Thursday
Evening Bible Study
September
27, 2012
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it speak to the broken hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk
– Meat – Manna Preach for a decision Is the church loved?
When King David died, his son Solomon became king. During the forty years of Solomon’s reign, he
built the Temple, built a magnificent palace, became the wealthiest man on the
planet, and was known for his great wisdom.
He also married 700 wives and 300 concubines, many of whom were not
worshippers of Yahweh. When he was old,
his many wives turned his heart away, and God warned that the kingdom would be
torn away from the house of David as a result.
12:1-24 The Kingdom Splits
:1 And Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone to Shechem to make him
king.
:1 Rehoboam
went to Shechem
King Saul was publicly made king at Mizpah (1Sam. 10:17).
King David was made king at Hebron (2Sam. 2:4)
Solomon was made king in Jerusalem (1Ki. 1:39).
Rehoboam goes to Shechem
to become king.
Play Shechem
map clip
Shechem is more central to the entire nation, so it makes sense.
Shechem was one of the places where Jacob had lived.
It was one of the “Cities of Refuge” (Josh. 20:7). It had been the city
from which Gideon’s son, Abimelech, tried to become
king (Judg. 9).
It will be the place where the Samaritans would one day worship God in
their twisted form of Judaism, with their own temple in Shechem, on Mount
Gerizim.
The modern Palestinian city of Nablus sits on top of ancient Shechem.
:2 So it happened, when
Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard it (he was
still in Egypt, for he had fled from the presence of King Solomon and had been
dwelling in Egypt),
:3 that they sent and called him. Then Jeroboam
and the whole assembly of Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam,
saying,
:2 Jeroboam – Yarob‘am – “the people will contend”
We have already met Jeroboam.
He’s the hard working kid who was promoted under Solomon’s reign, but when
the prophet Ahijah showed up and proclaimed that Jeroboam would one day become
king, Solomon wanted him dead, and he fled.
But now he’s back and he’s representing the people’s interests before Rehoboam.
He had been one of Solomon’s supervisors over some of his many work
projects. He had been a young man with
promise, a hard worker. The prophet
Ahijah showed up one day and proclaimed to Jeroboam that God was going to tear
the kingdom from the house of David, and that he would become king. When Solomon found out about this, Solomon
wanted to put Jeroboam to death, but Jeroboam fled to Egypt. Now that Solomon is dead, the people have
called Jeroboam to come back and represent them before Rehoboam.
:4 “Your father
made our yoke heavy; now therefore, lighten the burdensome service of your
father, and his heavy yoke which he put on us, and we will serve you.”
Jeroboam is asked to be a spokesman for the people and they request that Rehoboam lighten up a bit.
:5 So he said to them, “Depart for three
days, then come back to me.” And the people departed.
Rehoboam isn’t sure what to make of this request,
so he asks for the people to give him some time to think about it and ask for
advice.
This is probably the biggest decision he’s had to make so far in his life.
:6 Then King Rehoboam
consulted the elders who stood before his father Solomon while he still lived,
and he said, “How do you advise me to answer these people?”
:6 Rehoboam
consulted the elders
Lesson
Getting advice
It is good to ask for advice. It’s
good to listen to the ideas of others.
(Pr 15:22 NKJV) Without counsel, plans go awry, But in the
multitude of counselors they are established.
Illustration
Bob went to a
psychiatrist. “Doc,” he said, “I’ve got trouble. Every time I get into bed, I
think there’s somebody under it. I get under the bed; I think there’s somebody
on top of it. Top, under, top, under...you gotta help
me, I’m going crazy!” “Just put yourself in my hands
for one year,” said the shrink. “Come to me three times a week, and I’ll cure
your fears.” “How much do you charge?” “A hundred dollars per
visit? I’ll sleep on it,” said Bob. Six months later the doctor met Bob
on the street. “Why didn’t you ever come to see me again?” asked the
psychiatrist. “For a hundred buck’s a visit? A friend
cured me for free!” “Is that so! How?”
“He told me to cut the legs off the bed!”
:7 And they spoke
to him, saying, “If you will be a servant to these people today, and serve
them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be your
servants forever.”
:7 If you will be a servant
Lesson
Servant Leadership
This is pretty good advice. It’s
just like something Jesus would say.
