Joel M Bradshaw

25Then Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built up Peniel.

26Jeroboam thought to himself, “The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David. 27If 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.”

28After 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.” 29One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan. 30And this thing became a sin; the people came to worship the one at Bethel and went as far as Dan to worship the other.

31Jeroboam built shrines on high places and appointed priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites. 32He 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. 33On 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.–1 Kings 12

1. Like Solomon once had, Jeroboam had a promise from God that God was gong to establish his legacy.
2. And here, Jeroboam is afraid of how religion would affect his political security.
3. He was worried that if people traveled to Judah to make their major sacrifices to God, that they would be swayed to reject his kingdom of Israel.
4. So rather than trusting God, Jeroboam made golden idols to rival God. He placed one in the south and the other in the far north. He must not have remembered his history regarding the previous golden calf!
5. He further compromised by installing non-Levite priests. It’s as if Jeroboam didn’t care about the things of God or what God had decreed.
6. Jeroboam’s actions made sense from a political perspective. A person might compromise biblical expectations because of politics and power. Jeroboam sure did.
7. Again, where do you compromise the teaching of the Bible? Do you allow the temporary things of this world distract you and divide your allegiance to God?–JMB