2 Chronicles 11:1-23

2. THE REIGN OF REHOBOAM (11-12)

TEXT

2 Chronicles 11:1. And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled the house of Judah and Benjamin, a hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men, that were warriors, to fight against Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam. 2. But the word of Jehovah came to Shemaiah the man of God saying, 3. Speak unto Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, saying, 4. -Thus saith Jehovah, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren: return every man to his house; for this thing is of me.-' So they hearkened unto the words of Jehovah, and returned from going against Jeroboam.

And Rehoboam dwelt in Jerusalem, and built cities for defense in Judah. 6. He built Beth-lehem, and Etam, and Tekoa. 7. and Beth-zur, and Soco, and Adullam, 8. and Gath, and Mareshah, and Ziph, 9. and Adoraim, and Lachish, and Azekah, 10. and Zorah, and Aijalon, and Hebron, which are in Judah and in Benjamin, fortified cities. 11. And he fortified the strongholds, and put captains in them, and stores of victuals, and oil and wine. 12. And in every city he put shields and spears, and made them exceeding strong. And Judah and Benjamin belonged to him.
13. And the priests and the Levites that were in all Israel resorted to him out of all their border. 14. For the Levites left their suburbs and their possessions, and came to Judah and Jerusalem: for Jeroboam and his sons cast them off, that they should not execute the priest's office unto Jehovah; 15. and he appointed him priests for the high places, and for the he-goats, and for the calves which he had made. 16. And after them, out of all the tribes of Israel, such as set their hearts to seek Jehovah, the God Of Israel, came to Jerusalem to sacrifice unto Jehovah, the God of their fathers. 17. So they strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and made Rehoboam the son of Solomon strong, three years; for they walked three years in the way of David and Solomon.
18. And Rehoboam took him a wife, Mahalath the daughter of Jerimoth the son of David, and of Abihail the daughter of Eliab the son of Jesse; 19. and she bare him sons: Jeush, and Shemariah, and Zaham. 20. And after her he took Maacah the daughter of Absalom; and she bare him Abijah, and Attai, and Ziza, and Shelomith. 21. And Rehoboam loved Maacah the daughter of Absalom above all his wives and his concubines (for he took eighteen wives and threescore concubines, and begat twenty and eight sons and threescore daughters). 22. And Rehoboam appointed Abijah the son of Maacah to be chief, even the prince among his brethren; for he was minded to make him king. 23. And he dealt wisely, and dispersed of all his sons throughout all the lands of Judah and Benjamin, unto every fortified city: and he gave them victuals in abundance. And he sought for them many wives.

2 Chronicles 12:1. And it came to pass, when the kingdom of Rehoboam was established, and he was strong, that he forsook the law of Jehovah, and all Israel with him. 2. And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, because they had trespassed against Jehovah, 3. with twelve hundred chariots, and threescore thousand horsemen. And the people were without number that came with him out of Egypt: the Lubim, the Sukkiim, and the Ethiopians. 4. And he took the fortified cities which pertained to Judah, and came unto Jerusalem. 5. Now Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam, and to the princes of Judah, that were gathered together to Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said unto them, Thus saith Jehovah, -Ye have forsaken me, therefore have I also left you in the hand of Shishak.-' 6. Then the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves; and they said, Jehovah is righteous. 7. And when Jehovah saw that they humbled themselves, the word of Jehovah came to Shemaiah, saying, They have humbled themselves: I will not destroy them; but I will grant them some deliverance, and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. 8. -Nevertheless they shall be his servants, that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.

9. So Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, and took away the treasures of the house of Jehovah, and the treasures of the king's house; he took all away: he took away also the shields of gold which Solomon had made. 10. And king Rehoboam made in their stead shields of brass, and committed them to the hands of the captains of the guard, that kept the door of the king's house. 11. And it was so, that, as oft as the king entered into the house of Jehovah, the guard came and bare them, and brought them back into the guard-chamber. 12. And when he humbled himself, the wrath of Jehovah turned from him, so as not to destroy him altogether: and moreover in Judah there were good things found.
13. So king Rehoboam strengthened himself in Jerusalem, and reigned: for Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which Jehovah had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there: and his mother's name was Naamah the Ammonitess. 14. And he did that which was evil, because he set not his heart to seek Jehovah.
15. Now the acts of Rehoboam, first and last, are they not written in the histories of Shemaiah the prophet and of Iddo the seer, after the manner of genealogies? And there were wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually. 16. And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David: and Abijah his son reigned in his stead.

