Due to Jeroboam’s fear of losing his kingdom and a lack of faith in God, Jeroboam changed the characteristics of God. He changed the form of God into that of a calf.
Jeroboam lacked faith because God had promised to give Jeroboam a kingdom and preserve it as long as he followed God’s statutes, precepts and commandments.
However, Jeroboam lacked faith in God’s promise and instead, he tried to preserve his kingdom through his own strength by creating idols.
And at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him on the road. Now Ahijah had dressed himself in a new garment, and the two of them were alone in the open country. 30 Then Ahijah laid hold of the new garment that was on him, and tore it into twelve pieces. 31 And he said to Jeroboam, “Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Behold, I am about to tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon and will give you ten tribes
32 (but he shall have one tribe, for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city that I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel), 33 because they have forsaken me and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites, and they have not walked in my ways, doing what is right in my sight and keeping my statutes and my rules, as David his father did.
34 Nevertheless, I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, but I will make him ruler all the days of his life, for the sake of David my servant whom I chose, who kept my commandments and my statutes. 35 But I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand and will give it to you, ten tribes.
36 Yet to his son I will give one tribe, that David my servant may always have a lamp before me in Jerusalem, the city where I have chosen to put my name. 37 And I will take you, and you shall reign over all that your soul desires, and you shall be king over Israel. 38 And if you will listen to all that I command you, and will walk in my ways, and do what is right in my eyes by keeping my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did, I will be with you and will build you a sure house, as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you.
39 And I will afflict the offspring of David because of this, but not forever.’ 40 Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose and fled into Egypt, to eShishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.
I King 11:38 NLT – If you listen to what I tell you and follow my ways and do whatever I consider to be right, and if you obey my decrees and commands, as my servant David did, then I will always be with you. I will establish an enduring dynasty for you as I did for David, and I will give Israel to you.
Another translation says I King 11:38 BSB – If you listen to all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight in order to keep My statutes and commandments as My servant David did, then I will be with you. I will build you a lasting dynasty just as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you.
Jeroboam’s Lack Of Faith Led To Idolatry
As we can see a bit clearer in these two translations, God was promising to preserve Jeroboam’s kingdom into a lasting and enduring dynasty if only he would walk in God’s ways, precepts and statutes which Jeroboam did not do.
1 Kings 12:25-33 Then Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built up Peniel.
26 Jeroboam thought to himself, “The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David. 27 If these people go up to offer sacrifices at the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem, they will again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will kill me and return to King Rehoboam.”
28 After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. He said to the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” 29 One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan. 30 And this thing became a sin; the people came to worship the one at Bethel and went as far as Dan to worship the other.
31 Jeroboam built shrines on high places and appointed priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites. 32 He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the festival held in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves he had made. And at Bethel he also installed priests at the high places he had made. 33 On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a month of his own choosing, he offered sacrifices on the altar he had built at Bethel. So he instituted the festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to make offerings.
The form of God is spirit (the Holy Spirit). Jesus said “the words I speak are spirit”. When we change the teachings and words of Jesus, we are changing the form of God and are committing the same sin as Jeroboam.
Like Jeroboam, we can also commit the sin of idolatry through the lust for money, power and control.
When we feel that God’s word does not suit our goals, we can become tempted to distort His words to suit us and our goals.
We can even sacrifice to a false god that we have created by changing what is and isn’t a sin according to what we think it should be in the eyes of God. Through this, we will not know what we should be asking forgiveness for and so many of our sins will go unforgiven. Only confessed or admitted sin is forgiven as mentioned in 1 John 1:8-10 “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar, and His word is not in us.”
Proverbs 28:13 – He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.
Proverbs 28:9 – One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination.
Proverbs 28:24 – Whoever robs his father or his mother, and says, “It is no transgression,” the same is companion to a destroyer.
To distort God’s words and meanings is to serve and worship a false god, which will result in our own demise, like Jeroboam.
1 Kings 13:34 – This was the sin of the house of Jeroboam that led to its downfall and to its destruction from the face of the earth.
1 Kings 14:16 – And he will give Israel up because of the sins Jeroboam has committed and has caused Israel to commit.”
1 Kings 21:22 – I will make your house like that of Jeroboam son of Nebat and that of Baasha son of Ahijah, because you have aroused my anger and have caused Israel to sin.
2 Kings 17:21 – When he tore Israel away from the house of David, they made Jeroboam son of Nebat their king. Jeroboam enticed Israel away from following the Lord and caused them to commit a great sin.
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