The
Israelites persisted in all the sins of Jeroboam and did not turn away from
them until the Lord removed them from his presence. (2 Kings 17:22,23)
Jeroboam
son of Nebat, the first king of Israel the Northern Kingdom, knew that if
anyone made the trip back to worship in Jerusalem, they might realize the error
of their ways and return their allegiance to Rehoboam of Judah (1 Kings 12:27).
He had two golden calves fashioned to represent the gods who had brought the people out of Egypt, appointed a new priesthood
and built shrines on the high places, all of which were abominations before
God.
King
after king, generation after generation, the people continued to worship the
calves stationed at Bethel and Dan (conveniently located in a neighborhood near
you!), as well as worshiping at the high places scattered throughout Israel. After
Jeroboam, 18 kings ruled in Samaria and almost every single one had the same
epitaph: He did not turn away from any of
the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat. Even Jehu – responsible for purging the
evil Omride dynasty (Ahab and Jezebel) from Israel – did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat (2 Kings
10:29).
The
nicest thing said about any king of Israel was said about Hoshea (Israel’s very
last king): He did evil in the eyes of
the Lord, but not like the kings of Israel who preceded him (2 Kings 17:2).
What
spiritual heritage are you leaving to your great-grandchildren?
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