34 - Divine Judgment - External and Internal Enemies - Part 2 [A]

Divine Judgment: External and Internal Enemies. 1 Kings 11:23-43

1 Kings chapter eleven is the downturn in Solomon's reign. God had blessed and brought incredible prosperity to Solomon, and what is interesting is that there is this tremendous blessing of God and all of this tremendous wealth doesn't come because Solomon taxed the people. What happens in the next chapter is that Rehoboam becomes the king and goes to his advisors because he needs to increase the taxes on the people in order to continue the whole appearance of prosperity that they had. But God didn't bless and build Solomon's empire on rhe backs of the people in terms of egregious taxes. That isn't how it works. What that tells us is that when Solomon enters into his period of carnality, when he has rejected God and goes through the time of spiritual regression, God ceases to bless the material blessing on Israel. In the Mosaic Law it is very clear in the passages in Deuteronomy 28-30 and Leviticus 26 that God is using material blessing to the people as a very concrete physical barometer of their spiritual success. So their spirituality is their ultimate causation in history of their economic and military success, and disobedience to God is the other thing. That is really the key element we see developed all the way through I & II Kings: history moves not simply according to a system of economic, military or political laws but within a closed system. We live in a world today, ever since the Enlightenment, where men have tried to quantify what the mechanics are for national and economic success, and it leaves out that one incredible intangible that is the ultimate causation for everything—the spiritual factor.

The people had already gone through a measure of economic decline but Solomon tried to maintain the illusion of divine blessing by increasing the taxes on the people. The great blessing seen by the Queen of Sheba in chapter 10 did not come by taxation but by the end of chapter eleven and chapter twelve we realise that Solomon has been trying to maintain that facade of wealth on the basis of taxing the people. The real basis for it is no longer there because of the spiritual apostasy, and he has led the people into idolatry, legitimised and validated it by supporting all of the religious systems. So the nation is beginning to collapse internally and it will indeed fragment as a result of divine discipline. God finally lowers the boom on Solomon and He is going to bring the discipline home, but for the sake of David it is not going to reach its fragmentation period under Solomon.

God raises up those who are antagonistic and so the edges of the empire begin to fragment and it is a foreshadowing of what will come. The real problem comes from the internal enemy who is Jeroboam the son of Nebat and he is the one God is going to use to be the focal point, the leader, in this division that will come. If Solomon had been obedient neither Hadad nor Resin would have been raised up as adversaries, they would have been dealt with, and God would not have allowed Jeroboam to create the division; the nation would have been blessed and would have continued as a united kingdom. This also shows and reveals to us the process that God uses in divine discipline as we pursue a path of negative volition and disobedience and rebellion. What God dies is pull back the restraint. He gives enough rope to hang one's self. Eventually, if we continue to push our independence, our autonomy, and our sinful rebellion to the point where it blows up in our face and destroys our life, or the life of the nation.

The rise of resin, 1 Kings 11:23 ^NASB "God also raised up {another} adversary to him, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah." Saul had fought with the kings of Zobah, according to 1 Samuel 14:47 and David defeated them in 2 Samuel 8—in v. 4 ^NASB "David captured from him 1,700 horsemen and 20,000 foot soldiers; and David hamstrung the chariot horses, but reserved {enough} of them for 100 chariots." So this is a major military defeat. The whole doctrine of military disarmament extends all the way back into the ancient world. The Philistines practiced it when they wouldn't allow blacksmiths to operate in Israel. So David disarms the enemy here and the4 victor always has the right to do that.

