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The Kingdom of Israel Splits - The Book of 1 Kings · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. Howbeit I will not take the whole
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  Speaker 1: kingdom out of his hand, but I will make him
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  Speaker 1: prince all the days of his life for David my
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  Speaker 1: servant's sake, whom I chose, because he kept my commandments
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  Speaker 1: and my statutes. 1 Kings 11.34 Lord, through the life
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  Speaker 1: of Solomon and the listening of 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles,
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  Speaker 1: I now know the value of wise and honest counsel. Therefore,
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  Speaker 1: I pray that there is never a moment in my
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  Speaker 1: life that I am ever without wise and God-fearing counsel.
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  Speaker 1: When others around me seek to give advice that is
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  Speaker 1: contrary to your wisdom and your ways, place people like
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  Speaker 1: Jeroboam in my life to remind me to honor what
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  Speaker 1: you've entrusted me with and to deal kindly with everyone
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  Speaker 1: I come in contact with. From this truth, I know
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  Speaker 1: your hand will stay upon me and guide me as
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  Speaker 1: you continue to expand and enlarge the tent pegs of
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  Speaker 1: my life and ministry. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you
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  Speaker 1: for praying with us today. Continue your time with God
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  Speaker 1: by listening to today's Bible story, brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: The Kingdom of Israel Splits In our last story, we
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  Speaker 2: beheld the vast wisdom of the philosopher King Solomon. Kings
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  Speaker 2: and queens of old would seek him out and travel
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  Speaker 2: long distances to glean from his wisdom. Solomon led with
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  Speaker 2: great kindness and pursued peace with other nations. However, Solomon
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  Speaker 2: had a weakness for women. He amassed a harem of
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  Speaker 2: hundreds of wives and concubines from other nations. He immersed
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  Speaker 2: himself in lewd cultures and sexual deviance. Eventually, he began
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  Speaker 2: to worship foreign gods. Therefore, his kingdom was promised by
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  Speaker 2: God to be split. Solomon died and left his kingdom
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  Speaker 2: to his son, Rehoboam. Now we peer more into the
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  Speaker 2: inner workings of rebellion during Solomon's reign and witness the
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  Speaker 2: heart of Rehoboam. His pride and unwillingness to heed the
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  Speaker 2: advice of his elders may end up being his downfall.
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  Speaker 2: Inspired by the book of 1 Kings.
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  Speaker 3: Hello, I'm Jack Graham with today's episode of the Bible
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  Speaker 3: in a Year. In yesterday's episode, we heard about Solomon's
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  Speaker 3: fall from God. Though he was wise and wealthy, his
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  Speaker 3: heart sought his own desires. He disobeyed God and married
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  Speaker 3: foreign women, hundreds of them. And with each new wife,
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  Speaker 3: he would give a bit of his heart to a
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  Speaker 3: false god. His life, though filled with such promise, ended
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  Speaker 3: up in strife and sorrow. But God's grace was with him,
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  Speaker 3: and in the end, he turned back to the Lord
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  Speaker 3: and praised the God of his father, the one true God. Today,
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  Speaker 3: we'll hear how dissension was already brewing before Solomon's death,
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  Speaker 3: and how his son, Rehoboam, his successor, would face the
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  Speaker 3: consequences of Solomon's sins and his own prideful spirit. Let's
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  Speaker 3: listen now to today's scripture.
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  Speaker 2: The trees shifted slightly from the breeze. Crickets chirped, and
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  Speaker 2: the subtle sound of babbling brooks could be heard among
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  Speaker 2: the forest. In the darkness, a faint chanting could be
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  Speaker 2: heard from the distance. Deep among the trees, Solomon stood
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  Speaker 2: in the Mount of Olives, where his father would once
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  Speaker 2: go to pray and sing before the Lord. His face
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  Speaker 2: was illuminated by candles and incense. There, in the coolness
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  Speaker 2: of evening, Solomon worshipped the Moabite god Shemosh. Shemosh was
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  Speaker 2: known as the Destroyer. He was said to be a
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  Speaker 2: god that craved blood. The Moabites would often make human
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  Speaker 2: sacrifices to Shemosh to appease him. There, bowing before a
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  Speaker 2: massive black stone altar, Solomon worshipped the Destroyer. His kind
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  Speaker 2: heart was being tainted by the evil that lurked behind
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  Speaker 2: the altar. He sat among a darkness that would not
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  Speaker 2: relent in its desire to destroy Solomon's soul. Solomon's idolatry
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  Speaker 2: was well known by his officials. They watched as he
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  Speaker 2: left in the middle of the night. They witnessed his
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  Speaker 2: lust for foreign women. They saw his insatiable hunger for
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  Speaker 2: exotic sex and idol worship. Jeroboam, son of Nebat, watched
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  Speaker 2: as Solomon came to and fro from the black stone altar.
