1 Kings 12:1-15--Rehoboam's Folly

1 Kings 12:1-15
English Standard Version

Rehoboam's Folly
12 Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king. 2 And as soon as Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), then Jeroboam returned from Egypt. 3 And they sent and called him, and Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came and said to Rehoboam, 4 “Your father made our yoke heavy. Now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke on us, and we will serve you.” 5 He said to them, “Go away for three days, then come again to me.” So the people went away.

6 Then King Rehoboam took counsel with the old men, who had stood before Solomon his father while he was yet alive, saying, “How do you advise me to answer this people?” 7 And they said to him, “If you will be a servant to this people today and serve them, and speak good words to them when you answer them, then they will be your servants forever.” 8 But he abandoned the counsel that the old men gave him and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him and stood before him. 9 And he said to them, “What do you advise that we answer this people who have said to me, ‘Lighten the yoke that your father put on us’?” 10 And the young men who had grown up with him said to him, “Thus shall you speak to this people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you lighten it for us,’ thus shall you say to them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father's thighs. 11 And now, whereas my father laid on you a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.’”

12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king said, “Come to me again the third day.” 13 And the king answered the people harshly, and forsaking the counsel that the old men had given him, 14 he spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.” 15 So the king did not listen to the people, for it was a turn of affairs brought about by the LORD that he might fulfill his word, which the LORD spoke by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

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Rehoboam is the son of Solomon and the presumed heir to the throne (Israel seems to have historically had an issue with presuming that they will choose the next king without consulting the LORD).  Rehoboam went to Shechem so that he could be anointed king over all of Israel, but remember that Jeroboam had been promised to reign over 10 of the 12 tribes.  Jeroboam was hiding from Solomon in Egypt, but as soon as he heard of Solomon's death and that Jeroboam was going to assume Solomon's throne, he returned form Egypt, and they invited Jeroboam and all of Israel to come to the ceremony.

A question is then asked of Rehoboam by Jeroboam and all of Israel (read this as the northern 10 tribes).  They asked if Rehoboam was planning to continue to treat them harshly like King Solomon did.  He had treated them with a pretty heavy hand and they were not sure they wanted another king like him.  Rehoboam said that he needed three days to think about their question and would give them an answer after that (he had not yet though about what kind of king he wanted to be or if he wanted to follow in his father's footsteps).

Rehoboam then took counsel with his father's advisors that were left (they were probably all chosen during the time that Solomon was obedient and his wisdom was not dulled or hindered by his hedonism or seeking after false gods).  They gave Rehoboam wise advice that the king should be the servant of the people, not the other way around (that's how the pagan kings acted).  If Rehoboam would treat the people right, then they would happily serve him (as they did with King David).  This was not the message that Rehoboam wanted to hear though, so he sought counsel instead from his peers who had grown up with him (meaning they mostly knew of Solomon after he started his slide into idolatry and hedonism).  They told him to respond to the people's request for a lighter yoke with threats that he was going to "flex" and show them just how harsh he could be.  He was going to show everyone in Israel and all the other nations that he was not "soft" and his strength was something that he felt needed to be demonstrated publicly so so that everyone feared him.  He then threatened to discipline them sharply (with scorpions) as opposed to the "light" discipline they received from his father (with whips).

When the people heard these words and saw that Rehoboam had forsaken the counsel of Solomon's wise counselors in favor of his young, foolish peers, the ten northern tribes gave their allegiance to Jeroboam.  Only Judah and Benjamin stayed allied with Rehoboam (probably for the sake of David).  We'll read next time.