2 Samuel 8:5 ^NASB "When the Arameans of Damascus came to help Hadadezer, king of Zobah, David killed 22,000 Arameans." This is authorised by God. War and killing the enemy is not something that Christians and Bible believers should shy from. It is not something we should go out and embrace and instigate, but when the time is right it is necessary to fight and to kill the enemy. [6] "Then David put garrisons among the Arameans of Damascus, and the Arameans became servants to David, bringing tribute. And the LORD helped David wherever he went. [7] David took the shields of gold which were carried by the servants of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem…. [11] King David also dedicated these to the LORD, with the silver and gold that he had dedicated from all the nations which he had subdued:  [12] from Aram and Moab and the sons of Ammon and the Philistines and Amalek, and from the spoil of Hadadezer, son of Rehob, king of Zobah." This is the background to what happened in 1 Kings 11. David has defeated them and there are always those who after military defeat harbour bitterness and hatred for whoever defeated them. In some cases that is a good things and in some cases it is not, but in this case we have the circumstance with Rezin and he has put together a band of mercenaries and uses them to retake and re-establish the throne and the kingdom in Damascus. 1 Kings 11:24 ^NASB "He gathered men to himself and became leader of a marauding band, after David slew them of {Zobah;} and they went to Damascus and stayed there, and reigned in Damascus. [25] So he was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, along with the evil that Hadad {did;} and he abhorred Israel and reigned over Aram."

Then we get to the internal enemy, beginning in verse 26 ^NASB "Then Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah, Solomon's servant, whose mother's name was Zeruah, a widow, also rebelled against the king." This is describing what happened in this rebellion of Jeroboam. Ephraim is also known as an area and a tribe of apostasy and their name is often associated with idolatry, as is Dan. Shiloh is the place where they have and the tabernacle and the ark of the covenant, and where Samuel ministered as a young boy and later as priest before the Lord. So Shiloh has a tremendous heritage. Ephraim is the tribe of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, but it is also the location and the home town of Shiloh of this prophet that is going to come on the scene, named Ahijah. All of the genealogy in this verse is designed to show us that this is not some sort of legend or myth but to locate him in a space-time situation with a family that could be traced out in Jewish genealogy.

1 Kings 11:27 ^NASB "Now this was the reason why he rebelled against the king: Solomon built the Millo, {and} closed up the breach of the city of his father David." That seems pretty innocuous but it is the way in which Solomon does this. It appears that Solomon doesn't build the Millo and repair the damage to the city of David until after he completes the temple and the palace, and so this is after the dedication of the temple and in the last part of his life. This was a large construction project that Solomon was engaged in and he brings in labour from the northern kingdom from the tribe of Joseph. Joseph is often used as a name representing the northern tribes. [28] "the man Jeroboam was a valiant warrior, and when Solomon saw that the young man was industrious, he appointed him over all the forced labor of the house of Joseph." A "mighty man of valor" or "valiant warrior" is a Hebrew term often used to describe someone who is a mighty warrior, someone who is a good combat soldier. But it is also used in some contexts to refer to someone who is a man of influence, a man of power. It would be used of someone who was an industrial giant, a captain of industry, someone who has accomplished a lot. So it doesn't necessarily mean that he is a warrior, it means that he is a man who has accomplished a lot—strong, industrious. The text translates the word which is related to labour, to workmen, and it indicates someone who is skilled at getting the job done. So he was skilled at getting things done and David sets him over the labour force of the house of Joseph.

1 Kings 11:29 ^NASB "It came about at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him on the road. Now Ahijah had clothed himself with a new cloak; and both of them were alone in the field." Jeroboam is not looking to lead a rebellion, he is just going about his job and God has a different plan for him. He sends Ahijah who is a prophet. Ahijah as a court officer from the heavenly court is going to oversee the execution of the divine sentence that was announced on Solomon earlier in the chapter. Ahijah had clothed himself with a new garment, indicating that Israel is a new nation; it is young. [30] "Then Ahijah took hold of the new cloak which was on him and tore it into twelve pieces." This is a picture depicting something that was permanent, permanently separated. The twelve pieces indicated the twelve tribes of Israel. [31] "He said to Jeroboam, "Take for yourself ten pieces; for thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and give you ten tribes [32] (but he will have one tribe, for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel), [33] because they have forsaken Me, and have worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the sons of Ammon; and they have not walked in My ways, doing what is right in My sight and {observing} My statutes and My ordinances, as his father David {did.}" They have violated that loyalty oath of the king to God as the ultimate King of Israel. So it is a matter of treason at the highest level to worship other gods. David, unlike Solomon, was loyal to God and never became involved in idolatry. But Solomon has not only become involved in idolatry, he has promoted it, validated it, and it has grown and influenced the people. All of these gods are the national gods of the surrounding nations, and this indicates the internationalism on Solomon's part in his desire to find security through marriage alliances rather than through God. 

