Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
2 Chronicles 12:1

Clarke's Commentary

CHAPTER XII

Rehoboam and his subjects, forsaking the Lord, are delivered

into the hands of Shishak, king of Egypt, 1-4.

Shemaiah the prophet remonstrates with them, and they humble

themselves, and Jerusalem is not destroyed; but Shishak takes

away all the treasures, and the golden shields, instead of

which Rehoboam makes shields of brass, 5-12.

He reigns badly seventeen years, dies, and is succeeded by his

son Abijah, 13-16.

NOTES ON CHAP. XII

Verse 2 Chronicles 12:1. He forsook the law of the Lord — This was after the three years mentioned 2 Chronicles 11:17.

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

10:1-36:23 THE KINGS OF JUDAH

Division and its consequences (10:1-13:22)

The Chronicler records the division of the kingdom (10:1-11:4; see notes on 1 Kings 12:1-24), but omits the statement in 1 Kings 12:20 that Jeroboam was made king of the northern tribes. He does not even mention Jeroboam’s reign (1 Kings 12:25-20). He considers that because the northerners broke away from the dynasty of David and from the true worship of God, they had no right to be called a kingdom, and certainly not the kingdom of Israel.

Unlike the writer of Kings (who calls the southern kingdom Judah and the northern kingdom Israel), the writer of Chronicles calls the southern kingdom either Judah or Israel. For him Judah is the only true kingdom, and the Davidic kings are the only legitimate kings. Nevertheless, he still accepts people from the north as Israelites, and is pleased when any return to God and the Davidic rulers (see 11:13-17; 15:9; 30:1-12). He sometimes refers to the northern kingdom as Ephraim.

Priests and Levites are often prominent in the Chronicler’s account of Judah’s successes. Solomon’s son Rehoboam began his reign well, mainly through the influence of a large number of priests and Levites who fled to Judah from the north rather than join in Jeroboam’s idolatry. As long as Rehoboam followed the ways of God as taught by the priests, Judah was strong and stable. When he introduced Canaanite religious practices, God punished him by way of a damaging invasion from Egypt (11:5-12:16; see notes on 1 Kings 14:21-31).

Abijam (or Abijah) followed the religious policy of his father in allowing the worship of Baal to exist side by side with the worship of God, but he did not completely forsake God as Jeroboam did in the north. Abijam’s unexpected victory over Jeroboam in battle demonstrated that God was on the side of the king who belonged to David’s dynasty and who refused to join in the false religion of the north (13:1-22; see notes on 1 Kings 15:1-8).

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

REHOBOAM'S APOSTASY; THE INVASION OF SHISHAK;
THE DEATH OF REHOBOAM;
GOD'S PUNISHMENT OF ISRAEL BY SHISHAK

"And it came to pass when the kingdom of Rehoboam was established, and he was strong, that he forsook the law of Jehovah, and all Israel with him. And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, because they had trespassed against Jehovah, with twelve hundred chariots and threescore thousand horsemen. And the people were without number that came with him out of Egypt: the Lubim, the Sukkiim, and the Ethiopians. And he took the fortified cities that pertained to Judah, and came unto Jerusalem. Now Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam, and to the princes of Judah, that were gathered together to Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said unto them, Thus saith Jehovah, Ye have forsaken me, therefore have I also left you in the hands of Shishak. Then the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves; and they said, Jehovah is righteous. And when Jehovah saw that they humbled themselves, the word of Jehovah came to Shemaiah, saying, They have humbled themselves; I will not destroy them; but I will grant them some deliverance, and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. Nevertheless they shall be his servants, that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries."

"Because they had trespassed against Jehovah" The aggressive war of Shishak against Jerusalem is here stated to have been brought about by God Himself because of Israel's rebellion against God's law. It is the conviction of this writer that God still rules in the kingdoms of men, and that no nation that turns its back upon God's teachings can escape the eventual and certain judgment against them by Almighty God.

We live in a generation that appears no longer to believe this, despite the fact that all of the great leaders of America's past believed it, as attested by George Washington's kneeling in the snows at Valley Forge, a fact beautifully memorialized by Ward's famous bronze plaque attached to the old Sub Treasury building of the United States across from the New York Stock Exchange building. Nevertheless, it still stands in the Eternal Word, "God rules in the kingdom of men and giveth it to whomsoever he will" (Daniel 4:25). In the words of Rudyard Kipling,

"LORD GOD OF HOSTS, BE WITH US YET,
LEST WE FORGET, LEST WE FORGET."

