The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1890-12-31
SABBATH SCHOOL.
INTERNATIONAL LESSON FoH
JANUARY 4.
lesson Text: "The Kingdom Dis
vfded," I Kings xiii, ILL.,
Golden Text: Proverbs xvi,
13-Commentary.

oesplseo. Rehoboam was so far as we know
the only son Of Solomon, and therefore heir to
the throne. His name. according to Young,
signifies "Fresr OF the people," but he
proved to be great oppressor. Shechem
was city Of the Levites, also a city Of
refuge, situated in Mount Ephraim. Itwas
the place OF Abraham's first altar III Canaan,
and the Lords first appearance to- him in that
promised land. There also Jacob bought
field and erected an altar, calling it .sGod,
the God Of 1srae'" There the body OF Jo-t
seph was buried after the conquest of the
land by Joshua tGen. xii, 6, z, xxxiii.. 2G:5
Josh. xiv, 32l. There all Israel gathered
to make Rehoboam King OF Israel, but God
had determined that Solomon,s son should
not be King Of all Israel Chap. xi., 1885,,
and not all Israel nor all nations can over
throw the purpose Of God.
.. "Jeroboam and all the congregation Of
Israel came and spake unto Rehoboam.' This.
seems outwardly all fair and submissive but
Jeroboam cannot have forgotten the promise
OF the Lord by the prophet Ahijah Iii, 29-
3D, and he Is only quietly awaiting the de-
velopments which shall give him the ten
tribes for his kingdom.
4. Thy father made our yoke grieyous;
make thou the grievous service
lighter, and we will serve thee This, too,
seems fair and reasonable, and it looks as IL
all might bs well with Rehoboam il he will
only do right. The grievous service and
heavy yoke of Solomon was fulhllment
of the word Of the Lord by Samuel when the
geopl. demanded King Il Sam. viii, Ills.
Things always turn out as God says.
:. Depart yet three days. then come
again to me-" The third day in Scripture is
the day Of resurrection and life and deliver
ance (Hos. vi, 2; John H., 19; Matt. xvi, 21),
but only for such as follow on to know the
Lord. Neither Rhehoboarn nor Jeroboam
nor their followers were at this time much
concerned about following the Lord, as their
after conduct plainly testifes
z. "If thou wilt be servant unto this
people this day, (: " aid speak good words
to them, then they will be thy servants for
ever" If he would only seek the welfare and
peace Of his people, as did those Kings who
sought to do right in the sight Of the Lord,
and as did Mordecai tEstb. <, 81 at later
period. then all would be well. But this was
not his spirit. he had not the spirit Of the
King of Kings, who thoush He was rich, yet
for our sakes became poor; who laid aside
His glory, and for His peoples sake became
q servant, saying: II am among you as one
who serveth" III Cor. viii, 9; Luke 11ii,,
Sn. ~. 5-7N -. 3;
8. "3ut he forsook tine counsel Of the old
men 81 > and consulted with the young
men" The old men had stood before Solo:
mon, his father, but these young men had
grown up with himself and stood before him.
Mhey would be more to his mind, and being
his fellows he would be more apt to listen
to them. Just as young men to-day are
more likely to heed the advice Of their COM
panions than the advice Of their seniors, VINO
are too often deemed by them as fossils OF >
past age, having very antiquated ideas.
O. sAnd he said unto them, What counsel
ye?' II he had only cried to the Wonderful
Counselor '.Shew me Thy ways, o Lord;
teach me Thy paths (Ps. XIV, A., how well
it would have been with him. But he pre-
ferred an arm Of flesh, and proved IN his e1-
perience the truth Of the 'Fhus saith tne
Lord, Cursed be the man that trusteth In.
man, and maketh flesh his arm. and whose
heart departeth from the Lord" tJer. xy1l,ss
s.. -
10. my little finger shall be thicker than
INV fathers loins" This is part Of the an
swer which the young men instructed him to
give to the people. The loins are Significant
Of strength as in Job Il, ,16; Prov. XXI, IT,
but in the case Of Solomon it was strength OF
Impression. Observe that in the text
the word finger is in italics, indicating
that there is no word for finger in the He
brew. The sense seems to be: my little or
least shall be thicker or heavier than my
fathers strongest; OF the heaviest yoke
which my father put upon you shall seem
light when compared with Wnat "Ll 600
YOU. My lightest yoke shall be heaViertnan
the heaviest of my father"
IL. ..My father hath chastised you wild
whips but will chastise you with scorpions.
So they would have him draw his people 70
him by eucourag ging him to act not as snep-s
herd Of his people, but as a cruel taskmaster,
a veritable Egyptian Pharaoh. Such insane
advice one would think enough to stay ltseif
and those who gave 1t.
10. $50 Jeroboam and all the people came
+o Rehoboam the third day as the king had
oono;nted :" II is q dark day for Israel.
Tbev ara to hear no comforting words; tnelr
yoke is not to be lightened nor their service
made easier. And yet this man was KING on
the throne of David, ruling over the Loras
psople. A sorry representative OF JenoVah
surely he was How he belied his God and
acted as a true representative OF the great
oppre ssor, the father Of lies, whom he served.
IS. "And the king answered the people
roughly" Roughly" is the same word that
in verse is translated "grievous." Joseph
also spoke roughly" to his brethren Gen.
xiii, I, 30), but in his case it was only out
ward roughness, yet we'll deserved, while
back Of it there was forgiveness and love.
Jesus, the true King of Israel, always had
roughly to self righteous hypocrites, who
richly deserved it. He was all love, but love
despised brings wrath. -''.. -
IA "And spake to them after the counsel
Of the young men," Wicked counselors are
a great curse, and are all in the service. for
the time at least, of the first wicked coun-
selor. who in the garden led Adam and Eve
astray. It is bad enough when friends give
evil counsel, but how much worse when ones
own mother is the evil counselor tGen. xvii,
l3: II Chron. xii, -. :,
15 "The cause was from the Lord" Back
Of all these apparently ordinary circumstan-
ces God was working. He cannot do evil, but
He often permits evil to take its course, and
vet overrules all for the good of His people,
IT, "All Israel saw that the king
hearkened. not unto them" Then they
departed to their tents and made
Jeroboam their king; there was none
that followed the house o. David out the
tribe OF Judah only. And when Reho5oam
would have gone forth to subdus the rebels
God by His servant forbade him, and ne had
TO be content to have it so Tvs. M-2A. Ihus
the highly privileged nation was divided be-
cause Of their sins, and to this day they have
never been as whole nation reunited.
II. But as for the children OF Israel
which dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam
.eioned over them" Not for his sake, nor
Soiomon's. but for David's sake was this one
tribe left him (xi, Is, 36i; and because the
scepter should not depart from Judah till
Shiloh should come Gen. xix, lQ. Shiloh
has come and gone, but He is coming again
TO make the twelve tribes one nation IN their
own land forever, and He Himself VIII pe
their King. the true freer OF HIS lis people
iEzek. xxxvii, 21-2S: Luke j.. 3l-33l. Let
ne not forget that in these there were some
faithful @ witnesses for God txi., 80: xii, ~,
who believed His word and stood nobly for
Him Here are the names of the two, but IN
darker days than these He had 1000 Who yI
bowed not down to Baal. Am one OF his
faithful few w!-Lessoa Helper.