Nevertheless, they shall be his servants ,.... tributaries to the king of Egypt: that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries ; the difference between them, how easy the one, which they might perform without taxes and tributes, and how hard and heavy the other, through the exactions and exorbitant demands of those to whom they became subjects. read more
They shall be his servants - They shall be preserved, and serve their enemies, that they may see the difference between the service of God and that of man. While they were pious, they found the service of the Lord to be perfect freedom; when they forsook the Lord, they found the fruit to be perfect bondage. A sinful life is both expensive and painful. read more
A model instance of Divine goodness and opportunity prolonged to one who annulled all, and vitiated every highest privilege vouchsafed to him, by the one fact of his own infidelity of heart. We are strikingly taught, and we vividly recall from the contents of this chapter, the following lessons and facts. I. HOW VERY PRONE FORGETFULNESS OF OUR PAST SINS IS TO FOLLOW WITH SWIFT RAPIDITY ON PRESENT RESPITE FROM FEAR , RELIEF FROM SUFFERING , ... read more
Penalty, penitence, and forgiveness. It was not many months before Rehoboam found out the heinousness of his offence, the magnitude of his mistake; for in the path of sin comes penalty, and behind penalty steals shame. Happily for him there was mercy behind that. We look at this succession— I. AS EXPERIENCED BY THE KING OF JUDAH . First of all, following fast on his transgression, came: 1 . Divine displeasure and humiliating defeat. There came in to his palace-gates... read more
Two messages from Jehovah. I. A MESSAGE OF WARNING . ( 2 Chronicles 12:5 , 2 Chronicles 12:6 .) 1 . By whom sent. Shemaiah the prophet, or man of God ( 2 Chronicles 11:2 ). When Jehovah has a message for any age, people, or individual, he can always find a messenger to bear it—a Moses to go to Pharaoh, a Samuel to speak to Saul, a Nathan to send to David, an Elijah or a Micaiah to warn Ahab, a John the Baptist to preach to Israel and testify against Herod. The hour... read more
The genius of this verse, nevertheless, will quite admit of the Authorized Version rendering, proposed to be superseded in the last verse. This says life shall be spared, but still severe moral reckoning (that of servitude in a sense and tributariness) shall be taken with the transgressors and forsakers of the Lord! The contrast of God's service and that of men and the world again touchingly recalls the words of Christ ( Matthew 11:28-30 ). read more
Servitude and service. "They shall be servants to him [for a short time], that they may discern my service and the service of the kingdoms of the lands; i.e. that they may see that my rule is not so oppressive as that of foreign kings" (Keil). God would let Rehoboam and the princes of Judah be for a time subject to Shishak—be in his power, be at his mercy, be compelled to go through the miserable humiliation of buying him off—that he might be able to contrast the honourable and happy... read more
That they may know my service, and the service of the kingdom - i. e., that they may contrast the light burthen of the theocracy with the heavy yoke of a foreign monarch. read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 2 Chronicles 12:1-12
Israel was very much disgraced and weakened by being divided into two kingdoms; yet the kingdom of Judah, having both the temple and the royal city, both the house of David and the house of Aaron, might have done very well if they had continued in the way of their duty; but here we have all out of order there. I. Rehoboam and his people left God: He forsook the law of the Lord, and so in effect forsook God, and all Israel with him, 2 Chron. 12:1. He had his happy triennium, when he walked in... read more