PARAPHRASE

2 Chronicles 11:1. Upon arrival at Jerusalem, Rehoboam mobilized the armies of Judah and Benjamin, 180,000 strong, and declared war against the rest of Israel in an attempt to reunite the kingdom. 2. But the Lord told Shemaiah the prophet, 3. Go and say to King Rehoboam of Judah, Solomon's son, and to the people of Judah and of Benjamin: 4. The Lord says, -Do not fight against your brothers. Go home, for I am behind their rebellion.-' So they obeyed the Lord and refused to fight against Jeroboam.

5-10. Rehoboam stayed in Jerusalem and fortified these cities of Judah with walls and gates to protect himself: Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa, Beth-zur, Soco, Adullam, Gath, Mareshah, Ziph, Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah, Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron. 11. He also rebuilt and strengthened the forts, and manned them with companies of soldiers under their officers, and stored them with food, olive oil, and wine. 12. Shields and spears were placed in armories in every city as a further safety measure. For only Judah and Benjamin remained loyal to him.
13, 14. However, the priests and Levites from the other tribes now abandoned their homes and moved to Judah and Jerusalem, for King Jeroboam had fired them, telling them to stop being priests of the Lord. 15. He had appointed other priests instead who encouraged the people to worship idols instead of God, and to sacrifice to carved statues of goats and calves which he placed on the hills. 16. Laymen, too, from all over Israel began moving to Jerusalem where they could freely worship the Lord God of their fathers, and sacrifice to him. 17. This strengthened the kingdom of Judah, so King Rehoboam survived for three years without difficulty; for during those years there was an earnest effort to obey the Lord as King David and King Solomon had done.
18. Rehoboam married his cousin Mahalath. She was the daughter of David's son, Jerimoth and of Abihail, the daughter of David's brother Eliab. 19. Three sons were born from this marriageJeush, Shemariah, and Zaham. 20. Later he married Maacah, the daughter of Absalom. The children she bore him were Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith. 21. He loved Maacah more than any of his other wives and concubines (he had eighteen wives and sixty concubineswith twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters). 22. Maacah's son Abijah was his favorite, and he intended to make him the next king. 23. He very wisely scattered his other sons in the fortified cities throughout the land of Judah and Benjamin, and gave them large allowances and arranged for them to have several wives apiece.

2 Chronicles 12:1. But just when Rehoboam was at the height of his popularity and power he abandoned the Lord, and the people followed him in his sin. 2. As a result, King Shishak of Egypt attacked Jerusalem in the fifth year of King Rehoboam's reign, 3. with twelve hundred chariots, sixty thousand cavalrymen and an unnumbered host of infantrymenEgyptians, Libyans, Sukkiim, and Ethiopians. 4. He quickly conquered Judah's fortified cities and soon arrived at Jerusalem. 5. The prophet Shemaiah now met with Rehoboam and the Judean leaders from every part of the nation (they had fled to Jerusalem for safety), and told them, The Lord says, -You have forsaken me, so I have forsaken you and abandoned you to Shishak.-' 6. Then the king and the leaders of Israel confessed their sins and exclaimed, The Lord is right in doing this to us! 7. And when the Lord saw them humble themselves he sent Shemaiah to tell them, Because you have humbled yourselves, I will not completely destroy you; some will escape. I will not use Shishak to pour out my anger upon Jerusalem. 8. But you must pay annual tribute to him. Then you will realize how much better it is to serve me than to serve him!

9. So King Shishak of Egypt conquered Jerusalem and took away all the treasures of the Temple and of the palace, also all of Solomon's gold shields. 10. King Rehoboam replaced them with bronze shields and committed them to the care of the captain of his bodyguard. 11. Whenever the king went to the Temple, the guards would carry them, and afterwards return them to the armory. 12. When the king humbled himself, the Lord's anger was turned aside and he didn-'t send total destruction; in fact, even after Shishak's invasion, the economy of Judah remained strong.
13. King Rehoboam reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city God had chosen as his residence after considering all the other cities of Israel. He had become king at the age of forty-one, and his mother's name was Naamah the Ammonitess. 14. But he was an evil king, for he never did decide really to please the Lord.
15. The complete biography of Rehoboam is recorded in the histories written by Shemaiah the prophet and by Iddo the seer, and in The Genealogical Register. There were continual wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam. 16. When Rehoboam died he was buried in Jerusalem, and his son Abijah became the new king.

