At that time Abijah son of Jeroboam became ill, and Jeroboam said to his wife, "Go, disguise yourself, so you won't be recognized as the wide of Jeroboam. Then go to Shiloh. Ahijah the prophet is there--the one who told me I would be king over this people. Take ten loaves of bread with you, some cakes and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy." So Jeroboam's wife did what he said and went to Ahijah's house in Shiloh.
Now Ahijah could not see; his sight was gone because of his age. But the Lord had told Ahijah, "Jeroboam's wife is coming to ask you about her son for he is ill, and you are to give her such and such an answer. When she arrives, she will pretend to be someone else."
So when Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps at the door, he said "Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why this pretense? I have been sent to you with bad news. Go, tell Jeroboam that this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'I raised you up from among the people and made you a leader over my people Israel. I tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you, but you have not been like my servant David, who kept my commands and followed me with all his heart, doing only what was right in my eyes. You have done more evil than all who lived before you. You have made for yourself other gods, idols made of metal; you have provoked me to anger and thrust me behind your back.
Because of this, I am going to bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam. I will cut off from Jeroboam every last male in Israel--slave or free. I will burn up the house of Jeroboam as one who burns dung, until it is all gone. Dogs will eat those belonging to Jeroboam who die in the city, and the birds of the air will feed on those who die in the country. The Lord has spoken!'
"As for you, go back home. When you set foot in your city, the boy will die. All Israel will mourn for him and bury him. He is the only one belonging to Jeroboam who will be buried, because he is the only one in the house of Jeroboam in whom the Lord, the God of Israel, has found anything good.
"The Lord will raise up for himself a king over Israel who will cut off the family of Jeroboam. This is the day! What? Yes, even now. And the Lord will strike Israel, so that it will be like a reed swaying in the water. He will uproot Israel from this good land that he gave to their forefathers and scatter them beyond the River, because they provoked the Lord to anger by making Asherah poles. And he will give Israel up because of the sins Jeroboam has committed and has caused Israel to commit."
Then Jeroboam's wife got up and left and went to Tirzah. As soon as she stepped over the threshold of the house, the boy died. They buried him, and all Israel mourned for him, as the Lord had said through his servant the prophet Ahijah.
The other events of Jeroboam's reign, his wars and how he ruled, are written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel. He reigned for twenty-two years and then rested with his fathers. And Nadab his son succeeded him as king.
My Word From God:
- You cannot disguise who you are from God. Jeroboam's wife tried to disguise herself so that the prophet would not recognize her, but God knew who she was and informed the prophet.
- Worship of gods and idols makes God jealous and angry. Confession: I have placed other things as priority in my life. Things like my house, my child, and material things. I hope that through my choice to study his word daily, my priority will shift two Jesus.
- When I seek counsel, I should share the "whole" story with the person I'm seeking advice from. It is deceptive to tell only one side of the story in search of a certain answer. And many times, it's also not very helpful advice if the advisor only knows half of he story.
- When something painful or difficult enters my life, I will first examine my own self to look for the source of the problem. Sometimes, the situation is the result of my doing.
- As Bible commentator Matthew Henry said, "Families and kingdoms are ruined by sin." I seek to do the opposite. I will strove to provide a holy example to my family and those I come in contact with. I will one day answer to God himself for the things I do and say today. I would much rather have hundreds of people who were positively affected by me than to have to answer for hundreds of people who were "ruined" because of my sin.
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