1. Introduction
a) We have seen the character arc of three kings of Israel
i) Saul
(1) The goodliest man in Israel
(2) Ends with obsessive jealousy of David
(a) Tries to murder David several times
ii) David
(1) The boy who killed Goliath
(a) Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel . . . . And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hands – 1 Samuel 17:45,47
(2) Ends by committing adultery with Bathsheba and committing murder by giving an order that will kill Uriah to cover up David's sin
iii) Solomon
(1) Begins by praying, "Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people? " 1 Kings 3:9
(2) Ends by marrying out of the covenant
(a) Remember how much effort was put into finding a righteous wife, Rebekah, so Isaac could marry in the covenant.
(b) Solomon marries out of the covenant and his non-Israelite wives persuade him to worship false gods
(i) Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites – 1 Kings 11:5
b) Pride Cycle
i) Often speak of the pride cycle in the Book of Mormon
(1) Righteousness and Prosperity
(2) Pride and Wickedness
(3) Destruction and Suffering
(4) Humility and Repentance
ii) Pride cycle can operate with a people who have the doctrine necessary to understand that they must humble themselves
(1) In the end, the Nephites were destroyed because they would not humble themselves – cycle stopped with destruction and suffering.
iii) In the life of an individual, the pride cycle can also come full circle
(1) However, there is no guarantee that the individual life will not end like the Nephites – stuck in destruction and suffering
iv) The Kings of Israel
(1) Saul ended his life in destruction and suffering
(2) David ended his life holding earthly power, but having lost is eternal inheritance
(3) Solomon ended his life holding earthly power, but also having fallen away
(a) Never made it to Humility and Repentance
(b) Solomon's actions would lead to many problems with his posterity and for Israel
2. The kingdom of Israel is divided, primarily because of Rehoboam’s harsh leadership
a) Reading 1 – 1 Kings 11:42-43
42 And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.
43 And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.
b) Who is Rehoboam?
i) Rehoboam is the grandson of King David, and the third great-grandson of Ruth and Boaz. Rehoboam’s mother was an Ammonite princess Naamah.
c) Reading 2 – 1 Kings 12:1-4
1 And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king.
2 And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;)
3 That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying,
4 Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.
d) Rehoboam's response is to tell the people to come back in three days.
i) It is clear that, in his later years, Solomon was putting great burdens on his people
(1) Taxes
(2) Force labor
e) Rehoboam consults with two groups of people concerning the request of the people
i) Reading 3 – 1 Kings 12:6-7
6 ¶ And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people?
7 And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.
(1) ASK – Can we think of a king who lived as the old men of Israel counseled?
(a) King Benjamin
(b) READ Mosiah 2:12-14 (Benjamin is speaking)
12 I say unto you that as I have been suffered to spend my days in your service, even up to this time, and have not sought gold nor silver nor any manner of riches of you;
13 Neither have I suffered that ye should be confined in dungeons, nor that ye should make slaves one of another, nor that ye should murder, or plunder, or steal, or commit adultery; nor even have I suffered that ye should commit any manner of wickedness, and have taught you that ye should keep the commandments of the Lord, in all things which he hath commanded you—
14 And even I, myself, have labored with mine own hands that I might serve you, and that ye should not be laden with taxes, and that there should nothing come upon you which was grievous to be borne—and of all these things which I have spoken, ye yourselves are witnesses this day.
ii) Rehoboam doesn't like what the old men tell him
(1) Reading 4 – 1 Kings 12:8-11
8 But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood before him:
9 And he said unto them, What counsel give ye that we may answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke which thy father did put upon us lighter?
10 And the young men that were grown up with him spake unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto this people that spake unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father’s loins.
11 And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father hath chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
f) Rehoboam gives his answer
i) Reading 5 – 1 Kings 12:12-20
12 ¶ So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me again the third day.
13 And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the aold men’s counsel that they gave him;
14 And spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
15 Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people; for the acause was from the Lord, that he might perform his saying, which the Lord spake by bAhijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
16 ¶ So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So Israel adeparted unto their tents.
17 But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of aJudah, Rehoboam reigned over them.
18 Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the tribute; and all Israel stoned him with stones, that he died. Therefore king Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem.
19 So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day.
20 And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only.
(1) Note – footnote to Verse 20 – Septuagint reads that Judah and Benjamin followed Rehoboam.
g) 500 years after Moses, the children of Israel have divided into two parts
i) Kingdom of Judah – tribes of Judah and Benjamin – AKA The Southern Kingdom
(1) Ruled over by Rehoboam
(2) Included Jerusalem
ii) Kingdom of Israel – the other 10 tribes – AKA The Northern Kingdom
(1) Ruled over by Jeroboam
(2) Who was Jeroboam?
(a) Jeroboam had been one of Solomon’s 12 superintendents over taxes and labor – promoted while he was very young.
(b) Toward the end of Solomon’s reign, the prophet Ahijah had prophesied that Jeroboam would become king over ten of the tribes of Israel.
