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The Divided Kingdom

1 Kings 12

Jesus was once accused of casting out demons by the power of Satan himself. Jesus countered such an inconsistency with His famous words, "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls" (Luke 11:17). The Pharisees to whom Jesus spoke should have caught His allusion immediately for it was the divided kingdom of Israel that brought itself to ruin hundreds of years before.

Solomon's reign as king over a united Israel lasted 40 years. When Solomon died (930 B.C.), "Rehoboam his son reigned in his place" (1 Kings 11:43b). But the elders in the land who had lived under Solomon pleaded with Rehoboam to rule with a lighter hand than Solomon had—to lift the heavy load of taxation Solomon had used to finance his kingdom. But Rehoboam rejected their requests and promised to rule with an even heavier hand than his father. And the people of Israel—those in the 10 northern tribes—rejected Rehoboam's right to rule over them. Instead, they made Jeroboam, a former member of Solomon's cabinet, their king.

As for the two remaining southern tribes, Rehoboam maintained control of them and served as their king, keeping the dynasty of David alive in Jerusalem. The once united nation of Israel was now a house divided: Israel, consisting of the 10 northern tribes, ruled by King Jeroboam, and Judah, consisting of the two southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin, ruled by Solomon's son, Rehoboam.

This split made the people and land of Israel easier targets for oppressors. Assyria conquered the northern nation of Israel in 722 B.C. and Babylon destroyed Jerusalem and the southern nation of Judah in 586 B.C. The 10 northern tribes never returned from captivity, while a large number of Judean refugees returned to Jerusalem after 70 years in Babylon and Persia. Israel never regained its unity as a nation under God.

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