"That they may know my service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries" This meant that Israel might find out the difference between serving God and serving Shishak! These verses are not parallel to Kings, but Shishak's invasion is mentioned in 1 Kings 14:25-26.

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

All Israel with him - i. e., “all Judah and Benjamin” - all the Israelites of those two tribes.

Smith's Bible Commentary

Chapter 12

It came to pass [chapter twelve], when Rehoboam had established the kingdom, and had strengthened himself, he forsook the law of the LORD, and all Israel with him ( 2 Chronicles 12:1 ).

As the king goes, so goes the nation. Having forsaken the Lord he led them in a path away from God. And there came from Egypt a pharaoh by the name of Shishak who began to invade the land of Judah and take the cities. Actually, the Lubims and the Ethiopians had come with him with a mighty host and they came to Jerusalem and began to besiege Jerusalem.

And a prophet of the Lord came to Rehoboam and said unto them, Thus saith the LORD, You have forsaken me, and therefore I also have left you in the hand of Shishak. Whereupon the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves; and they said, The LORD is righteous ( 2 Chronicles 12:5-6 ).

So as Shishak was now coming towards Jerusalem, the prophet of God says, "Hey, you brought this on yourself. You've forsaken the Lord, now the Lord has left you." And it is interesting that they acknowledged God is righteous and they humbled themselves.

And the Lord saw they humbled themselves and He said, Because they have humbled themselves; I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance; and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. Nevertheless they shall be his servants; that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries ( 2 Chronicles 12:7-8 ).

So he came up against Shishak. Shishak came up against Jerusalem, and then more or less bought him off. They took all of the gold that was in the temple, the golden shields and all of these things that Solomon had placed there, and they gave them unto Shishak, the king of Egypt. More or less just bought him out, and he plundered the city of Jerusalem of all of its gold, returning to Egypt.

Now the archaeologists discovered in 1939 in Egypt an account of this invasion of Israel or Judah. In the archaeological account there that they have discovered, it declares that they took a 169 of the cities of Judah. They also found the sarcophagus in which Shishak was entombed. And it was encased in silver. Actually, it was a silver sarcophagus encased in gold, solid gold. Probably the same gold that he took from the temple in Jerusalem that Solomon had established there. So it's an interesting sort of confirmation from the archaeologist's spade of what God's Word declares did indeed take place.

The death of Rehoboam is listed in the latter part of the chapter. In verse 2 Chronicles 12:14 it gives sort of a brief obituary, which is rather sad.

And he did evil, because he prepared not his heart to seek the LORD ( 2 Chronicles 12:14 ).

On his death his son Abijah began to reign over Judah. "

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

3. The invasion by Egypt ch. 12

The writer pointed out clearly the connection between Shishak’s invasion and Rehoboam’s unfaithfulness (2 Chronicles 12:1-5; cf. Proverbs 3:12).

"The passage makes use of terms that are characteristic of the Chronicler’s theology of divine retribution, namely, ’forsake’ or ’abandon’ (2 Chronicles 12:1; 2 Chronicles 12:5), ’be unfaithful’ (2 Chronicles 12:2), and ’humble oneself’ (2 Chronicles 12:6-7; 2 Chronicles 12:12). The Shishak incident provided a model of the sort of thing that could happen again." [Note: Thompson, p. 257.]

"In his emphasis on immediate retribution, the Chronicler is warning the restoration community against any complacency or presumption that punishment might be deferred as it had been in the past." [Note: Longman and Dillard, p. 200.]

"After three years of stability, Rehoboam led Judah into apostasy. There are conscious parallels with Saul. The ’unfaithfulness’ of 2 Chronicles 12:2 is the same term as that which was applied to Israel’s first king (1 Chronicles 10:13). Rehoboam, therefore, has entered upon what might be termed a ’Saul’ period in his reign, which contrasts with the early phase, in which he ’walked . . . in the way of David and Solomon’." [Note: McConville, pp. 157-58.]

Rehoboam’s repentance caused God to grant deliverance from the Egyptians (2 Chronicles 12:6-7; 2 Chronicles 12:12; cf. Psalms 51:17). Overall, Rehoboam failed to set his heart on the Lord (2 Chronicles 12:14). This resulted in his doing evil, namely, not leading the people to follow Yahweh as David had done.

"The case of Rehoboam has shown particularly clearly how much the Chronicler is concerned to show that obedience and blessing, disobedience and impoverishment are closely linked." [Note: Ibid., p. 160.]

