King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2026
Chapters: I Kings 12-14
Lesson: I Kings: Israel is Divided
Hello My Friend,
As we return to the book of I Kings, Solomon has died, and his son Rehoboam has begun to reign. It did not take long for Rehoboam to provoke the people of Israel against him, and the turning point began with Jeroboam. He was the man God had chosen to rule over the other tribes that would form the northern kingdom of Israel. Jeroboam had fled to Egypt out of fear of Solomon, but when he heard that Solomon was dead, returned, setting in motion a chain of events that stirred the people and reshaped the nation. It all began when the people asked Rehoboam if he would lighten up on the yoke that his father had placed on them.
[I Kings 12:1-4 And Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. 2 And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;) 3 That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam, saying, 4 Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.]
In other words, and in modern times, they wanted to pay no taxes, and receive free healthcare, free utilities, free phones, free homes, all without working and at the expense of those who do pay their taxes. Well, God, did not design the government to take care of our every need. They are here to make sure that we all pay our fair share of taxes, have the same rights and opportunities, keep our roads safe, and to keep us safe from enemy attacks. Rehoboam, asks them to give him three days to think on things, but what he did was reach out for counsel. First, he approached the elders that his father had received counsel from.
[I Kings 12:6-7,10-11 And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people? 7 And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.]
Seriously! These men sound like the progressives of today, they did not want a king to govern them with truth and justice, they wanted babysitters with no accountability. And if you thought that was bad advice, his friends were no better, in fact, theirs was just the opposite, [I Kings 12:10-11 And the young men that were grown up with him spake unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto this people that spake unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father’s loins. 11 And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father hath chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.]
Neither group gave good advice here, they either wanted a king that was a pushover or one who was a tyrant. And you will notice that neither group even mentioned God. This alone reveals how far the kingdom had already drifted from the LORD. When God is no longer the center of counsel, the nation is already headed down a path of destruction, [Psalms 33:12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.]
Shechem was located in the territory of Ephraim, Jeroboam’s own tribe. It is very likely that the people already knew of Ahijah’s prophecy concerning Jeroboam, and for that reason they refused to go to Jerusalem. Instead, they gathered at Shechem, a place where Jeroboam’s influence was strongest and where it would have been far easier for him to stir the people toward rebellion. Now, it has been three days and needless to say, the people were not happy with Rehoboam’s response.
[I Kings 12:14-17 And spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. 15 Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people; for the cause was from the LORD, that he might perform his saying, which the LORD spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat. 16 So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents. 17 But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.]
Not all of the people of the ten tribes revolted, those who wanted to stay within the confines of Jerusalem and the Temple chose to live in the cities of Judah, including the tribe of Benjamin, and were content with Rehoboam reigning over them. Think about it, the people really had no authority to choose their next king. By custom, the throne automatically passed to the eldest son. Rehoboam’s succession was not in question. In fact, his initial response was exactly what any king in his position would have done, he prepared an army to fight against the tribes that revolted. What he did not realize, however, was that this was orchestrated by God Himself.
[I Kings 12:21-24 And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, an hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men, which were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22 But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying, 23 Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying, 24 Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from me. They hearkened therefore to the word of the LORD, and returned to depart, according to the word of the LORD.]
This is the moment when the nation of Israel officially split into two separate kingdoms. The northern kingdom would come to be known as Israel, then later known as Samaria while the southern would remain as Judah. So why would God allow such anarchy to overtake His own nation? We are about to find out why. Jeroboam, fearing that the people might return to Jerusalem to worship God and then turn their loyalty back to Rehoboam, sought counsel who gave him the worst advice ever.
[I Kings 12:26-29 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David: 27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah. 28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 29 And he set the one in Beth-el, and the other put he in Dan.]
You will notice that Jeroboam had not faith in God whatsoever. I truly believe God already knew that the majority of Israel would turn from Him, and in His mercy He did not want Judah, or anyone who chose to remain faithful, to be swept into that rebellion. If this was not enough to provoke God to send judgment on them, Jeroboam takes it a step further by creating his own house of worship and clergy members for his gods.
[I Kings 12:31-33 And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi. 32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Beth-el, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Beth-el the priests of the high places which he had made. 33 So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Beth-el the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.]
