God's Man Elijah

 Elijah-The Courageous Prophet

 Book of 2 Kings Chapter 1

 God's Prophet Elijah.

 The Hebrew name Elijah means "My God is Jehovah."

 We are all called to be Elijah's today.

 Elijah was a sight to behold. His hair hung down his back, and he wore a girdle of skin around his loins; sometimes, he placed a mantle over it.

 A mantle would normally be a sheepskin worn like a cape.

 We first meet Elijah when he confronts King Ahab of the Northern Tribes of Israel.

 We know that Elijah had gone to King Ahab with a message from Jehovah.

 1Ki 17:1  And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word. 

 Elijah then escaped the vengeance of Jezebel.

 1Ki 19:2  Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time. 

 God provided the needs of Elijah with this small brook while ravens brought him meat to eat.

 Next, God sent Elijah to Zarephath to the house of a widow woman where God prolonged her oil and meal until the drought was over and where Elijah restored the life of her son.

 God used Elijah on other occasions

 This is the Ahab who had as his wife Jezebel. Jezebel was the daughter of the king of the Zidonians whose name was Ethbaal.

 The name Ehtbaal means enjoying the favor and protection of Baal.

 Jezebel did everything she could to stamp out the worship of Jehovah.

 She was a wicked woman.

 She also had a daughter named Athaliah who married the King of Judah named Jehoram who was also the only woman who occupied the throne of Judah.

 We will see the great influence these two wicked women had on the children of Israel.

 Elijah was one of those people that if you ever met him, you would certainly never forget him.

 Elijah may be the weirdest figure among the prophets of Israel.

 One moment Elijah was a powerhouse for God and the next he was running for his life afraid of Jezebel because he had caused the death of her false priests who could not get their false god to cooperate with them.

 Jehovah had special patience with Elijah and now he was serving the Lord with passion again.

 It is probably three or four years or more before we see Elijah in our lesson today.

 *****2Ki 1:1  Then Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab. 

 As the tribes of Israel divided the Moabites came under the control of Jeroboam but they had revolted as they saw the weakness of Israel.

 King Omri of Israel regained control over them, and they were tributaries to King Ahab.

 They now saw weakness in King Ahaziah and revolted again against Israel.

 Ahaziah was another King of Israel who rebelled against the Lord God Jehovah.

 Jehovah then sends a rejuvenated Elijah.

 *****2Ki 1:2  And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease. 

2Ki 1:3  But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that ye go to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? 

 For some reason, King Ahaziah had fallen through latticework or a trellis work on a window or balcony in his upper chamber.

 This means it was probably not the flat roof of the house, but it was high enough to cause him serious trouble.

 His sickness was caused by the wounds he had received from the fall. Probably infection.

 We know that this is the son of Jezebel, and he follows his mother in requesting help from her false gods which of course could not help him.

 There was a noted chamber for Baal-zebub, the Lord of the Flies, at Ekron.

 In the New Testament the Lord Jesus Christ was accused of serving Baal-zebub by the Pharisees.

 Mat 12:24  But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils. 

Mat 12:25  And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand: 

Mat 12:26  And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand? 

Mat 12:27  And if I by Beelzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast them out? therefore they shall be your judges. 

Mat 12:28  But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you. 

 Who in the world would go to the Prince of Dung, or the Lord of the Flies to seek medical help?

 This is why Jehovah said they became fools for turning away from the true God.

 This still applies today!

 We know that Elisha was often found on Mount Carmel where there was most likely a school of the prophets.

 It seems that Elijah may have also resided at this location.

 The city of Samaria had been built and made the royal residence of the King of Israel.

 We will even see that Samaria may be substituted and used as Israel for the kingdom of the ten tribes of Israel.

 Elijah met these messengers from King Ahaziah, and he asked them "Is it because there is no God in Israel that you go and enquire of Baalzebub?

 This is a good place for us to learn about our Savior.

 If we consult with someone besides the Lord on important matters such as our health, we will never get the answer we seek.

 We will consult with doctors, but we should not consult with anyone until we have talked it over with the Lord.

 Elijah gave these men the answer that Baalzebub would give, there would be no healing of the King.

 Jehovah would certainly not heal him.

 *****2Ki 1:4  Now therefore thus saith the LORD, Thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And Elijah departed. 

2Ki 1:5  And when the messengers turned back unto him, he said unto them, Why are ye now turned back? 

 No matter who you are, when you are sick or have been in an accident, causing bodily harm, you will want some help.

 Ahaziah was a man whose health was leaving him, and he knew it.

 He did not have a personal relationship with Jehovah, so he sent for help from a false god.

 Who in the world would go to someone called the “lord of the Flies” or the “prince of dung” and expect to be healed?

 Baalzebub seemed to be his only help which meant he had no one to help him.

 Deu_4:28  And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.

 When we ignore Doctor Jesus, we deserve whatever calamity we are suffering because we dishonor Jehovah who only has the power to heal.

 He made us and He knows what makes us tick!

 God will vindicate Himself, in His own time before all unbelievers!

 Notice also that almost every human will seek some higher power when they are too weak to help themselves.

 Even atheism is a religion whether they agree or not. Even they believe in something!

 Like almost everyone on a sickbed, this king wanted to know how this thing would turn out. I know I did, and I know where I am going when I die.

 Jehovah is so much more than some fortune teller!

 Ahaziah may not have ever met Elijah, but he had heard of him through his father, and he knew that the things he said would come to be true.

 *****2Ki 1:6  And they said unto him, There came a man up to meet us, and said unto us, Go, turn again unto the king that sent you, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that thou sendest to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? therefore thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. 

2Ki 1:7  And he said unto them, What manner of man was he which came up to meet you, and told you these words? 

2Ki 1:8  And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite. 

 It seemed to Ahaziah that the only way to stop the truth of Elijah was to kill him.

 It should be clear to us that anyone who rejects the LORD and turns to a false god is foolish.

 This is the biggest mistake that any person can make. All the world knows of the GRACE of the LORD even though they may not believe Him.

 All the leaders of false religion know they serve false gods all tied to Satan, the Devil.

 Those false gods have no life, no consciousness or power to help anyone so they are trusting fate.

 Jehovah has a love that no one understands for all the people on this earth, but He also has His requirements.

 Joh 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

Joh 3:17  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 

Joh 3:18  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 

 God loves us all enough that He would never leave us in the dark, grasping and groping around to find our way in the dark.

 Jehovah tells us only the truth in a world that is full of lies.

 As time goes by, we see more and more of the truth of God come out into the open.

 He is the only God who can help us and meet our needs!

 In fact, Jehovah promises to meet all our needs!

 King Ahaziah had been duped by his mother and his father was a weak man who was controlled by Jezebel.

 Pro 1:24  Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; 

Pro 1:25  But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: 

Pro 1:26  I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; 

Pro 1:27  When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. 

Pro 1:28  Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: 

Pro 1:29  For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD:

 Where Jezebel, his mother had failed Ahaziah hoped to succeed. He sent a captain of his army with fifty soldiers to hunt down Elijah.

 *****2Ki 1:9  Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him: and, behold, he sat on the top of an hill. And he spake unto him, Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come down. 

2Ki 1:10  And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. 

 We should know that when Jehovah tells us something then we can rest that it is fact and unchangeable.

 If Ahaziah had repented, then Jehovah may have helped him, but to react with more stubbornness could not help him at all.

 Fifty soldiers seemed like an awful lot of men just to kill one man, but Jehovah would not have allowed a thousand soldiers to take Elijah on this day.

 It did not take long to find Elijah because he was not hiding.

 He may have hidden from Jezebel, but his confidence had been restored.

 We are only humans so, we can go through periods of weakness, but our strength is in the Lord!

 No one was going to force this man of God to be arrested unless he chose to do so.

 Fire came down from Heaven and destroyed this group of men.

 The king would try this again.

