Do not think just because someone makes a foolish or arrogant decision once that they can not still be wise in other areas. Sometimes they have a blind spot or they grow and mature after making a mistake or there is simply an area of temptation where they are weak. Don’t assume everything they do is foolish because of a foolish decision they made. We must weigh out every decision on its own merits and not just decide based on our perception of someone else who may be foolish.

Rehoboam acted foolishly when he took over the kingdom from Solomon, telling the people he was going to be a harsh leader over them when they asked for the opposite. He acted against the wise counsel he received and sought after counsel from inexperienced people instead, that already agreed with his opinion. The kingdom was split (2 Chronicles 10)

However in 2 Chronicles 11 we see several decisions that are wise, at least for a time.

2 Chronicles 11:14-23

Jeroboam Appoints False Priests

      14For the Levites left their pasture lands and their property and came to Judah and Jerusalem, for Jeroboam and his sons had excluded them from serving as priests to the LORD. 15He set up priests of his own for the high places, for the satyrs and for the calves which he had made. 16Those from all the tribes of Israel who set their hearts on seeking the LORD God of Israel followed them to Jerusalem, to sacrifice to the LORD God of their fathers. 17They strengthened the kingdom of Judah and supported Rehoboam the son of Solomon for three years, for they walked in the way of David and Solomon for three years.

Rehoboam’s Family

      18Then Rehoboam took as a wife Mahalath the daughter of Jerimoth the son of David and of Abihail the daughter of Eliab the son of Jesse, 19and she bore him sons: Jeush, Shemariah and Zaham. 20After her he took Maacah the daughter of Absalom, and she bore him Abijah, Attai, Ziza and Shelomith. 21Rehoboam loved Maacah the daughter of Absalom more than all his other wives and concubines. For he had taken eighteen wives and sixty concubines and fathered twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters. 22Rehoboam appointed Abijah the son of Maacah as head and leader among his brothers, for he intended to make him king. 23He acted wisely and distributed some of his sons through all the territories of Judah and Benjamin to all the fortified cities, and he gave them food in abundance. And he sought many wives for them.

Despite acting foolishly and splitting the kingdom, Rehoboam showed wisdom in, at least for awhile, continuing in the ways of the LORD. The Levites and those from all the tribes of Israel who set their hearts on seeking the LORD God of Israel followed them to Jerusalem, to sacrifice to the LORD God of their fathers. Additionally, Rehoboam is called out for acting wisely in distributing his sons throughout Judah and Benjamin to all the fortified cities presumably to ensure loyalty in the leadership there.

The people who wanted to honor God, but lived in Israel outside Benjamin and Judah were in a tough spot. Were they to just stay away from Rehoboam because of his folly? What then when Jeroboam removed the Levites, appointing his own priests and places of worship, against the word of God? They were between a rock and a hard place. Then they had to pick based on all the facts around them. They could not simply say that they want to avoid Rehoboam because he was foolish.

As I reflect on this I am reminded of a few things:

• Just because someone makes a foolish decision, even a big one, does not necessarily mean they are foolish in all things. Don’t make your decisions based on whether or not you always agree with someone else. Assess each situation as it comes.
• People have blind spots to certain things, or may make early mistakes and learn from them.  Consider also that each of us may have blind spots also, and seek wise counsel to help learn what yours may be and to balance out that potential weakness with the counsel of others you trust, even if they may not always agree with you. How you pick these counselors for you is important. Seek God. Look at the fruit in their own lives. Test how they live against scripture. Do not expect perfection or full alignment between your views and theirs. That is kind of the point. Just make sure both are anchored in God’s word.
• Sometimes you may feel like you are caught between a rock and a hard place. Rehoboam made a foolish decision that made the people unhappy when he became king. However, once the kingdom was split, Jeroboam was even worse. He appointed his own priests to replace the Levites and his own places of worship. I am sure the Levites and others had a hard choice to make, but they left behind what they had to put God as their first priority, to follow His ways.

I invite you to pray with me:

Father, please lead and guide me. Help me to find wise counsel. Help me to learn my blind spots and how to make wise decisions in spite of them. Help me to have discernment regarding other people, whether they are wise or foolish, especially in regards to whom I will build relationship more closely. Help me to chose Your ways over those of men, even when I must give up what seems like a lot to do so. Amen. 

Shalom

Devotion by John in service to Christ

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