COMMENTARY

Rehoboam decided to use military power against the northern tribes to bring them under subjection. The murder of Hadoram was a defiant rejection of Rehoboam's authority. One hundred and eighty thousand warriors out of the south were readied for this civil war between Judah and Israel. Jehovah had determined that the division between Judah and Israel should be accomplished at this time. Shemaiah is called a prophet and aman of God. There are references to many false prophets in the Old Testament; but one never meets a false man of God. In 2 Chronicles 12:5 Shemaiah declared the word of Jehovah to Rehoboam concerning Shishak and the Egyptians. Shemaiah also is credited with writing the history of the life and times of Rehoboam (2 Chronicles 12:15). When Rehoboam faced this crisis and was about to send this large army into Israel, Jehovah sent Shemaiah to the king of Judah and all the people who submitted to his reign. Jehovah's word was, Dismiss this army. The statement, This thing is of me, underscored the divine purpose. Rehoboam and his people obeyed Jehovah in this matter.

A brief summary of Rehoboam's reign follows. Probably because he feared threats against the security of Judah especially from Egypt, he fortified several villages in Judah and Benjamin. The relative locations of the villages which concerned the king are indicated here.
BethlehemAbout five miles south of Jerusalem, EthamTen miles west of Hebron, TekoaSeven miles south east of Bethlehem, Beth-zurFive miles north of Hebron, SocoThirteen miles west of Bethlehem, AdullamFourteen miles north west of Hebron, GathTwenty miles north west of Hebron, MareshahFifteen miles north west of Hebron, ZiphFour miles south of Hebron, AdoraimFive miles west of Hebron, LachishTwenty miles west of Hebron, AzekahTen miles north west of Hebron, HebronTwenty miles south of Jerusalem, ZorahFifteen miles west of Jerusalem, AijalonThirteen miles north west of Jerusalem. The distances stated here are not measured with absolute accuracy. The key cities were Jerusalem and Hebron. All of these villages were equipped with soldiers, weapons, and food supplies.

2 Chronicles 11:13-17 describe the migration of priests and Levites into the southern kingdom. The primary reason for this development was Jeroboam's rejection of Jehovah worship. Jeroboam was Jehovah's choice to be king of Israel. He certainly had the potential to become an effective leader. According to 1 Kings 11:26-28, Jeroboam had been a servant of Solomon. He had charge over the house of Joseph in the fortification of Jerusalem, working on the citadel of Millo. He was described as a very industrious person and as a mighty man of valor. He had the credentials to become a great king; but when the time came for his kingdom to be set up, he feared Rehoboam and his efforts to unify the kingdom. Jeroboam set up Baal worship in Bethel (southern border of his kingdom) and Dan (northern frontier of the kingdom). He determined to make religion convenient for his people. He did not want them to return to the Temple in Jerusalem. He made priests out of any who wanted to serve without regard to Levitical connection (1 Kings 12:28-33). He changed the date for the observance of the Feast of Tabernacles from the seventh month and the fifteenth day to the eighth month and the fifteenth day. He set up idolatry throughout his kingdom. Reacting to these developments, priests and Levites and a remnant of representatives from the northern tribes moved into Judah and the southern kingdom. This influx of Hebrews with deep religious convictions provided a certain stability to Rehoboam's government for about three years. Even Rehoboam himself, ruled wisely through these fleeting months. The way of David and Solomon in this context refers to a genuine concern for Jehovah's will.

2 Chronicles 12:1 reports Rehoboam's forsaking the law of Jehovah. His subjects made no attempt to put him off the throne. They followed his leadership. Rehoboam married Mahalath who was the daughter of Jerimoth, son of David. In the lists of David's sons Jerimoth is not named. He could have been the son of one of David's concubines. Jerimoth could have been another name for Ithream who is listed among David's sons. Abihail was a second cousin to Mahalath and she was also Mahalath's mother. Eliab was Jesse's eldest son. The sons of Rehoboam through Mahalath were Jeush, Shemariah, and Zaham. Rehoboam also married Maacah who was Absalom's grand-daughter. Maacah's mother was Tamar, Absalom's daughter. The relationships of son and daughter are not always used as exactly as we use them. They do indicate a direct lineal descent. Absalom was David's rebel son. Rehoboam's sons through Maacah were Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith. Rehoboam broke Jehovah's law respecting Hebrew kings and the multiplication of wives (Deuteronomy 17:17). He went his own way. Eighteen wives, sixty concubines, twenty eight sons, and sixty daughters composed the king's harem and family. Of all the wives, he loved Maacah best. Her son, Abijah, was groomed by Rehoboam to be his successor of Judah's throne. Rehoboam demonstrated human wisdom in placing his sons in positions of trust throughout the kingdom and in making liberal material provisions for them. Rehoboam failed Jehovah and would have to suffer the consequences of his failures.

