The History of the Old Testament Methodized, Chapter 5 · Section 19 · Concurrent kings · Judah · Rehoboam
The firſt King of Judah, REHOBOAM.SOlomon being dead, ſome of the Heads and Officers of Iſrael immediately ſent into Egypt for Jeroboam to come to them, and it ſeems they contriv'd among themſelves that before they would Crown Rehoboam King, they would petition him to be eaſed of the Taxes his Father in the latter part of his reign had impoſed on them. For though he made not the Iſraelites bondmen, Ch. 9.22. yet we read of large proviſions that were gathered in the land to maintain the royalty of his Court, [Ch. 4.7, 22, 23.] and of levies made for his buildings, [Ch. 9.15.] and in his declining age eſpecially, (when he was carried away by his Idolatrous wives and concubines) undoubtedly heavier Taxes were laid on the people, and it may be Hadad's and Rezons enmity againſt him might alſo occaſion ſome impoſitions. Theſe Taxes they reſolved to be eaſed of before they admitted him to the Government. And it ſeems they met at Sechem a City in the Tribe of Ephraim to conſult of theſe matters, and from thence ſent to Rehoboam, that there they were convened to Crown him. Rehoboam accordingly going thither, Jeroboam and the heads of the people came to him, and ſpake to him, ſaying, Thy Father made our yoke grievous, now therefore we pray thee eaſe thou ſomewhat the grievous ſervitude of thy Father, and his heavy yoke that he put upon us, and we will ſerve thee. Rehoboam took three days time to conſider of the matter of their petition (in which alone he ſhewed himſelf wiſe Solomon's Son) and during that time he conſulted firſt with the old men that had been Counſellors and ſervants to his Father, and askt them what anſwer he ſhould return to the people? They told him if he would be kind to them and pleaſe them for this once, and yield to them, and ſpeak good words to them, they would be his ſervants, and obedient ſubjects for ever; but if he did otherwiſe, they would be in danger to revolt from him. Rehoboam liked not their advice, and therefore adviſed with the younger men that had been brought up with him, and now attended on him, and they told him that this people were not to be pleaſed or humoured, but to be ratled, and rigorouſly dealt with; and therefore adviſed him to tell them, that if they complained of his fathers taxes and impoſitions, he would give them more cauſe to complain of his. They ſhould find that his little finger would be thicker than his Fathers loyns. If his Fathers yoke (that he laid upon them) was heavy, he would add to their yoke. If his Father chaſtis'd them with whips, he would chaſtiſe them with ſcorpions. This is the anſwer they adviſe him to give them. Accordingly on the third day Jeroboam and the heads of the people coming again to him, he (forſaking the counſel of the old men) anſwered them roughly according to the words which the young men had put into his mouth. Thus Rehoboam regarded not the deſire and petition of the people, but utterly rejected it, for the thing was of the Lord, who with-held the ſpirit of wiſdom and counſel from him, (elſe he might eaſily have diſcerned what the event would be) and gave him over to be miſled by raſh and evil counſellors, and thereupon alienated the hearts of the people from him, intending thereby to perform the word that he ſpake by Ahijah the Shilonite concerning Jeroboam. This ſharp and rigorous anſwer of the King gave ſuch a general diſtaſte to the people that they would no longer ſtay to adviſe upon it, but ten of the twelve Tribes unanimouſly manifeſted a preſent and peremptory reſolution to fall off from him, and muttered after this manner, What portion (ſay they) have we in David *See the like speech of Sheba, 2 Sam. 20.1. to which poſſibly they allude.? that is, What good can we expect from Davids ſtock? or what inheritance have we in the Son of Jeſſe? What advantage or profit can we expect from any of his poſterity? To your Tents †Becauſe they of old dwelt in Tents, this phraſe is ſtill continued in uſe among them.O Iſrael, let us no longer ſtay here to make our ſelves ſlaves to this Tyrant, but every man look to his own houſe, and out of our own Tribes let us chooſe us a King; and look thou to thy own houſe Rehoboam (who art deſcended of David) and make much of thy own Tribe, for beyond their bounds thy Kingdom is not like to extend. We are reſolved to