(Mk 10:42–45 NLT) —42
So Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers
in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority
over those under them. 43 But among you it
will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant,
44 and whoever wants to
be first among you must be the slave of everyone else. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to
be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
:8 But he rejected the
advice which the elders had given him, and consulted the young men who had
grown up with him, who stood before him.
:8 the advice which the elders had
given
Rehoboam is going to get himself into big trouble
because he is going to ignore the best advice being given to him.
Lesson
Sometimes older means is wiser
Not always. But
sometimes.
I think at times we need to pay a bit more attention to the gray heads.
Illustration
Growing Opinions of Dad
4 years: My daddy can do anything.
7 years: My dad knows a lot, a whole lot.
8 years: My father doesn’t know quite everything.
12 years: Oh, well, naturally Father doesn’t know that,
either.
14 years: Father? Hopelessly
old-fashioned.
21 years: Oh, that man is out-of-date. What did you
expect?
25 years: He knows a little bit about it, but not much.
30 years: Maybe we ought to find out what Dad thinks.
35 years: A little patience. Let’s get Dad’s assessment
before we do anything.
50 years: I wonder what Dad would have thought about that.
He was pretty smart.
60 years: My Dad knew absolutely everything!
65 years: I’d give anything if Dad were here so I could
talk this over with him. I really miss that man.
It’s too bad that we have to go through those years where we don’t value
the opinions of older people.
:9 And he said to them,
“What advice do you give? How should we answer this people who have spoken to
me, saying, ‘Lighten the yoke which your father put on us’?”
:10 Then the young men who had grown up with him spoke to him, saying,
“Thus you should speak to this people who have spoken to you, saying, ‘Your
father made our yoke heavy, but you make it lighter on us’—thus you
shall say to them: ‘My little finger shall be thicker than my father’s
waist!
:10 the young men …
Keep in mind, Rehoboam is 41 years old at the time. Don’t think of
teenagers.
:11 And now,
whereas my father put a heavy yoke on you, I will add to your yoke; my father
chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scourges!’ ”
:11 I will chastise you with
scourges
Some translations say “chastise you with scorpions”
Josephus records,
The king was pleased with this advice and thought it agreeable to the
dignity of his government to give them such an answer.
This answer appeals to Rehoboam’s flesh. He likes
the idea of getting to play the “tough guy”. He doesn’t like the idea of
appearing too “soft”.
Lesson
Be careful what you listen to
I think we need to be careful that we don’t simply surround ourselves with
people who always tell us what we want to hear.
Sometimes, it’s the people who love us the most that will be willing to
risk telling us something we don’t want to hear.
(Pr 27:6 NKJV) Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But
the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.
:12 So Jeroboam and all the
people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had
directed, saying, “Come back to me the third day.”
:13 Then the king answered the people roughly, and
rejected the advice which the elders had given him;
:14 and he spoke to them according to the advice
of the young men, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to
your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with
scourges!”
:13 the king answered the people
roughly
Lesson
Choosing wisely
Play Indiana
Jones Choosing Wisely clip.
It’s one thing to ask for
advice, but it’s also important to figure out whose advice is the wisest.
Many times I find that I make mistakes because I have not honestly taken an
issue to the Lord and asked for His help.
(Jas 1:5 NKJV) If any of
you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without
reproach, and it will be given to him.
Even then, there are times when you simply have to step out and make your
choice.
Be careful you
don’t get “analysis paralysis”, where you are so afraid of making the wrong
decision that you don’t make any decision.
:15 So the king
did not listen to the people; for the turn of events was from the Lord, that He might fulfill His word,
which the Lord had spoken by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam
the son of Nebat.
:15 the turn of events was
from the Lord
We already know that God had planned on the kingdom being torn from the
house of David
because of Solomon’s sin.
Rehoboam’s poor judgment became the thing that
God would use to accomplish this thing.
Does that let Rehoboam off the hook for having
poor judgment? Not at
all.
If Rehoboam had made a wise choice, God would
have used something else to have brought about the division of the kingdom.
:16 Now when all Israel saw
that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king, saying:
“What share have we in David? We have no inheritance in the son of
Jesse. To your tents, O Israel! Now, see to your own house, O David!” So Israel
departed to their tents.
