Plucking the Eagle's Wings

A Nation Divided—The Split Between the North and South

(Exodus 12:38). This group assimilated into the nation of Israel as it sought freedom in the Promised Land. By the time of our independence, we were also a mixed multitude of people whose emphasis was upon freedom. David was the second king of Israel. He came from the tribe of Judah, the tribe of the "lawgiver" (Genesis 49:10). David ruled Israel for forty years and then his son Solomon ruled for another forty years. Together they ruled for eighty years. After Solomon died, his son Rehoboam took control of Israel. It was Rehoboam who caused a split in Israel, resulting in the formation of the northern and southern kingdoms (1 Kings 12:1-27). The split began eighty years after David became king. Eighty years after the British surrendered at Yorktown, the American Civil War began, which temporarily created the North and the South! Splitting Over the Yoke The motives causing division in Israel and America were prophetically similar. Rehoboam was King Solomon's son. He succeeded his father as king and sought the advice of both young and old regarding how to rule. The older men complained that Solomon had placed them under "a grievous yoke" (1 Kings 12:4). They were compelled to perform much heavy labor. They were tired of the heavy yoke and the high taxes. Then the young king sought counsel from the young men who grew up with him. They said, "Tell the people their yoke will be heavier and you will chastise them with scorpions" (1 Kings 12:11). When Rehoboam continued to place "a grievous yoke" upon the people, rebellion divided the nation into north and south. The people were tired of being treated like slaves. "So Israel rebelled against the house of David, unto this day" (I Kings 12:19). Rehoboam took 180,000 men from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin to fight against the house of Israel. Brother was fighting brother (1 Kings 12:21). God was grieved and warned him by saying, "You shall not go up nor fight against your brethren, the children of Israel, for this thing is from me" (1 Kings 12:24). The king refused God's instruction and armed the men of Benjamin and Judah for war (2 Chronicles 11:12). Two Capitals and Two Kings

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