And I will take thee, that thou mayest reign over all that thy soul desireth, and thou shalt be king over Israel.
Solomon still sits on the throne when the prophet Ahijah tells Jeroboam that God will make him king over ten tribes. Two questions follow: how much of that promise was certain, and why did Jeroboam wreck what God handed him?
The verse opens with God's own action: "I will take you." Solomon had already promoted this hard-working young man. But the promotion that mattered came from higher up.
When Solomon was busy fortifying Jerusalem, he noticed how hard Jeroboam worked. He put him in charge of the work crews from Ephraim and Manasseh. But we see that the king was not alone in taking note of this young man. God also took note of his industry and ambition. God's eye is on the ways of man, and more than that, He knows the thoughts and desires of every man's heart.
The promise gave Jeroboam wide room to rule. It did not give him room to ignore God.
God favoured Jeroboam by putting the ten tribes of Israel into his trust. A good and wise king had plenty of freedom to act. But God also demanded obedience to His statutes and commandments.
The two verses say different things. The kingdom itself was not up for negotiation; keeping it was.
God's promise to Jeroboam was plain. The kingdom was his unconditionally. "You shall reign over all that your soul desires, and you shall be king over Israel." Whether the kingdom lasted, on the other hand, depended on his obedience. "If you will listen … walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight … I will be with you, and build you a sure house." The kingdom was his. He had only to believe the promise of God for that. Yet, like Jacob, he felt he needed to work out his own schemes to get the promise fulfilled. Are we not sometimes guilty of the same mistake? Often we are not content with God's clear promise. We try by our own efforts to get what we want, sometimes at the cost of obeying God's Word.
One writer finds a clue to Jeroboam's heart in that phrase. He wanted power over his brothers before he was ever told he would have it.
But Jeroboam knew nothing of faith. He had secretly wanted power over his brothers. The expression "over all that your soul desires" shows it clearly. He probably tried to hurry Ahijah's prophecy along with the feverish haste of pride, and that is why he had to run to Egypt for shelter… Ahijah had plainly said that Solomon should be "prince all the days of his life." God would take the kingdom only out of his son's hand and give it to Jeroboam. But, like a stubborn, impatient child, he could not wait. He had to take the case out of God's hand and act for himself.
A promised crown tests a man before he ever wears it. David faced the same test and passed it.
How unlike David, the man after God's own heart! The prophet Samuel had anointed and chosen him to replace Saul. Even so, David would not harm a hair of the condemned king's head, or lift a finger to bring the kingdom to himself. David was a man of faith; and faith — that precious "gift of God"! — always waits on God — waits for His time and way to fulfil His promises.
God's word was enough to build a reign on. Jeroboam wanted something he could arrange for himself.
He had only to let God act in his favour, to obey Him, and he was assured of reigning over all that his soul desired (1 Kings 11:37).
But the promises of God were not enough for this man. He reasoned on a purely human level.
- Taken. The reign starts with God's move, not Jeroboam's record. God saw his hard work and the desires of his heart.
- Given. God promised the kingdom outright. Jeroboam had only to believe Him for it.
- Kept. The sure house of the next verse was the part that hung on obedience: wide freedom to reign, and a plain demand to walk in God's ways.
- Grasped. Instead of waiting as David waited, he tried to force the promise through, and had to flee to Egypt for it.
- Forfeited. He would not rest on God's plain word. Human reasoning cost him the sure house, and left him known as the man who made Israel to sin.
And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that which is right in my sight, in keeping my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did, that I will be with thee, and build thee a lasting house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee.
Solomon's unfaithfulness cost his family ten of Israel's tribes. God handed them to Jeroboam and promised him a dynasty as lasting as David's — and that promise hangs on one word: "if."
God puts two different things before Jeroboam. The throne is a gift. Whether it lasts depends on Jeroboam.
God's promise to Jeroboam was plain. The kingdom was his unconditionally. "You shall reign over all that your soul desires, and you shall be king over Israel." But whether the kingdom lasted depended on his obedience. "If you will listen… walk in My ways, and do what is right in My eyes… I will be with you, and build you a sure house." The kingdom was his. He had only to believe the promise of God for that. Yet, like Jacob, he felt he needed to work out his own schemes to get what was promised. Are we not sometimes guilty of the same mistake? So often we are not content with God's clear promise, but try by our own efforts to get what we want, sometimes at the cost of obeying God's Word.
God does not set an unreachable bar. He points Jeroboam to a life already lived.
God assured Jeroboam of blessing if he sought the Lord's interests as David did. This was not beyond Jeroboam, for God was only asking for what David had already shown.
A king still had wide freedom. One writer puts both sides plainly: "There was plenty of liberty of action for a good and wise king. But there was also God's demand for obedience to His statutes and commandments" (An Outline of Sound Words).
The promise gives Jeroboam a house as sure as David's, but it stands on a different footing. The next verse also sets a limit on how far David's line will suffer.
A new responsibility now rests on Jeroboam. God was giving him a privileged position. His house was to be as sure as David's, if he would listen to the commandments of the Lord. But God makes one reservation: "And I will afflict the offspring of David because of this, but not forever" (v. 39). In due time the grace that founded David's kingdom would claim its rights again. God established Jeroboam's kingdom — and Solomon's too — not on grace but on responsibility. God never takes back His promises; He delights in grace.
Jeroboam had God's word for his security. Instead of resting on it, he weighed the odds and set up a religion of his own.
Events unfold without him having to interfere. But he does not trust, and says in his heart: "Now the kingdom will return to the house of David." He has no confidence in God, so he weighs up the probabilities and stops there. Faith never stops at probabilities. I would even say that it feeds on impossibilities and is the better for it. His unbelief in God's promise and his indifference to the worship of the Lord produced a national religion of his own, separate from the worship God had established at Jerusalem.
God let his reign run its full course. The dynasty was another matter.
Despite his wickedness, the Lord allowed Jeroboam to reign twenty-two years. The Lord had used him to discipline the guilty house of David. But his own evil course made it impossible for him to establish a new dynasty. He knew Solomon's sins, and God had encouraged him to do well. The "sure house" mentioned in 1 Kings 11:38 could not be, for Jeroboam had led the people far away from their God.
Two kings held the throne on these terms. Both failed. That leaves a question the verse itself does not answer.
The Lord gave Jeroboam rule over the ten tribes because Solomon had been unfaithful. He told him that if he would listen to His commandments, walk in His ways, and do what was right in His sight, He would be with him and build him "a sure house" (1 Kings 11:38). But who can God trust except the Lord Jesus? Solomon was unfaithful; so was Jeroboam.
- Given — God handed Jeroboam the ten tribes outright. Only the lasting of his house hung on the "if" of obedience.
- Gauge — the standard was "as David my servant did" — a life already lived, so not beyond Jeroboam's reach.
- Ground — his kingdom stood on responsibility; David's stood on grace. God would afflict David's line, "but not forever."
- Grasping — Jeroboam did not trust the promise. He weighed the odds, set up a religion of his own, and lost the sure house.
- Guarantee — both kings failed. The sure house rests at last on the one Man God can trust.