June, 1939
T H E
K I N G ' S
B U S I N E S S
230
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III. T he P romise (37-40)
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While Jeroboam and the prophet were in the field, the latter continued to speak re vealing what further things the Lord would do. The Lord was giving to Jeroboam a covenant similar to the one that He had given to Solomon; it was both conditional and unconditional. As far as his position in relation to the throne of Israel was con cerned, the covenant was wholly uncondi tional, and he was to reign “according to all that thy soul desireth.” It was assured that when the kingdom was divided, this man Jeroboam was to be king of the north ern nation. This provision was wholly of grace, not of any human merit. God could have chosen some other man for the throne, had He so willed, but in sovereign grace He gave the promise to Jeroboam. But God was ready to give much more', on conditional grounds, and the prophet went on to declare that if Jeroboam would obey the Lord, and would walk in His ways as David had done, the Lord would be with him and would build for him a sure house, and continue to maintain him as king over Israel. There are no limits to the blessing and promotion the Lord is willing to give to all who will fulfill His conditions. The prophet was careful to indicate to Jeroboam that the unconditional promise made to David was not abrogated nor set aside by this covenant with the servant of Solomon. Although afflication may come to the seed of David, the testing will not be forever. The time is coming when that, “seed"—in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ—will receive all that was included in the covenant with David, and will reign on David's throne forever. Points and Problems 1. "Jeroboam . . . an Ephrathite” (1 Ki. 11:26). The identification of Jeroboam’s ancestry is made somewhat clearer in the American Revised Version where he is spoken of as an "Ephraimite.” That is, he was a descendant of Ephraim the younger son of Joseph. Since at the division of the kingdom this man Jeroboam was divinely chosen to reign over the ten-tribe division, his ancestry becomes a matter of deep in terest. Turning back to Genesis 49, which records Jacob's great prophecy concerning his sons, we find in verses 22-26 a reference to Joseph’s future, and verse 26 seems to make it clear that there is to be royalty in this family. The Common Version speaks of Joseph as the one "that was separate from his brethren,” but a better rendering makes him one who is "prince among his brethren” (R.V. margin). But Joseph had two sons, and the elder was Manasseh, through whom normally the birthright would be realized. The younger son was Ephraim. Yet when thq “prince” of Joseph's family is finally chosen, he is taken from Ephraim rather than from Manasseh. The explanation will be found in Genesis 48:14, 17, where Jacob, doubtless guided by the sovereign will of God, deliberately lays his right hand upon the younger son Ephraim, thus conferring upon him the precedence over the elder Manasseh. This is just one more of the thousands of evidences which demonstrate the perfect harmony of the Scriptures.
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2. "And this was the cause [ reason’ R.V.) that he lifted up his hand against the king" (11:27). For any man to lift up his hand against God's anointed king was a se rious matter. Therefore, the Scripture is careful to show that Jeroboam acted on the basis of the divine grant as conveyed to him by the prophet Ahijah (vs. 29-31). . 3. "I will for this afflict the seed o f Da vid, but not for ever" (v. 39). The exalta tion of Jeroboam because of Solomon’s fail ure did not abrogate the promise and cove nant with David. The gifts and callings of God are not repented of. An architect complains that many of his clients come and ask him to design a house for them, only to let him very speedily discover that they have already designed it for themselves, What they really want is his sanction of their own plan, and the satis faction of seeing him draw on paper what they have fully in mind. It is in very much the same fashion that we often go to the Great Architect with our lives. W e ask Him for wisdom and guidance, but we have already planned how we will build our fortunes and shape our course; and it is not His way we are seeking, but His ap proval of our way.-—J. R. M iller . Solomon’s Father 1 K ings 11:26-43 Memory Verse: “Lo, I am with you al- way” (Matt. 28:20). Approach: Our story today is about a young man who was one of King Solomon’s helpers. The king honored this young man by putting him in a position of trust. He put him in charge of a company of men Golden Text Illustration P roverbs 3:6
who were mending the wall. King Solo mon tru ste d this young man whose name was Jeroboam. Lesson Story: King Solomon was getting to be an old man now. He had forgot ten to give thanks to God for all of his wealth and wisdom.
He had grown lazy and luxury-loving. He was weak and selfish. He no longer cared how he treated his people. You can imagine the kind of things the young man Jeroboam would hear the workmen on the wall saying about their king. The people were becom ing very restless because Solomon was not as good a king as his father David had been. Because Solomon and the people had sinned in -worshiping false gods, God
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