:17 But Rehoboam reigned
over the children of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah.
:18 Then King Rehoboam
sent Adoram, who was in charge of the revenue;
but all Israel stoned him with stones, and he died. Therefore King Rehoboam mounted his chariot in haste to flee to Jerusalem.
:18 King Rehoboam
sent Adoram
Adoram is probably the worst person Rehoboam
could have sent. He was the one in charge of lining up the slave labor. He’s
probably the part of the government the people resent the most. But Rehoboam doesn’t have a clue, so he sends the wrong guy.
:19 So Israel has been in
rebellion against the house of David to this day.
:19 Israel has been in rebellion
From this point
on, the northern kingdom is going to be known as “Israel” and the southern kingdom
will be known as “Judah”.
The southern
kingdom of Judah is going to be ruled by the descendants of David right up to
the end, and will consist of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin.
The northern
kingdom of Israel will contain the other ten tribes, and will be ruled by many
different dynasties.
:20 Now it came to pass when
all Israel heard that Jeroboam had come back, they sent for him and called him
to the congregation, and made him king over all Israel. There was none who
followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only.
Jeroboam is made king over the northern tribes. The only tribes to stay
with Rehoboam will be Judah and Benjamin.
:21 And when Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he
assembled all the house of Judah with the tribe of Benjamin, one hundred and
eighty thousand chosen men who were warriors, to fight against the house
of Israel, that he might restore the kingdom to Rehoboam
the son of Solomon.
Rehoboam gathers an army of 180,000 to deal with
the rebellion.
When the colonies declared their independence in 1776, the British army was
already on American soil, fighting against the rebels, trying to get them to be
loyal to the British government. The British
lost, and the United States was born.
When the southern states seceded from the union, Abraham Lincoln sent
troops to fight against the rebels and eventually won, reuniting the nation.
:22 But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying,
:23 “Speak to Rehoboam
the son of Solomon, king of Judah, to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and
to the rest of the people, saying,
:24 ‘Thus says the Lord: “You shall not go up nor fight against your brethren
the children of Israel. Let every man return to his house, for this thing is
from Me.” ’ ” Therefore they obeyed the word of the Lord, and turned back, according to the
word of the Lord.
:24 You shall not go up nor fight
God was behind the dividing of the nation. It had come about as a result of
Solomon’s turning away from the Lord and worshipping other gods. (1Ki.
11:11-13)
(1 Ki 11:11–13 NKJV) —11 Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, “Because you have done this, and have
not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely
tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant. 12 Nevertheless I will not do it in your
days, for the sake of your father David; I will tear it out of the hand of your
son. 13 However I will not
tear away the whole kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of
my servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen.”
Lesson
A time to stop fighting
There are times when it is appropriate to fight against division.
It was appropriate for David to fight against Absalom and later against the
man named Sheba.
But God says that in this instance, Rehoboam is
to let it go.
When it comes to conflict resolution, sometimes you need to stay at it and
keep pursuing the other person and trying to talk things out.
Sometimes you need to let it go.
12:25-33 Golden
Calves
:25 Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the mountains
of Ephraim, and dwelt there. Also he went out from there and built Penuel.
Play Penuel map
clip.
Penuel was the place where Jacob wrestled with the angel. It was across the Jordan River from Shechem.
:26 And Jeroboam said in his
heart, “Now the kingdom may return to the house of David:
:27 If these people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, then the heart of
this people will turn back to their lord, Rehoboam
king of Judah, and they will kill me and go back to Rehoboam
king of Judah.”
:27 they will kill me
Jeroboam gets to thinking about what is going to happen at the next great
Feast Day, then all the men of Israel were to go to Jerusalem to worship the
Lord.
He’s afraid that if the people all go to Jerusalem to worship, they might
get to thinking that they’re doing the wrong thing in following Jeroboam.
He’s afraid that the “religion thing” is going hurt his political survival.
Lesson
Just follow God
What’s so sad about what is going to happen, is that Jeroboam has been
given his position by the Lord. It was a prophet that delivered the message. In
addition, God made a promise to Jeroboam:
(1 Ki 11:38 NKJV) Then it shall be, if you heed all that I command you, walk in My
ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My
commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build for
you an enduring house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you.