"The destiny of any country depends to a great extent on the character of its leaders; and this was particularly the case among the Hebrews, into whose history God chose to intervene more directly than he has for other nations." [Note: Payne, p. 478.]

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

And it came to pass, when Rehoboam had established the kingdom,.... Or when the kingdom of Rehoboam was established; the tribes of Judah and Benjamin being firmly attached to him, and great numbers from the other tribes coming over to him, and things going on peaceably and prosperously during the three years that he and his people abode by the pure worship of God:

and had strengthened himself; built fortified cities for the defence of himself and kingdom, 2 Chronicles 11:5, he forsook the law of the Lord; after he had reigned three years, and was become strong, and thought himself safe and secure on the throne, trusting to his strength:

and all Israel with him; the greater part of them following the example of their king; of this defection, and the sins they fell into, see

1 Kings 14:22.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

      1 And it came to pass, when Rehoboam had established the kingdom, and had strengthened himself, he forsook the law of the LORD, and all Israel with him.   2 And it came to pass, that in the fifth year of king Rehoboam Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, because they had transgressed against the LORD,   3 With twelve hundred chariots, and threescore thousand horsemen: and the people were without number that came with him out of Egypt; the Lubims, the Sukkiims, and the Ethiopians.   4 And he took the fenced cities which pertained to Judah, and came to Jerusalem.   5 Then came Shemaiah the prophet to Rehoboam, and to the princes of Judah, that were gathered together to Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said unto them, Thus saith the LORD, Ye have forsaken me, and therefore have I also left you in the hand of Shishak.   6 Whereupon the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves; and they said, The LORD is righteous.   7 And when the LORD saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the LORD came to Shemaiah, saying, They have humbled themselves; therefore I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance; and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak.   8 Nevertheless they shall be his servants; that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.   9 So Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, and took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house; he took all: he carried away also the shields of gold which Solomon had made.   10 Instead of which king Rehoboam made shields of brass, and committed them to the hands of the chief of the guard, that kept the entrance of the king's house.   11 And when the king entered into the house of the LORD, the guard came and fetched them, and brought them again into the guard chamber.   12 And when he humbled himself, the wrath of the LORD turned from him, that he would not destroy him altogether: and also in Judah things went well.

      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 Chronicles 12:1; 2 Chronicles 12:1. He had his happy triennium, when he walked in the way of David and Solomon (2 Chronicles 11:17; 2 Chronicles 11:17), but it expired, and he grew remiss in the worship of God; in what instances we are not told, but he fell off, and Judah with him, here called Israel, because they walked in the evil ways into which Jeroboam had drawn the kingdom of Israel. Thus he did when he had established the kingdom and strengthened himself. As long as he thought his throne tottered he kept to his duty, that he might make God his friend; but, when he found it stood pretty firmly, he thought he had no more occasion for religion; he was safe enough without it. Thus the prosperity of fools destroys them. Jeshurun waxed fat and kicked. When men prosper, and are in no apprehension of troubles, they are ready to say to God, Depart from us.

      II. God quickly brought troubles upon them, to awaken them, and recover them to repentance, before their hearts were hardened. It was but in the fourth year of Rehoboam that they began to corrupt themselves, and in the fifth year the king of Egypt came up against them with a vast army, took the fenced cities of Judah, and came against Jerusalem,2 Chronicles 12:2; 2 Chronicles 12:3; 2 Chronicles 12:4. This great calamity coming upon them so soon after they began to desert the worship of God, by a hand they had little reason to suspect (having had a great deal of friendly correspondence with Egypt in the last reign), and coming with so much violence that all the fenced cities of Judah, which Rehoboam had lately fortified and garrisoned and on which he relied much for the safety of his kingdom, fell immediately into the hands of the enemy, without making any resistance, plainly showed that it was from the Lord, because they had transgressed against him.

      III. Lest they should not readily or not rightly understand the meaning of this providence, God by the word explains the rod, 2 Chronicles 12:5; 2 Chronicles 12:5. When the princes of Judah had all met at Jerusalem, probably in a great council of war, to concert measures for their own safety in this critical juncture, he sent a prophet to them, the same that had brought them an injunction from God not to fight against the ten tribes (2 Chronicles 11:2; 2 Chronicles 11:2), Shemaiah by name; he told them plainly that the reason why Shishak prevailed against them was not because they had been impolitic in the management of their affairs (which perhaps the princes in this congress were at this time scrutinizing), but because they had forsaken God. God never leaves any till they first leave him.

