A Turn of Events from the Lord

  1. Solomon’s son didn’t have his father’s wisdom. This seems like another big fault of Solomon.
  2. Yes, his wisdom had been a gift, but he could have been passing it on. He passes it onto the queen of Sheba and to all the officials that visit him.
  3. He writes down Proverbs and records some of his wisdom, but he doesn’t teach it to his son who would lead.
  4. His advisors who had “stood before Solomon” had wisdom. They had listened and learned.
  5. Why was Solomon’s son not before Solomon as he was growing up?
  6. Solomon had palaces built for his wives. The children probably lived with their mothers. Rehoboam didn’t grow up before his father who in the meantime was with a thousand other women.
  7. He doesn’t learn the wisdom that was there for the taking.
  8. I pointed out that Solomon appointing a queen mother wasn’t from God but from the surrounding pagan nations.
  9. Having multiple wives also is not from God. It starts with the evil man Lamech in Genesis. God gave Adam one wife to complete him.
  10. When the people turn on Rehoboam, 2 Chronicles 10 records it as being a turn of events from the Lord.
  11. God is sovereign, but we also have free will. It’s not one or the other. All of Scripture is true, not just the verses that support your position.
  12. God knew Rehoboam’s lack of wisdom and how he would respond, trying to act big and tough, letting the power go to his head.
  13. God knows us better than we know ourselves, and He’s big enough, powerful enough, wise enough, good enough to use our choices to bring about His purposes.
  14. He let Israel break up. He allowed it, but it was also as a result of human sin, and not just that one moment of poor decision.
  15. The kingdom was already in trouble when the wise king unwisely started loving foreign women and their gods.