But he abandoned the counsel of the old men which they had given him, and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him, who stood before him. He said to them, “What counsel do you give, that we may answer these people, who have spoken to me, saying, ‘Make the yoke that your father put on us lighter?’ ”
The young men who had grown up with him said to him, “Tell these people who spoke to you, saying, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but make it lighter to us;’ tell them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. Now my father burdened you with a heavy yoke, but I will add to your yoke. My father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.’ ”
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv9–11 There is nothing harder for them that are in…
There is nothing harder for them that are in authority, than to bridle their affections, and to follow good counsel.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv8–11 1Ki 12:8 But he forsook the counsel of the…
1Ki 12:8 But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, [and] which stood before him:
Ver. 8. But he forsook the counsel of the old men.] With whom he consulted only for fashion’s sake - as Xerxes did when he went against Greece, {a} - resolved beforehand to stand upon his pantofles, and not at all to stoop to the people. He had those about him, doubtless, that would tell him - as some court parasites did our king John, when he had yielded to the requests of his barons for the subjects’ liberty {b} - that now he was "a king without a kingdom, a lord without a dominion, and a subject to his subjects."
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And consulted with the young men.] So did our king Richard II, to his utter ruin. So did Xerxes despise the grave counsel of his uncle Artabanus; and was wholly led by young Mardonius, to the loss of all. {c} The like is reported of Dionysius, king of Sicily; Croesus, king of Lydia; Nero, emperor of Rome; {d} James, that reigned in Scotland in Edward IV’s time; {e} and Lautrer, of whom it is reported that he lost the kingdom of Naples from the French king his master, and all that he had in Italy, because he would not ask nor follow the advice of them that were wiser than himself. {f}
{a} Val. Max.
{b} Daniel.
{c} Herodot., lib. vii.
{d} Sueton.
{e} Daniel.
{f} Sir R. Berk., Sum. Bon.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv8, 10, 11 He forsook the counsel of the old men; judging…
He forsook the counsel of the old men; judging it unworthy of his majesty and authority, and likely to encourage and increase the people in their insolent demands. The young men; so called comparatively to the old men; otherwise they were near forty years old, as the following words imply.
That were grown up with him; which is added as the reason of his inclination to their counsels, because his daily converse with them, and the likeness of their age and humour to his, had engaged his affections to them, and that bribed his judgment, as it commonly doth.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv8–11 But he forsook the counsel of the old men,…
But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him,.... He did not rightly relish it, nor cordially receive it; it did not suit with his haughty temper, he could not brook it, to stoop to his people; he thought it a lessening of his dignity to do anything that looked like courting their favour; and therefore determined not to take the advice given him by the old men, but to seek for other:
and consulted with the men, that were grown up with him, and which stood before him; the sons of nobles, with whom he had his education, and who were his companions from his youth upwards, and who were now officers in his court, and of his privy council, being his favourites, and those he consulted on this occasion; and though they are called young men, as they were in comparison of the old men, yet since they were contemporary with Rehoboam, who was now forty one years of age, they must be about forty, or not much under, and at an age to be wiser than they appeared to be.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv8, 10 Young men - So called, comparatively to the old…
Young men - So called, comparatively to the old men: otherwise they were near forty years old.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv10–11 Verse 10. And the young men that were grown…
Verse 10. And the young men that were grown up with him] It was a custom in different countries to educate with the heir to the throne young noblemen of nearly the same age. This, as Calmet observes, answered two great and important ends: -
1. It excited the prince to emulation; that he might, as far as possible, surpass in all manly exercises, and in all acts of prudence and virtue, those whom one day he was to surpass in the elevation and dignity of his station.
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2. That he might acquire a correct knowledge of the disposition and views of those who were likely to be, under him, the highest officers of the state; and consequently, know the better how to trust and employ them. The old counsellors Rehoboam did not know; with the young nobility he had been familiar.
