1 Kings 12:1

_AND REHOBOAM WENT TO SHECHEM: FOR ALL ISRAEL WERE COME TO SHECHEM TO MAKE HIM KING._ Rehoboam went to Shechem, х_ RªCHAB`AAM_ (H7346), enlarger of the people; Septuagint, Roboam]. He was the oldest, if not the only, son of Solomon, and had been doubtless designated by his father heir to the throne, as Solomon had been by David. The incident here related took place after the funeral obsequies of the late king, and the period for public mourning had passed. When "all Israel came to make him king" - i:e., the public representatives of all Israel (cf. 1 Samuel 8:4; 1 Samuel 8:7; 1 Samuel 8:10;...

1-15 The tribes complained not to Rehoboam of his father's idolatry, and revolt from God. That which was the greatest grievance, was none to them; so careless were they in matters of religion, if they might live at case, and pay no taxes. Factious spirits will never want something to complain of. And when we see the Scripture account of Solomon's reign; the peace, wealth, and prosperity Israel then enjoyed; we cannot doubt but that their charges were false, or far beyond the truth. Rehoboam answered the people according to the counsel of the young men. Never was man more blinded by pride, and desire of arbitrary power, than which nothing is more fatal. God's counsels were hereby fulfilled. He left Rehoboam to his own folly, and hid from his eyes the things which belonged to his peace, that the kingdom might be rent from him. God serves his own wise and righteous purposes by the impruden...

CHAPTER XII _The people go to Shechem to make Rehoboam king, and send for_ _Jeroboam out of Egypt, who with the heads of the tribes,_ _requests relief from the heavy burdens laid on them by Solomon_, 14. _He requires three days to consider their petition_, 5. _He rejects the counsel of the elders, who served his father,_ _and follows that of young men, and returns the people a_ _provoking answer_, 6-15. _The people therefore renounce the family of David, stone to_ _death Adoram, who came to receive their tribute, and make_...

The first step taken by the new king was a most judicious one. If anything could have removed the disaffection of the Ephraimites, and caused them to submit to the ascendancy of Judah, it would have been the honor done to their capital by its selection as the scene of the coronation. Shechem (now Nablous) lay on the flank of Mount Gerizim, directly opposite to Mount Ebal, in a position second to none in all Palestine. Though Abimelech had destroyed the place Judges 9:45, it had probably soon risen again, and was once more a chief city, or perhaps “the” chief city, of Ephraim. Its central position made it a convenient place for the general assembly of the tribes, as it had been in the days of Joshua Joshua 8:30;...

EXPOSITION THE REVOLT OF THE TEN TRIBES.—With the reign of Rehoboam, on which our historian now enters, we begin the second great period in the history of the Hebrew monarchy, so far as it is related in these Books of KINGS. The first, which comprises the Augustan age of Israel, the short-lived maturity of the race in the reign of Solomon, has extended over forty years, from B.C. 1015 to B.C. 975. The second, which is the period of the existence of the two kingdoms of Israel and Judah side by side—that is to say, from the disruption to the carrying away of Israel into captivity—extends over two centuries and a half, viz; from B.C. 975 to B.C. 722, and is, with few exceptions, a period of steady and shameful decline. And in giving his account of the division of the kingdom, our historian, _more suo_, confines himself to the recital

AND REHOBOAM WENT TO SHECHEM,.... After the death and internment of his father: FOR ALL ISRAEL WERE COME TO SHECHEM TO MAKE HIM KING: as was pretended, though in reality it was to seek occasion against him, and make Jeroboam king; it is very probable they knew of the prophecy of Ahijah, and therefore would not go to Jerusalem, but to Shechem, a city in the tribe of Ephraim, of which Jeroboam was, and where he had sowed the seeds of sedition when ruler there; and this place they chose, partly because they could more freely speak what they had in their minds, and partly for the safety of Jeroboam they had sent for on this occasion; so that Rehoboam went thither not of choice, but of necessity. The Jews c observe that this place was very ominous; here Dinah was ravished, Joseph was sold, Abimelech exercised tyranny, and here now the kingdom was divided. c T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 102. 1....

III. THE DIVIDED KINGDOM 1. Rehoboam and the Revolt of the Ten Tribes CHAPTER 12 _ 1. The revolt of the northern tribes (1 Kings 12:1)_ 2. The threatening war averted (1 Kings 12:21) 3. Jeroboam's wicked schemes (1 Kings 12:25) Rehoboam (enlarger of the people) is the only son of Solomon mentioned in the Bible (1 Chronicles 3:10). Ecclesiastes 2:18; Ecclesiastes 4:13 seem to give a h

THE REVOLT OF THE NORTHERN TRIBES. It is doubtful whether this section is Judæ an or not. It bears some resemblance to 2 Samuel 9-20, and the parts of 1 K. which seem to be a continuation of that history. On the other hand it is not favourable to the house of David, The writer assumes, that Israel has a right to elect a king, and that Solomon could not, like David, have nominated his successor. This passage may be an extract from a northern source, perhaps the chronicles of the kings of Israel. Difficulty is occasioned by the LXX additions, and has to be discussed in connexion with 1 Kings 12, 14. Evidently Jeroboam's rebellion against Solomon was more serious than is implied in 11, and the prestige of his throne had suffered considerably. SHECHEM. At the end of Solomon's reign the prestige of the older scenes in Israel's history seems to have revived. Jerusalem is no longer the importa...

SHECHEM.. national sanctuary (Joshua 24:1). Now _Nablous,_ corruption of Neapolis, the (New town) of Vespasian. The site of Abraham's first altar. Jacob's first home. Here the tribes met. Here Joseph was buried. All this before Jebus became Jerusalem. Hence the envy of Ephraim for Judah (Isaiah 11:13). Degraded by new name, Sychar. drunkenness (Isaiah 28:1). Yet here alone in all the world is the Paschal lamb still slain....

1 Kings 12:1-15. Rehoboam's accession. Request of his subjects and the king's Answer (2 Chronicles 10:1-15) 1. _And Rehoboam went_to _Shechem_ The parallel passage in 2 Chronicles 11:1-15 is almost identical with what is given here. It is clear from the narrative that, though Rehoboam was acknowledged as the rightful successor to his father, there was a desire among the people to modify the character of the government. David had ruled as a conqueror, and the fame and wealth and great undertakings of Solomon had gratified the people and made them submit to many severities in his reign. Rehoboam had none of the recommendations of his father or grandfather, and the i