LESSON SEVENTEEN 12-14

EGYPT INVADES ISRAEL, JEROBOAM, AND THE NORTHERN KINGDOM ASA AND THE ETHIOPIANS.
2. THE REIGN OF REHOBOAM-Continued (11-12)

INTRODUCTION

The shields of gold were exchanged for shields of brass as Rehoboam had trouble with the Egyptians. Jeroboam set up the golden calves and led his people away from God. Asa, king of Judah, blessed by Jehovah, repulsed an Ethiopian attack.

TEXT

(Scripture text in Lesson Sixteen)

PARAPHRASE

(Scripture text in Lesson Sixteen)

COMMENTARY

Three Chapter s in this record describe the life and times of Rehoboam. His kingship covered a very critical period in Hebrew history. Solomon's sins and Rehoboam's foolishness brought Israel to a tragic turning point resulting in the division of the kingdom. In the early part of his reign Rehoboam showed some concern for the genuine Hebrew religion. The presence of the Temple in Jerusalem and the migration of priests and Levites into the borders of Judah were beneficial in this regard. Chapter 2 Chronicles 12:1 describes Rehoboam's course of action. He established his kingdom, fortified numerous villages, set up an extensive harem, made expensive provisions for his children and forsook the law of Jehovah. If what he had done would have affected only himself, the results would not have been so serious. All of his people followed the leadership of the king. About 925 B.C. Jehovah allowed Shishak, king of Egypt, to come into Judah with a great army. Jeroboam, king of Israel, had found refuge in Egypt under Shishak (1 Kings 11:40). As the Egyptians came into Rehoboam's territory at this time they intended to take Jerusalem. Rehoboam and his people Had trespassed against Jehovah (2 Chronicles 11:2). They had forsaken God (2 Chronicles 11:5). Shishak brought allies with him. The Lubim were the Libyan people who lived on the northern coast of Africa. The Sukkiim probably were Arabs living in North Africa. The Ethiopians lived within the limits of Shishak's territory as Ethiopia bordered Egypt on the south. The enemy came with twelve hundred chariots and sixty thousand horsemen, and an army of foot soldiers that was not numbered. Without opposition Shishak took all of the villages in Judah (2 Chronicles 11:5-12) which had been fortified against such an invasion.

Again, the history of Judah was delicately balanced. Shemaiah, the prophet who had told Jeroboam that he would be a king, appeared before Rehoboam and his princes to charge them with forsaking Jehovah. God's great mercy was exercised once more. Rehoboam and his counselors were convicted of their sins and confessed the righteousness of Jehovah's judgment. Jehovah's decision not to bring Judah to a full end was communicated to Shemaiah who, most likely, made this known to the king. However, Rehoboam and his people would have to pay tribute to Egypt and through this they should know that they were being judged for their sins against Jehovah. God did not grant permanent immunity to Jerusalem, He said that Shishak would not destroy the city. When Jehovah's people humble themselves, He forgives (2 Chronicles 7:14).

In the days of David and Solomon the treasures of the nations poured into Jerusalem. This happy circumstance was reversed in the days of Rehoboam. Shishak would have taken Jerusalem at this time if Jehovah had allowed him to do so and if the Hebrew leaders had not been able to buy temporary freedom with the treasures. Some of the precious things were brought out of the Temple and some out of other buildings where they were housed. The diminishing glory of the kingdom is most graphically described in the exchange of shields of gold for shields of brass. Solomon had fashioned the golden shields (2 Chronicles 9:15-16) to demonstrate the wealth and splendor of his kingdom. Those who knew this former glory surely were heart broken when they had to look upon Rehoboam's shields of brass. The glory had departed. The self-humiliation of the king was the only redeeming consideration. There were still some people in Judah who loved God; but the spiritual climate was far from ideal.

Rehoboam was more concerned about making a name for himself as a king than he was about being a spiritual leader for his people. His reign of seventeen years offered many opportunities for him to strive for the ideal established in Deuteronomy 17:14-20. He was forty one years old when he became king. He had a remarkable heritage. In large measure Rehoboam failed. He did not set his heart to seek Jehovah.

Shemaiah and Iddo prepared written accounts of Rehoboam's reign. There was constant civil strife between the southern and the northern kingdoms. Rehoboam was buried in the royal cemetery established in David's day. He was succeeded on the throne by his son, Abijah.