take care of our ſelves, and to chooſe a King from among our own Tribes. Rehoboam ſeeing the people in ſuch a mutiny and diſtemper, he ſends Adoram (who was over the Tribute) to pacifie them, hoping no doubt but they would reverence ſo venerable an old man as he was who was not much ſhort of an hundred years of age, having enjoyed that office above ſixty years, viz. from the midſt of David's reign [ſee 2 Sam. 20.24.] and all Solomon's until now. But he being one of thoſe who (they thought) promoted the laying of Impoſitions upon the people; the very ſight, of him did ſo enrage them, that in a mutinous and outragious manner they fell upon him and ſtoned him to death. Upon this, Rehoboam thought it high time for him to be gone, and therefore ſpeedily getting into his Chariot he fled to Jeruſalem. Things being now come to this deſperate paſs, immediately ten Tribes fell off from Rehoboam, and choſe Jeroboam the Son of Nebat for their King. But the Tribes of Judah and Benjamin ſtuck faſt to Rehoboam. In memorial of this ſad rent the Jews afterwards kept a ſolemn Faſt yearly upon the three and twentieth day of the third month called Sivan. Rehoboam being come to Jeruſalem forthwith raiſes an Army of an hundred and fourſcore thouſand valiant men out of Judah and Benjamin to reduce the Ten Tribes back to his ſubjection, but is forbidden to proceed on in that enterprize by the Prophet Shemaiah, who told him that the thing was of God, who had ſo ordered it, for the puniſhment of his Fathers defection from him, and ſo the people returned to their own homes. But though for the preſent that deſign was laid aſide, yet there followed continual bickerings between the two Kings all their days, and the borderers on both ſides did continually make inrodes one upon another, ſee Ch. 14.30.
Rehoboam dwelt in Jeruſalem, and built and fortified fifteen Cities for the defence of Judah, and made great warlike proviſions, and put Garriſons into the Cities, and placed Captains and Commanders over them, ſome whereof it ſeems were his own Sons; for 2 Chron. 11.23. 'tis ſaid, He dealt wiſely and diſperſed all his children thoroughout all the Countries of Judah and Benjamin into every fenced City. And in that it muſt be acknowledged he dealt prudently, for in his own Sons he might moſt ſecurely confide. And he ſtored thoſe Garriſons with plenty of victuals and with wine and oyl, and in every Garriſon he put Shields and Spears, and other Warlike ammunition, and made them exceeding ſtrong. And many Prieſts and Levites that were caſt off by Jeroboam and his Sons *They probably were placed as Captains in the Cities of Iſrael as Rehoboam's Sons were in the Cities of Judah., (who would not ſuffer them to execute the Prieſts office in their Cities) and many people out of all the Ten Tribes (who ſet their hearts to ſeek the Lord God of Iſrael) reſorted unto him, whereby his Kingdom was much ſtrengthned.
For three years he and his people walked in the ways of David, and in the ways of Solomon, (viz. his firſt ways before his fall) but afterwards they forſook the Law of the Lord (though ſome particular perſons among them undoubtedly remained faithful to God) and made themſelves High-places, Images †So that none of the twelve Tribes at this time continued faithful to God, the Ten revolted with Jeroboam, and theſe two with Rehoboam.and Groves, doing according to all the abominations of the Heathen. And they did evil in the ſight of the Lord, and provoked him to jealouſie with their ſins, inſomuch that in none of their Fathers days there was ſuch a general apoſtaſie. And it ſeems there were among them ſome that practiſed that abominable ſin of Sodomy, ſo that they did after all the abominations of the Heathen whom God caſt out before their Fathers.
As for the Domeſtick affairs of Rehoboam we find that he took eighteen Wives, and ſixty Concubines, and begat twenty eight Sons, and ſixty Daughters, and diſperſed his Sons through all the Countries of Judah and Benjamin into the ſeveral fenced Cities, and there gave them liberal and Princely allowances, and ſought out many Wives for them out of Noble Families to ſtrengthen their intereſt by their alliances. Of all his Wives he loved Maachah beſt, the daughter of Abſalom, who was a great Idolatreſs, ſee 1 King. 15.13. and he made Abijah her Son to be chief ruler over his brethren, intending he ſhould ſucceed him in the Throne.
