So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king said, “Come to me again the third day.”
Rehoboam's three days are over, and the whole nation returns to Shechem to face a king who has already made up his mind. What looks like an orderly royal audience is the hinge on which the kingdom of Israel splits in two.
The Request and the Pause
The people's petition was not a revolt. Commentators note that they asked for something fair, and that the king was right to delay his answer.
Leslie M. GrantJeroboam and others with him asked Rehoboam to lighten the heavy service of Solomon. If he did, they would gladly serve Rehoboam. This was certainly a reasonable thing to ask. At the time, Rehoboam wisely asked them to come back in three days for an answer. It was right that he should discuss this suggestion with his council.
Two Counsels Waiting for the Third Day
Between the request and the return, two groups spoke into the king's ear. One had served Solomon; the other had grown up alongside Rehoboam. The second group, one writer observes, gave him back what he already thought.
H. L. RossierThe old men give the same counsel Jesus gave His disciples: "Let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves" (Luke 22:26)... Rehoboam abandons the counsel of wisdom. He follows the young men who had grown up with him and who stood before him. They could only mirror and reflect their master's thoughts... The counsel of the young men is in the end only that of his own heart. Pride goes hand in hand with despising one's neighbour.
The Man Standing in the Crowd
The verse names Jeroboam first among those who come back. He was not a neutral spokesman. He already knew the prophecy that God would tear the kingdom away. One writer draws a careful line: knowing a prophecy does not excuse helping it happen.
William KellyHe was in the plot; he was the one who knew well what the prophecy was, and now there was a chance to take advantage of it... Did 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 that the proud, corrupt, or murderous will of man has ever done.
The Limits of Authority
Rehoboam met the people with violent words. Commentators do not treat kingship itself as the problem. The problem is what a ruler does with the power he is given.
C KnappGod commands submission to the governing authorities. But His word nowhere approves tyranny over the souls and bodies of men. Rulers who try it must learn the results at their own cost. There are many proofs of this in Scripture, as in history. Government is of God, and therefore of divine appointment; but God's frown is on all abuse of power.
Behind the Feeble Hand of the King
It would be easy to blame the whole disaster on one young man's bad temper. Commentators warn that this obvious reading stops at the immediate cause.
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. Behind the discipline of God was the low condition of the people.
A Root Older Than the Meeting
God announced this tearing to Solomon while he still reigned. What breaks out on the third day started long before.
An Outline of Sound WordsThe obvious and immediate cause of the division was the foolishness of the king in rejecting the counsel of the elders. But the underlying cause was Solomon's idolatry. We read, "And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel"... "I will surely tear the kingdom from you"... The kingdom was never reunited, and will not be until the Lord comes.
Summary
- Root. The split did not begin at Shechem. Solomon's heart had already turned away, and God's word of judgment had already gone out.
- Pause. The three days were a mercy. Rehoboam was right to delay and take counsel; the failure came in which counsel he kept.
- Mirror. The young men did not give him new advice — they handed back his own pride, which is why he found it so easy to accept.
- Answer. Authority is God-given, but never for crushing people. God frowns on every abuse of power.
- Hand. Behind the feeble hand of a foolish king was the mighty hand of God in discipline. That split still stands, and only the Lord's coming will end it.