And all Israel saw that the king hearkened not to them; and the people answered the king saying, What portion have we in David? And [we have] no inheritance in the son of Jesse To your tents, O Israel! Now see to thine own house, David! And Israel went to their tents.
Solomon is dead. His son Rehoboam has answered the people's plea for a lighter load with a threat. Now ten tribes walk away from the throne of David for good, and the break has never healed.
The cry in this verse was not invented that day. One writer traces it back to an earlier rebel, and sets against it what believers can say instead.
H J VineJudah and Israel were held together in practical oneness under David, the anointed of God... but even in his days the divisive spirit showed itself in a worthless man. "He blew a trumpet and said, 'We have no portion in David, and we have no inheritance in the son of Jesse; every man to his tents, O Israel!'" (2 Sam. 20:1). The seed was sown that day; and though the evil work was stopped there and then, it bore its bad fruit long afterwards... In contrast to this, the true joint-heirs surely say, All our portion is in Christ Jesus, and so is our inheritance for ever — let us stay in Him!
Rehoboam had two sets of advisers, and he chose the ones who echoed what he already wanted to hear.
H. L. RossierRehoboam turns away from the counsel of wisdom to follow that of the young men who had grown up with him... Had he stood before his father and heard the wise proverbs that fell from his lips, he could have passed on some of that wisdom to others. He would have known that "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger" (Prov. 15:1); that "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall" (Prov. 16:18)... The counsel of the young men is, in the end, only the counsel of his own heart. Pride goes hand in hand with despising one's neighbour.
It is easy to read this as pure politics: a foolish king, an angry crowd, a torn kingdom. One writer says that reading stops too soon.
Hamilton SmithPeople of that day looked at the bare facts and might have concluded that the division was wholly due to the folly of Rehoboam... Such arguments might seem reasonable to the natural mind. But they would have been false. It was true that Rehoboam's folly was the immediate cause of the division. Yet the word of God in judgment had gone out long before the violent words of the king. The mighty hand of God in discipline was behind the feeble hand of the king. The holy government of God was tearing the kingdom apart. Behind the discipline of God was the low condition of the people.
The verse just before says the king would not listen because this turn of affairs came from the LORD. It fulfilled His word spoken through the prophet Ahijah. Some have used that to excuse the rebels.
William KellyDid that excuse Jeroboam? This is a very important principle that you will find constantly in the word of God. A prophecy is in no way a sanction of what is predicted. Prophecy takes in the most disgusting acts ever done by the proud, corrupt or murderous will of man.
Behind the cry lay Solomon's oppression, and out of the cry came a whole new kingdom.
C KnappSolomon turned away from God and oppressed His people. So at his death the people find their occasion to make demands on the new king coming to his father's throne. His rude and foolish answer brings on the crisis, and then we hear the unthankful and heartless cry... Ephraim then takes the lead of the ten tribes who revolted from the house of David, headed by Jeroboam, a man of the tribe of Ephraim. A new kingdom is formed, and every one of its nineteen kings turns away from the LORD.
Israel made the break in a single day. One writer follows what became of it, and where the same thing has happened since.
Leslie M. GrantThey announced a division among brothers at once. The division took no time to make, yet it has continued through the centuries until now. It will not be healed until the Lord Jesus comes in power and glory at the end of the Great Tribulation. In God's purposes Israel is one nation that cannot be divided. In practice the nation has been totally inconsistent with God's plan for her. Sadly, the same has been true in the history of the Church of God on earth also.
- Seed — a rebel in David's own reign shouted the same words. Division starts as an idea long before it becomes an event.
- Spark — Rehoboam took the advice that flattered him. A harsh answer, where a soft one was needed, cost him ten tribes.
- Government — Rehoboam's folly was the immediate cause. But God had spoken His judgment long before, and behind it lay the low state of the people.
- Responsibility — being foretold never makes an act right. Prophecy describes man's worst deeds without approving them.
- Portion — Israel claimed no share in David and walked away from his house. Believers say the opposite: our whole portion and inheritance is in Christ.
But as for the children of Israel that dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.
Commentary for this verse has not been generated yet.
And king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the levy; but all Israel stoned him with stones, that he died. And king Rehoboam hastened to mount his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem.
Rehoboam had just lost ten tribes by one harsh speech. He still sent his tax officer to collect from them, and the killing that followed split the kingdom for good — but whose hand was behind it?
The king's officer held a long-standing post. One reference work traces the same office and name back through two earlier reigns:
Morrish Bible DictionaryChief over the tribute in the days of Solomon (1 Kings 4:6; 1 Kings 5:14). In David's time ADORAM was over the tribute (2 Sam. 20:24), and in the days of Rehoboam also a person of this name was over the tribute (1 Kings 12:18). Gesenius and others take that name as a shortened form of Adoniram, and as referring to the same person. The Adoram of 1 Kings 12:18 seems to be called HADORAM in 2 Chr. 10:18. All Israel stoned him to death at the revolt of the ten tribes. If Adoniram held office from David to Rehoboam it would cover a long period; still it may be the same man throughout, or father and son.
Sending him misread the moment badly. One writer traces the mistake to self-flattery, and sets the king's boast beside his flight:
C. KnappRehoboam found it hard to believe that the ten tribes had really refused his yoke. He flattered himself, no doubt, that they would not dare rebel against his authority... So he confidently sent Hadoram to collect the imposed assessment. This unwise act brings matters to a crisis. The furious people stone the old collector-general, who had served in this office under his father Solomon and his grandfather David. The king had boasted that his "little finger" would be "thicker than his father's waist." Now, to his shame, he "hurried to mount his chariot to flee to Jerusalem."