      IV. The rebukes both of the word and of the rod being thus joined, the king and princes humbled themselves before God for their iniquity, penitently acknowledged the sin, and patiently accepted the punishment of it, saying, The Lord is righteous,2 Chronicles 12:6; 2 Chronicles 12:6. "We have none to blame but ourselves; let God be clear when he judgeth." Thus it becomes us, when we are under the rebukes of Providence, to justify God and judge ourselves. Even kings and princes must either bend or break before God, either be humbled or be ruined.

      V. Upon the profession they made of repentance God showed them some favour, saved them from ruin, and yet left them under some remaining fears of the judgment, to prevent their revolt again.

      1. God, in mercy, prevented the destruction they were now upon the brink of. Such a vast and now victorious army as Shishak had, having made themselves masters of all the fenced cities, what could be expected but that the whole country, and even Jerusalem itself, would in a little time be theirs? But when God saith, Here shall the proud waves be stayed, the most threatening force strangely dwindles and becomes impotent. Here again the destroying angel, when he comes to Jerusalem, is forbidden to destroy it: "My wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem; not at this time, not by this hand, not utterly to destroy it," 2 Chronicles 12:7; 2 Chronicles 12:12. Note, Those that acknowledge God righteous in afflicting them shall find him gracious. Those that humble themselves before him shall find favour with him. So ready is the God of mercy to take the first occasion to show mercy. If we have humbled hearts under humbling providences, the affliction has done its work, and it shall either be removed or the property of it altered.

      2. He granted them some deliverance, not complete, but in part; he gave them some advantages against the enemy, so that they recruited a little; he gave them deliverance for a little while, so some. They reformed but partially, and for a little while, soon relapsing again; and, as their reformation was, so was their deliverance. Yet it is said (2 Chronicles 12:12; 2 Chronicles 12:12), in Judah things went well, and began to look with a better face. (1.) In respect of piety. There were good things in Judah (so it is in the margin), good ministers, good people, good families, who were made better by the calamities of their country. Note, In times of great corruption and degeneracy it is some comfort if there be a remnant among whom good things ar found; this is a ground of hope in Israel. (2.) In respect of prosperity. In Judah things went ill when all the fenced cities were taken (2 Chronicles 12:4; 2 Chronicles 12:4), but when they repented the posture of their affairs altered, and things went well. Note, If things do not go so well as we could wish, yet we have reason to take notice of it with thankfulness if they go better than was to have been expected, better than formerly, and better than we deserved. We should own God's goodness if he do but grant us some deliverance.

      3. Yet he left them to smart sorely by the hand of Shishak, both in their liberty and in their wealth.

      (1.) In their liberty (2 Chronicles 12:8; 2 Chronicles 12:8): They shall be his servants (that is, they shall lie much at his mercy and be put under contribution by him, and some of them perhaps be taken prisoners and held in captivity by him), that they may know my service, and the service of the kingdoms of the countries. They complained, it may be, of the strictness of their religion, and forsook the law of the Lord (2 Chronicles 12:1; 2 Chronicles 12:1) because they thought it a yoke to hard, too heavy, upon them. "Well," saith God, "let them better themselves if they can; let the neighbouring princes rule them awhile, since they are not willing that I should rule them, and let them try how they like that. They might have served God with joyfulness and gladness of heart, and would not; let them serve their enemies then in hunger and thirst (Deuteronomy 28:47; Deuteronomy 28:48), till they think of returning to their first Master, for then it was better with them," Hosea 2:7. This, some think, is the meaning of Ezekiel 20:24; Ezekiel 20:25. Because they despised my statutes, I gave them statutes that were not good. Note, [1.] The more God's service is compared with other services the more reasonable and easy it will appear. [2.] Whatever difficulties or hardships we may imagine there are in the way of obedience, it is better a thousand times to go through them than to expose ourselves to the punishment of disobedience. Are the laws of temperance thought hard? The effects of intemperance will be much harder. The service of virtue is perfect liberty; the service of lust is perfect slavery.

      (2.) In their wealth. The king of Egypt plundered both the temple and the exchequer, the treasuries of both which Solomon left very full; but he took them away; yea, he took all, all he could lay his hands on, 2 Chronicles 12:9; 2 Chronicles 12:9. This was what he came for. David and Solomon, who walked in the way of God, filled the treasuries, one by war and the other by merchandise; but Rehoboam, who forsook the law of God, emptied them. The taking away of the golden shields, and the substituting of brazen ones in their place (2 Chronicles 12:9-11; 2 Chronicles 12:9-11), we had an account of before, 1 Kings 14:25-28.