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  Speaker 2: His bones shook at the thought of Israel's king worshipping
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  Speaker 2: a god that required human blood. Jeroboam was the son
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  Speaker 2: of a widow. and knew the hardships some had experienced
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  Speaker 2: in Israel. It pained him to watch the king shirk
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  Speaker 2: his faithfulness for the sake of simple pleasures and dark arts.
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  Speaker 2: One day Solomon was overseeing a rebuilding project of Israel's walls.
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  Speaker 2: He took many of his men to aid in the repairs.
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  Speaker 2: Together in the hot sun, Solomon and his men began
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  Speaker 2: to reinforce the walls, building better beams and support systems
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  Speaker 2: to keep it upright. Solomon saw Rehoboam work, He was
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  Speaker 2: a capable young man, strong and a good leader among
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  Speaker 2: the rest of his men. Solomon decided to put him
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  Speaker 2: in charge of the labor force from the tribes of
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  Speaker 2: Ephraim and Manasseh. Jeroboam accepted the task reluctantly, still leery
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  Speaker 2: of the king. Jeroboam departed from Jerusalem to begin his work.
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  Speaker 2: He passed some of the farmlands on the outskirts of
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  Speaker 2: the city. The fields were lush and ripe for harvesting,
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  Speaker 2: and the air smelled of wheat and barley. Along the way,
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  Speaker 2: the prophet Ahijah stopped him in the middle of the field.
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  Speaker 2: Ahijah was wearing a brand new cloak that waved gracefully
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  Speaker 2: in the breeze. Jeroboam watched as Ahijah removed his new
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  Speaker 2: cloak and tore it into ten pieces. He watched curiously
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  Speaker 2: as the prophet ripped the robe. He handed the ten
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  Speaker 2: pieces to Jeroboam and said, Take these pieces of my cloak,
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  Speaker 2: for the Lord is about to tear the kingdom apart
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  Speaker 2: because of Solomon's idolatry. Ten tribes of Israel will be
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  Speaker 2: given to you, Jeroboam. However, he will leave one tribe
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  Speaker 2: to Solomon and his descendants because of his loyalty to
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  Speaker 2: King David. You shall rule over all that your heart desires.
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  Speaker 2: Listen to the ways of the Lord, and your dynasty
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  Speaker 2: will be established. Jeroboam held the torn pieces in his hands.
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  Speaker 2: And from that day forward, he began the secret workings
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  Speaker 2: of a rebellion. When Solomon caught wind of Jeroboam's favor,
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  Speaker 2: he sent men to kill him. However, Jeroboam fled to
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  Speaker 2: King Shishak of Egypt and stayed there for a long while.
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  Speaker 2: The days of Solomon came to a close and it
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  Speaker 2: was time for his son Rehoboam to take the throne.
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  Speaker 2: All of Israel gathered to make him king and He
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  Speaker 2: was ushered in with parades and dancing. The news of
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  Speaker 2: Solomon's passing spread across the land, for Solomon was beloved
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  Speaker 2: among every surrounding nation. The news came to Jeroboam, who
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  Speaker 2: had found refuge in the land of Egypt for a
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  Speaker 2: few years. He had amassed wealth and influence in Egypt,
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  Speaker 2: yet left it to return to his people. He walked
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  Speaker 2: the city streets. While many kings would have seen a
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  Speaker 2: thriving and flourishing culture, Jeroboam saw laborers who were worked
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  Speaker 2: hard and taxed too much. His days living in Jerusalem
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  Speaker 2: with his widowed mother had made him compassionate towards the
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  Speaker 2: suffering and poor in Israel. Together, with a few of
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  Speaker 2: the elders in Israel, Jeroboam approached the new king. He
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  Speaker 2: stood before him and said, Your father was a hard
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  Speaker 2: master at times. If you lightened the load of labor
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  Speaker 2: and decreased taxes— The people will love you and thank you.
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  Speaker 2: They will be your loyal servants. Rehoboam stroked his young beard.
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  Speaker 2: A certain air of arrogance came off of him. It
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  Speaker 2: vexed Jeroboam. Rehoboam deepened his voice and waved his hand
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  Speaker 2: like a child pretending to be king. He held out
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  Speaker 2: his hands and said, Give me three days to think
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  Speaker 2: this over and come back for my answer. So Jeroboam
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  Speaker 2: and the elders left. Rehoboam gathered his father's advisors and
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  Speaker 2: asked for their advice.' How shall I respond to their requests?
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  Speaker 3: he asked.
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  Speaker 2: The eldest counselor of the group looked among the men.
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  Speaker 2: They all seemed to be in agreement that Rehoboam should
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  Speaker 2: lighten the load for the people. He bowed before the
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  Speaker 2: king and said,' If you would become a servant to
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  Speaker 2: these people, they will serve you with loyalty and honor.'