(c) Jeroboam had formed conspiracies against Solomon, but fled to Egypt in order to protect his life.
iii) This division will permanently weaken all of Israel
(1) At times the Northern and Southern kingdoms will battle one another
(2) Kingdom of Israel will be taken into captivity by the Assyrians and never return
(a) Ten Lost Tribes
(3) Kingdom of Judah would be taken into captivity in Babylon
(a) Will eventually be freed from captivity when Babylon falls to Cyrus the Great of Persia
(b) Estimated that less than 20% of the Kingdom of Judah returned from Babylon to resettle Israel
3. Jeroboam and Rehoboam lead their kingdoms into idolatry
a) Jeroboam
i) Through the prophet Ahijah, the Lord promised Jeroboam that he would be given a “sure house” (a secure kingdom) if he would walk in the Lord’s ways
ii) READ – 1 Kings 11:38
38 And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that is right in my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee.
iii) Jeroboam failed to keep the conditions given to him by Ahijan
(1) Worried that when his people went to Jerusalem, the site of the only temple, to perform sacrifices, they would come under the influence of Rehoboam and follow him.
(2) Jeroboam worried that he would lose his kingdom.
(3) What was Jeroboam's solution to this problem? Golden Calves!
(a) Built two golden calves
(i) Said "behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt." 1 Kings 12:28
(b) High places: original altars that were built on hilltops. Jereboam desecrated these altars and used them for idol worship.
(c) Made priests who were not Levites
(d) Created a new feast day
(i) Remember that in Deuteronomy, the Lord had given Moses specific holy feasts, all of which pointed to the coming Messiah
(ii) Made sacrifices to the golden calves and in the high places
b) Rehoboam
i) Rehoboam also lead the Kingdom of Judah into idolatry
ii) READ – 1 Kings 14:22-23
22 And Judah did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done.
23 For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree.
(1) Groves were used for pagan worship where people sometimes engaged in immoral behavior.
c) Terrible consequences of evil kings
i) Remember the warnings of Samuel when Israel asked for a king instead of judges so they could be like other nations
ii) Remember the counsel of Mosiah about the terrible consequences of even a single evil king – citing Noah – when he counseled the Nephites to establish a structure of judges who would enforce laws made by the voice of the people.
iii) The children of Israel would never fully recover from the consequences of the reigns of Rehoboam and Jeroboam.
4. Jehoshaphat leads the kingdom of Judah to follow the Lord and His prophets
a) Jump forward in time to Rehoboam's great-grandson Jehoshaphat, who was the king of Judah
b) Reading 6 – 2 Chronicles 17:3-6
3 And the Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim;
4 But sought to the Lord God of his father, and walked in his commandments, and not after the doings of Israel.
5 Therefore the Lord stablished the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought to Jehoshaphat presents; and he had riches and honour in abundance.
6 And his heart was lifted up in the ways of the Lord: moreover he took away the high places and groves out of Judah.
c) Jehoshaphat sends out Levites to teach the people
i) Reading 7 – 2 Chronicles 17:7-9
7 ¶ Also in the third year of his reign he sent to his princes, even to Ben-hail, and to Obadiah, and to Zechariah, and to Nethaneel, and to Michaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah.
8 And with them he sent Levites, even Shemaiah, and Nethaniah, and Zebadiah, and Asahel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehonathan, and Adonijah, and Tobijah, and Tob-adonijah, Levites; and with them Elishama and Jehoram, priests.
9 And they taught in Judah, and had the book of the law of the Lord with them, and went about throughout all the cities of Judah, and taught the people.
(1) Verse 9 – the priests that Jehoshaphat sent out taught from the scriptures
ii) Reading 8 - President Ezra Taft Benson taught: “Often we spend great effort in trying to increase the activity levels in our stakes. We work diligently to raise the percentages of those attending sacrament meetings. We labor to get a higher percentage of our young men on missions. We strive to improve the numbers of those marrying in the temple. All of these are commendable efforts and important to the growth of the kingdom. But when individual members and families immerse themselves in the scriptures regularly and consistently, these other areas of activity will automatically come. Testimonies will increase. Commitment will be strengthened. Families will be fortified. Personal revelation will flow” (The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson [1988], 44)
d) Judah is attacked by the armies of Moab, Ammon and Mount Seir
i) Jehoshaphat's first response
(1) Reading 9 – 2 Chronicles 20:3-13
3 And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.
4 And Judah gathered themselves together, to ask help of the Lord: even out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.
5 ¶ And Jehoshaphat stood in the congregation of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new court,
6 And said, O Lord God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven? and rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen? and in thine hand is there not power and might, so that none is able to withstand thee?
7 Art not thou our God, who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy friend for ever?
8 And they dwelt therein, and have built thee a sanctuary therein for thy name, saying,
9 If, when evil cometh upon us, as the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we stand before this house, and in thy presence, (for thy name is in this house,) and cry unto thee in our affliction, then thou wilt hear and help.
10 And now, behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and mount Seir, whom thou wouldest not let Israel invade, when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them, and destroyed them not;
11 Behold, I say, how they reward us, to come to cast us out of thy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit.
12 O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee.
13 And all Judah stood before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.
e) The Lord's Response to the prayers of the people of Judah
i) READ 2 Chronicles 20:14-17
14 ¶ Then upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, came the Spirit of the Lord in the midst of the congregation;
15 And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s.
16 To morrow go ye down against them: behold, they come up by the cliff of Ziz; and ye shall find them at the end of the brook, before the wilderness of Jeruel.
17 Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you.
f) The people of Judah went out to face the armies the next morning.
i) READ 2 Chronicles 20:20-23
20 ¶ And they rose early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa: and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.
21 And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the Lord, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the Lord; for his mercy endureth for ever.
22 ¶ And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.
23 For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another.
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