The King Who Learned the Consequences of a Convenient Religion

The life and reign of King Jeroboam.

Image created in Canva.

Jeroboam was to the northern kingdom of Israel what George Washington is to the United States of America - the “founding father” and first supreme ruler of a new nation.

Many times, decisions made by the first ruler of a nation have a lasting impact on that nation. Jeroboam is no different.

Kings Timeline.

God Chooses Jeroboam.

After Solomon’s heart turned away from the Lord (1 Kings 11:9), God raised up several adversaries against Solomon. While most of the adversaries were foreign enemies, one arose from within the nation - Jeroboam the son of Nebat, from the tribe of Ephraim (1 Kings 11:26).

Solomon’s building projects required a massive labor force, and Jeroboam stood out as “a mighty man of valor” and by being “industrious.” So Solomon placed him over the entire labor force of the house of Joseph (the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh - Genesis 48:1) (1 Kings 11:28).

After Jeroboam’s promotion, on his way out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah met him alone wearing new clothes. Ahijah tore his new garment into 12 pieces and told Jeroboam to choose 10 pieces. This was because the Lord had said He would tear the kingdom away from Solomon and give 10 of the tribes to Jeroboam (1 Kings 11:29-31).

The reason for this was because of Solomon and Israel’s unfaithfulness to the Lord.

…because they have forsaken Me, and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the people of Ammon, and have not walked in My ways to do what is right in My eyes and keep My statutes and My judgments, as did his father David. (1 Kings 11:33)

In God’s mercy and faithfulness to His promise to David, the Lord would not tear the whole kingdom away from Solomon and his son (1 Kings 11:34-36).

So the Lord chose Jeroboam to be king over the other 10 tribes, and He promised to build an enduring house for Jeroboam just as He did for David if Jeroboam faithfully followed Him as David did (1 Kings 11:37-39).

Solomon somehow finds out about this meeting between Jeroboam and Ahijah and tries to have Jeroboam killed. But Jeroboam flees to Egypt and stays there until Solomon dies (1 Kings 11:40).

Israel Makes Jeroboam Their King.

You can read more about how the kingdom split in the article about King Rehoboam. Jeroboam played a role in this split.

After Solomon died, Jeroboam returned from Egypt when the northern tribes of Israel sent for him to be a spokesman for them in their meeting with Rehoboam. Jeroboam called upon Rehoboam to lighten the heavy load on the people (1 Kings 12:1-4).

Rehoboam foolishly refuses and says he will actually make life harder for them (1 Kings 12:5-14). But this all happened because “the turn of events was from the LORD, that He might fulfill His word, which the LORD had spoken by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat” (1 Kings 12:15).

After hearing the arrogant words of King Rehoboam, the northern tribes rebelled and made Jeroboam their king (1 Kings 12:16-20).

Jeroboam’s “Convenient” Religion.

After strengthening the cities of Shechem and Penuel (1 Kings 12:25), Jeroboam starts thinking about the religion of the nation. He was concerned that if the people continued to worship the Lord in Jerusalem - which was in the southern kingdom of Judah - then they would eventually turn back to Rehoboam and kill him (1 Kings 12:26-27).

So Jeroboam gets advice - bad advice - and has two golden calves made. He proclaimed to the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land of Egypt!” (1 Kings 12:28). He set one up in Bethel (the southern end of the kingdom) and one in Dan (the northern end of the kingdom).

Jeroboam’s statement is pretty much exactly what Aaron told the children of Israel after he made them a golden calf (Exodus 32:1-4). That situation didn’t turn out too well for Israel (Exodus 32:27-35), and Jeroboam’s decision didn’t go well either. It was also a direct violation of the opening commands of the Ten Commandments.

And God spoke all these words, saying: "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 

"You shall have no other gods before Me. 

"You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. (Exodus 20:1-6)

These golden calves became a sin (1 Kings 12:30) for the nation. Shrines were built around the land, priests were made from every tribe of people, feast days were made like the feasts in Judah, and offerings were made according to Jeroboam’s desires (1 Kings 12:31-33).

While Israel would often claim they were still worshipping the Lord God, we are being shown they have devised a religion according to their own desires for their own convenience. They do not serve the Lord God, no matter what they might claim.

God’s Judgment upon Israel’s Idolatry.

So God sent “a man of God” - a prophet - from Judah to Bethel to tell Jeroboam the “word of the LORD” (1 Kings 13:1). He proclaimed this word while Jeroboam stood at the altar to burn incense to the golden calf.

The prophecy foretold of a child named Josiah born to the house of David who would one day sacrifice the priests of this idol worship on this very altar and burn men’s bones on it (1 Kings 13:2).

The sign that this prophecy was from God would be that this altar would split apart and the ashes would pour out on the ground (1 Kings 13:3).

At this word from the prophet, Jeroboam stretches out his hand toward the prophets and orders his arrest - but Jeroboam’s hand withered so that he could not long move it. Also, the altar split open and the ashes poured onto the ground, just as God’s prophet said (1 Kings 13:4-5).

Now Jeroboam pleads with God’s prophet to pray to the Lord God and request the favor of the Lord so that his hand might be restored. The prophet does this, and the Lord restored the king’s hand exactly as it was moments before (1 Kings 13:6).