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  Speaker 2: Rehoboam did not like this answer. He had waited his
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  Speaker 2: whole life to become king. He enjoyed the lavish lifestyle
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  Speaker 2: of his father's riches. He enjoyed the fine wines, the gardens,
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  Speaker 2: the women, and the expensive robes. The last thing Rehoboam
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  Speaker 2: wanted was to serve anybody. Instead of heeding their advice,
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  Speaker 2: Rehoboam gathered his young friends together. They drank, reveled, and
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  Speaker 2: pretended to speak of the kingdom's greatest needs.' What is
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  Speaker 2: your advice?' he asked them.' How shall I answer these
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  Speaker 2: elders and servants?' The young men were filled with the
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  Speaker 2: same self-importance as their king. They responded just as expected.
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  Speaker 2: Here is how you handle the complainers of Israel. Say
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  Speaker 2: this to them. I have more power in my finger
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  Speaker 2: than my father did in his whole body. He lashed
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  Speaker 2: you with whips, but I shall lash you with scorpions.
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  Speaker 2: Jeroboam laughed. The cackles of his friends filled the halls.
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  Speaker 2: Three days later, Jeroboam entered into the palace halls with
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  Speaker 2: the elders behind him. Jeroboam was tall strong and held
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  Speaker 2: his posture in a commanding demeanor. King Rehoboam took notice
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  Speaker 2: of this and was slightly threatened. Rehoboam shifted upright on
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  Speaker 2: his throne to seem taller. He raised his staff in
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  Speaker 2: the air and said, I have my answer. The whole
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  Speaker 2: crowd was silent. My father gave you heavy burdens, but
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  Speaker 2: I will make them even heavier. Jeroboam's fists clenched at
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  Speaker 2: the sound of his words. The king smiled and said,
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  Speaker 2: My father lashed you with whips, but I shall lash
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  Speaker 2: you with scorpions. His friends laughed behind him. Yet the
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  Speaker 2: elders and Jeroboam were unamused. Saying nothing, they left the halls.
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  Speaker 2: So the king was brutal to his people. His cruelty
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  Speaker 2: and taxation increased, and his heavy hands stirred up the
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  Speaker 2: people of Israel. An uproar began to ignite among the people.
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  Speaker 2: They shouted in the city streets, down with the legacy
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  Speaker 2: of David. They refused to work any longer and returned
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  Speaker 2: to their homes in protest. Rehoboam was livid at their disobedience.
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  Speaker 2: He sent his enforcer, Adoniram, to restore order in the
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  Speaker 2: city streets. However, he was stoned to death as a
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  Speaker 2: message to the king. When Rehoboam heard of this, he
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  Speaker 2: hopped on his chariot and hid in the palace of Jerusalem.
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  Speaker 2: From that day forward, the northern tribes of Israel refused
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  Speaker 2: to be ruled by the descendants of David. The ten
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  Speaker 2: northern tribes of Israel gathered together in rejection of their king.
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  Speaker 2: They talked among themselves and decided that Jeroboam should be
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  Speaker 2: their new king. Jeroboam accepted their offer and ruled over
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  Speaker 2: every tribe except for Judah. When Rehoboam heard of this,
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  Speaker 2: he amassed a great army of 180,000 troops He was
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  Speaker 2: ready to destroy all of Israel in vengeance. However, the
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  Speaker 2: Lord spoke to him sternly, saying, Do not attack your brothers,
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  Speaker 2: for this is my doing. So Rehoboam cowered in his
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  Speaker 2: palace and ruled over the vast nation of Judah. Once again,
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  Speaker 2: Israel was a split kingdom. There were no perfect kings.
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  Speaker 2: The entirety of Israel pointed to the faithfulness of God
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  Speaker 2: to work in imperfect people. Solomon, for all his wisdom
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  Speaker 2: intact as a king, fell prey to the grips of sin.
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  Speaker 2: His sins trickled down into the heart of his son.
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  Speaker 2: God would not excuse this, nor would he abandon Israel altogether. Instead,
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  Speaker 2: God would weave Israel's goodness and evil into one tapestry
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  Speaker 2: ultimately pointing to his grace.
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  Speaker 3: Today we begin with Solomon who is still alive. He
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  Speaker 3: has given himself over to his foreign wives and their
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  Speaker 3: false gods, and his wisdom and kindness seems a distant
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  Speaker 3: memory to many in the kingdom of Israel. We also
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  Speaker 3: meet a young Israelite leader by the name of Jeroboam.
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  Speaker 3: He was a dedicated and hard worker, but even as
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  Speaker 3: he served the king, Jeroboam witnessed the conflict in Israel
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  Speaker 3: and Solomon's harshness with Jewish workers. Solomon was impressed by Jeroboam.
