MPV Commentary

Rehoboam Refusing the Old Men's Good Counsel.

1. Rehoboam went to Shechem (see 1 Kings 12:1). This chapter is essentially the same as in 1 Kings 12:1-19, with a few minor changes.

3. They had already sent Jeroboam back from Egypt for this reason.

7. The old men asked Rehoboam if he would be kind to the people and speak words of encouragement to them. In other words, they were asking him to make some concessions and restore their rights, which would have secured their loyalty to his rule.

15-17. However, Rehoboam refused to listen to the people's request because it was ultimately God's will that the northern tribes revolt against him. Both Rehoboam and the Hebrew people acted on their own free will, but God had permitted this event as a punishment for Solomon's apostasy. This incident demonstrates God's immediate supervision over the rise and fall of kingdoms, illustrating how divine predictions can be fulfilled through human passions and natural events, as seen in many other instances throughout Scripture.