Now Jeroboam’s whole disposition toward the prophet changes. He invites the prophet to join him at his house for refreshments and a reward. But the prophet tells Jeroboam that God has commanded him not to eat, drink, or go home the way he had come. So he headed home (1 Kings 13:7-10).

On the way home, this prophet believes a lie from “an old prophet” and returns to his house to eat and drink (1 Kings 13:11-19). Then the word of the Lord actually came to the old prophet, and he told the man of God from Judah that because he disobeyed, his body would never make it home (1 Kings 13:20-22). When the prophet continued his journey, he was killed by a lion - and the lion and donkey just stood next to the prophet’s body (1 Kings 13:23-24).

When the older prophet hears about what has happened, he goes and gets the younger prophet’s body and buries him in his own tomb. However, he reaffirms that what the prophet prophesied against Israel’s idolatry would surely come to pass (1 Kings 13:25-32).

Even though Jeroboam had witnessed proof of God’s displeasure with his choices, he continued in his evil way. Because he refused to repent, the fate of Jeroboam’s house was sealed (1 Kings 13:33-34).

God’s Judgment upon Jeroboam.

After these things, Jeroboam’s son Abijah gets sick. He tells his wife to disguise herself and go to the prophet Ahijah, who told him he would be king (1 Kings 14:1-2). She was to take gifts, and the prophet would tell her what would happen to their son (1 Kings 14:3).

She arrives in Shiloh at Ahijah’s house. But Ahijah cannot see her because his eyesight has grown very poor because of his old age (1 Kings 14:4). But the Lord tells Ahijah that the woman is Jeroboam’s wife coming to ask about their sick son (1 Kings 14:5).

Ahijah immediately calls out to her and tells her there is no need to pretend to be somebody else - he knows she is Jeroboam’s wife. And he had bad news for her (1 Kings 14:6). She was to return with this message of disaster upon Jeroboam’s house:

"Because I exalted you from among the people, and made you ruler over My people Israel, and tore the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it to you; and yet you have not been as My servant David, who kept My commandments and who followed Me with all his heart, to do only what was right in My eyes; but you have done more evil than all who were before you, for you have gone and made for yourself other gods and molded images to provoke Me to anger, and have cast Me behind your back— therefore behold!

I will bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam every male in Israel, bond and free; I will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as one takes away refuse until it is all gone. The dogs shall eat whoever belongs to Jeroboam and dies in the city, and the birds of the air shall eat whoever dies in the field; for the LORD has spoken!" ' (1 Kings 14:7-11)

And as far as their sick son, Ahijah also told her what would happen to him.

Arise therefore, go to your own house. When your feet enter the city, the child shall die. And all Israel shall mourn for him and bury him, for he is the only one of Jeroboam who shall come to the grave, because in him there is found something good toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam. (1 Kings 14:12-13)

Their sick son would die and be the only member of Jeroboam’s descendants who would receive a proper burial “for he is the only one in whom the LORD God of Israel found anything good” (1 Kings 14:13 - NET).

God would raise up a king over Israel who would destroy Jeroboam’s house - and that time was not far away, but close at hand (1 Kings 14:14). Also, the destruction and captivity of Israel in foreign lands would happen because of their idolatry started by Jeroboam (1 Kings 14:15-16).

So Jeroboam’s wife returned home and when she walked in the front door, the child died. He received a proper burial and was mourned by the whole nation, just as Ahijah the prophet said (1 Kings 14:17-18).

Jeroboam Dies.

Next, we read about Jeroboam’s death after his 22-year reign (1 Kings 14:19-20). After he lost a decisive battle against Judah (2 Chronicles 13:18-19), he grew weak as king and was ultimately struck by the Lord and died (2 Chronicles 13:20).

Thus ends the reign of Jeroboam, the first king of Israel, and the one who started them down the path which would end in their destruction.

Crowning Principles.

Some decisions have lasting, irreversible consequences.

Jeroboam’s decision to establish idolatry as the “national religion” of Israel, and then his refusal to repent when God sent His prophet, sealed the fate of Jeroboam, his family, and the nation.

Sometimes decisions are made that no following generations can overcome. In Judah, some kings were righteous, but they merely delayed God’s judgment upon the southern kingdom.

Whether we will be faithful to God or not will have a lasting effect on our families, the church, and even the nation.

Looking for a convenient religion brings disaster.

Jeroboam set up the golden calves in Israel because “it was too much trouble” for the people to travel all the way to Jerusalem to worship. He made the worship of these calves as convenient as possible - building shines everywhere, and making anyone of wanted to be a priest a priest. He thought that making religion as convenient as possible for Israel would solidify his power as king.

If there is a word we could use to describe the religious scene in the United States today, the word “convenient” would probably be used pretty quickly.

We drive to a climate-controlled building and then complain if it’s too cold or too hot. We sit on seats, probably padded. We sit through sermons that should make us feel good, and we get upset if our sin is called out in the sermon. Heaven forbid the preacher preaches too long because we’ve got things to do, you know. All too often, members are merely expected to show up - sometimes - at service times, sit patiently, give a little money, and then get back to the regularly scheduled programming of their lives without any other “inconvenient intrusion” of the church into their busy schedules. But we have to do this - we’re told - or people might leave and go somewhere else that doesn’t expect so much of them.

Somewhere more convenient.

Have we created “convenient Christianity” in this country the same way Jeroboam created a “convenient religion” in Israel? If so, then what are the results of such a perversion of God’s way?