Tanak Foundations-Concepts in First Kings-Part 13

In 1 Kings 12.25-33 we have a classic example of Replacement Theology. Jeroboam will lead the people in a departure from the Torah. Jeroboam was from Ephraim (1 Kings 11.26) and he rebuilt Shechem, which was destroyed by Abimelech (Judges 9.1-49). Jeroboam said in his heart that Israel will return to the House of David when they go to Jerusalem three times a year to worship at the Temple during the three pilgrim festivals. These festivals are called the “Shelosh Regalim” or “three foot festivals.” So he is going to make some moves to keep the people away from obeying the Torah spiritually.

He builds Shechem in Ephraim (he lived there) and made it his capital city. Jeroboam’s fears about being killed goes against what God told him in 1 Kings 11. So Jeroboam consults himself (very foolish) and not God, and made two golden calves and will call them the God of Israel (v 28). This was in imitation of what Aaron did. Jeroboam had also been in Egypt and learned that pattern there (1 Kings 12.2). Egypt had two gods like calves called Apis and M’nevis.

He told the people that it was “too much for you to go up to Jerusalem.” This shows you cannot keep the festivals outside of Jerusalem and the Temple. If you could, there would have been no reason for Jeroboam to do all this. Why would people today think they can keep the festivals anywhere they choose? For more information on this subject, see our teaching called, “Can You Keep the Festivals Outside of Jerusalem and the Temple” on this site. So he calls these calves the God who brought them up from the land of Egypt.

He puts one calf in Bethel (“House of God”) in the southern part of the land, on the border of Ephraim and Benjamin. He will put the other one in Dan (Judge), in the northern part of the land for the convenience of the people living in his realm. This was saying, “God is everywhere, not just in Jerusalem.” This is what people say today when they try to keep the festivals outside of Jerusalem and the Temple.

This became a sin because it departed from the true worship of Yehovah.  It was replacement theology, no different than what we see today. He built a temple (house) at Dan and at Bethel for worship. He also made “priests” from among all the people who were not Levites. He used anybody who stayed after many Levites departed and went south to Jerusalem. He also instituted different festivals (v 33) and different times of worship. So, he is going to do three things and these things are exactly what Christianity did later in history.  Many Messianic groups do the same thing.

First, in 1 Kings 12.29, he substitutes the true place of worship with another. This would be like “churches” being substituted for Jerusalem, the Temple and synagogues. He also substituted the true kohanim from Aaron for others in 1 Kings 12.31. This is like “pastors” instead of priests, or the priests of the Catholic Church for Levitical priests, those not anointed for the ones who are.

In 1 Kings 12.32-33 we also see he substituted the true festivals of God for man-made festivals. This is like the Sabbath and the festivals being replaced by Sunday, Christmas, Valentines Day and Easter. Christianity, and some circles of Messianic Judaism and the Sacred Name Movement, has set up their own “golden calves” with a different priesthood, a different place of worship and different festivals (2 Chr 13.9-10).

In 1 Kings 13.1-2 we have a prophecy about the coming destruction of the altar at Bethel. We learn that there was a “man of God from Judah” and he was sent to the altar in Bethel while Jeroboam was there. Evidently, there were no qualified prophets in the northern kingdom, which shows just how bankrupt they were. He is unnamed and this shows that you don’t have to be “known” by everyone to be used of God. For example, look at all the unnamed people in Exo 2.1-10 who had a huge role in the early life of Moses.

In this prophecy, he names Josiah 350 years before he he was born (2 Kings 23.15) and how he would break down and demolish this altar. Then we have signs to confirm the prophecy in 1 Kings 13.3-5. When they tried to arrest the prophet, Jeroboam’s hand dried up (hung limp) and the altar split apart, just as he said. In 1 Kings 13.6-10 we learn that Jeroboam had no use for the golden calves after seeing these signs. He wanted the prophet to come home with him and get a reward, but he refused. He said the Lord told him not to eat or drink in that place. He then went home another way.

But in 1 Kings 13.11-19 we learn that the man of God was disobedient and died. An old prophet had heard from his sons about about all that had happened that day, so they went after the prophet and asked him to come home with him and eat. Evidently, not all of the godly people had left Israel. But the prophet refused to go with the old prophet for the same reason he told Jeroboam. But the old prophet lies to the man of God from Judah saying that an angel told him it was acceptable to come and eat with him (v 18).  So he went back with him and ate. Spiritually, when we receive a direct command from God we must not be turned away by something else, no matter who says it. The Lord is not going to contradict himself. If he told you to do something, then he will also tell you himself if the situation has changed, not through someone else. We should not be deceived. 1 Thes 5.19-22 says we are to examine everything and to hold fast to that which is good.

A true prophecy or word from the Lord cannot be annulled by another prophet unless the first one hears directly from the Lord that it was (Deut 13.1-5, 18.21-22; Matt 7.15; Acts 17.10-11). This is the problem today. People ignore what God has said for the “word” of false prophets who say the opposite (“God told me”). This is why we cannot keep the festivals outside of Jerusalem and the Temple, no matter what anyone else says. Yehovah was very explicit about that. We also don’t replace the biblical Sabbath for Sunday, no matter what church father, pope or teacher tells you otherwise. The Lord even put that command of the Sabbath in writing and you must have another command in writing from the Lord that says it has been changed to Sunday. That hasn’t happened.

1 Kings 13.20-25 says that they sat down to eat and the word of the Lord came to the old prophet saying that the man of God from Judah has disobeyed the word about eating and drinking in that place. As a result, his body would not come to the grave of his fathers. After he ate, he saddled his donkey and left. Then a lion met him and killed him. There was a woods near to Bethel that was infested by lions and bears (2 Kings 2.24). His body was not mutilated by the lion to show this was from the Lord.

People saw the lion standing next to the body and they told the old prophet. 1 Kings 13.26-32 says the old prophet went and saw that the lion had not eaten the body, so he took the body and brought it back to the city to bury him. He gave instructions to bury his body with the man of God when he died. Josiah would come across their bones during his reform and he was told it was the grave of the man of God from Judah who foretold what Josiah was doing. Josiah gave orders to let him alone and that no one should disturb his bones or the bones of the old prophet that were buried with him (2 Kings 23.17-18). Josiah respected him for his courage in speaking out against Jeroboam.

But Jeroboam did not turn from his evil path. God’s judgment in dealing with the man of God was a warning, but he disregarded it (1 Kings 13.33-34). He made priests of the high places (illegal Bamot) out of all the people in the land. The loyal Levites left in 2 Chr 11.13-17.

We will pick up here in Part 14.

Posted in All Teachings, Articles, Idioms, Phrases and Concepts, Prophecy/Eschatology, The Festivals of the Lord, The Tanak, Tying into the New Testament

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