Theological Commentary: Click Here
I always
find it interesting that the author of 1 & 2 Kings chooses to write about
both kingdoms of Israel and Judah, whereas the Chronicler chooses to write only
about the kings of Judah. It certainly
shows the focus of the Chronicler. 1
& 2 Kings is about history, 1 & 2 Chronicles is about the line of David
and God’s promised messiah.
What is
there to learn today? God has a
plan. God is in control. Neither of these things should surprise the
faithful person of God. It’s a basic
lesson of the faith, but it is a lesson that is surprisingly easy to overlook
or even to forget about.
As an
example of this, note that Rehoboam plans to take up arms against Israel. He has his mind set on forcing the two
kingdoms back together. The people of
Judah are willing to support the cause and the army is formed. However, God says no. God tells Rehoboam to let it be. God knows the hearts of the people and how
the history is going to play out. He
knows that to make his point, two kingdoms are necessary. He has a plan; Rehoboam needs to get out of
the way of God’s plan.
For the
record, Rehoboam does exactly that. I have
to imagine that was a bitter pill to swallow for a king that lost half the
kingdom because of his greed and arrogance.
Another
place where we can see God’s plan is in the Levite immigration. Jeroboam, the king of Israel, sets up his own
religion and kicks the faithful religious leaders out of Israel. They need a place to go, and they are welcomed
in the southern kingdom of Judah. They help
make the nation strong. Imagine that,
really. Bringing a bunch of people
faithful to God has a profound effect on the strength of the nation.
Again, God
has a plan. He’s going to deal with the quick
slide in unfaithfulness in the north differently than the slow slide in the
south. Either way, though, God has a
plan.
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