Shortly after Rehoboam became king of Judah, the scripture reveals that he “forsook the law of the Lord, and all Israel along with him” (2 Chronicles 12:1). The specific sins of the nation are stated in 1 Kings, as they “built for themselves high places, sacred pillars, and wooden images on every high hill and under every green tree. And there were also perverted persons in the land. They did according to all the abominations of the nations which the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel” (1 Kings 14:23-24). God chose to chastise the king and the nation by raising up the king of Egypt against them. Shishak, the Egyptian ruler, invaded Judah with 1,200 chariots, 60,000 horsemen, and a large number of his people.
Shishak’s invasion was successful, as he took the fortified cities of Judah, and came all the way to Jerusalem. At this point, the prophet Shemaiah told the king, “Thus says the Lord: ‘You have forsaken Me, and therefore I also have left you in the hand of Shishak.’” (12:5).
As was typical of Israel, the leaders were finally brought to repentance in the face of their destruction. They humbled themselves, and said, “The Lord is righteous” (12:6).
A point is to be made here. Some chafe at the chastisement of the Lord. They claim that their treatment by God is in some way unfair or too harsh. This is not so. God is righteous! His treatment of sin and sinners is in accord with that righteousness. As such, what God does is fair! Paul wrote, “…it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you… taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thessalonians 1:6,8). God can not act contrary to His nature. He blesses the godly, and punishes the unrighteous.
Returning to our narrative: As Rehoboam humbled himself before Him, the Lord determined to modify His punishment of the nation. “Now when the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, saying, “They have humbled themselves; therefore I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance. My wrath shall not be poured out on Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. Nevertheless they will be his servants, that they may distinguish My service from the service of the kingdoms of the nations” (12:7-8).
For whatever reason, service to God had been unpalatable to Rehoboam and the people. So, God granted them an alternative. Shishak came up against Jerusalem, and took all that was valuable. He took away all the treasures in the temple that Solomon had built for the Lord. He took everything of value from Rehoboam’s house. He even took the gold shields that Solomon had made for the captains of the guard who guarded the king’s doorway. As the text states, “he took everything” (12:9).
As Rehoboam saw the riches of the kingdom taken away, there is little doubt he acknowledged Shishak to be a harsher taskmaster than the Lord.
We would do well to learn from this example. It is true that the Lord requires total devotion and willing submission. But, He tells us, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30). It can be demonstrated in every aspect of our lives that God’s service is to be preferred over the service of this world.
In His service, God requires us to “lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper” (1 Corinthians 16:2). However, those who choose money over God find out quickly that “the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (1 Timothy 6:10).
In His service, God requires “what God has joined together, let not man separate” (Matthew 19:6). However, men often deal “treacherously” with their wives by covenant (cf. Malachi 2:14), destroying homes and leaving their children without foundation and protection.
In His service, God requires us to “not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another” (Hebrews 10:25). Yet men choose to absent themselves from worship, not giving “the more earnest heed to the things we have heard” (Hebrews 2:1). In so doing, they lazily “drift away” into apostasy.
In His service, God requires us to “not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of [our] mind[s]” (Romans 12:2). However, men begin to “love the world” and “the things in the world.” They trade the eternal value of their own soul for that which will one day perish (cf. Matthew 16:26).
Our examples barely touch the hem of the garment. When men turn away from what Jehovah refers to as “My service” — choosing their own path — they choose to walk a destructive road to ruin.
We need endurance, that we may receive God’s promises. “But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul” (Hebrews 10:39).