 *****2Ki 1:10  And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. 

2Ki 1:11  Again also he sent unto him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he answered and said unto him, O man of God, thus hath the king said, Come down quickly. 

2Ki 1:12  And Elijah answered and said unto them, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And the fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. 

 It should be very clear God allows us to come boldly to the Throne of Grace, but we had better not make demands when we get there.

 It should have been very clear to King Ahaziah that Jehovah was not going to help him. He had been offered Ahaziah a path to repentance and he rejected it,

 We should remember what God had said before He sent a worldwide flood.

 Gen_6:3  And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man

 We may not know how many times we can reject the Holy Spirit, but the Holy Spirit knows when He is wasting His time on us.

 Today we must understand that God's help will come from the places where He says we can find it!

 Joh 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. 

Joh 14:7  If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. 

 Act 4:12  Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. 

 When God has spoken, He cannot then change His Word unless the sinner changes his ways!

 The only strength we have to change Heaven lies in our direct contact with Heaven through our prayers.

 This will not work if we have sin in our lives.

 Psa 66:18  If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

 Another thing we must consider is that when God has told us to do one thing then we have no obligation to give in to the world.

 Elijah knew he did not have to come down off that mountain under the threat of some king.

 God will not do for one what He will not He will not do for another, and He will protect us in the same way as He did Elijah under the right circumstances.

 Elijah was a powerful prophet who had the ear of God!

 2Ti 4:18  And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

 Elijah called down fire from Heaven and fifty more soldiers and their captain perished.

 There is a proper way to approach the man of God!

 *****2Ki 1:13  And he sent again a captain of the third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him, O man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight. 

2Ki 1:14  Behold, there came fire down from heaven, and burnt up the two captains of the former fifties with their fifties: therefore let my life now be precious in thy sight. 

 Does God care about life?

 Isa 66:2  For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word. 

 We can be sure that Jehovah holds our life in His hands!

 We already know that God loves all His creations, especially those made in His image, but God still insists that we believe what He has to say.

 Luk 13:1  There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 

Luk 13:2  And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? 

Luk 13:3  I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. 

Luk 13:4  Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? 

Luk 13:5  I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

 We seem to dwell upon all those who died in the Old Testament when we should concentrate on those who were spared.

 God loved us enough to send His only begotten Son to die in our place just so we can live with Him throughout eternity. How can the world say God has no love for life?

 The blood of Jesus was the full price for our salvation!

 Psa 49:8  (For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:)

 Heb 9:12  Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. 

 There should be no doubt in our minds that God will receive each of us if we just believe what He says!

 There should also be no doubt that God will reject us if we refuse to be like Jesus Christ in valuing the lives of our brothers and sisters in Christ.

 Jesus came to save life and not to destroy life! Life is precious to our Heavenly Father!

 Now we may not know what Elijah would have said but we do know what this angel from Heaven said.

 *****2Ki 1:15  And the angel of the LORD said unto Elijah, Go down with him: be not afraid of him. And he arose, and went down with him unto the king. 

 What is one of the jobs of angels? To comfort and assure God's people.

 Act 27:23  For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve, 

Act 27:24  Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee. 

Act 27:25  Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me. 

 Angels will also watch over our children.

 Mat 18:10  Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.

When we are in the will of God, He will protect us even from corrupt governments.

It works best for us when we go boldly to the Lord at any sign of trouble.

We can ask great things of God if we do it properly.

God loves us so whatever happens to us is the concern of our Heavenly Father!

No matter the trial or the temptation, the hardship or the misfortune He will not allow us to go through these things alone.

Elijah did not need to fear this armed guard or King Ahaziah.

What was God's message to this king?

*****2Ki 1:16  And he said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron, is it not because there is no God in Israel to enquire of his word? therefore thou shalt not come down off that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.

There is only one escape from the "judgment" of God, and it is through the blood of Jesus Christ!

Sin causes death!

The things we get the most from the Old Testament are God's holiness, God's justice, God's righteousness, and God's severity against sin stands out.

Elijah was God's messenger to King Ahaziah, and he had no malice against this king, he simply gave him God's message and the reason why.

We can be sure that the Gospel of Jesus Christ will never change just because people do not want to hear it!

Psa 1:5  Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. 

Psa 1:6  For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish. 

King Ahaziah died just as the Lord had said. He never came off his sickbed.

Amen

Contrasting Worship

 A Contrast of Worship

 Book of 1 Kings Chapters 12, 14, 15

 What is worship? Worship is homage rendered to Jehovah which is idolatry to render to any created being.

 Exo 34:14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:

 Isa 2:8 Their land also is full of idols; “they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made”:

 It is sin to worship any created being!

 It is sin to worship an angel, who is also created beings!

 We are to worship only the Living God!

 Jer_10:10 But the LORD is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation.

 We know that Israel was now a divided nation. Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, was king of Judah, which included the tribe of Benjamin.

 Jeroboam was now the King Israel which included only the ten tribes now called Ephraim.

 From this point forward the Books of 1 and 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles will record the histories of the different kings of the divided nation of Israel.

 What is idolatry?

 Idolatry is image worship or divine honor paid to a created object, including mankind and angels.

 Rom 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

Rom 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

Rom 1:23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

Rom 1:24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:

Rom 1:25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

 How can we best describe those who are lost, keeping in mind that we were once lost?

 Rom 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

Rom 1:29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

Rom 1:30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

Rom 1:31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

Rom 1:32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

 The forms of idolatry are,

(1.) Fetishism, or the worship of trees, rivers, hills, stones, etc.(created objects on earth)

(2.) Nature worship, the worship of the sun, moon, and stars, as the supposed powers of nature.(created objects in the heavens)

(3.) Hero worship, the worship of deceased ancestors, or heroes.(all created objects)

 Idolatry in Christian doctrine is anything that interferes between the soul and our Creator is idolatrous and is to be shunned!

 1Jn 5:19 And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.

1Jn 5:20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.

1Jn 5:21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.

 Jeroboam turned the northern tribes of Israel to idolatry.

 Idolatry is the religion of Satan! Remember Lucifer was just an angel created by Jehovah.

 *****1Ki 12:26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:

1Ki 12:27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.

1Ki 12:28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

 Jeroboam was face to face with the greatest opportunity of his life.

 Should he have determined to serve the Lord he might have easily been the mightiest monarch in the history of Israel.

 God would have certainly been with him.

 But if he disregarded the Word of God his kingdom would have come to nothing which it did.

 It was a Prophet of God Ahijah that had told him of these things.

 The only safe path of any ruler is the right path!

 We could ask ourselves does God truly have any rulers on His side?

 We know that the heart is the center of mankind's personal activities.

 Gen 6:5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

 The world created by God before the flood was destroyed because of idolatry which led to wickedness!

 Gen 8:21 And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; "for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth"; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.

 We get a firsthand look at how false religions get started. They are conceived in the mind of some man or some woman!

 Jehovah had already told Jeroboam how to get His blessings.

 Jehovah has told us all how to get His blessings!

 1Ki 11:38 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.

 Jeroboam made Shechem his capital city and then Jeroboam does something very foolish.

 The apostasy of Jeroboam was willful, it was designed, and it was done deliberately!

 He consulted with himself instead of consulting with Jehovah who had made him King of Israel.

 The Lord Jesus Christ makes this thing simple to understand.

 Luk 6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.

 Our hearts must be fixed upon the Lord!

 Psa 112:7 He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD.

 The fact of the divided kingdom did not mean that the Northern Tribes were exempt from their covenant obligations to Jehovah!

 They were still to observe the Books of Moses as much as the Southern Tribes.

 All the tribes of Israel had the same Book of Moses!

 These things caused stress upon Jeroboam, and he even became afraid for his life.

 Jeroboam forgot the promises of God!

 We tend to look at the world and forget the promises of God when we know that God has proven to us that He will never break a promise.

 We do not need advice on how to do evil, we are born that way!

