The splendors of Solomon's reign passed away even more suddenly than they arose. In less than a year after his death his empire was broken up, and two quarreling principalities were all that was left of Israel.
I. Let us ascertain the CAUSES OF THE DIVISION OF ISRAEL. These were:
1. The oppressive government of Solomon. (1 Kings 12. 3, 4.) How far the complaints of the people were just, and to what degree they were the pretexts of an ambitious demagogue, we have no means of knowing. But it is evident that the government of Solomon, with its court, its palaces, its buildings, and its splendor, must have borne heavily upon the people. Probably, also, the luxury of living among the upper classes, so suddenly introduced, led to financial crises and stringency of money, for which the government was held responsible by the discontented people.
2. The opposition of the prophets. (1 Kings 11. 11-13, 29-33.) It is a suggestive fact that the prophets were opposed to Solomon and friendly to Jeroboam. Their reason was a strong resentment to the foreign alliances, foreign customs, and especially to the foreign idolatries which Solomon introduced.
3. Foreign intrigues, especially in Egypt. The old kingdoms were not friendly to this Israelite empire, which loomed up so suddenly, and threatened to conquer all the East. Solomon's attempt to win the favor of Egypt by a royal marriage (1 Kings 3. 1) was a failure, for two enemies of Solomon, driven out of his dominions, found refuge in Egypt, were admitted to the court, married relatives of the king, and stirred up conspiracies against Solomon's throne (1 Kings 11. 14-22, 40). Another center of conspiracy was Damascus, where Rezon kept up a semi-independent relation to Solomon's empire (1 Kings 11. 23-25).
4. Tribal jealousy; the old sore broken out again. Notice that Jeroboam belonged to the haughty tribe of Ephraim (1 Kings 11. 26), always envious of Judah, and restless under the throne of David. The kingdom of the ten tribes was established mainly through the influence of this tribe.
5. The ambition of Jeroboam was another force in the disruption. It was unfortunate for Solomon's kingdom that the ablest young man of that time in Israel, a wily political leader and an unscrupulous partisan, belonged to the tribe of Ephraim, and from his environment was an enemy of the then existing government. The fact that he was sent for from Egypt to the assembly at Shechem showed collusion and preparation of the scheme (1 Kings 12. 2, 3).
6. But even all these causes might have been insufficient but for the folly of Rehoboam (1 Kings 12. 13, 14). If David had been on the throne that day an empire might have been saved. But Rehoboam, brought up in the purple, was without sympathy with the people, tried to act the part of a tyrant, and lost his ancestral realm (1 Kings 12. 16).
II. THE RESULTS OF THE DIVISION. These were partly political, partly religious, and were neither of unmixed good nor unmixed evil.
1. The political results were: 1.) The entire disruption of Solomon's empire. Five kingdoms took the place of one; Syria on the north, Israel in the center, Judah west of the Dead Sea, Moab east of the Dead Sea, and Edom on the extreme south. Moab was nominally subject to Israel, and Edom to Judah; but only strong kings, like Ahab in Israel and Jehoshaphat in Judah, could exact the tribute (2 Kings 3. 4; 1 Kings 22. 47). 2.) With the loss of empire came rivalry, and consequent weakness. For fifty years Israel and Judah were at war, and spent their strength in civil strife, while Syria was growing powerful, and afar in the north-east Assyria was threatening. 3.) As a natural result came at last foreign domination. Both Israel and Judah fell under the power of other nations, and were swept into captivity as the final result of the disruption wrought by Jeroboam.