The author of Deuteronomy, Moses, tells the people again and again that God says they have to keep His statutes and His ordinances and walk in His ways, so "they have not walked in My ways, doing what is right in My sight and {observing} My statutes and My ordinances" is legal terminology right out of the Mosaic Law. There is an execution of the penalty for violating the Law and he is clearly stating this is what the Law says, and because they don't do it this is the penalty that is being enacted, as per Deuteronomy 28-30; Leviticus 26. 

1 Kings 11:34 ^NASB "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 My servant David whom I chose, who observed My commandments and My statutes; [35] but I will take the kingdom from his son's hand and give it to you, {even} ten tribes." There is grace even in the midst of judgment. God doesn't bring discipline to the fullest extent that he could according to the Law. [36] "But to his son I will give one tribe, that My servant David may have a lamp always before Me in Jerusalem, the city where I have chosen for Myself to put My name." A lamp can be a figure of illumination, as per the words "Thy law is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." But there are lights in a house indicating the presence of somebody, and that is the idea in the imagery: there will always be a Davidic ruler in Jerusalem, and that is based on the Davidic covenant. In other words, there would always be a descendant there. It is a figure of speech where lamp is used in place of descendant. This reinforces the doctrine of the primacy of Jerusalem—"the city where I have chosen for Myself to put My name."

1 Kings 11:37 ^NASB "I will take you, and you shall reign over whatever you desire, and you shall be king over Israel." Notice the freedom that he is given. Then he is given an incredible conditional promise, [38] "Then it will be, that if you listen to all that I command you and walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight by observing My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build you an enduring house as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you." Notice the word "if." This is like the conditional promise God gave to Solomon. The Davidic covenant was not conditional, there was no "if" clause. The "enduring house" is a dynasty. It is conditioned on Jeroboam's obedience. [39] "Thus I will afflict the descendants of David for this, but not always." That sets the pattern for Israel's future. They will go under divine discipline again and again and again until they get to the fifth stage and are removed from the land, the northern kingdom in 722 BC and the southern kingdom in 586 BC. That is what Kings is all about—showing how God was faithful to His Law, He dealt faithfully with Israel when Israel was unfaithful to Him, and how God brought about all of the penalties in Leviticus 26, taking them out of the land. When we get to the end of 2 Kings Israel is out of the land.

It wasn't long before Solomon heard about Ahijah's promise to Jeroboam.  1 Kings 11:40 ^NASB "Solomon sought therefore to put Jeroboam to death; but Jeroboam arose and fled to Egypt to Shishak king of Egypt, and he was in Egypt until the death of Solomon." Shishak is not the same Pharaoh who gave his daughter to Solomon. [41] The conclusion, summary and divine report card on Solomon's life. "Now the rest of the acts of Solomon and whatever he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon? [42] Thus the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years." This tells us that the author and the people at the time that he wrote this had access to other historical accounts and documentation on the life of Solomon. All through Kings and Chronicles we see references to these extra-biblical historical accounts that the writers refer to. This tells us that even in the process of inspiration the writers did their research, just as Luke does in the New Testament and documents their data, showing that isn't just some sort of myth, it can be read about in other historical accounts. [43] "And Solomon slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of his father David, and his son Rehoboam reigned in his place."

So Solomon's reign ends in a failure, according to the writer of Kings.

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