Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary by Charles W. Draper & Chad Brand & Archie England

Author:Charles W. Draper & Chad Brand & Archie England [Draper, Charles W. & Brand, Chad & England, Archie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780805428360
Amazon: 0805428364
Publisher: Holman Reference
Published: 2003-10-02T04:00:00+00:00

The Divided Monarchy—ca. 931-586 B.C. The united kingdom of the 12 tribes suddenly divided in 931/930 B.C. The 10 tribes in the north would henceforth be known as Israel or Ephraim (its most influential tribe). The two southern tribes, Judah and Benjamin, remained loyal to the house of David and were known as Judah. Even before the united kingdom was founded, the unity of Israel was fragile. Petty rivalries and jealousies were common during the period of the judges. The division between Judah and Israel was apparent even during Samuel's lifetime, but David achieved a high degree of national unity. The heavy taxes of Solomon and the forced periods of labor imposed on the people under Solomon and Rehoboam brought the matter to a head.

Sedition boiled toward the surface late in the reign of Solomon. Jeroboam, son of Nebat, was a successful supervisor of civilian labor in Ephraim for Solomon (1 Kings 11:27-28). The Prophet Ahijah from Shiloh met Jeroboam one day and tore his (Ahijah's) garment into 12 pieces, handed Jeroboam 10 of them, and announced that Jeroboam would become ruler over Israel (1 Kings 11:31). The rumor of this prophecy spread quickly and Jeroboam fled to Egypt where he found refuge with Pharaoh Shishak, a political opportunist. Peace was preserved until the death of Solomon, but then trouble arose quickly and Rehoboam was not wise enough to salvage the tenuous situation.

Rather than easing the onerous governmental burdens on the people, Rehoboam threatened to increase them, and 10 tribes rebelled, leaving the Southern Kingdom of Rehoboam containing only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. Jeroboam, son of Nebat, became the first king of the Northern Kingdom and immediately led the people into idolatry. In order to make up for the loss of religious ties to Jerusalem, Jeroboam had two golden calves fashioned for the two sites of Dan and Bethel. Because of his apostasy Jeroboam's family forfeited the kingship. His name became a refrain and a stereotype for the evil in the reigns of the rulers of the Northern Kingdom.

Rehoboam was attacked by Jeroboam's ally, Pharaoh Shishak (Shosenq I, ca. 945-924 B.C.), who looted the temple and then moved further into the territory of Israel, Gilead, and Edom. An inscription left by Shishak at Karnak claimed the defeat of 150 cities in the region. Oddly Shishak did not consolidate his gains of territory but returned to Egypt where he soon died. Rehoboam secured his kingdom and turned over a stable nation to his son Abijah, who reigned only two years. He failed in an attempt to reunite the tribes. Abijah's son Asa reigned 41 years in Judah. He partially, but not entirely, reversed the religious deterioration of Judah.

In the entire subsequent history of the two nations, there were nine overlapping reigns or co-regencies, which makes the chronology in Kings and Chronicles hard to establish. The north also was divided once into two factions, which further confuses the issue. During the divided kingdom era each nation had 19 kings. The

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