 Jeroboam wanted advice on how to do a bad thing in the best way. He did not consult with God and God would not have answered such a request!

 So many churchgoers today go to a place of worship that is convenient rather than seek a "Bible Believing" House of worship.

 It is a fact that we will take the easy way out when it is available!

 Just as a certain political party did in the days of Covid 19 when it made it a law to abandon the Church for fear of catching the disease forgetting the power of God.

 Jeroboam shaped a new religion for his own purpose.

 This is the way of radical Islam and other such religions. They rewrite their literature to adapt to changes they see in the world.

 The Holy Scriptures never have to change because they were written by Jehovah and are perfect in any age!

 Jeroboam even framed his words by the Word of God during the Exodus.

 Exo 32:4 And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

Exo 32:5 And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to the LORD.

Exo 32:6 And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.

 Jeroboam proposed a perversion of the proper worship of Jehovah God.

 “Calf is not a good translation of the Hebrew egel. A young bull in his first strength is meant: for instance, the word can describe a three-year-old animal.

 Gen 15:9 And he said unto him, Take me an heifer “of three years old”, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon.

 A three-year-old bull would be a bull closer to his prime than a calf.

 Jeroboam placed these idols of Baal in two separate locations.

 *****1Ki 12:29 And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan.

1Ki 12:30 And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.

 The name Bethel means "house of God" and this city was ten miles from Jerusalem.

 This is the same place where Jacob had his vision of the angels of God ascending and descending on a ladder whose top reached into Heaven.

 Gen 28:12 And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.

Gen 28:13 And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;

Gen 28:14 And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.

 Gen 28:20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,

Gen 28:21 So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God:

 Dan, which means (a judge) on the other hand is located at the foot of Mount Hermon.

 This is the same place where the Danites stole the shrine of Micah and set up false worship.

 Jdg 18:29 And they called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born unto Israel: howbeit the name of the city was Laish at the first.

Jdg 18:30 And the children of Dan set up the graven image: and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land.

Jdg 18:31 And they set them up Micah's graven image, which he made, all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh.

 Jeroboam took advantage of this situation as he felt they would have no problem accepting his idols of Baal.

 Jeroboam then installed false priests and false worship.

 *****1Ki 12:31 And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.

1Ki 12:32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made.

1Ki 12:33 So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.

 We should be very clear. Once we are aware of our Creator, we then must worship Him!

 This is why the Bible begins with the Book of Genesis.

 This is why the world clings to the lies of evolution.

 Evolution has proven to be wrong so many times it is pathetic that the world clings to it because they have no other theory except now where they use the word aliens so often.

 We have only one duty as created beings!

 Ecc_12:13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

 Jeroboam decided that his idols would also need temples as a place to worship and priests.

 He was not about to use priests from the tribe of Levi because they might teach the truth of God.

 Deu_10:8 At that time the LORD separated the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to minister unto him, and to bless in his name, unto this day.

 Jeroboam chose priests from every tribe but the Levites, going against the Word of God in any way that he could think of.

 This is the way of almost all false man-made religions. They always will change the rules if people start leaving for the truth.

 There are a few false religions that have some truth in them, but Christianity is all or nothing and based upon the truth of Jesus Christ and the true Word of God.

 Jeroboam chose the eighth month and the fifteenth day to be as close to The Feast of the Tabernacles as he thought would work.

 The Feast of the Tabernacles was on the fifteenth day of the seventh month.

 Jeroboam did not consult with anyone else to create this false religion!

 The people already understood that Jeroboam was chosen by God to lead this new nation, and Jeroboam kept it that way.

 The Prophet Amos had confronted one of Jeroboam's false priests with the truth:

 Amo 7:10 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words.

Amo 7:11 For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land.

Amo 7:12 Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:

Amo 7:13 But prophesy not again any more at Bethel: for it is the king's chapel, and it is the king's court.

Amo 7:14 Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:

Amo 7:15 And the LORD took me as I followed the flock, and the LORD said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.

 It may have been the king's chapel and the king's court but he was the wrong king.

 Our Lord Jesus had some things to say about man-made religion:

 Mat 15:7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,

Mat 15:8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

Mat 15:9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

 The Holy Spirit says: Heb 3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

 Those who serve false religion have to understand the judgment of God will come upon them.

 *****1Ki 14:15 For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger.

1Ki 14:16 And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin.

 Jehovah had placed Jeroboam on the throne of Ephraim, but it was Jeroboam who had turned against Him.

 Jeroboam could have been a mighty king of Israel, but he rebelled against the truth of God.

 Jeroboam is still suffering the judgment of God today and he will throughout eternity!

 Now comes judgment upon the people who knew better.

 Moses had warned these people:

 Deu 4:27 And the LORD shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the LORD shall lead you.

Deu 4:28 And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.

Deu 4:29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.

 Now judgment would come to Israel, and they would be scattered on the other side of the Euphrates River.

 Politics had caused the people of God to sin!

 During Covid 19 many of God's people were directed to sin by our government and many of those who left the Church have never returned.

 The Holy Spirit has also warned the Church of the coming judgment of God:

 Rom 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

Rom 1:19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.

Rom 1:20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

Rom 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

 There will be no more warnings and judgment could come at any time because the "Rapture of the Church is the next thing on God's timetable.

 Once the Church is removed this world will rely on wickedness and idolatry just as those before the flood.

 King Rehoboam and his son had also turned against Jehovah and God began his judgment upon Judah beginning with the King of Egypt.

 1Ki 14:23 For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree.

1Ki 14:24 And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel.

1Ki 14:25 And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem:

 No doubt that Jeroboam had stirred up this king against Judah, and Shishak broke his peace agreement with King Solomon.

 1Ki 14:26 And he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.

 We know that King David had placed all his treasures in the Temple and so had many others.

 We know that those golden shields would be valued at over thirty-three million dollars today.

 There is a record of these events in Egypt.

 With Judah humbled at the hand of this Egyptian King, Jeroboam had free reign to attack Judah at any time and he did so.

 It was in the time of King Asa that change came to Judah.

 *****1Ki 15:9 And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel reigned Asa over Judah.

1Ki 15:10 And forty and one years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.

1Ki 15:11 And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did David his father.

1Ki 15:12 And he took away the sodomites out of the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers had made.

1Ki 15:13 And also Maachah his mother, even her he removed from being queen, because she had made an idol in a grove; and Asa destroyed her idol, and burnt it by the brook Kidron.

 Finally, a king who was faithful to the Lord.

 We should notice that Jehovah is still keeping his promises to King David and He will continue because the prophecy of Kings of Judah will last until King Jesus sits upon the throne of David.

 King Asa reigned for forty-one years, and we can see that he had not been influenced by his grandmother Maacah's false worship.

 This Maacah was the daughter of Tamar the daughter of Absolom.

 Asa removed his father's idols.

Asa removed his wicked mother as Queen and her idols burning them in the Brook Kidron.

Asa removed the Sodomites from the land of Judah.

Asa did not remove all the high places of worship, and we do not have an explanation, but we can imagine politics were still involved.

 Asa gave his treasures to the House of the Lord.

 Amen

Pride and Arrogance

 Bad Counsel Caused Division

 Book of 1 Kings Chapter 12

 We have a new president, and we hope those he chooses as councilors will help lead him to make our nation great again.

 The best advice that any should give him is to return our nation to the Lord our God.

 We can be assured that he was chosen to lead the United States of America by God Himself and God has His reasons, and it is His will.

 Our lesson today covers one of the most important times in the history of Israel.

 The division of the tribes of Israel caused many bad feelings that have not been overcome even in our day.

 These were also important times for the Church because as Christians we need to understand the history of Israel to understand the prophets and prophecy.

 Israel will divide into a Northern Kingdom and a Southern Kingdom.

 We will also see that God loves the Gentiles who the people of Israel considered to be heathen.

 These things were not done in secret. God had warned Solomon just as He warns us all today.

 Now, God does not cause these things to happen, He allows them to happen.