In the fifth year of his reign (becauſe he had ſo heinouſly tranſgreſſed againſt the Lord) Shiſhak King of Egypt (invited poſſibly thereunto by Jeroboam who had lived there, and been kindly entertained by him before he was made King) came up againſt him with twelve hundred chariots, and threeſcore thouſand horſemen, and people without number. Some of them were Lybians (a people in Africa bordering upon Egypt) ſome Suckites, otherwiſe call'd Troglodites (a people dwelling in Caves of Rocks) and ſome of them Ethiopians. With this great Army invading Judea, he took the fenced Cities that were in his way to Jeruſalem, and then came before that City alſo. The people of Judah being now in great diſtreſs Shemaiah the Prophet came to Rehoboam, and the Princes *Ver. 6. Princes of Iſrael, that is, the Princes of Judah who were Iſraelites.that were gathered together in Jeruſalem, and ſpake to them after this manner, Thus ſaith the Lord, ye have forſaken me, and therefore have I alſo left you in the hand of Shiſhak. Rehoboam and the Princes upon this humbled themſelves, and confeſt their ſins, and ſaid the Lord is righteous in all the judgments he hath brought upon us. Hereupon the Lord ſpake to Shemaiah again, ſaying, They have humbled themſelves, therefore I will not utterly deſtroy them, but grant them ſome deliverance, and my wrath ſhall not be poured forth upon Jeruſalem by the hand of Shiſhak; nevertheleſs they ſhall be his ſervants, and ſhall yield to ſuch terms as he ſhall put upon them, that they may know my ſervice, and the ſervice of the Kingdoms of the Countries. That is, that they may know by the hard conditions Shiſhak will put upon them, how much better it had been for them to have ſerved me, than by their ſins to have brought themſelves into bondage to other Nations. See Iſa. 26.13. So Shiſhak being come before Jeruſalem, to ſave the Temple and City from plunder, and to regain the Cities he had taken as he came up to them, they were forc'd to give him the Treaſures †This was the firſt spoiling of the Temple.of the Temple, not the holy veſſels, but ſuch gold and ſilver, and other precious things as were laid up for repairing the Temple, and other holy uſes; as alſo the Treaſures of the Kings houſe, as alſo the Golden Shields that Solomon had made, 1 King. 10.16. Inſtead of theſe Rehoboam made Shields of Braſs, and committed them to the hands of the chief of the Guard that kept the door of the Kings houſe. And when the King entred into the houſe of the Lord, the Guard came and fetched them, and carried them before him, and when he was come back, returned them again into his Guard-chamber. Thus Rehoboam humbling himſelf the wrath of God turned from him, ſo as he would not deſtroy him altogether. And after this, things began to go well again in Judah, for they enjoyed their liberty of ſerving the true God, the benefit of their own Laws, and had for the moſt part peace and proſperity. So Rehoboam recovered ſtrength again, and repaired and fortified the Cities of his Kingdom, yet he did not ſincerely ſet and fix his heart to ſeek the Lord, that is, did not endeavour to know him aright, to worſhip him purely, to call upon him fervently, and to obey him faithfully, and in all theſe to perſevere conſtantly. Now the Acts of Rehoboam firſt and laſt, namely ſuch as were done in his firſt three good years, in his two next evil years, and in his other years following them, they are written by Shemaiah the Prophet, and Iddo the Seer in their Book of Genealogies or Pedegrees, or Hiſtories of Kings, and other great perſons who were famous among the Iſraelites in thoſe times.
Thus Rehoboam having reigned ſeventeen years (and for the moſt part wickedly) Abijah his Son reigned in his ſtead.
1 King. 12. from 1, to 25.
1 King. 14. from 21, to the end.
2 Chron. 10. whole Chapter.
2 Chron. 11. wh. Ch.
2 Chron. 12. wh. Ch.