The Timing Is Interesting
Most students of the Bible are probably familiar with some of the events that took place after the death of king Solomon. He had succeeded his father David as king. When Solomon died, his son Rehoboam succeeded him as king. However, the succession did not go very smoothly.
What kept the succession from going smoothly was a decision made by Rehoboam. His decision led to a division in the kingdom that was never repaired.
As I recently read the account about the decision and how it was made for about the umpteenth time, I noticed something I had never noticed before. (This would be a good place for a quick reminder about the importance of continuing to study God’s Word.) What I noticed caused me to wonder if Rehoboam really was seeking advice.
The way I remembered the sequence of events recorded in both 1 Kings 12 and 2 Chronicles 10 was that Rehoboam called in advisors from his father’s generation. They then advised him to be what today would probably be called a “servant leader.” Then, he called in men of his own generation. These men told him to, again in today’s way of saying things, “show the people who the boss is.”
It was at this point, according to the way I always thought the sequence of events went, that Rehoboam made a very unwise decision to take the advice of the younger men. That decision led to a once united people being divided.
I would encourage you to continue reading this article with your copy of the Bible close by or to quit reading this at this point and pick up your Bible for a few seconds. If you do that, you will find the advice of the older men in 1 Kings 12:7 and in 2 Chronicles 10:7. You will find the advice of the young men 1 Kings 12:10-11 and in 2 Chronicles 10:10-11.
What I had never noticed before and what I find to be extremely interesting is recorded in verse eight of both 1 Kings 12 and 2 Chronicles 10.
But he [Rehoboam] abandoned the counsel that the old men gave him, and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him and stood before him.
It may be of interest to learn that the highlighted word in that verse is translated in other translations with words like “rejected,” “forsook,” “ignored,” “refused,” etc.
Did you catch what I noticed when I took the time to reread a passage that I thought I already “knew” (or at least had the gist of)? Did you notice that my memory of the sequence of events was faulty? Did you notice that Rehoboam had apparently already decided not to take the advice of the older men before he talked to the young men?
I will readily admit that it could be the case that what we are reading is a summary of the events and not necessarily a record of how all of this “played out” in chronological order. What if it is not, though?
What if this is exactly how these events took place in chronological order? What if Rehoboam had already made up his mind to dismiss the advice of the older advisors before he met with those who were younger?
Why would he do that? Why would anybody do that?
Maybe, in order to find an answer to some of those questions, I might need to ask some questions to the guy I see in the mirror on a regular basis. I’m wondering if he might have something in common with a king who lived thousands of years ago.
Could it be that I really do not want advice? Could it be that I already have my mind made up? Could it be that I’m merely looking for some “cover” for some action, attitude, or belief that I already have? Could it be that I’m just comfortable around people who agree with me? Could it be that I have an agenda?
I can still remember when the head of hair on that guy in the mirror looked much different than it does now. Instead of being gray, it was brown (and a little longer). I remember a slogan from some of those days: “Don’t trust anyone over thirty.”
While I never really bought into the philosophy expressed in that slogan, I may have thought that I knew more about life at that time than I actually did. I may not have listened to advice as closely or as regularly as I should have.
I’m thankful that God has worked out the “timing” in my life to allow me to learn from a variety of people. A great number of those people are from generations different from mine. Many of them do not look or think like me. Some of them are very different from me in a lot of ways.
I’m also thankful that, somewhere along the way, I figured out that I needed to listen and observe in order to learn. It is my prayer that God will work out the same “timing” in the lives of all who read this. I also pray that he will do that for you as well and that you will take advantage of that. I promise that it will prove to be a real blessing.
I guess that’s some advice from one of the old guys. I suppose that you can take it for what you think it’s worth.
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AUTHOR: Jim Faughn