When you follow God’s ways, you are in the safest of places.
:28 Therefore the king
asked advice, made two calves of gold, and said to the people, “It is too much
for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, which brought you
up from the land of Egypt!”
:28 two calves of gold
Does this ring a bell?
This is the
same kind of thing that the Israelites did when Moses was gone too long on the
mountain. They weren’t sure if Moses was
going to come back or not, and they wanted a “god” they could see.
Aaron took their gold and made a golden calf.
(Ex 32:4 NKJV) And he received the gold from their hand, and he fashioned
it with an engraving tool, and made a molded calf. Then they said, “This is your god,
O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt!”
Keep in mind, I don’t think they people are thinking that they have turned
from worshipping Yahweh and are now going to worship a calf. They are instead thinking that Yahweh looks
like a calf.
Jeroboam’s counselors found a solution in history. They just forgot to see where that solution
led to – trouble.
:28 It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem
Lesson
Easy church
I am a little concerned when people’s ideas about church focus on
making things “comfortable”.
I do believe we need to be relevant to our culture. I do believe we
ought to have music and ministries that people can relate to.
But I think we need to be careful that we don’t end up compromising the
message in order to not “offend” people.
Some people don’t like to hear the word “sin”. Others
don’t like the word “hell”.
:29 And he set up one in
Bethel, and the other he put in Dan.
Play Bethel and
Dan map clip
There is some strategy in picking these cities to set up new places for
worship.
“Bethel” means “House of God”, which is a great sounding place for a
Temple. It’s where Jacob had his vision
of angels ascending and descending on a ladder from heaven. It is also at the southern end of Jeroboam’s
new kingdom. It would be one of the last
places people might pass through who would be intending on worshipping Yahweh
in Jerusalem.
Dan is at the far north of the nation. It is also where we read about the Levite (Judg.
18) who had set up a golden idol during the time of the Judges, a place of
worship had already been established there.
Play “Altar at
Dan” video clip.
:30 Now this thing became a
sin, for the people went to worship before the one as far as Dan.
:31 He made shrines on the high places, and made
priests from every class of people, who were not of the sons of Levi.
:31 made priests from every class
God had made it very clear through Moses that the priests were to be of the
tribe of Levi.
Jeroboam is going to have trouble filling his priestly jobs though because
the Levites are probably going to stick with the Temple in Jerusalem.
Lesson
Called to ministry
The qualifications for a person being in ministry are a little
different now. God’s qualifications are no longer based on whether or not you
are a descendant of Aaron.
But God still wants to be the one who picks who is in ministry.
I think one of the most dangerous things that can happen in the church
is when the wrong person gets into ministry. The work of God is harmed, not
helped.
The work of God should only be done by people through whom God is
working. When you see exciting things happening at church, don’t get confused
and think it’s the people doing it, it’s the Lord. Being “effective” in
ministry is not about learning to tell funny jokes or being super smart. It’s
about learning to get out of the way and let God work.
How can a person know if God has called them to the ministry?
One of the evidences of God’s call on your life is fruit.
After the rebellion of Korah (who wanted to be a priest),
God asked each of the tribes to put a rod of wood next to the Ark of the
Covenant. The tribe of Levi submitted Aaron’s rod. The next morning, all the
rods were collected and something was different about Aaron’s rod.
(Nu 17:8
NKJV) —8 Now it came to pass on the next day
that Moses went into the tabernacle of witness, and behold, the rod of Aaron,
of the house of Levi, had sprouted and put forth buds, had produced blossoms
and yielded ripe almonds.
It had been a simple staff of wood, but after being in
the presence of the Ark overnight, it was alive.
I think an evidence of God’s call on your life is fruit
(or, nuts if you like!).
:32 Jeroboam ordained a
feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the feast that was
in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did at Bethel, sacrificing
to the calves that he had made. And at Bethel he installed the priests of the
high places which he had made.
:33 So he made offerings on the altar which he had
made at Bethel on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in the month which he
had devised in his own heart. And he ordained a feast for the children of
Israel, and offered sacrifices on the altar and burned incense.
