Rehoboam

Overview

Rehoboam became king of Israel after his father Solomon's death, inheriting a kingdom already strained by heavy taxation and forced labor used to fund Solomon's building projects. The assembled tribes, led by Jeroboam, asked Rehoboam to lighten the burden Solomon had placed on them in exchange for their loyalty. Rejecting the counsel of Solomon's experienced elders, Rehoboam followed the advice of the young men he had grown up with and answered the people harshly, promising even heavier burdens than his father had imposed. The ten northern tribes rebelled immediately, crowning Jeroboam king over Israel and leaving Rehoboam with only Judah and Benjamin. Rehoboam prepared to force reunification by war but was stopped by the prophet Shemaiah, who declared the division was from the LORD. Rehoboam reigned over Judah for seventeen years, a reign marked by spiritual decline, idolatry, and the plundering of the Temple treasures by Pharaoh Shishak of Egypt.