Rehoboam for Make God E Tight Friend

Na Solomon born Rehoboam. Solomon rule Israel for 40 years. (1 Ki. 11:42) After Solomon die for 997 B.C.E., Rehoboam travel from Jerusalem go north for Shechem. Na there they go make Rehoboam king. (2 Chron. 10:1) You think say e fear to be the next king? Solomon really get sense and people know that one. Small time, Rehoboam go show whether e really get the sense, like Solomon, to solve one big problem.

Problem dey Israel that time. So they send some people make they tell Rehoboam wetin de worry the people for mind. They talk say: “Your papa make things hard for us. But now if you make our work easy for us and remove the heavy load wey your papa put for our body, we go do wetin you talk.”​—2 Chron. 10:3, 4.

This one na hard thing for Rehoboam. If e do wetin the people want, e no go enjoy some of the good things wey e de enjoy. E family and the servants for palace no go enjoy this things too. But if e no do as the people want, e no go get their support again. Wetin Rehoboam go do? E first go meet the elders wey they don de give Solomon advice before. But after, e go take advice from e friends, wey they be age mate. Rehoboam follow their advice, and e decide say e go show the people pepper. E tell them say: “I go make wuna load heavy pass this one, and I go add more. My papa punish wuna with whip, but I go punish wuna with whip wey e get chuku-chuku.”​—2 Chron. 10:6-14.

Wetin that one teach us? Many times, we de show say we get sense if we take the advice of people wey they senior us, and wey they don de serve Jehovah well for many years. Because they don know plenty things, they fit see say better thing no go come out of wetin we want do. This one go make them give us good advice.​—Job 12:12.

“THEY DO THE THING WEY JEHOVAH TALK”

Because the people no want support Rehoboam again, e gather army say e want go fight them. But Jehovah send prophet Shemaiah go meet Rehoboam and the army. The prophet tell them say: “Make wuna no go up go fight wuna brothers, they be Israel people. Make each of wuna go e house back, because na me cause the thing wey e don happen.”​—1 Ki. 12:21-24.a

Make they no fight? You think say e go easy for Rehoboam make e do wetin Jehovah talk? Remember say e don threaten say e go punish the people with “whip wey e get chuku-chuku.” But now, e no fit do anything to this people wey they separate theirself. Wetin people go talk about this kind king? (Compare 2 Chronicles 13:7.) Even with that one, the king and e army “do the thing wey Jehovah talk. They go back to their house, as Jehovah don tell them.”

Wetin we learn? If we de obey Jehovah even if people de laugh us, e show say we get sense. When we do wetin Jehovah talk, e go bless us.​—Deut. 28:2.

Rehoboam gain anything from wetin e do? E no fight the other 10 tribe as God talk. But e still de rule the other two tribe, Judah and Benjamin. So e build different-different city for the place wey this two tribe dey. E make some of the city wey e de rule strong pass before. (2 Chron. 11:5-12) The better thing be say, for some time, e do things wey Jehovah talk. The ten-tribe kingdom where Jeroboam de rule begin worship idols. So plenty people from there, begin travel go Jerusalem so that they fit serve Jehovah the way e want-am. And this people support Rehoboam. (2 Chron. 11:16, 17) So because Rehoboam obey Jehovah, e kingdom come dey strong.

HOW REHOBOAM SIN AND HOW E REPENT

But when the kingdom of Rehoboam don dey strong, e do bad thing. E stop to obey Jehovah, and e begin serve idol! But why e do like that? E fit be say, na e mama make Rehoboam do this kind thing. E mama come from Ammon. (1 Ki. 14:21) We no know why e behave like that. But, the whole kingdom follow e example. So Jehovah allow King Shishak of Egypt make e seize many city for Judah, even though say Rehoboam don make them really dey strong.​—1 Ki. 14:22-24; 2 Chron. 12:1-4.

When Shishak reach Jerusalem, the place wey Rehoboam dey, the condition for the kingdom of Rehoboam don really bad. Then God send Prophet Shemaiah go meet Rehoboam and the leaders for Israel. E tell them say: “Wuna don leave me, so I don leave wuna too for the hand of Shishak.” Wetin Rehoboam do about this correction? E do good thing. Bible talk say: “The leaders for Israel and the king, humble theirself. They talk say: ‘Jehovah dey righteous.’” So Jehovah save Rehoboam and Jerusalem make they no destroy them.​—2 Chron. 12:5-7, 12.

After that one, Rehoboam continue to rule the southern kingdom. Na Abijah, e pikin, go rule the kingdom when e die. So before e die, e give e many sons plenty gift. Maybe na because e no want make they fight Abijah, their brother. (2 Chron. 11:21-23) This thing wey Rehoboam do show say e don get sense pass when e just begin rule.

REHOBOAM NA GOOD PERSON OR NA BAD PERSON?

Na true say Rehoboam do good thing sometimes. But e fail to get blessing from Jehovah. Bible talk about the whole time wey e rule say: “E do bad thing.” Why? Na “because e no really decide for e heart to look for Jehovah.”​—2 Chron. 12:14.

Wetin we fit learn from the life of Rehoboam? E obey God sometimes. And e do some good things for Israel people. But e no hold Jehovah tight as friend, and e no really want make Jehovah glad. So, e begin do bad thing and start to worship idol. This one fit make you ask say: ‘When Rehoboam obey Jehovah, na because e really repent and want make Jehovah happy? Or, na because other people talk say make e do-am?’ (2 Chron. 11:3, 4; 12:6) After, Rehoboam begin do bad thing again. E really dey different from King David, e grandpapa. Na true say David make mistake. But e really repent. E use e whole life show say e love Jehovah. And e serve Jehovah the way Jehovah want.​—1 Ki. 14:8; Ps. 51:1, 17; 63:1.

True-true, we fit learn plenty things from this story. Na good thing make person take care of e family and do other fine things. But if we want make Jehovah bless us, make we first support true worship. And make we continue to serve Jehovah the way e want.

For that one to happen, we go make sure say our love for Jehovah really strong. If person want make fire continue to burn, e go de add more firewood. So if we want continue to love God, we go de study Bible, de think deep about wetin we read, and de pray everytime. (Ps. 1:2; Rom. 12:12) Na this kind love go move us so that everything wey we de do, go make Jehovah glad. E go make us really feel sorry and repent if we do any bad thing. And we no go be like Rehoboam. Instead, we go de worship Jehovah as e want.​—Jude 20, 21.