Topic: GOD DOES NOT MAKE EMPTY THREATS
Text:1 Kings 11:26-39
11:26 Then Solomon’s servant, Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite from Zereda, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow, also rebelled against the king.
11:27 And this is what caused him to rebel against the king: Solomon had built the Millo and [a]repaired the damages to the City of David his father.
11:28 The man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor; and Solomon, seeing that the young man was industrious, made him the officer over all the labor force of the house of Joseph.
Now it happened at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met him on the way; and he had clothed himself with a new garment, and the two were alone in the field.
11:30 Then Ahijah took hold of the new garment that was on him, and tore it into twelve pieces.
11:31 And 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 will give ten tribes to you
11:32 (but he shall have one tribe for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel),
11:33 because [b]they have forsaken Me, and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the people of Ammon, and have not walked in My ways to do what is right in My eyes and keep My statutes and My judgments, as did his father David
However I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, because I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of My servant David, whom I chose because he kept My commandments and My statutes.
11:35 But I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand and give it to you—ten tribes.
11:36 And to his son I will give one tribe, that My servant David may always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen for Myself, to put My name there.
11:37 So I will take you, and you shall reign over all your heart desires, and you shall be king over Israel.
11:38 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.
11:39nd I will afflict the descendants of David because of this, but not forever.’ ”
STUDY:
Sin is rebellion against God. “I am going to do this because Solomon has rejected Me and worshipped foreign gods” (v. 33; GNB). And rebellion against God will provoke rebellion from men. We can’t command authority when we are not under authority. Solomon forgot that the loyalty of men to his leadership was simply the making of God. Sometimes, leaders don’t know that true followership is a gift from God, not their own making or power. So, as part of the consequences of Solomon’s disobedience and rebellion against God, a revolt against his leadership broke out.
As the leadership of Solomon continued to come under attack, God moved to perform His judgement against Solomon. He sent prophet Ahijah to announce to Jeroboam His intention to take the kingdom away from Solomon and give ten tribes to him, leaving Solomon with one tribe, for David’s sake and for Jerusalem’s sake (vv. 29-32). God gave Jeroboam this great offer and presented to him the terms and conditions: I will make you king of Israel, and you will rule over all the territory if you obey Me completely, and live by my laws and commands. God does not make empty threats and promises, so we must tread with care and holy fear. We must avoid over familiarity with God! It is very dangerous to look down on God’s instructions and commands. Be warned!
Prayer:
Dear Father; help me not to look down on your commands and instructions.
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