:33 he had devised in his own heart
Jeroboam is setting up alternative “feasts”. The Feast of Tabernacles was supposed to be
in the seventh month (Lev. 23:34-35), but he sets up his feast a month later.
Lesson
Fake religion
Close, but no cigar.
What’s so hard is that many of the cults sound so religious. They say
many of the right things. They have a religiousness about them that seems like
they are doing the right thing.
There is something inside of man that knows that he needs something
spiritual in his life. And when he comes up against the fake religions, it
makes man think he’s doing what he’s supposed to.
But it’s a counterfeit.
13:1-9 Jeroboam
warned
:1 And behold, a man of God went from Judah to
Bethel by the word of the Lord,
and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense.
:1 a man of God
We are never told his name.
Josephus records he was “a prophet, whose name was Jadon” (8:8:5)
:2 Then he cried out against the altar by the word
of the Lord, and said, “O altar,
altar! Thus says the Lord:
‘Behold, a child, Josiah by name, shall be born to the house of David; and on
you he shall sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense on you, and men’s bones shall be burned on you.’ ”
:2 men’s bones shall be burned on
you
This is not about human sacrifice, but about desecrating an altar, making it an
unacceptable place for worship.
:2 Josiah by name –
“whom Yahweh heals”
This would take place three hundred years later, as a young king named
Josiah became excited about following the Lord.
(2 Ki 23:15–16 NKJV) —15
Moreover the altar that was at Bethel, and the high
place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made
Israel sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he broke down; and he
burned the high place and crushed it to powder, and burned the
wooden image. 16 As Josiah turned,
he saw the tombs that were there on the mountain. And he sent and took
the bones out of the tombs and burned them on the altar, and defiled it
according to the word of the Lord
which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words.
To Jeroboam, it’s possible that the only thing he’s hearing is that a king
of Judah will one day tear down his precious altars. He might even be concerned
that it sounds as if the southern kingdom will one day conquer the northern
kingdom.
In reality, there would be nothing political about Josiah’s actions. By the
time that Josiah acts, the northern kingdom has been wiped out and carried off
to Assyria. Josiah’s actions are solely based on what is pleasing to God.
:3 And he gave a sign the
same day, saying, “This is the sign which the Lord has spoken: Surely the altar shall split apart, and the
ashes on it shall be poured out.”
The altar breaking and the ashes pouring out would happen in a minute, and
would be a sign for Jeroboam that this was going to happen.
:4 So it came to pass when King Jeroboam heard the
saying of the man of God, who cried out against the altar in Bethel, that he
stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, “Arrest him!” Then
his hand, which he stretched out toward him, withered, so that he could not
pull it back to himself.
:5 The altar also was split apart, and the ashes
poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given
by the word of the Lord.
This prophet isn’t just some guy who is trying to spoil Jeroboam’s party.
He’s actually been sent by God and the things he’s warning Jeroboam about are
real.
:6 Then the king answered and said to the man of
God, “Please entreat the favor of the Lord
your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me.” So the man of
God entreated the Lord, and the
king’s hand was restored to him, and became as before.
What a picture of God’s mercy. If I was this prophet, I might have wanted
to ask Jeroboam for a written promise that he wouldn’t be hurt. But instead the
prophet simply prays for Jeroboam and Jeroboam is healed.
:7 Then the king said to the man of God, “Come
home with me and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward.”
:8 But the man of God said to the king, “If you
were to give me half your house, I would not go in with you; nor would I eat
bread nor drink water in this place.
:9 For so it was commanded me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘You shall not eat bread,
nor drink water, nor return by the same way you came.’ ”
:9 For so it was commanded me
God had clearly spoken to the prophet earlier and given him specific
instructions, including the direction of not sticking around any longer than is
necessary.
Why did God want the prophet to go straight home?
Perhaps God was concerned that the prophet might become corrupted by
Jeroboam. Perhaps he might be talked into taking back the things that God
wanted him to say.
Perhaps God wanted the prophet to be an illustration that God doesn’t want
anything to do with Jeroboam’s idolatry.
13:10-34 The
Prophet’s Disobedience
:10 So he went another way and did not return by
the way he came to Bethel.