 God has given us free will to choose between right and wrong and He guides us to show us the right way.

 God cannot be blamed for the wrong that is done in our world because He will not force us to do right nor will He force us to do wrong. He just tells us the truth!

 As King Solomon died at the young age of around sixty the turmoil began with his son Rehoboam.

 *****1Ki 12:1  And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. 

 We know that King David had ruled as a conqueror.

 King Solomon ruled as a man of peace but high taxation.

 The people of Israel had no benefits from the rule of King Solomon except they lived in peace.

 After King Solomon, the people wanted to modify the character of the next government.

 Arrogance is a terrible evil. Arrogance puts people down and then pushes them away, treating them as inferior.

Here in America, we understand this very well.

 We have seen this in our last few Democratic governments so we can relate to the people of Israel during the time of King Solomon.

 This arrogance was passed down to Solomon's son Rehoboam.

 Rehoboam possessed none of the traits of his father other than arrogance.

 Rehoboam possessed none of the traits of his grandfather David.

 Rehoboam was recognized as heir to the throne of his father.

 The coronation of Rehoboam was to take place at Shechem.

 It was at Shechem that Abraham built his first altar in the Promised Land and received the promise of Jehovah.

 It was at Shechem where Jacob bought a parcel of land from the children Hamor and settled with his household and where he buried the idols of his wives under a tree named "the oak of the sorcerer".

 It was at Shechem where Jacob dug a well where the Lord Jesus would meet a Samaritan woman.

 It was at Shechem where Joshua gave his parting address and made a covenant with the people.

 Jos 24:15  And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. 

 Shechem was a special place of the promises of God!

 It will be at Shechem where Rehoboam will show his arrogance and cause Israel to become a divided nation.

 It was at Shechem where Jeroboam took up his residence for a while.

 It is Shechem that is said to be the most beautiful place in all of Palestine.

 *****1Ki 12:2  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;) 

1Ki 12:3  That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, 

1Ki 12:4  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. 

 Jeroboam, who King Solomon had run out of town was now back and was taking the lead voice of the opposition to the kingdom under Solomon.

 1Ki 11:40  Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. And Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.

 We could ask ourselves why.

 1Ki 11:28  And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph. 

1Ki 11:29  And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field: 

1Ki 11:30  And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: 

1Ki 11:31  And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee: 

1Ki 11:32  (But he shall have one tribe for my servant David's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:) 

1Ki 11:33  Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father.

 The name Joseph denotes the two tribes Ephraim and Manasseh and Ephraim denotes the Kingdom of Israel and then the whole covenant people of Israel.

 From Ezekiel, we see this thing:

 Eze 37:16  Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions: 

Eze 37:17  And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand. 

Eze 37:18  And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these? 

Eze 37:19  Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand.

This is taking place today.

 We can now see the other side of the rule of King Solomon.

 There were heavy taxes under Solomon.

Tyrants oppressed their subjects with grievous impositions.

 This tax and impositions were not only for the people which would have been ok, but for the expenses of Solomon's court.

 This tax supported all the wives and concubines of King Solomon and any whim he took part in which did not set well with the people.

 This tax-supported all the festivities of Solomon's lavish lifestyle.

 We should keep in mind that King Solomon was the richest person to have ever lived, but he kept those riches to himself when he could have paid all the taxes and still been rich.

 When Solomon forsakes the Lord and worshipped idols then the people surely had enough of him and were glad to see him go.

 To the average Israelite, being under the burden of such high taxes was like a yoke laid upon beasts of burden and seemed more like servant work rather than living in peace.

 As long as King Solomon walked with the Lord, he was important as the Holy Spirit guided this author, but as soon as he forsake the Lord God Jehovah he became insignificant, not just to the people but also to Jehovah.

 In a sense Solomon destroyed himself and it was not helping his son Rehoboam.

 Millo was a new fortification that protected Jerusalem from an attack from the north. It is also called the Citadel.

 Solomon also repaired any weak places in the walls of Jerusalem.

 Solomon began to fear the loss of his kingdom which was impossible because of God's promise to King David.

 All King Solomon had to do was to remain faithful to Jehovah.

 Solomon took his eyes off the Lord and fell into the trap of lust.

 1Jn_2:16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

 Let us see this history of Israel develop.

 *****1Ki 12:5  And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed. 

1Ki 12:6  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? 

1Ki 12:7  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.

 Now the Son of Solomon, Rehoboam was facing some angry people, especially those of Ephraim who were being led by an angry Jeroboam.

 We already know that Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor.

 1Ki 11:28  And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph. 

 Solomon had determined to kill Jeroboam for what God's prophet had said to him.

 We all know that we cannot change what God has said will take place!

 Rehoboam was at least wise enough to seek counsel before responding to the people of Ephraim.

 Shechem was a twelve hour walk from Jerusalem, and it would take some time for the councilors of Rehoboam to reach Shechem and to meet with Rehoboam.

 Rehoboam had sent for the councilors of his father Solomon and his friends who he had been raised with.

 These were a bunch of rich spoiled kids who had no worries growing up and knew nothing of ruling government.

 Solomon had caused every Israelite to serve one month in government service and then two months at home until all his building project had been completed and many more of them were drafted into the military, but not these young men who had rich parents.

 Solomon required heavy taxes upon the people and the rich just got richer and the poor got poorer, and the poor were seeking some much-needed relief.

 All the building projects were complete and such taxes were certainly no longer needed.

 Rehoboam had inherited the riches of his father, and he certainly did not need more riches.

 For years the people had been complaining about the harshness of King Solomon, but nothing changed.

 Rehoboam first consulted with the elders who had counselled his father, Solomon.

 There was wisdom in the council of the elders, good for every government.

 A government that serves the people will be a lasting government.

 A government that listens to its people and takes action to help them will be a lasting government.

 The government that does these things will find people who will willingly serve the government.

 This is the principle behind the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

 The Lord Jesus came to serve!

 Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 

Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

 Jesus taught us that whoever would be great must begin by being a servant.

 The proud and lofty in this world are served enough without taking the needs of the poor.

 Rehoboam was already forty-one years of age, he should have known better, but his mother was a pagan, and he had witnessed his father worship a pagan god.

 1Ki 14:21  And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD did choose out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. And his mother's name was Naamah an Ammonitess. 

 Rehoboam next turned to his friends who were not so young being his age but certainly younger than those elders.

 Rehoboam forsook the council of the elders and turned to his rich friends.

 *****1Ki 12:8  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: 

1Ki 12:9  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? 

1Ki 12:10  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. 

1Ki 12:11  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. 

 Now we should not think of these young men as in their twenties or their thirties.

 Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he succeeded his father on the throne, and we should expect those men that he grew up with to be about his age but they were still spoiled rich kids.

 Rehoboam was even more arrogant and prideful than his father Solomon.

 He would tax these tribes even more than his father and increase their workload.

 He even mentioned scourging.

 If we do nothing else in our lifetime we need to guard against arrogance and pride!

 These things do not suit the Christian who is following in the ways of our Lord Jesus Christ who gave us the example of humility.

 These younger men had grown up living in luxury and wealth and they knew nothing of an honest day’s work.

 They knew nothing of responsibility!

 These were pampered men with childish ways.

 They had no respect for the people of Israel!

 Sounds a whole lot like the America we have been living in where our government had no respect for the taxpayer, and we hope these things change with our new government.

 We as the children of God are not better than anyone else in this world though we may be better off because our names are written down in the Lamb's Book of Life.

 None of us are to be slaves to arrogant governments or anyone else!

 In many places, God speaks against these things.

 Psa_10:2  The wicked in his pride doth persecute the poor: let them be taken in the devices that they have imagined.

Psa_10:4  The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts.

 Pro_8:13  The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.

 Pro_16:18  Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.

 Rehoboam claimed that his power would far exceed that of his Father King Solomon.

 Pro 10:14  Wise men lay up knowledge: but the mouth of the foolish is near destruction. 

