1 Kings14
English Standard Version
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1 At that the of fell .
2 And to his , , and yourself, that it be you are the of , and to . , the is , who of me that I should be .
3 with , some , and a of , and to him. He will happen to the .
4 . She and to and to the of . Now , his were of his .
5 And the Lord to , , the of is to you her , he is . and shall you to her. When she , she pretended to be woman.
6 But when the of her , as she at the , he , Come , of . do you pretend to be ? For I am with for you.
7 , , the Lord, the of : I you the and you my
8 and the the of and it to you, and yet you have been like my , who my and me with his , that which was in my ,
9 but you have were you and have and for yourself and , provoking me to , and have me your ,
10 , I will upon the of and will from , both and in , and will the of , as a man it is all .
11 Anyone belonging to who in the the shall , and anyone who in the open the of the shall , the Lord has it.
12 therefore, to your . When your the , the shall .
13 And shall for him and him, of shall to the , in him there is to the Lord, the of , in the of .
14 Moreover, the Lord will raise for himself a shall the of . ,
15 the Lord will a is in the , and of he to their and them the , they have their , the Lord to .
16 And he will of the of , he and to .
17 Then and and to . And as she to the of the , the .
18 And him and for him, according to the of the Lord, he his the .
19 of the of , he and he , , they are in the of the of the of .
20 And the was . And he with his , and his in his .
21 Now the of in . was when he began to , and he in , the the Lord had of the of , to his . His was the .
22 And what was in the of the Lord, and they provoked him to with their they , more that their had .
23 For they for themselves and and and ,
24 and there were male in the . They the of the the Lord drove the of .
25 In the of , of against .
26 He the of the of the Lord and the of the . He . He also the of had ,
27 and in their of , and them to the of the of the , who the of the .
28 And as as the the of the Lord, the them and to the .
29 of the of and that he , are they in the of the of the of ?
30 And there was .
31 And with his and was with his in the of . His was the . And his in his .
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1 Kings 14Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for 1 Kings 14. The full AI study guide (summary, themes, context) has its own page.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: Abijah being sick, his mother consults Ahijah. (1–6). The destruction of Jeroboam's house. (7–20). Rehoboam's wicked reign. (21–31).
vv1-6
“At that time,” when Jeroboam did evil, his child sickened. When sickness comes into our families, we should inquire whether there may not be some particular sin harboured in our houses, which the affliction is sent to convince us of, and reclaim us from. It had been more pious if he had desired to know wherefore God contended with him; had begged the prophet's prayers, and cast away his idols from him; but most people would rather be told their fortune, than their faults or their duty. He sent to Ahijah, because he had told him he should be king. Those who by sin disqualify themselves for comfort, yet expect that their ministers, because they are good men, should speak peace and comfort to them, greatly wrong themselves and their ministers. He sent his wife in disguise, that the prophet might only answer her question concerning her son. Thus some people would limit their ministers to smooth things, and care not for having the whole counsel of God declared to them, lest it should prophesy no good concerning them, but evil. But she shall know, at the first word, what she has to trust to. Tidings of a portion with hypocrites will be heavy tidings. God will judge men according to what they are, not by what they seem to be.
vv7-20
Whether we keep an account of God's mercies to us or not, he does; and he will set them in order before us, if we are ungrateful, to our greater confusion. Ahijah foretells the speedy death of the child then sick, in mercy to him. He only in the house of Jeroboam had affection for the true worship of God, and disliked the worship of the calves. To show the power and sovereignty of his grace, God saves some out of the worst families, in whom there is some good thing towards the Lord God of Israel. The righteous are removed from the evil to come in this world, to the good to come in a better world. It is often a bad sign for a family, when the best in it are buried out of it. Yet their death never can be a loss to themselves. It was a present affliction to the family and kingdom, by which both ought to have been instructed. God also tells the judgments which should come upon the people of Israel, for conforming to the worship Jeroboam established. After they left the house of David, the government never continued long in one family, but one undermined and destroyed another. Families and kingdoms are ruined by sin. If great men do wickedly, they draw many others, both into the guilt and punishment. The condemnation of those will be severest, who must answer, not only for their own sins, but for sins others have been drawn into, and kept in, by them.
vv21-31
Here is no good said of Rehoboam, and much said to the disadvantage of his subjects. The abounding of the worst crimes, of the worst of the heathen, in Jerusalem, the city the Lord had chosen for his temple and his worship, shows that nothing can mend the hearts of fallen men but the sanctifying grace of the Holy Spirit. On this alone may we depend; for this let us daily pray, in behalf of ourselves and all around us. The splendour of their temple, the pomp of their priesthood, and all the advantages with which their religion was attended, could not prevail to keep them close to it; nothing less than the pouring out the Spirit will keep God's Israel in their allegiance to him. Sin exposes, makes poor, and weakens any people. Shishak, king of Egypt, came and took away the treasures. Sin makes the gold become dim, changes the most fine gold, and turns it into brass.
Key Words
עֵת: time, especially (adverb with preposition) now, when, etc.
אֲבִיָּה: Abijah, the name of several Israelite men and two Israelitesses
בֵּן: a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etc., (like father or brother), etc.)
יָרׇבְעָם: Jarobam, the name of two Israelite kings
חָלָה: properly, to be rubbed or worn; hence (figuratively) to be weak, sick, afflicted; or (causatively) to grieve, make sick; also to stroke (in flattering), entreat
אָמַר: to say (used with great latitude)
אִשָּׁה: a woman
שָׁנָה: to fold, i.e. duplicate (literally or figuratively); by implication, to transmute (transitive or intransitive)
לֹא: not (the simple or abs. negation); by implication, no; often used with other particles
יָדַע: to know (properly, to ascertain by seeing); used in a great variety of senses, figuratively, literally, euphemistically and inferentially (including observation, care, recognition; and causatively, instruction, designation, punishment, etc.)
Cross References
1 Kings 14Baasha of Issachar conspires and utterly destroys the house of Jeroboam, fulfilling Ahijah's prophecy.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Parallel account detailing Rehoboam's reign, age, years in Jerusalem, and his mother Naamah.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Parallel account of Shishak of Egypt looting Jerusalem and taking Solomon's gold shields.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Jeroboam sends his wife to Ahijah, the very prophet who first promised him the kingdom.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Establishes custom of bringing a gift to a seer, though disguised as a simple peasant's offering.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Identical Hebrew idiom used to denote the complete extermination of all males in a doomed household.
Supported by JFB
Identical curse of being eaten by dogs and birds pronounced on Baasha's dynasty for similar sins.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Shishak of Egypt, who previously harbored Jeroboam, now plunders Jeroboam's rival Rehoboam.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Fulfillment of Ahijah's prophecy of captivity beyond the river Euphrates due to Assyrian exile.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Repeated biblical refrain indicting Jeroboam for his sins and for making Israel to sin.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Detailed account of the wars and acts of Jeroboam, particularly against Abijah of Judah.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Parallel account of Rehoboam replacing the stolen gold shields with inferior bronze/brazen ones.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Contrast with Saul's sinful disguise, highlighting Jeroboam's futile attempt to hide from God.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Deuteronomic law concerning the single place where the Lord chose to put His name.
Supported by JFB