seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
1 Kings 14:21 Rehoboam son of Solomon was king in Judah. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel in which to put his Name. His mother’s name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite.
22 Judah did evil in the eyes of the Lord. By the sins they committed they stirred up his jealous anger more than those who were before them had done. 23 They also set up for themselves high places, sacred stones and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every spreading tree. 24 There were even male shrine prostitutes in the land; the people engaged in all the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the Israelites.
25 In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem. 26 He carried off the treasures of the temple of the Lord and the treasures of the royal palace. He took everything, including all the gold shields Solomon had made. 27 So King Rehoboam made bronze shields to replace them and assigned these to the commanders of the guard on duty at the entrance to the royal palace. 28 Whenever the king went to the Lord’s temple, the guards bore the shields, and afterward they returned them to the guardroom.
29 As for the other events of Rehoboam’s reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? 30 There was continual warfare between Rehoboam and Jeroboam. 31 And Rehoboam rested with his ancestors and was buried with them in the City of David. His mother’s name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite. And Abijah[d] his son succeeded him as king.
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Here's the link to the commentary I read.
Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked Him to jealousy with their sins: These sins provoked the LORD to jealousy because they were essentially sins of idolatry. Israel turned their back on the God who loved and redeemed them, and like an unfaithful spouse, they pursued spiritual adultery with idols.
There were also perverted persons in the land: This specifically describes prostitutes associated with the worship of idols. It is possible that the term perverted persons refers to both men and women cultic prostitutes. However, the term was used in Deuteronomy 23:17-18 in distinction to feminine cultic prostitutes.
They did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD had cast out before the children of Israel: Considering the depth of depravity among the Canaanite nations, this is a strong statement.
“Sheshonq I (Shishak) had founded the Egyptian (Libyan) Dynasty XXII (945-924 b.c.) and his raid into Palestine in this year (925 b.c.) is well attested on the Amon temple reliefs at Thebes (Karnak). From the one hundred and fifty place-names recorded there, his aim seems to have been to reassert Egyptian control over the main trade routes throughout Palestine and the Negeb.” (Wiseman)
He also took away all the gold shields which Solomon had made: 1 Kings 10:16-17 mentions these 500 shields, 200 large and 300 small. These shields made beautiful displays in the House of the Forest of Lebanon, but they were of no use in battle. Gold was too heavy and too soft to be used as a metal for effective shields. This was an example of the emphasis of image over substance that began in the days of Solomon and worsened in the days of Rehoboam.
King Rehoboam made bronze shields in their place: The replacement of gold with bronze is a perfect picture of the decline under the days of Rehoboam. The dynasty of David went from gold to bronze in five years.
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They have stupid spelled and stupid sounding names, and they didn't succeed at anything except sit on the throne and destroy all the work David and Solomon put into the Nation of Israel. Most of the Bible Studies just skip over them. Their names are stupid, hard to pronounce, so most Bible Studies just "move along".
So, let me make these people easier to identify.
- Jeroboam was the son of an Ephraimite named Nebat. Nebat was one of Solomon's advisors. He was chosen to rule everything except Judah.
- Rehoboam was one of Solomon's boys. His mother was Naamah and she was an Ammonite. He ruled Judah because his dad was Solomon.
Let's face it though, David [with the exception of the Bathsheba and Uriah event] and Solomon [with the exception for his womanizing amongst the idol worshipers] were a very hard act to follow. God handpicked David and Solomon. God almost tolerated Jeroboam and Rehoboam. Neither was worth the TNT to blow themselves up with.
Check out verse 24. See the male prostitutes? They worked in the temple in Judah. Hookers in the temple Solomon built for God!!!
Egypt attacked Jerusalem and won! Does that tell you anything?
During the Egyptian attack, the golden shields Solomon was so proud to make, were taken as plunder. Rehoboam made bronze shields to replace the gold ones!
Bronze was used to replace gold shields. Does that tell you anything?
So, neither of the boys who took over right after David and Solomon did such an acceptable job. Rehoboam and Jeroboam both tolerated idol worship and failed miserably.
Gold shields were replaced with bronze shields.
Male prostitutes moved into the temples.