The officer died for what he stood for. The people had complained of a heavy yoke, and one writer sets that complaint beside the yoke of Christ:
H. L. RossierThese men complain to the king about the yoke his father had put on them: "Your father made our yoke heavy." That wording shows it had not always been so. Christ's yoke will never be heavy on His people. To His own He will always stay the same as they have known Him in the day of suffering and of grace: "My yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
The king took the advice that looked strong. One writer follows it through to the stones:
Hamilton SmithThe young men advise Rehoboam to take a course that seems admirable to the natural mind. It looks like taking a strong line and upholding the authority and majesty of the kingdom. Sad to say, Rehoboam follows the advice of nature. He takes a proud and unreasonable stand, and threatens the protesters with violent, extreme discipline. The people meet the king's violence with violence of their own. They stone the king's officer, and the division is complete.
The stoning did not create the revolt; it exposed it. And the damage outlasted everyone involved:
William KellyBut this only became the open occasion for the rebellion to show itself... And that rebellion was never healed. Sad to say, we shall find worse abominations than this. But in this way the bitter fruits of evil were beginning to show themselves; and he who had sown the wind must reap the whirlwind.
It would be easy to blame the whole disaster on one proud young ruler. Commentators warn that this reading stops too soon:
Hamilton SmithIt was true that Rehoboam's folly was the immediate cause of the division. But the word of God in judgment had gone out long before the violent words of the king. The mighty hand of God in discipline was behind the feeble hand of the king. The holy government of God was tearing the kingdom apart, and behind the discipline of God was the low condition of the people.
One writer follows the split forward, past Israel to the Church:
Leslie M. GrantThis division happened with no delay. But it has continued through the centuries until now, and it will not be healed until the Lord Jesus comes in power and glory... In the counsels of God, Israel is one nation that cannot be divided. But in practice the nation has been completely inconsistent with God's plan for her. Sad to say, the same has been true in the history of the Church of God on earth too.
- Root — the split goes back past Rehoboam. God's word of judgment had already gone out, and the low condition of the people invited the discipline.
- Yoke — the tax officer stood for a burden that had grown heavy. Christ's yoke never grows heavy on His people.
- Folly — the king answered a complaint with threats, force met force, and the man he sent paid with his life.
- Flight — the king who boasted of his "little finger" ended up running for his chariot.
- Reach — the tear was never healed. Commentators see in it Israel's long division, and the divided state of God's people since; only Christ's coming will mend it.
And Israel rebelled against the house of David, unto this day.
Israel's break with the royal line of David becomes permanent here. The verse raises two questions the commentators keep returning to: who caused this, and can it ever be undone?
The king's own harsh words set off the break. One writer traces that back to a son who never learned his father's wisdom and gave his ear to flatterers.
H. L. RossierRehoboam abandons the counsel of wisdom to follow that of the young men who had grown up with him and who stood before him. They could only be the mirror and reflection of their master's thoughts. If he had stood before his father and heard his wise proverbs, he could have passed some of that wisdom on to others. He would have known what suits a king. He would have known that "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." He would have known that "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." But no — those who flatter his pride are the ones who win his approval.
The king's folly was not the whole story. One commentator digs for the root, and finds two failures.
Hamilton SmithHere then we discover the root of division in Israel and, may we not say, the root of all divisions that have taken place among the people of God. First, unjudged worldliness that robs the people of true devotedness, and second, disobedience to the Word of God.
It would be easy to blame the split on one king's bad judgment. The same writer says that misses what God was doing.
Hamilton SmithIt was true that Rehoboam's folly was the immediate cause of the division. But the word of God in judgment had gone out long before the violent words of the king. The mighty hand of God in discipline was behind the feeble hand of the king. The holy government of God was tearing the kingdom apart, and behind the discipline of God was the low condition of the people.
The verse ends by saying the rebellion was still going on. One commentator treats it as the first bitter harvest of a crop sown earlier.
William KellyAnd that rebellion was never healed. Sadly we shall find greater evils than this. But here the bitter fruits of wrongdoing were beginning to show themselves. The one who had sown the wind had to reap the whirlwind.
God forbade Rehoboam to fight the tribes that had left. One writer applies that command to divisions among God's people now.
An Outline of Sound WordsAlthough the folly of King Rehoboam brought about the division of the kingdom of Israel, the cause was the idolatry of his father Solomon. The consequences of the division were very sad. Instead of brothers living together in unity, "there were continual wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam." … Instead of fighting with brothers, we should pay attention to God's word to Rehoboam when the division happened: "Thus says the LORD, you shall not go up or fight against your relatives… for this thing is from me." God has allowed the divisions among His people because of our sin and folly, and it is for us to bow our heads and hearts before Him in shame.
Every later effort to put the nation back together failed. One writer sets those efforts beside what the Son of God will do.
Samuel RidoutHow beautiful it is that in God's day, when the Lord takes up the staff of Israel and of Judah, it will be reunited in His hand. It will be one, as it has never been since the division. All efforts in the past have been useless. King Rehoboam might fight to bring back the tribes that had revolted, but it was completely impossible. The same was true of the efforts of other kings. Hezekiah might send out a gracious invitation for Israel to come back to the God of their fathers. A few people might be restored, but it is only a temporary, partial thing. But when the mighty Son of God takes hold of His people, that broken staff will be reunited and become one.
- Root — The division did not start with Rehoboam's rudeness. Under it lay unjudged worldliness and disobedience to God's Word.
- Trigger — Pride and flattery lit the spark. A harsh word stirred up anger where a soft answer would have turned it away.
- Government — Behind the king's feeble hand was God's mighty hand. His word of judgment had gone out long before the king's violent words.
- Fruit — "To this day" records a wound never healed — the one who sowed the wind reaped the whirlwind.
- Hope — No king could force the pieces back together. When the Son of God takes up the broken staff, the two will become one in His hand.