Pro 10:15  The rich man's wealth is his strong city: the destruction of the poor is their poverty.

 What happens eventually in such cases? People rebel.

 Jeroboam knew exactly how the people of Israel had suffered under King Solomon, and he now had the respect of ten of the tribes of Israel.

 Jeroboam now clearly understood what the Prophet Ahijah had told him.

 1Ki 11:29  And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field:

1Ki 11:30  And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: 

1Ki 11:31  And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee:

 God keeps His reason for doing this very simple.

 1Ki 11:33  Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father. 

 We talk many times about God keeping His promises and we can be sure He will also keep those promises of forsaking Him.

 In the end, Jeroboam was not so much different from Rehoboam, but he would still rule Ephraim which included ten of the tribes of Israel for twenty-two years.

 *****1Ki 12:16  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 departed unto their tents. 

1Ki 12:17  But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. 

 The United Kingdom of Israel was dissolved before Rehoboam was crowned as King of Judah.

 Rehoboam was a weak and wicked man!

 There is an old saying that says "he who would rule others must first rule himself".

 We should understand by now that God gives opportunities to individuals and nations even though they will not improve them.

 It was the divine plan of God to give Jeroboam control of the ten tribes of Israel even though God knew that Jeroboam would also forsake Him.

 We may not understand this, but Jehovah has a much greater plan in motion.

 Now this does not mean that Jehovah caused Jeroboam to act the way he did because he was allowed to do good and he failed to do so as he too became arrogant and prideful.

 We must also understand that Jehovah is not sitting in Heaven waiting to see what rulers will do and he is not ever caught off guard.

 God gives everyone a chance to do good when opportunities are given to them.

 It is that sinful nature that gets us in so much trouble.

 Rehoboam would rule Judah and Benjamin.

 Rehoboam tried one more thing to insert his authority over those who rebelled.

 *****1Ki 12:18  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. 

 Adoram (or Adoniram) was the man over the taxes or tribute for King Solomon and now for King Rehoboam to either collect the taxes or make a compromise with the tribes of the north, but he was stoned to death and Rehoboam left for the safety of Jerusalem.

 Adoram was the wrong man to send for he was famous for his harsh policies of forced labor.

 From this point in the history of Israel, the name Israel referred to the ten Northern Tribes and the name Judah referred to the Southern Tribes of Judah and Benjamin.

 *****1Ki 12:19  So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day. 

1Ki 12:20  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. 

 Jeroboam becomes the king of the Northern Tribes of Israel.

 We should understand that Ephraim had always felt the most important since the time of Joseph, but Jehovah does not see it that way and God made sure promises to the House of David still recognized as Israel's greatest king.

 Again, we must understand that Jehovah has guided the nation of Israel with a special purpose, but He guides the history of all the world in the same way.

God gave mankind free will to follow Him or not to follow Him.

We must also understand that nothing in this universe is outside the scope of Jehovah's sovereign rule!

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: 

Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. 

The will of God is made known in real-time.

It is each believer in the Lord Jesus Christ that is chosen by Jehovah and He made this decision before He created any part of this world.

Eph 1:3  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: 

Eph 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: 

Eph 1:5  Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 

Eph 1:6  To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. 

There is no one alive today, no one who lived in the past or who will live in the future that Jehovah will not offer an opportunity to be adopted into the family of God, and it all centers around the Lord Jesus Christ.

2Ti 1:9  Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, 

2Ti 1:10  But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:

Our purpose is not here on this earth even though we will be given opportunities while we are alive.

Even the death of the Lord Jesus Christ was determined before the foundation of the world was laid.

1Pe 1:20  Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, 

1Pe 1:21  Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

Our God has this amazing plan for every believer, and we could look at our world as the place God has chosen to separate the believer from those who reject Him.

Rom 11:32  For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all. 

Rom 11:33  O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! 

Rom 11:34  For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? 

Rom 11:35  Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? 

Rom 11:36  For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen. 

We simply cannot comprehend the wisdom and the knowledge of our Divine Savior.

He does not have to consult with anyone, and no one has advised Him.

It is because God knows all things before, they happen, and He controls and guides all events for His Own Glory and For Our own Good.

Psa 104:24  O LORD, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches. 

Pro 3:19  The LORD by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens. 

God does not ever have to adjust His plan according to the things that happen here on earth, He simply knows all things!

Amen

From Fame to Shame

 Solomon's Fame Was Reduced to Shame

 Book 1 Kings 10:1-7, 24-27, 11: 4-13

 

What is fame? Fame is a favorable report of good or great actions that exalt character.

News of the knowledge of Solomon and his wisdom was spreading around the known world of that day.

 What is shame? Those things that bring reproach and degrade a person in the estimation of others. Dishonor, disgrace.

 Solomon was living on the achievements and the reputation of his father who caused security and peace to come to Israel.

 Under Solomon, Israel became a great power ranking almost as great as Egypt which is why Egypt made a bond with Solomon and Pharoh's daughter became the wife of Solomon.

 Israel ranked even as great as Assyria at that time.

 After Solomon Israel has never reached those same boundaries.

 These things were credited to Solomon's wisdom.

 Solomon turned Israel from a military people to a people of commerce and slaves to taxation.

 In reality, Solomon turned a people made free by King David into slaves and concentrated the wealth of the whole nation in the capital Jerusalem and most of Israel suffered.

 As God would say, Israel did not reap the fruits of its government.

 The downfall of Solomon began when he listened to his pagan wives and his wisdom left him.

 Solomon was by nature a man of peace, yet he maintained a large military scattered in various places to help bring peace.

 No nation had defeated his father David, but Solomon had no desire to extend the boundaries of Isreal, and it was possible for him to do so.

 Solomon's chief ally was Hiram, the king of Tyre which is Phoenicia.

 The Temple of Solomon was built in seven years, but Solomon spent thirteen years building his own palace which was called the House of the Forest of Lebanon.

 It is these things that made Solomon famous throughout the world.

 Solomon had many foreign visitors seeking his wisdom.

 One of those was the Queen of Sheba.

 *****1Ki 10:1  And when the queen of Sheba, heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions. 

 Sheba was a land in Arabia, which is modern Yemen today, rather than Ethiopia.

 Yemen was the chief spice country in that area at that time.

 Sheba was about fifteen hundred miles from Jerusalem so this Queen had traveled a great distance requiring a lot of time.

 The Temple had been built in the name of the Lord God of Israel.

 We can be sure when questions arose about the temple there would be questions about the God of that Temple.

 No one else has such a God who is alive!

 Much of the world believed that the wisdom of Solomon had come from his God, and they would be correct.

 This Queen of Sheba did not make this connection, she came to prove him with hard questions.

 Some say these were questions she could not trust anyone else to answer.

 Many of the questions could have been hard riddles as some believe.

 It does not seem to me that this Queen showed much interest in Jehovah God to her downfall.

 Mat 12:42  The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.

 Could Solomon have answered, what is the purpose of life? We have all asked this question in our lifetime.

 Could he have said, "Where do we truly come from?”

 There are billions of people out there today who would like to know, "what is the purpose of it all"?

The truth is in Jehovah God!

 *****1Ki 10:2  And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart. 

 We can believe that this Queen was also seeking a trade agreement.

 She brought a large quantity of spices, gold, and precious jewels.

 We can be sure that she traveled with military protection, but it is not mentioned, and they would have been stopped and not allowed to enter Jerusalem maybe even the border of Israel.

 To travel for fifteen hundred miles meant she was serious about meeting King Solomon.

 It seems that this Queen was not the wife of a King but the actual ruler of these people.

 She was serious about seeking the answers to great questions of life so she could be a better ruler.

 King Solomon answered all her questions!

 *****1Ki 10:3  And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not any thing hid from the king, which he told her not. 

1Ki 10:4  And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the house that he had built, 

1Ki 10:5  And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her. 

