign in Judah
In Rehoboam’s reign as king, he abandoned the ways of God and his people tolerated idolatry. Rehoboam was a weak leader and he rejected God and chose sin which brought consequences. Because he had been unfaithful, God allowed Egypt’s king, Shishak to attack Jerusalem and carry off the treasures of the temple. In 2 Chronicles 12 we learn the prophet Shemaiah came to Rehoboam and told him he had abandoned the Lord so the Lord would now abandon him to Shishak. Rehoboam knew that God was a just God so he and the people humbled themselves before God. Because of this God decided He wouldn’t destroy them. Rehoboam experienced conflicts with the northern kingdom throughout his reign. He died and his son Abijah succeeded him.
All the kings had opportunities to serve God and lead the people to submit to Him just as we have choices to stand with God. There was a minority that faithfully trusted God, but the majority rejected Him. Sounds like today.
Principle: God will not let sin go unpunished.
How do you measure your devotion to God?
In this week’s study we learn more about God. We learn his attribute is He is Sovereign.
Next time we will continue our study of Kingdom Divided with 1 Kings 15. Hope to see you here. -- I encourage you to trust in Jesus.
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