It is sad to see just how quickly they all turned their backs on God. Every false god, no matter how elaborate or convincing, is man‑made. Yet they always attempt to mimic the Almighty, because that is the only way they can lure people away from the true and living God. The tragedy is how easily the human heart can be swayed when it is not anchored to God, [II Peter 2:20,22 For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 22 But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.]
God was not at all pleased with what Jeroboam had done. Even though He already knew that all this was going to take place, He still had something to say about it. God, sent a prophet to confront Jeroboam and to declare a powerful prophecy of what was to come. God, never remains silent when His people are being led astray; He always sends a warning before judgment.
[I Kings 13:1-3 And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the LORD unto Beth-el: and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense. 2 And he cried against the altar in the word of the LORD, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the LORD; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men’s bones shall be burnt upon thee. 3 And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the LORD hath spoken; Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon it shall be poured out.]
Josiah would not be born for more than three hundred and fifty years, yet he would become the only king who earnestly attempted to bring all of Israel back to God since David was king, [II Kings 23:16 And as Josiah turned himself, he spied the sepulchres that were there in the mount, and sent, and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon the altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the LORD which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words.]
Why was the altar the focus of God’s message? Because God was making a point. The altar itself stood there as ready to “hear” the prophet’s words as Jeroboam was, perhaps even more so. It was the altar that had provoked the LORD’s anger, for Jeroboam had corrupted the very place where sacrifices were meant to honor God. God wanted it unmistakably clear that this false worship, and the altar built for it, stood under His judgment. To further His point, as soon as the prophet touched Jeroboam, his hand turned to stone.
[I Kings 13:4-6 And it came to pass, when king Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of God, which had cried against the altar in Beth-el, that he put forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not pull it in again to him. 5 The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD. 6 And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Intreat now the face of the LORD thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored me again. And the man of God besought the LORD, and the king’s hand was restored him again, and became as it was before.]
They all wanted the freedom to worship their own gods, yet the moment trouble came, they were quick to seek the mercies of the very God they had rejected. Their idols could do nothing for them because every false god is powerless. Sooner or later, every heart learns that God means exactly what He says. Even the man of God learned this painful truth. After he restored Jeroboam’s hand he invited him to eat, but the prophet refused, stating that he was not to eat or drink anything while he was there and not even return to Judah in the direction he came. However, he did not anticipate running into anyone as he went in another direction.
[I Kings 13:8-11 And the man of God said unto the king, If thou wilt give me half thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place: 9 For so was it charged me by the word of the LORD, saying, Eat no bread, nor drink water, nor turn again by the same way that thou camest. 10 So he went another way, and returned not by the way that he came to Beth-el. 11 Now there dwelt an old prophet in Beth-el; and his sons came and told him all the works that the man of God had done that day in Beth-el: the words which he had spoken unto the king, them they told also to their father.]
Why did he lie to him? Perhaps he hoped to find out what God had spoken to Jeroboam or whether any judgment had been pronounced over Israel. Regardless of the reason, he lied and sadly the young man believed him, [I Kings 13:15-18 Then he said unto him, Come home with me, and eat bread. 16 And he said, I may not return with thee, nor go in with thee: neither will I eat bread nor drink water with thee in this place: 17 For it was said to me by the word of the LORD, Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink water there, nor turn again to go by the way that thou camest. 18 He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him.]
This stands as a sobering reminder that there are just as many, if not more, false prophets in our own day. Many claim special revelations, visions, or divine messages that God never gave. Their words sound spiritual, but they are rooted in deception. And this is proof right here that false religion and false doctrine will save no one. The second the young man got to the old prophets house, God spoke out to him.
[I Kings 13:21-24 And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the LORD, and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee, 22 But camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place, of the which the LORD did say to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers. 23 And it came to pass, after he had eaten bread, and after he had drunk, that he saddled for him the ass, to wit, for the prophet whom he had brought back. 24 And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him: and his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it, the lion also stood by the carcase.]
This is what God told the old man, and he in turn told the young man, crying because he realized that he is the one who would cause his death. Now, I do not know about you, but if I was the young man the last thing that I would be doing is sitting there when God is clearly saying that I will die if I remain there. I would be on my knees begging for God’s forgiveness. When are people going to understand that while God is merciful He will not tolerate going against His Word. God sees this as tempting Him just to see if He is serious. Proving God is one thing, tempting Him is another, []
The old prophet actually bore the greater guilt, because his lie directly caused the death of the man of God. He would carry that burden for the rest of his life, living with the painful reminder that his deception had destroyed a faithful servant. In fact, as soon as he heard people talking about a dead man laying on the side of the road he immediately thought that the lion tore his body to pieces.
