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TH E KING’S BUSINESS
word and will of God. God Was making the wrath of men to praise him; both Jero boam’s wrath and Rehoboam’s (cf. Ps. 26: 10 ). vs. 10, 11. "Thus shalt thou say unto them, My little Unger shall be thicker than my father’s loins. And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father hath chas tised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.” There was never more foolish counsel than that which the young men gave to Rehoboam. It was full of boasting and bravado, and was bound to bring Rehoboam to grief if he followed it: but many employers today use the same method in dealing with their employees, they try to whip them into line by threats and coercion, and tell them if they are not satis fied with what they are now getting, they will give them worse: this method never works. vs, 13, 14. “And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the old men’s counsel that they gave him', and spake to them after the counsel of the young men.” The advice of the young men pleased Re hoboam because it appealed to his pride, and was along the line of his own desires. In his choice of companionship and counsellors he was illustrating words written by his own father, “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise, but a companion of fools shall be destroyed” ( Prov. 13:20). It never pays to answer people roughly, no matter how confident we may be of our own power. v. 15. "Wherefore the king hearkened nod unto the people; for the cause was from the LORD.” Back of all Rehoboam’s folly lay the purpose and Word of God, but that did not in the least lessen Rehoboam’s folly or his guilt (cf. Acts 2:23), what he did, he did freely, and of his own choice. ' “That he might perform his saying, which the LORD ' spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat.” God’s purpose in all that Was done was “that He might perform His saying (or, establish His word).” Every word of God
is sure, and God will bring it to pass to the very letter, and in His wonderful wisdom He brings it to pass through free acts of man God’s reason for His purpose to turn away the kingdom from the house of Solo mon was because Solomon had turned away his heart from Him (ch. 11:9-11, 31, 33). Notice how many things had worked to gether to fulfill God’s Word. The record here tells us that while Ahijah the Shilonite had been the one who went to Jeroboam, and spoke to him, that it was really the LORD (that is, Jehovah) who spoke. When a true prophet speaks, it is God who really speaks, and what the prophet says is God’s Word. v. 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 inher itance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to dhine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents.” This outcome was in exact accofdance with what God had spoken by the prophet Ahijah (ch. 11:31, 32). God always fulfills prophecy literally. There are a great many in our day, even among professedly orthodox teach ers, who are saying, “You must not inter pret prophecy literally,” but the only way in which we can judge'how the prophecies which are not yet fulfilled are to be fulfilled, is to look at how the prophecies which have already been fulfilled, have been fulfilled, and that is, with the most exact and minute literalness: therefore, it is certain that the prophecies as yet unfulfilled will in due time be fulfilled with a - most exact and minute literalness. The outcome of Rehoboam’s proud and foolish work illustrates the truth of many proverbs which his father had taught him, but which he had not laid to heart (e. g., Prov. 18:7; 28:25 ; 29:23; 15: 1). To understand the meaning of Reho- boam’s history we should read it in the light of his father’s words in the book of Proverbs. His ruin was brought upon him by his pride (cf. Prov. 16:18), but we should not forget that his father’s own con duct had much to do with the forming of
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