About the Author of the Blogsite, Not the Author of the Bible::

About the Author of the Blogsite, Not the Author of the Bible: I was uncertain of how to accomplish this, mindful of Revelation 22:18-19, which says that nobody is to add to, or to take away from what was written in the Bible. After lots of prayerful contemplation, the Lord had it on my heart that I’m not to change the meaning of what is written in the Bible. He has also shown ways to add to people’s understating of that meaning, without altering the meaning, by putting that info within [brackets]. This is primarily accomplished with the KJV Bible and lots of prayers, but at times, BibleGateway.com, Biblehub.com, NIV Bible, Webster Dictionary, and other internet resources, as needed. Debra Seiling

About Understanding the Bible:

Understanding the Bible: After reading Isaiah 28:10 many times over the years and not totally understanding it, it recently became apparent to me that the Lord God has this passage as the means for understanding the Bible. For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little. Isaiah 28:10 KJV. Being prayerful about this passage, and looking up 'precept' in the Webster's Dictionary, it gave this passage a whole new meaning, once 'commandment' is substituted for 'precept'. Within brackets are additional words the Lord had on my heart to aid in understanding the meaning. For commandment must be [built up] upon commandment; commandment upon commandment; line upon line, line upon line; [developing understanding] here a little, and there a little.

The Table Format:

The Table Format: I was overwhelmed with how to explain the process for determining if someone had leprosy in Leviticus 13, which seemed very complicated. After praying, "Lord, if this is difficult for me to understand after reading it many times, how can this be explained to others?" The thought the Lord God had on my heart was for me to put it into a vertical chart to visually see the process. This made it much easier for me to follow the progression. After doing so, I prayed, "Lord, how can this be conveyed to readers, so that they can understand this process?" The thought the Lord God had on my heart was to put it within the lines of a table. Being a stiff-necked, stubborn person, as it's often called in the Bible, I prayed, asking the Lord God if He's sure that's really what He wanted me to do? I reluctantly put Leviticus 13 into a table format. When I read this difficult leprosy process within a table format, it suddenly became easier for me to understand. That's because it builds line upon line, as explained in the Understanding the Bible section. Shortly after that, the Lord God had it on my heart, to put all of The Books of the Bible in Smaller Chunks within a table format, to aid in understanding, line upon line.

9/14/2023

1 Kings 12:1-33 The Israelites Ask Rehoboam to Make Their Work Lighter

 

The Israelites Ask Rehoboam to Make Their Work Lighter

1 Kings 12:1-33                               1 Kings [in Smaller Chunks]

Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all [of] Israel [had gone] to make him king, [because Solomon, his father, died]. When Jeroboam, [Nebat’s] son was [still] in Egypt, he heard of it (for he had fled from the presence of king Solomon & [he lived] in Egypt.) 

They sent for Jeroboam. Jeroboam & all the congregation of Israel came & spoke to [king] Rehoboam, [Solomon’s son] & said, Your father made a [heavy] yoke on us [& made us work too hard]. 

Therefore, now make the [heavy work] of your father lighter & we will serve you. [Rehoboam] said to them, [Go] away for 3 days & [return] to me, [so] the people [left]. 

King Rehoboam consulted with the old men who stood before his father, Solomon, while he was [still] alive & said, Advise me [about] how I should answer [these] people? 

They [said] to him, If you will be a servant to [these] people & will serve & answer them with [kind] words this day, they will be your servants forever. 

[Rehoboam] rejected the [advice] the old men had given him & consulted the young men [who had] grown up with him & stood before him. [Rehoboam said,] What [advice do you have for me] to answer [these] people [who asked] me, Make the yoke lighter [that] your father put on us? 

The young men [who had] grown up with him [said,] You shall tell the people [who said] to you, Your father made our yoke heavy, but make it lighter [for] us: You shall stay to them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father’s [waist]. 

[Since] my father [gave] you a heavy [workload,] I will add to your [work]. My father [corrected] you with whips, but I will [correct] you with scorpions. So, Jeroboam & all the people [returned] to [king] Rehoboam the 3rd day, [like] the king [requested]. 

The king answered the people [harshly & rejected] the old men’s [advice] they gave him. He [spoke] the [advice] of the young men to them, saying, My father made your [workload] heavy & I will add to your [work]. 

Also, my father [corrected] you with whips, but I will [correct] you with scorpions [scourges with points]. 

The king didn’t [listen] to the people, [since it] was from the Lord [God,] so He could [fulfill] what the Lord [had said] to Jeroboam, [Nebat’s] son, by Ahijah, the Shilonite [about making Jeroboam king over 10 portions of the land, since they worshiped false gods].

So, when all Israel saw [that] king [Rehoboam] didn’t [listen] to them, the people answered, What portion [do] we have in [David’s descendants]? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. [Return] to your tents, O Israel. 

[Take care] of your own house, David. So, Israel departed to their tents. But Rehoboam [still ruled] over the children [people] of Israel [who lived] in the cities of Judah. 

King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over [forced labor] & all Israel stoned him [to death]. Therefore, king Rehoboam [hurried] to get [into] his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. So, Israel has rebelled against the house of David to this day. 

It [happened] when all [of] Israel heard Jeroboam, [Nebat’s] son, had [returned,] they called him to the congregation & made him king over all of Israel. There [were] none [who] followed the house of David [except] only the tribe of Judah. 

When Rehoboam, [Solomon’s son] came to Jerusalem, he assembled the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, 180,000 chosen warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to [restore] the kingdom again to Rehoboam. 

But the word of God came to Shemaiah, the man of God, saying, Speak to Rehoboam, [Solomon’s] son, [Judah’s] king & to all the house of Judah & Benjamin & the [rest] of the people, saying, The Lord [says this,] You shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren, the [people] of Israel.

Every man return to his house; [since] this is from Me [the Lord God]. They [listened] to the word of the Lord & [turned to leave] according to the word of the Lord. Then, Jeroboam, [Nebat’s son, rebuilt] Sheshem in Mount Ephraim & [lived there]. [Jeroboam] went out from there & built Penuel. 

Jeroboam said in his heart, Now, the kingdom shall return to the house of David. If [these] people go to Jerusalem to sacrifice in the house of the Lord, then the [hearts] of [these] people will [return] again to Rehoboam, [Judah’s] king. They [will] kill me & go again to Rehoboam, [Solomon’s son].

[Therefore,] king [Jeroboam, Nebat’s son got advice] & made 2 gold calves [false gods] & said to them, It’s too much for you [to have] to go up to Jerusalem [to sacrifice]. [See, these are] your gods [idols], O Israel [that] brought you up out of the land of Egypt. 

He [put] 1 [gold calf] [idol] in Bethel & put the other [idol] in Dan. This became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one [false god,] even to Dan. [Jeroboam] made a house [of worship for the false gods] in high places & made the [false] priests [of these idols] of [the lowliest of people who] weren’t [Levites].

Jeroboam ordained a feast in the 8th month, on the 15th day, of the month, like the feast that is in Judah & [Jeroboam] offered [sacrifices] on the altar. So, in Bethel, [Jeroboam] sacrificed to the [gold] calves [false gods] he had made.

He placed in Bethel the [false] priests of the high places [that Jeroboam] made [for the people to worship the false gods].

So, [Jeroboam] offered upon the altar [that] he made in Bethel, [on] the 15th day, of the 8th month, even in the month [that] he had [came up with] in his own [mind] & ordained a feast to the children [people] of Israel. [Jeroboam] offered upon the altar & burnt incense [to the false gods he made].