God Will Judge Every Deed (Week 22)
God promised King David an everlasting dynasty and that if David’s son who succeeded him sinned, he would be punished but not removed as king. Therefore, when David’s son, King Solomon, fell into idolatry, God did not remove the kingdom from him but waited until Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, had taken over as king. Once the Solomonic kingdom was passed on to his son, God tore the bulk of the kingdom—10 of the 12 tribes—away and put them under the rule of King Jeroboam.
God made an amazing promise to Jeroboam. He promised him a dynasty as enduring as the one he had given to David. The only catch was Jeroboam had to obey the Lord and observe His commandments—something that proved to be too hard for the new king.
Jeroboam was concerned that if the citizens of the northern kingdom of Israel went to worship in the temple in Jerusalem, located in the territory of Judah’s southern kingdom, he would lose their allegiance. They would be more inclined to serve King Rehoboam because of his role as custodian of the temple and the Holy City of Jerusalem.
Jeroboam came up with a plan to set up his own worship centers—one in the northern city of Dan and one in the southern city of Bethel—so his citizens could worship without leaving his territory. He then went so far as to make two golden calves and perverted the worship of Yahweh with these idolatrous cult images. He even appointed his own priests to officiate.
In response to Jeroboam’s disobedience, the Lord pronounced an end to his dynasty. He could have had it all, but he went out in his own strength, disregarding the commandments of the Lord and telling himself he was doing the right thing politically.
The lesson for us is this: “God judges every deed” (Ecclesiastes 12:14). This was the conclusion Solomon came to and it is the lesson we learn from the story of Jeroboam.
Join me for this episode of the Out of Zion podcast, “God Will Judge Every Deed.” Walk Thru the Bible with me each week by downloading our Bible reading plan, and get started reading right away!
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About this episode:
Jeroboam is made king over ten tribes and is promised a kingdom as enduring as David’s. He leads the people of Israel into idolatry instead. Rehoboam is king over Judah, which includes Jerusalem and the temple, yet he also leads his people astray. Ecclesiastes concludes that God will judge every deed—judgment must come.
This episode complements the daily readings from our Walk Thru the Bible reading plan for June 28-July 4, covering Ecclesiastes, 1 Kings 12-16, 2 Chronicles 9-18.