1 Kings 12:15

The Holy Bible, Berean Study Bible

Contextual Overview

¹Then Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king. ²When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard about this, he was still in Egypt where he had fled from King Solomon and had been living ever since. ³So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and the whole assembly of Israel came to Rehoboam and said, ⁴"Your father put a heavy yoke on us. But now you should lighten the burden of your father's service and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you." ⁵Rehoboam answered, "Go away for three days and then return to me." So the people departed. ⁶Then King Rehoboam consulted with the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. "How do you advise me to respond to these people?" he asked. ⁷They replied, "If you will be a servant to these people and serve them this day, and if you will respond by speaking kind words to them, they will be your servants forever." ⁸But Rehoboam rejected the advice of the elders; instead, he consulted the young men who had grown up with him and served him. ⁹He asked them, "What message do you advise that we send back to these people who have spoken to me, saying, 'Lighten the yoke your father put on us'?" ¹⁰The young men who had grown up with him replied, "This is how you should answer these people who said to you, 'Your father made our yoke heavy, but you should make it lighter.' This is what you should tell them: 'My little finger is thicker than my father's waist!

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the cause: The cause of all this confusion and anarchy was Rehoboam's folly, cruelty, and despotic tyranny, and this was certainly not "from the Lord," nor does the original text speak this doctrine. For an elucidation of a similar passage, see note on 2 Samuel 24:1. It says, sibbah, (from savav, to turn, change), "the change or Revolution was from the Lord;" which is consistent with all the preceding declarations. God stirred up the people to revolt from a man who had neither skill nor humanity to govern them. God serves his own wise and righteous purpose by the imprudences and iniquities of men, and snares sinners in the work of their own hands. "He maketh the wrath of man to praise him." 1 Kings 12:24, 1 Kings 22:23, Deuteronomy 2:30, Judges 14:4, 2 Chronicles 10:15, 2 Chronicles 22:7, 2 Chronicles 25:16, 2 Chronicles 25:20, Psalms 5:10, Amos 3:6, Acts 2:23, Acts 4:28

that he might: 1 Kings 11:11, 1 Kings 11:29-38, 1 Samuel 15:29, 2 Samuel 17:14, 2 Kings 9:36, 2 Kings 10:10, Isaiah 14:13-17, Isaiah 46:10, Isaiah 46:11, Daniel 4:35, John 19:23, John 19:24, John 19:28, John 19:29, John 19:32-37, Acts 3:17, Acts 13:27-29

Reciprocal: Joshua 11:20 - it was Judges 9:23 - God 1 Kings 11:14 - the Lord 1 Kings 11:35 - will give Job 1:21 - taken away Hosea 13:11 - General

Cross-References

Genesis 12:2
I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.

Genesis 12:4
So Abram departed, as the LORD had directed him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.

Genesis 12:5
And Abram took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all the possessions and people they had acquired in Haran, and set out for the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan,

Genesis 12:16
He treated Abram well on her account, and Abram acquired sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, menservants and maidservants, and camels.

Genesis 20:2
Abraham said of his wife Sarah, "She is my sister." So Abimelech king of Gerar had Sarah brought to him.

Genesis 40:2
Pharaoh was angry with his two officers, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker,

Genesis 41:1
After two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream: He was standing beside the Nile,

Exodus 2:5
Soon the daughter of Pharaoh went down to bathe in the Nile, and her attendants were walking along the riverbank. And when she saw the basket among the reeds, she sent her maidservant to retrieve it.

Exodus 2:15
When Pharaoh heard about this matter, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh and settled in the land of Midian, where he sat down beside a well.

1 Kings 3:1
Later, Solomon formed an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt by marrying his daughter. Solomon brought her to the City of David until he had finished building his palace and the house of the LORD, as well as the wall around Jerusalem.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people,.... To lessen their taxes, and ease them of their burdens, as they desired:

for the cause was from the Lord; it was according to his will and appointment; the defection of the people was willed by the Lord, and various things in Providence turned up to alienate their minds from Rehoboam, and dispose them to a revolt from him in favour of Jeroboam; and the Lord suffered the counsellors of Rehoboam to give him the advice they did, and gave him up to the folly of his own heart to take it:

that he might perform his saying, which the Lord spake to Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat; see 1 Kings 11:29.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The cause was from the Lord - i. e., “the turn of events was from the Lord.” Human passions, anger, pride, and insolence, worked out the accomplishment of the divine designs. Without interfering with man’s free will, God guides the course of events, and accomplishes His purposes.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 1 Kings 12:15. The cause was from the Lord — God left him to himself, and did not incline his heart to follow the counsel of the wise men. This is making the best of our present version; but if we come to inquire into the meaning of the CAUSE of all this confusion and anarchy, we shall find it was Rehoboam's folly, cruelty, and despotic tyranny: and was this from the Lord? But does the text speak this bad doctrine? No: it says סבה sibbah, the REVOLUTION, was from the Lord. This is consistent with all the declarations which went before. God stirred up the people to revolt from a man who had neither skill nor humanity to govern them. We had such a סבה revolution in these nations in 1688; and, thank God, we have never since needed another. None of our ancient translations understood the word as our present version does: they have it either the TURNING AWAY was from the Lord, or it was the Lord's ORDINANCE; viz., that they should turn away from this foolish king.