 Solomon's kingdom was famous not only for its material prosperity but also for his great wisdom.

 King Solomon got so caught up in his wisdom that today we would use the phrase, "he got the big head" and we will soon see how these things affected him.

 King Solomon had spent seven years building the Temple, but he spent thirteen years building his own mansion. After this, he rebuilt many cities most of which belonged to Israel, but he rebuilt some cities that did not belong to Israel.

 This Queen of Sheba was more impressed with Solomon's house than she was with the Temple of God.

 She was another pagan who had her own false gods.

 Solomon answered all of her questions, and this Queen was overwhelmed with the wisdom of Solomon. I do not read anywhere where Solomon gave the credit for his wisdom to His God and our God Jehovah.

 No doubt this Queen had all types of questions with some riddles but also diplomatic and ethical questions.

 This truth would make Solomon a trustworthy business partner and a possible ally, though her nation was fifteen hundred miles away from Israel.

 Today Yemen can fire rockets and drones fifteen hundred miles into Israel and are mortal enemies of Israel.

 Of course, Israel can do the same and are still under the power of God.

 These servants were the officers and distinguished people who were privileged to sit at the king’s table and were arranged according to rank and were in large numbers at royal banquets.

 These ministers were those who stood to serve the guests doubt they were dressed in a way to distinguish them from the guests but were fit to serve royalty.

 2Ch 9:4  And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel; his cupbearers also, and their apparel; and his ascent by which he went up into the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her. 

 The wisdom and prosperity of King Solomon and his achievements had reached the uttermost parts of the world, and this Queen admitted that these reports had been true.

 It does not matter so much what this Queen thought of these things, it matters more of what God thought of these things.

 Luk 12:27  Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 

Luk 12:28  If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith? 

Luk 12:29  And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. 

Luk 12:30  For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. 

Luk 12:31  But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you. 

 As a pagan Gentile, this Queen could not go into the Temple though she may have seen a secret way that the king could get into the Temple.

 *****1Ki 10:6  And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom. 

1Ki 10:7  Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard. 

 We must understand the mission of Israel in the time of Solomon and now the mission of the Church is to point all nations to God.

Israel has failed so far, will the Church also fail?

 Israel was not to compete with our nations for riches or even military power. Jehovah God is the power of Israel!

 Jehovah is the power of the Church. 

We are not in some competition with religions!

 We have the truth of Christianity!

 The Church is to be a bright and shining light in this world.

 It was the same for Israel in the days of King Solomon.

 The Queen came to Solomon tortured by questions, and it does not seem she got all the answers she needed.

 Certainly, the things she said about Solomon were true.

 He was the wisest man upon the earth but not as wise as Jesus Christ,

 He was the richest man on the earth, but no earthy riches can compare to the Glory of Heaven!

 *****1Ki 10:8  Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom. 

1Ki 10:9  Blessed be the LORD thy God, which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel: because the LORD loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgment and justice. 

1Ki 10:10  And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones: there came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon

 This queen brought the best spices of Yemen, many of them used in perfumes of that day.

She brought a lot of gold and precious stones.

She brought sweet, scented wood.

 This wood Solomon was used in his palace.

 2Ch 9:11  And the king made of the algum trees terraces to the house of the LORD, and to the king's palace, and harps and psalteries for singers: and there were none such seen before in the land of Judah. 

2Ch 9:12  And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which she had brought unto the king. So she turned, and went away to her own land, she and her servants. 

 As the Queen was about to leave she made a great speech to those servants of Solomon.

 She said from what her eyes had seen and now had heard not even half of the truth of King Solomon was told.

 She also took a moment to praise Jehovah that out of His eternal love to His people Israel, he had given them a king to do justice and righteousness.

 Some say this Queen was converted to Judaism, but this is not true.

 Like many who praised the God of Israel, they observed Him as just another god in the world of many gods just as many think today.

 God had His reasons for putting Solomon on the throne of Israel.

 1) It fulfilled a promise to David who was a man after God's own heart.

2) Solomon who was chosen to build the Temple of God.

 After this Solomon transgressed against the Lord.

 God had written the qualifications for the kings of Israel.

 Deu 17:14  When thou art come unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me; 

Deu 17:15  Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy God shall choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother. 

Deu 17:16  But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the LORD hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way. 

Deu 17:17  Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold. 

Deu 17:18  And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites: 

Deu 17:19  And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them: 

Deu 17:20  That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel. 

 King Solomon disobeyed in every area!

 1) He had too much gold.

2) He owned thousands of horses.

3) He gathered hundreds of wives and concubines.

 All the earth sought the wisdom of Solomon.

 *****1Ki 10:24  And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 

1Ki 10:25  And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year. 

1Ki 10:26  And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem. 

1Ki 10:27  And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore trees that are in the vale, for abundance. 

 Solomon was not greater than anyone else and neither was this God's intent.

 Solomon became greater because all the world sought him out for his wisdom.

 They brought him gold that he wasted on shields and other foolish things when he could have helped the cause of God, and he could have removed the strain of taxation upon his own people, but he did not.

 Solomon made two hundred large shields and three hundred shields of gold that made beautiful displays but were useless in battle.

They were too heavy and too soft to make effective shields.

 Each of those shields would be valued at over a quarter million dollars today and the smaller shields at over sixty thousand dollars or about thirty-three million dollars.

 They were eventually taken by a foreign king.

 Solomon made silver to be worthless which did not help the economies of the world of that day.

 In the end, it was women who truly brought King Solomon down to shame.

 *****1Ki 11:1  But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites; 

1Ki 11:2  Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love. 

1Ki 11:3  And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. 

1Ki 11:4  For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.

 Over half of Solomon's reign was over by the time the Temple, his own palace, and other buildings were completed.

 These things took up much of his personal time.

 We could add that during this time Solomon had negotiated peace agreements between Israel and many nations, and those agreements were sealed by the marriage of that ruler's daughter.

 As Solomon began to spend more time with the many wives he had, he was influenced by them.

 One man wrote that the home of Solomon was afflicted with the curse of his polygamy and his kingdom with the curse of his despotism, which means he had absolute power, authority unlimited, and uncontrolled power over the people.

 Most all alliances Israel had with other rulers ended with the death of Solomon even the long relationship of Solomon with Hiram.

 As we looked at last week, no one knew where the Book of Moses(the Pentateuch) was located. Solomon certainly was not obedient to the Word of God concerning the kings of Israel.

 Many believe that the prophet Jeremiah wrote this book of First Kings, and he simply says that Solomon loved many strange women.

 it is these women who caused the decline of King Solomon!

 These things describe a heart that is wandering away from God!

 Solomon had seven hundred women who were considered to be his wives.

Solomon had three hundred women with the title concubines.

 These were the women who were in Solomon's harem while he was King of Israel.

 Son 6:8  There are threescore queens, fourscore concubines, and virgins without number. 

 This verse tells us of those women who were in Solomon's court at one time.

 This would be sixty queens, eighty concubines, and virgins without number.

 King Solomon like his father went against the institution of Jehovah.

What is the marriage institution of Jehovah God?

 Gen 2:21  And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; 

Gen 2:22  And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. 

Gen 2:23  And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. 

Gen 2:24  Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. 

 When God gave Adam his wife. God did not do this by forming Eve out of the dust of the earth just like Adam. Then she would be independent of Adam. 

God formed Eve from Adam. He does not do this out of his head, for she is not his superior. Nor does he make her out of his feet, for she is not his slave. He forms her from his side. 

She is therefore someone of equal value, standing beside him.

 Solomon took wives from many nations, also going against the Word of God about strange wives.

 Deu 7:3  Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son. 

Deu 7:4  For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly.

 Solomon not only took these many women into his house, but he also took their gods.

 We should understand that someone who knows the Word of God and deviates from it often makes it worse than someone who has never known Jehovah.

 When a child of God falls into corruption it is the worst corruption!

