1 Kings 11:29-32; 12:19
Chapter 11
when Ahijah, who was wearing a new garment, seized it and tore it into twelve pieces.
He then told Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is the word of the Lord, the God of Israel:‘I am about to tear the kingdom from Solomon’s hands
to give you ten tribes. Only one tribe shall be left to him for the sake of my servant David and Jerusalem, the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.
For Solomon has forsaken me and worshiped Astarte, the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh, the god of Moab, and Milcom, the god of the Ammonites. Unlike his father, David, he has not walked in my way to do what is right before me and to keep my commandments and decisions.
Nevertheless, it is not from him that I will take the kingdom. I will let him reign during his lifetime for the sake of David, my servant, whom I chose and who kept my commandments and statutes.
But I will take the kingship from his son’s hand and make you king over ten tribes.
One tribe will be left for his son so that my servant David may always have a lamp before me in Jerusalem, where I have chosen to put my Name.
I will let you reign over all you wish; you shall be king of Israel.
Now, if you obey all that I command you, follow me and do what is right in my eyes, if you keep my commandments and my statutes, as my servant David did, I will be with you and establish your family for a long time, as I did for David. I will entrust Israel to you.
In this way, I will humble the family of David for a time.”
Solomon wanted to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam took refuge in Egypt with Shishak, the king of Egypt, where he remained until Solomon’s death.
The rest of the events of Solomon’s reign, his deeds, and his wisdom are written in the book of the Acts of Solomon.
Solomon reigned over all of Israel in Jerusalem for years.
Then he rested with his fathers and was buried in the tomb of David. Rehoboam, his son, succeeded him.
Commentaries
Rebellions Against Solomon.
The author shows the division of the kingdom as a result of Solomon’s idolatrous apostasy. Ahijah acts as the voice of divine will, and through a symbolic act, he transfers the ten tribes to Jeroboam. The decree is issued; the kingdom’s division becomes unavoidable.
The Schism.
This passage describes the splitting of the kingdom. Rehoboam, son of Solomon, ignores the advice of the elders and listens instead to his inexperienced and boastful friends. Rather than reaching an agreement with Jeroboam and the people, he arrogantly forces his will on them. As a result, the division of the kingdom is finalized. To avoid civil war, the prophet Shemaiah explains that this is happening by divine will.
The Schismatic Cult.
Following the political split, a religious division begins. Jeroboam attempts to diminish the significance of the Jerusalem cult and instead promotes alternative forms of religious expression within the people’s faith. He chooses the shrines at Bethel and Dan, which have a long-standing history and tradition. He represents the divine with the image of a bull, as the Canaanites did, and using images in worship proves more impactful than the image-free practices in Jerusalem. He appointed priests without court privileges and started a major pilgrimage festival in the fall. For the author writing during Josiah’s reform, this marks the original sin of the Northern Kingdom: Jeroboam began it, other kings repeated it, and it continued.
The Prophet of Judah.
The Word of God dominates this chapter: sent by the Lord from Judah through an anonymous prophet, it is stronger than the stone altar and the king’s arm; it serves as both proclamation and command. The prophecy spans from here to its fulfillment in 2 Kings 23:15-19. The narrator continues with another episode that is closely linked to the previous one, yet it remains enigmatic (10). Why is there so much interest in misleading the Prophet, who came from the south? Did the prophet of the North want to test the fidelity of the prophet of the South? Did he seek to verify the validity of his oracle? The latter seems most likely, given the story’s outcome. If the prophet continued on his way, his obedience to God authenticated his mission; if he disobeyed and went unpunished, his mission was doubtful; if he disobeyed and was punished, his mission was authentic. This account also explains the origin of the tomb with two anonymous prophets in Bethel (cf. 2 Kgs 23).
Sentence Against Jeroboam.
Ahijah ends his life in the city of the old sanctuary where Samuel carried out his ministry. Like Samuel, he condemns the king of Israel. Although Ahijah is nearly blind, he hears clearly, distinguishes sounds, listens to the inner voice of the oracle, and perceives the tragic and impending end of the dynasty he helped establish. The king’s consultation feels both familiar and royal. The death of the child (12) serves as punishment for the father (remember the first son of David and Bathsheba), not the son. The author is not surprised that an innocent person dies. Instead, he sees it as a mercy: God spares him from widespread disaster and grants him the rare honor of private burial.
Rehoboam King of Judah.
The author discusses Rehoboam, focusing solely on Pharaoh Shishak’s campaign and highlighting the contrasts: Solomon marries a daughter of the pharaoh, while Rehoboam must submit. The golden shields symbolize decline: if gold was once so plentiful that it made silver worthless, now bronze is the most valuable item Rehoboam owns, and even that must be carefully protected. The list of sins (22-24) is fairly typical, except for the mention of sacred prostitution. Political decline stems from religious decline. Still, something remains: Jerusalem stays the chosen city, the king is laid to rest with his ancestors, and his son inherits the throne. Though humiliated, the dynasty of David continues on the promise of the Lord (31).