The Tupelo journal., 1904-07-08
THE SUNDAY BIBLE SCHOOL,.
Lesson in the International Series
for July 10, 19O4-"Jere-
boam's Idolatry."
prepared by the Highway and BY
way" Preacher.)
copyright, 1904. by j. M. Edson.l

David:
q. If this people go up to do sacrifice IN
the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, then
shall the heart of this people turn again
unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam,
king of Judah, and they shall kill me, ana
go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.
2S. W~hereupon the king took counsel, and
made two calves of gold, and said unto
them: 1t Is too much for you to go up 10
Jerusalem; behold thy gods, 0 Israel,
which brought thee up out OF the lana Oh
Egypt.
%. And he set the one in Bethel and
the other put he in Dan.
80. And this thing became a sin; for the
people went to worship before the one, ever
unto Oar.
81. And he made an house of high places
and made priests of the lowest of the peo-
pie. which were not of the sons OF Lew.
80. And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the
eighth month, on the fifteenth day OF the
month, like unto the feast that Is In JUDAH
and he offered upon the altar. SO dld he
in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that
he had made; and he placed in Bethel the
priests of the high places which he had
made.
SO. So he offered upon the altar which he
had made in Bethel the fifteenth day OF
the eighth month, even in the month when
he had devised of his own heart; and or
dained a feast unto the children of Israel;
and he offered upon the altar, and burnt
incense.
THE LESSON includes besides the les
son text the thirteenth and fourteenth
chapters of l Kings, wherein are recorded
Gods warning and retribution upon
Jereboam. The fulfillment of the prophe-
cies of the prophet of Judah against the
altar at Bethel, and that of Ahijah the
prophet against Jereboam and his family,
recorded in 2 Kings 23:l5-16 and l Kings
1~5:29-30, should be read.
GOLDEN TEXT.-'Keep yourselves
from Idols."-1 John 1874.
TIME.-Common Chronology, 975 B. c.
PLACES.-Jereboam's capital. at first
Schechem. and later Tirzah, among the
hills a few miles north of Schechem; and
Bethel, and Dan, where the two golden
calves were placed.
Events in Israel During Jereboam's
Reign.
Prophecy against altar at Bethel
Kings Is.
Ahijah's prophecy against Jereboam and
Jereboam's house, Kings 14:1-20.
Defeat of Jereboam by Abijah, king of
JUDAH Chron. 10.
Events in Judah During Jereboam's
Reign.
u ANSiODOdIl, III dDOul tue eiSut-
zenith year of Jereboam's reign.-1 Kings
14:31.
Abijam Called Abijah in parallel pas
sages in 2 Chronicles), son of Rehoboam,
made king Kings 15:1-7.
Death of Abijam in twentieth year of
Jereboam's reign and beginning of reign
of good King ASA Kings 1873.
Comparing Scripture with Scripture.
"Jereboam said in his heart."-Com-
pare words in verse 80. Instead of TAX
ing counsel of God he searched in his
own heart for the solution Of problems
of his kingdom.
Nov shall the kingdom return to
the house of David Comp. prophecy
of Ahijah in l Kings 1871, SO. Had Jere-
boam believed Gods word from what
sin would he have been kept and what
punishment he would have been
spared. Jereboam acted on expediency,
but ~expediency is worse than folly ii
it be at the sacrifice of Righteousness
and truth. "He who trusts in his own
heart and takes his own way, is a
fool. To run before God is to sink
knee-deep into the swamp. We mus
make all things after the pattern
shown us on the mount, and take our
time from Gods almanac. What a
contrast to the course of Jereboam was
that of the Son of Man! He would do
nothing of Himself. His eye was al
ways on His Fathers dial plate, and
thus He knew when His time was not
yet fulfilled. He was always consult
ing the movement of His Fathers will
and did only those things which He
saw His Father doing. Similarly make
Gods will and way thy pole-star. Oh,
to be able to say with our blessed
Lord: I seek not mine own will, but
the will of Him that sent Me!'"-
Meyer.
Jereboam's Three-Fold Iniquity.
made two calves of gold."-Idola-
tory.
MADE priests of the lowest of the
people."-Sacrilege.
Ordained a t."-Godless Pre-
sumption.
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. broke the Sec
ond of the ten commandments and
paved the way for the breaking of the
first and third, under later kings, not
ably Ahab. In this day we need to re-
member that c~ovetousness is idolatry
(Col. $50, that idolatry is one of the
works of the flesh or the natural man
(Gal. 5:20), and that we must flee from
idolatry if we would escape this sin
Il Cor. 1914, and l John SGD.
Sacrilege.-The Levites had been set
apart by God for the priestly office
(Num. $40, 12), and for Jereboam to
assign to the sacred function those
from among "the lowest of the peo-
pie" was a great and awful sin.
Goddess Presumption. Jereboam
changed the feast of T~abernacles from
the fifteenth Of the seventh to the
fifteenth of the eighth month. Gods
appointments cannot be lightly Sc;
aside.-See Nix. 1913.
Seed Thoughts.
Unbelief lay at the root Of Jereboam's
| mistakes, and it lies at the root of ali
sin.
Jereboam's scheme of worship was
one che devised in his own heart" and
che very same thing may be said OF many
Of the modern schemes of worship.
God is a Spirit and they that worship
Him must worship Him in Spirit and
in truth"
Jereboam sought self-glory rather
than Gods glory.
A ministry nurely man-annninted will