:11 Now an old prophet dwelt in Bethel, and his
sons came and told him all the works that the man of God had done that day in
Bethel; they also told their father the words which he had spoken to the king.
:11 an old prophet dwelt in Bethel
Who is this guy? Is he legitimate? We’ll see…
:12 And their father said to them, “Which way did
he go?” For his sons had seen which way the man of God went who came from
Judah.
:13 Then he said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey
for me.” So they saddled the donkey for him; and he rode on it,
:14 and went after the man of God, and found him
sitting under an oak. Then he said to him, “Are you the man of God who
came from Judah?” And he said, “I am.”
:15 Then he said to him, “Come home with me and
eat bread.”
:15 Come home with me
Some have suggested that the old prophet knew exactly what he was doing,
and was trying to get the young prophet off track and heading to his doom in
order to get on the good side of Jeroboam.
Josephus records,
Whereupon he
was afraid that this stranger and prophet should be in better esteem with the
king than himself, and obtain greater honor from him; and he gave order to his
sons to saddle his donkey presently, and make all ready that he might go out.
:16 And he said, “I cannot
return with you nor go in with you; neither can I eat bread nor drink water
with you in this place.
:17 For I have been told by the word of the Lord, ‘You shall not eat bread nor
drink water there, nor return by going the way you came.’ ”
:18 He said to him, “I too am a prophet as
you are, and an angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘Bring him back with you
to your house, that he may eat bread and drink water.’ ” (He was lying to him.)
:18 He was lying to him
Lesson
Spiritual Abuse
Spiritual abuse: Misusing spiritual
things.
Sometimes people do it for personal gain.
Sometimes people do it because they think they can help others better.
I’m glad we don’t have to wonder whether or not this old guy was lying, the
writer clearly tells us he was.
But what
troubles me here is that we have a person called a “prophet”, and yet he is a liar.
We will see that this man is actually able to speak for God because he will
later prophesy and his words will come true (vs. 21).
I think the worst kinds of lies are the ones done in God’s name.
We would like to think that everything said and done at church is a good
thing.
But there will be people who will misuse the authority of the Lord.
:19 So he went back with
him, and ate bread in his house, and drank water.
:20 Now it happened, as they sat at the table,
that the word of the Lord came to
the prophet who had brought him back;
The old prophet who had just lied now gets an actual word from God.
:21 and he cried out to the man of God who came
from Judah, saying, “Thus says the Lord:
‘Because you have disobeyed the word of the Lord,
and have not kept the commandment which the Lord
your God commanded you,
:22 but you came back, ate bread, and drank water in the place of which the
Lord said to you, “Eat no
bread and drink no water,” your corpse shall not come to the tomb of your
fathers.’ ”
:21 Thus says the Lord
Here is a man who was just lying about having a message from God, and now
God actually gives him a legitimate message.
Lesson
Using imperfect people
This old prophet now turns from being a “liar” to a person that God speaks
through.
God spoke to Balaam through a donkey.
God spoke through greedy Balaam.
This makes me uncomfortable because I get to thinking sometimes that God
only uses perfect people. Not so.
Some of the evangelists on TV have done some pretty bad things – does that
mean that God hasn’t ever used them? No.
When a pastor has fallen, does that mean that everything he did was
invalid? No.
This doesn’t justify what the old man did.
:22 your corpse shall …
Lesson
Obey what God tells you to do.
I know that sometimes this is a difficult thing.
Sometimes we simply don’t know what God wants us to do.
Sometimes it is good to ask advice from others.
But sometimes God has spoken to us, and we know what we’re supposed to do,
and we allow ourselves to get talked out of it.
Do what God has asked you to do.
Be careful about people who want to tell you what God
wants you to do when God has said something different.
:23 So it was,
after he had eaten bread and after he had drunk, that he saddled the donkey for
him, the prophet whom he had brought back.
:24 When he was gone, a lion met him on the road
and killed him. And his corpse was thrown on the road, and the donkey stood by
it. The lion also stood by the corpse.
This is something highly unusual. The lion kills the prophet, but he
doesn’t eat him. The lion doesn’t even kill and eat the donkey. The lion is
simply used by God to kill the prophet, and then guard his dead body.