[I Kings 13:26,28-30 And when the prophet that brought him back from the way heard thereof, he said, It is the man of God, who was disobedient unto the word of the LORD: therefore the LORD hath delivered him unto the lion, which hath torn him, and slain him, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake unto him. 28 And he went and found his carcase cast in the way, and the ass and the lion standing by the carcase: the lion had not eaten the carcase, nor torn the ass. 29 And the prophet took up the carcase of the man of God, and laid it upon the ass, and brought it back: and the old prophet came to the city, to mourn and to bury him. 30 And he laid his carcase in his own grave; and they mourned over him, saying, Alas, my brother!]
Seriously! The only thing he could say is that he died because he was disobedient to the word of the LORD. I am not sure what was harder on the old man, knowing that the young man lost his life because of his lie or that the judgment on Israel was true, but he did feel horribly ashamed for being the cause of this young man’s death. No one wants to hear of all the evil that is going to take place on the earth, but we cannot ignore it, especially with what is going on in the Middle East right now. This is what the young prophet was sent to do in the first place and yet even at his expense no one heeded the warning. In fact, Jeroboam became even worse, [I Kings 13:33-34 After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil way, but made again of the lowest of the people priests of the high places: whosoever would, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of the high places. 34 And this thing became sin unto the house of Jeroboam, even to cut it off, and to destroy it from off the face of the earth.]
People will worship their own gods their own way until trouble comes. Then, suddenly, they cry out to the one true God, because deep down they know only He has real power. Jeroboam was no different. He was perfectly content to worship his false gods until his son became gravely ill. In that moment, Jeroboam knew that only the LORD could heal him. Yet he was too proud to seek God himself. Instead, he sent his wife, disguised as someone else, to a man of God in Judah, hoping to obtain help without humbling himself before the LORD.
[I Kings 14:1-4 At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick. 2 And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh: behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, which told me that I should be king over this people. 3 And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him: he shall tell thee what shall become of the child. 4 And Jeroboam’s wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age.]
At this point, the sickness that Abijah had had affected his eyesight, he was going blind. No one really wants to tell a lost person that if they do not believe in and accept Christ as their Saviour that their soul will end up in hell, but if we do not tell them then that will weigh much heavier on us if they died without having that opportunity. This was their opportunity to repent. They could have turned everything around, but they refused to abandon their false gods, and therefore the judgment of God remained firmly in place. It was then that the prophet told Jeroboam’s wife that not only would her son die, but that the entire house of Jeroboam would.
[I Kings 14:6-7,9-10,12 And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings. 7 Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel, 9 But hast done evil above all that were before thee: for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back: 10 Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone. 12 Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die.]
That must have been the longest walk that woman ever took. Every step carried the weight of a mother’s fear and a nation’s judgment. Jeroboam’s entire household was about to face the consequences of turning away from God, yet their son, ironically the only one in the family in whom God found something good, was the one being spared. Ahijah explained this to her with solemn clarity: her child would die, not as punishment, but as deliverance from the evil that would soon consume the rest of Jeroboam’s house.
[I Kings 14:12-14,16-18 Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die. 13 And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him: for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam. 14 Moreover the LORD shall raise him up a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam that day: but what? even now. 16 And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin. 17 And Jeroboam’s wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah: and when she came to the threshold of the door, the child died; 18 And they buried him; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the prophet.]
Sometimes death is the only merciful solution, the only way God rescues a soul from the destruction surrounding them. Why? To be absent from the body means that we are present with the LORD, [II Corinthians 5:8-10 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. 9 Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Thank You for Your mercy and grace to accept me and make me one of Your people when I put my faith and trust in Your Son for my salvation. In this corrupt world that is only getting worse by the minute it is comforting to know that You are watching over me and protecting me no matter what earthly king is in charge. Lord, keep my eyes and faith on You, let me not get corrupted by the false teachers of the world and religion, let me boldly proclaim Your truths, and not be afraid to speak them, and let me not compromise with those who are trying to change Your Word. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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