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  Speaker 3: and tasked him with overseeing laborers from the northern tribes
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  Speaker 3: of Ephraim and Manasseh. Little did Solomon know that this
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  Speaker 3: began to set the stage for a divided kingdom. One
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  Speaker 3: day as he was working, Jeroboam encountered the prophet Ahijah,
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  Speaker 3: who delivered a dramatic message to Jeroboam. He tore his
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  Speaker 3: robe into 12 pieces to symbolize the 12 tribes of
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  Speaker 3: Israel and told Jeroboam that God was going to take
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  Speaker 3: 10 of the tribes away from Solomon's successor and give
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  Speaker 3: them to Jeroboam. With this promise came a warning. He
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  Speaker 3: was being given charge over a vast number of God's people,
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  Speaker 3: so he must follow the Lord and listen always to
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  Speaker 3: his counsel. I can only imagine the weight of all
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  Speaker 3: this news on Jeroboam. Surely he was both excited and
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  Speaker 3: fearful at the same time. Shortly after he received the news, however,
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  Speaker 3: Solomon got wind of this threat to his kingdom and
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  Speaker 3: tried to kill Jeroboam, who had no choice but to
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  Speaker 3: flee to Egypt and hide. After Solomon's death, when Rehoboam
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  Speaker 3: was king, Jeroboam felt it was safe to return, and
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  Speaker 3: for the sake of his people, that's what he did.
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  Speaker 3: His first order of business was to approach the new
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  Speaker 3: king and appeal to him for the people. They were
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  Speaker 3: being worked too hard and taxed too much. So Jeroboam
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  Speaker 3: asked the king to ease their burden. Rehoboam's initial response
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  Speaker 3: seems reasonable. He doesn't immediately deny the request or concede.
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  Speaker 3: He asks for time to consider it. Then he seeks
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  Speaker 3: counsel from the elders, and their response was a wise one.
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  Speaker 3: If he will serve the people, then they will reward
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  Speaker 3: him with service and loyalty of their own. It's the
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  Speaker 3: kind of response Solomon himself would have given in his
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  Speaker 3: younger years when he walked with the Lord. Tragically, Rehoboam
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  Speaker 3: wasn't seeking wise counsel. What he wanted was an answer
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  Speaker 3: he liked, one that stroked his ego. So in 1
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  Speaker 3: Kings 12 verse 8 we read this, But he abandoned
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  Speaker 3: the counsel that the old men gave him and took
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  Speaker 3: counsel with the young men who had grown up with
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  Speaker 3: him and stood before him. So he asked his friends,
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  Speaker 3: his yes-men, and they gave him the response he wanted.
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  Speaker 3: Show your power and don't back down, they said. In fact,
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  Speaker 3: Turn the heat up. It's a response reminiscent of Pharaoh's
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  Speaker 3: answer to Moses, not of a gentle king who loves
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  Speaker 3: his people. But that's the answer he gave Jeroboam and
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  Speaker 3: the people when they returned. Rather than lighten their load,
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  Speaker 3: he would pile on more. His plan to gain power
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  Speaker 3: and respect by force backfired immediately. When the people saw
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  Speaker 3: that he didn't care for them, they dropped their tools
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  Speaker 3: and abandoned their work. Rehoboam, rather than acknowledge his mistake,
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  Speaker 3: tried once again to force the people to submit. He
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  Speaker 3: sent an enforcer to put the people back to work,
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  Speaker 3: but the Israelites stoned him to death in the streets.
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  Speaker 3: At the end of the day, Rehoboam was left with
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  Speaker 3: only two tribes to rule, while the ten tribes of
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  Speaker 3: the north made Jeroboam king. And so, just as God
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  Speaker 3: had told Solomon it would happen, the kingdom of Israel
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  Speaker 3: was split in two. Jeroboam would now have to remember Ahijah,
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  Speaker 3: the prophet's warning, to follow God's commandments and to seek him.
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  Speaker 3: How would he fare? We'll find out in tomorrow's reading.
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  Speaker 3: Dear God, we thank you always for your word, for
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  Speaker 3: it is light and life to us. Thank you for
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  Speaker 3: the lesson that we learned today that it is always
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  Speaker 3: right and best to seek wise counsel rather than foolish counsel.
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  Speaker 3: Help us always to listen to those who give us
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  Speaker 3: godly counsel Wise men and women who seek you and
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  Speaker 3: your ways. But we pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.
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  Speaker 3: I'm Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. Download the Pray.com app
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  Speaker 3: and make prayer and Bible study a priority in your life.
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  Speaker 3: with God, then be sure to visit jackgraham.org. That's jackgraham.org.
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  Speaker 3: God bless you.