:25 And there, men passed by and saw the corpse
thrown on the road, and the lion standing by the corpse. Then they went and
told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.
:26 Now when the prophet who had brought him back
from the way heard it, he said, “It is the man of God who was
disobedient to the word of the Lord.
Therefore the Lord has delivered
him to the lion, which has torn him and killed him, according to the word of
the Lord which He spoke to him.”
:27 And he spoke to his sons, saying, “Saddle the
donkey for me.” So they saddled it.
:28 Then he went and found his corpse thrown on
the road, and the donkey and the lion standing by the corpse. The lion had not
eaten the corpse nor torn the donkey.
:29 And the prophet took up the corpse of the man
of God, laid it on the donkey, and brought it back. So the old prophet came to
the city to mourn, and to bury him.
Another amazing thing, the lion lets the old prophet take the body.
:30 Then he laid the corpse in his own tomb; and
they mourned over him, saying, “Alas, my brother!”
It seems that this old prophet feels some sense of responsibility over what
has happened.
:31 So it was, after he had buried him, that he spoke to his sons, saying,
“When I am dead, then bury me in the tomb where the man of God is
buried; lay my bones beside his bones.
This is what would happen.
When Josiah would come hundreds of years later, he would spot this other
prophet’s grave as well. (2Kings 23:17-18)
(2 Kings 23:17-18 NLT) {17}
“What is that monument over there?” Josiah asked. And the people of the town
told him, “It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and predicted
the very things that you have just done to the altar at Bethel!” {18} Josiah
replied, “Leave it alone. Don’t disturb his bones.” So they did not burn his
bones or those of the old prophet from Samaria.
:32 For the saying which he cried out by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel, and
against all the shrines on the high places which are in the cities of
Samaria, will surely come to pass.”
:32 the cities of Samaria
Eventually Samaria would become the capital of the northern kingdom. The northern kingdom
would also be known as “Samaria” as well as “Israel”. (like
“Washington” and the “U.S.”)
:33 After this event
Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but again he made priests from every
class of people for the high places; whoever wished, he consecrated him, and he
became one of the priests of the high places.
:34 And this thing was the sin of the house of
Jeroboam, so as to exterminate and destroy it from the face of the
earth.
:34 the sin of the house of
Jeroboam
This will be the thing that will keep Jeroboam’s family from being a
dynasty over the nation of Israel.
This sin of Jeroboam’s will last through the entire history of the northern
kingdom. Even after Jeroboam and his own dynasty are wiped out, the sin of
Jeroboam will continue.
The phrase “the sins of Jeroboam” or “the way of Jeroboam” appears 17 times
in the King James Bible (after the time of Jeroboam), referring to this sin,
and how the future generations would follow in his footsteps.
Even the “good” kings of the northern kingdom, though they might have
gotten rid of Baal worship, they never got rid of Jeroboam’s golden calves.
In the end, when the northern kingdom is being taken away into captivity by
the Assyrian empire, we read,
(2 Ki 17:22–23 NKJV) —22 For the children of Israel walked
in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they did not depart from them, 23 until the Lord removed Israel out of His sight,
as He had said by all His servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away
from their own land to Assyria, as it is to this day.
Lesson
Your sin affects others
I kind of get the idea the Jeroboam simply wasn’t a very “religious”
person. He didn’t seem to really understand what it meant to follow the Lord.
For Jeroboam, the making of the golden calves was simply a practical thing.
He was simply trying to keep his hands on the kingdom that God had given to
him.
I would imagine that when Jeroboam came up with the idea, it simply seemed
like it was better for the nation to do it than if he turned from this sin.
But in the end, it was devastating to the nation.
People watch us. They see what we do.
Illustration
A BOY AND HIS DAD
To
get his good-night kiss he stood
Beside my chair one night
And raised an eager face to me,
A face with love alight.
And as I gathered in my arms
The son God gave to me,
I thanked the lad for being good,
and hoped he’d always be.
His little arms crept ‘round my neck
And then I heard him say
Five simple words I can’t forget...
Five words that made me pray.
They turned a mirror on my soul,
On secrets no one knew,
They startled me, I hear them yet;
“I wanna be like you”.
Author Unknown
Kind of scary to think that somebody is watching, wishing they were like
us, huh?