2 Chronicles 10-12
The kingdom divides.
But the writer’s purpose is not to re-tell all the accounts of 1 Kings, but to focus on these events from a Levitical point of view. And what were the Levites and priests interested in? The temple and its worship! So, the Chronicler pays scant attention to Jeroboam and the northern kingdom.
We do read of Rehoboam’s foolish response to the northern tribes, trusting his young friends’ advice, instead of the advice of his father’s friends. But the key event of these three chapters comes in 2 Chronicles 11:13-17. When the kingdom divided, the priests and Levites, who had been living throughout the united kingdom, came to Jerusalem and spiritually strengthened the Kingdom of Judah. They came because of the temple, because they wanted to be in the same nation that worshipped God according to the Law of Moses. The presence of these Levites proved to be a spiritual stabilizer for Judah and encouraged some of their kings to rule faithfully and in the fear of the Lord.
Nevertheless, when Rehoboam began to abandon the law, God allowed the Shishak, the Pharaoh of Egypt, to ransack Jerusalem and the temple.
Tomorrow, we begin our trek through the kings of Judah!
In Jesus’ love,
Pastor Gary
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