(REFLECTIONS ON 1 Kings 11:14-43)

The Lord was angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from Him. As a result, the Lord’s judgment on Solomon was that He would tear the kingdom away from him and give it to one of his servants.

In today’s Scripture, the Lord raised up adversaries against Solomon. Two of the main adversaries were Hadad the Edomite and Rezon son of Eliada. Interestingly, we read that both Hadad and Rezon had escaped David’s earlier military campaigns. They were hidden and preserved for a day such as this.

The third adversary we read about in today’s Scripture is Jeroboam, Solomon’s servant. He also rebelled against the king. Rebellion came from previous enemies who had been preserved for a day such as this, and there was also internal rebellion from Solomon’s own servant.

31 He said to Jeroboam, “Take for yourself ten pieces; for thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and give you ten tribes 32 (but he will have one tribe, for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel)…'”

The kingdom would be divided because Solomon turned his heart away from God. What causes division in our church and our faith community? One of the things we see today in the prelude to a divided kingdom is that things often start with the heart. Our heart is what draws us to God by the Holy Spirit, and when our heart turns away from God, that is many times the precursor to division.

Division is often a matter of the heart in a church and faith community. A change of heart can then bring about rebellion from within and from without. Rebellion is also not sudden, but is often left over from past generations and fueled by pride and jealousy that have built up from within.

The prelude to a divided kingdom thus reminds us to pause and examine our hearts. Where are our hearts? Is our heart for the Lord, or has our heart turned away from Him?

Lastly, what is interesting is that although the kingdom would be torn away from Solomon, one tribe, Judah, would remain for the sake of David and for the sake of Jerusalem, because mercy, grace, and forgiveness would come out of Judah through our Lord Jesus Christ. Hope still remains, and that is why we should examine our hearts today.

Pastor Michael Lu
Enduring Word Bible Commentary: 1 Kings 11