 The lesson for us who are up in years is, that we may think the dangers of life no longer threaten us but we are wrong.

 Satan will do his best to ruin our testimony at any age!

 *****1Ki 11:5  For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 

1Ki 11:6  And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father. 

1Ki 11:7  Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. 

1Ki 11:8  And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods. 

 Ashtoreth(Ishtar, Astarte, queen of heaven)) was the Moon goddess of the Zidonians usually associated with Baal(Baalim, Baalism) the Sun god.

Throughout the world, we see temples and pyramids built to honor the Sun god and the Moon god

 Milcom(Molech, Chemosh) is the national god of Ammon, God said he was an abomination!

 It is this god to whom children were sacrificed. This is the god of the abortionists in my opinion.

 Solomon was not seeking God's own heart as did his father David.

 Solomon had temples built for the worship of these false goods and he joined them in their worship of them.

 He did the same for all his strange wives!

 The word strange means all his wives who were not of Israel, we could say wives from foreign nations.

 Certainly, Jehovah was angry with Solomon.

 *****1Ki 11:9  And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, 

1Ki 11:10  And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded. 

1Ki 11:11  Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant. 

 Do you want to make Jehovah angry? Go against His Word.

 Do you want to really get Jehovah riled up? Go against Him after He has warned you!

 This is why we have the Holy Spirit living inside us!

 Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 

Joh 16:14  He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

 What had God told Solomon?

 1Ki 9:3  And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually. 

1Ki 9:4  And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments: 

1Ki 9:5  Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel. 

1Ki 9:6  But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them: 

1Ki 9:7  Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people: 

1Ki 9:8  And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?

 Today we have the Word of if we have a proper translation and we are to do our best to be obedient to it.

 As for King Solomon he met with God face to face and he was told the consequences of failing to acknowledge the Word of God.

 We know that God will do exactly what he says he will do.

 1Ki 11:26  And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, “Solomon's servant”, whose mother's name was Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king. 

1Ki 11:27  And this was the cause that he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breaches of the city of David his father. 

1Ki 11:28  And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph. 

1Ki 11:29  And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field: 

1Ki 11:30  And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: 

1Ki 11:31  And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee: 

1Ki 11:32  (But he shall have one tribe for my servant David's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:) 

1Ki 11:33  Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father.

But God will never break a promise he has made!

 *****1Ki 11:12  Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father's sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. 

1Ki 11:13  Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen. 

1Ki 11:14  And the LORD stirred up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite: he was of the king's seed in Edom. 

Solomon had forfeited the promise made to him from Jehovah.

God would allow the line of David to continue through a son of Solomon because David had chosen Jerusalem and not some other city.

This is a sign of God's "grace"!

2Sa 7:15  But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. 

2Sa 7:16  And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. 

2Sa 7:17  According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David. 

This promise from God will ultimately be fulfilled through the Messiah the Lord Jesus Christ.

You see the Lord Jesus Christ did appear Himself to begin the New Testament and the Law of Grace and through His disciples, this word had spread around the world and only those who accept the Work of Jesus Christ, the "Gospel" will be allowed into God's New Jerusalem and God's New Heaven where King Jesus will rule forever.

Amen

The Temple and the Glory of God

 The Temple the Ark the Glory of God

 Book of 2 Chronicles Chapter 5

After seven long years, the Temple and all its furnishings were completed.

 1Ki 6:38 And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it.

Solomon gathered the entire nation and its leaders and its priests to the dedication of the Temple.

 This gathering was no longer to Gibeon the site of the Tabernacle, but to Jerusalem the place God had chosen Himself.

 Even today the Jews are looking forward to the day they can reestablish their worship of the Lord God Jehovah in a Temple dedicated to Him.

 We certainly need a place to worship to honor God.

 Heb 10:22 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

Heb 10:24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:

Heb 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

 God Himself says it is more important to gather together today than it was back in the day of the dedication of Solomon’s Temple.

 If we do not dedicate our places of worship to be used for the worship of the Lord, then they will be used for anything other than that.

 Dedicate means to set apart for sacred use.

 Sacred means consecrated; dedicated; or devoted to.

 We also need to dedicate ourselves to the Lord for His use!

 Most every nation at this time had a temple dedicated to some false god, and some had many.

 This was the drive that moved King David. He wanted a magnificent temple dedicated to Jehovah the One True God.

 Most people do not realize that God is about worship, and not about buildings!

 Pagans built temples for gods who could not see, who could hear, and who could not speak to them.

 2Co_6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the "temple of the living God"; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

 There is only one "Living God"!

 Jhn_6:69 And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, "the Son of the living God".

 Psa_84:2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the "living God".

 How can anyone serve a dead god or a god that does not exist?

 The Living God is the God we need to have reverent fear of, and even actual fear.

 Heb_10:31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

 2 Chronicles Chapter 5 verse 1

 *****2Ch 5:1 Thus all the work that Solomon made for the house of the LORD was finished: and Solomon brought in all the things that David his father had dedicated; and the silver, and the gold, and all the instruments, put he among the treasures of the house of God.

 The Temple was King Solomon's greatest work.

 It was the Temple of Solomon that made the greatest impression on the known world at that time.

 People would come far and wide to see this Temple of God.

 The importance of the Temple was to ensure a central place of worship and more important a central place to offer sacrifices for sin.

 The object of the Temple was to bring about a unity of faith and national unity among the people of Israel.

 The object of the Temple was to fulfill the commandment of God to Moses.

 Moses said, when you shall obtain possession of the land and have become established, then you shall have one place in which to appear before the Lord.

 Deu_16:16 Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God "in the place which he shall choose"; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty:

 The Temple did provide a fixed habitation for Jehovah.

 The Temple did provide a central place of worship where all the tribes of Israel might assemble at the three annual feasts.

 It is these things that would preserve the unity of Israel.

 According to the Book of Leviticus, there must be:

 1) A place to meet Jehovah on the throne of "Grace".

2) Sacrifices made for sin.

3) Priests as intermediaries between Jehovah and the people.

4) Times in which they could approach Jehovah with daily, weekly, monthly, and annual offerings.

5) A ritual telling how to approach God.

 The Temple was in fact, a type of the most glorious building which is the individual believer!

 1Co_3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

 King David had not only provided the plunder he had taken for his conquest for the building of the Temple, but he also provided his riches to be dedicated to the upkeep of this Temple and to pay the priests.

 David had also dedicated all the musical instruments he had to the Temple. Some he had made himself.

 These instruments are listed in First Chronicles chapter 15.

 1Ch 15:16 And David spake to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brethren to be the singers with instruments of musick, psalteries and harps and cymbals, sounding, by lifting up the voice with joy.

 1Ch 15:24 And Shebaniah, and Jehoshaphat, and Nethaneel, and Amasai, and Zechariah, and Benaiah, and Eliezer, the priests, did blow with the trumpets before the ark of God: and Obededom and Jehiah were doorkeepers for the ark.

 1Ch 15:28 Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the LORD with shouting, and with sound of the cornet, and with trumpets, and with cymbals, making a noise with psalteries and harps.

 So, we know of psalteries, harps, and cymbals, trumpets, and cornets.

 A psaltery is a lyre or another type of harp just as a cornet is another type of trumpet.

 Solomon next brought the Ark of the Covenant into the Temple according to the instructions of God.

 The Ark was placed in the new Holy of Holies, the Most Holy Place in the Temple.

 *****2Ch 5:2 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.

2Ch 5:3 Wherefore all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto the king in the feast which was in the seventh month.

2Ch 5:4 And all the elders of Israel came; and the Levites took up the ark.

2Ch 5:5 And they brought up the ark, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, these did the priests and the Levites bring up.

 Many of these things from the time of Moses and those remade after the destruction of the Tabernacle by the Philistines were no longer usable for the new Temple and were stored at the Temple and preserved as relics.

 Things such as the tent and a great many of the old-time utensils, including the Brazen Serpent.

