Scripture Reading: 1 Kings 12:1-17
“And he spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying, ‘My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scourges!’”—1 Kings 12:14
Despite his phenomenal gift of wisdom, Solomon made foolish choices, to include building the splendor of the temple by levying heavy burdens on the people (1 Kings 5:13-14). When his son, Rehoboam, ascended to the throne, the people raised their grievances to the new king. To respond, Rehoboam sought counsel from the elders who advised Solomon. When they advised Rehoboam to answer the people with kindness and concede to their request, Rehoboam sought counsel from the younger men who grew up with him. Their advice, tell the people you will be a far more demanding and merciless king than Solomon. Rehoboam followed the advice of the younger men and answered the people harshly.
Rehoboam’s crude, egotistical reply caused the nation to split in two as the northern kingdom (Israel) crowned Jeroboam as their king and the southern kingdom (Judah) continued to follow Rehoboam. Rehoboam took an unnecessarily self-centered and immature stance with only one intent, to elevate himself over the legacy of his father and predecessor as king. Even more, Rehoboam carried himself like a schoolyard bully sitting on a throne, throwing his weight around simply because he could.
We can find bullies like Rehoboam everywhere: In our relationships, families, churches, jobs, communities and politics. They issue threats and insults against people simply because they dare to hold divergent views on anything. Bullies sow seeds of discord and confusion as they depend on the indifference and fear of others to take a stand. They foster fear, insecurity, dependence and low self-esteem in our personal relationships. Bullies try to convince us they, not God, are the center of the universe, and our universe is wholly dependent on them for our survival and success.
Rehoboam had a great opportunity to build upon Solomon’s legacy, unite his nation and encourage his people to achieve even greater things. Instead, he used his platform to promote himself over God and the people he was to lead. However they phrase it, when a person points to themselves, not God, as the source of solutions in our lives, bullying tactics are not too far behind. Bullies thrive off of fear when the Word of God constantly reminds us the power to live victoriously lies squarely in trusting God, not those who sow fear into our lives.
Lesson to Remember: Bullies may seek to sow fear, but God’s love sows freedom from fear.