 The Feast of the Seventh month is the Feast of Tabernacles, sometimes called Booths, and also known as the Feast of the Ingathering.

 It was to last seven days but for the dedication of the Temple, it lasted fourteen days.

 1Ki 8:65 And at that time Solomon held a feast, and all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath unto the river of Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and seven days, even fourteen days.

1Ki 8:66 On the eighth day he sent the people away: and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the LORD had done for David his servant, and for Israel his people.

 This is the feast that commemorates the forty-year wilderness journey.

 It is also called Sukkot.

 It is a celebration of the fall harvest and a time to build booths which are temporary shelters of branches to remember how the Hebrew people lived under God's care during those forty years in the wilderness.

 These things were repeated when the Hebrews returned from Babylon.

 Neh 8:14 And they found written in the law which the LORD had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month:

Neh 8:15 And that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written.

Neh 8:16 So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim.

Neh 8:17 And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths: for since the days of Jeshua (which is Joshua) the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness.

Neh 8:18 Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the manner.

 This celebration is a reminder of God's faithfulness and protection.

 All Jewish males were required to go to Jerusalem to appear before the Lord and their families usually went with them.

 Many Jewish people still celebrate Sukkot today, by building and dwelling in temporary booths for eight days.

 There are four special plants used to cover the booths, and they are the citron, the myrtle, the palm, and the willow.

 Lev 23:39 Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath. 

Lev 23:40 And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days.

 Then, the elders came and took up the Ark out of the Tabernacle of David.

 It was necessary to put a new lid on the Ark. It was about five hundred years old and when opened, nothing remained but the two tablets of stone from the time of Moses.

 It originally contained two tablets that contained the Ten Commandments and Aaron's rod that budded and a pot of manna.

 Blame was put on the Philistines for the missing items.

 So, the steps to the dedication included:

 1) Placing in the treasury all the things dedicated by David. Solomon could have kept these riches of his father, and no one would have known but God, but Solomon honored the wishes of His father David.

 2) Placing all the sacred vessels and furniture in their proper position.

 3) The offering of the many sacrifices.

 4) The priests carrying into the Most Holy Place the Ark of the Covenant.

 5) As the priests came from the Most Holy Place and one hundred and twenty other priests standing east of the Altar blew their trumpets, the Levite choir burst into a song of praise and thanksgiving with cymbals and other musical instruments saying "For He is good; for His mercy endureth forever.

 6) Then the cloud, a symbol of the Divine Presence and the Glory of God filled the house.

 Let's read the Scriptures.

 *****2Ch 5:6 Also king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel that were assembled unto him before the ark, sacrificed sheep and oxen, which could not be told nor numbered for multitude.

2Ch 5:7 And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his place, to the oracle of the house, into the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims:

2Ch 5:8 For the cherubims spread forth their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves thereof above.

2Ch 5:9 And they drew out the staves of the ark, that the ends of the staves were seen from the ark before the oracle; but they were not seen without. And there it is unto this day.

2Ch 5:10 There was nothing in the ark save the two tables which Moses put therein at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of Egypt.

 We now know what happened in the dedication of the Temple so, let's look at some other things.

 Many today are concerned about the location of the Ark of the Covenant today.

 We do not know for sure if the Ark remained at the Temple when Nebuchadnezzar plundered the Temple but what we do know when the vessels were brought back from Babylonian captivity the Ark of the Covenant was not mentioned.

 Ezr 1:9 And this is the number of them: thirty chargers of gold, a thousand chargers of silver, nine and twenty knives,

Ezr 1:10 Thirty basons of gold, silver basons of a second sort four hundred and ten, and other vessels a thousand.

Ezr 1:11 All the vessels of gold and of silver were five thousand and four hundred. All these did Sheshbazzar bring up with them of the captivity that were brought up from Babylon unto Jerusalem.

 The staves of the Ark were at least fifteen feet long, which was about the size of the Most Holy Place.

 The staves were that long to give room for those men who carried the Ark leaving room to stay clear of the Ark.

 The staves were withdrawn as far as they could to the back wall so they would not protrude in sight at the front.

 The Ark had only the tablets of stone written by the finger of God at this time.

 Exo 31:16 Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant.

Exo 31:17 It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.

Exo 31:18 And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God.

 Remember it was Moses who had broken these two tablets.

 Exo 34:1 And the LORD said unto Moses, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first: and I will write upon these tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest.

 Deu_10:2 And I will write on the tables the words that were in the first tables which thou brakest, and thou shalt put them in the ark.

 There was something else that was with or in the Ark.

 Deu_31:26 Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be there for a witness against thee.

 Probably the very same book, which (after having been some way misplaced) was found in the house of the Lord, in the days of Josiah, and publicly read by the king himself, for a witness against a people, who were then almost ripe for ruin.

 On the side or On the inside, Some say there was a little chest fixed to the Ark for such things but it is not mentioned. Some say that this book was just placed inside the Ark. There was nothing but the stone tablets that were contained in the Ark.

 This book was found later.

 2Ch 34:14 And when they brought out the money that was brought into the house of the LORD, Hilkiah the priest found a book of the law of the LORD given by Moses.

2Ch 34:15 And Hilkiah answered and said to Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD. And Hilkiah delivered the book to Shaphan.

2Ch 34:16 And Shaphan carried the book to the king, and brought the king word back again, saying, All that was committed to thy servants, they do it.

 The Shekinah Glory of the Lord

 *****2Ch 5:11 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place: (for all the priests that were present were sanctified, and did not then wait by course:

2Ch 5:12 Also the Levites which were the singers, all of them of Asaph, of Heman, of Jeduthun, with their sons and their brethren, being arrayed in white linen, having cymbals and psalteries and harps, stood at the east end of the altar, and with them an hundred and twenty priests sounding with trumpets:)

2Ch 5:13 It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, "For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever": that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD;

 Once the Ark was in place God gave His stamp of approval!

 So, it had been when Moses finished the Tabernacle, and so it was at Pentecost after the Lord Jesus began His Church, that the Holy Spirit came down in His mighty power.

 God's glory has to be the most wonderful sight we will ever see!

 Notice all the priests were in white linen robes. Does this not make us think about the white robes in Heaven?

 Rev_7:9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

 King Solomon now had all things in place and a platform had been erected about seven feet squared somewhat like a pulpit, so he was lifted up above the people to be seen as well as heard and it seems King Solomon acted as King and High Priest.

 We see some typology here.

 In reality, only King Jesus can be the true King and High priest when He returns to take us home and then sits upon His throne in Jerusalem.

 Immediately after the priests had performed and withdrawn and the doors of the Temple were closed, the cloud of God's Holy Presence and God's Majestic Glory filled the Temple just as He had done when the Tabernacle of Moses was completed.

 King Solomon was stunned:

 1Ki 8:10 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD,

1Ki 8:11 So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD.

1Ki 8:12 Then spake Solomon, The LORD said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.

 Our true Holy God manifested His presence showing the public that he had accepted their labor of love in building this Temple.

 *****2Ch 5:14 So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.

 A man of God said this beautified this Temple much more than all the gold which it was overlaid and all the precious stones that adorned it. Yet even that glory in comparison does not match the glory of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

 God had not allowed King David to build this Temple but told him that his son Solomon would have the honor of building this Temple.

 Then King Solomon began to pray.

2Ch 6:12  And he stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands: 

2Ch 6:13  For Solomon had made a brasen scaffold, of five cubits long, and five cubits broad, and three cubits high, and had set it in the midst of the court: and upon it he stood, and kneeled down upon his knees before all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven, 

2Ch 6:14  And said, O LORD God of Israel, there is no God like thee in the heaven, nor in the earth; which keepest covenant, and shewest mercy unto thy servants, that walk before thee with all their hearts: 

2Ch 6:15  Thou which hast kept with thy servant David my father that which thou hast promised him; and spakest with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thine hand, as it is this day.

And he continued therefore:

 Amen