My little finger shall be thicker] A proverbial mode of expression: "My little finger is thicker than my father's thigh." As much as the thigh surpasses the little finger in thickness, so much does my power exceed that of my father; and the use that I shall make of it, to employ and tax you, shall be in proportion.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv8, 10 1Ki 12:8. But he forsook the counsel of the…
1Ki 12:8. But he forsook the counsel of the old men — Judging it unworthy of his majesty and authority, and likely to encourage the people in their insolent demands; and, being proud and vain, he scorned to condescend to them and court them in this way, but would have obedience paid to him as to an absolute monarch; and consulted with the young men — So called compared with the old men, otherwise, as they had grown up with him, they must have been near forty years old. They were, however, men who were unexperienced, and who understood not the humour of the people they had to do with. This is frequently the fault of new kings: to show their power, and gratify their dependants, they frequently change their counsellors and put in new officers; not considering who are wisest and worthiest, but who have been their companions.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv8, 10, 11 The age of Rehoboam at his accession is an…
The age of Rehoboam at his accession is an interesting and difficult question. According to the formal statement of the present text of 1Ki 14:21; 2Ch 12:13, he had reached the mature age of 41 years, and would therefore be unable to plead youth as an excuse for his conduct. The general narrative, however, seems to assume that he was quite a young man (compare 2Ch 13:7). Perhaps the best way of removing the whole difficulty would be to read in the above text “twenty-one” for “forty-one.” The corruption is one which might easily take place, if letters were used for numerals.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv8, 10, 11 Him. They were young, compared with the former, though…
Him. They were young, compared with the former, though they might be 40 years old. (Menochius) --- It was frequently the custom in the eastern courts, to educate young noblemen along with the heir to the crown. Such formed the captains of Alexander, (1 Machabees i. 7,) and the warriors of Sesostris, whose father ordered all the male children who were born on the same day in his dominions, to be brought to court, to be educated with his son. (Diodorus i.) --- The Persian nobility were brought up at the gate of the prince, that they might learn temperance and the art of governing. (Xenophon, Cyrop. i.) --- The endeavours of Solomon were frustrated by the evil disposition of his son, and of those about his person.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On v11 whips . . . scorpions--The latter [instruments], as contrasted…
whips . . . scorpions--The latter [instruments], as contrasted with the former, are supposed to mean thongs thickly set with sharp iron points, used in the castigation of slaves.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv8, 10, 11 8. The young men that were grown up with…
8. The young men that were grown up with him — Probably sons of Solomon’s chief officers, who had been trained at the royal court, and were designed to be the officers of the succeeding king. Though called ילדים, youths, they may have been, like Rehoboam, forty or more years old.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv8–11 8. young men that were grown up with him]…
8. young men that were grown up with him] i.e. Who were about the same age. It is not needful to suppose that they had been educated with him from their youth up. They now being his contemporaries were chosen to ‘stand before him,’ to be his privy counsellors. This office the older men had held under Solomon (see 1Ki_12:6).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv10–11 (10) Thus shalt thou speak.—The advice of the young…
(10) Thus shalt thou speak.—The advice of the young men—the spoilt children of a magnificent and luxurious despotism, of which alone they had experience—is the language of the arrogant self-confidence, which mistakes obstinacy for vigour, and, blind to all signs of the times, supposes that what once was possible, and perhaps good for the national progress, must last for ever. It is couched in needlessly and absurdly offensive language; but it is, as all history shows—perhaps not least the history of our own Stuart dynasty—a not unfrequent policy in revolutionary times; holding that to yield in one point is to endanger the whole fabric of sovereign power; relying on the prestige of an authority proudly confident in itself; and trusting to cow by threats the classes long subject to despotic oppression, and despised accordingly by those who wield it. It can succeed only when the popular disaffection is superficial, or when a nation is wearied out with revolutionary fanaticism and failure.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv8–11 But he forsook the counsel of the old men…
But he forsook the counsel of the old men which they had given Heb. counselled him "We can easily imagine that their proposal was not very agreeable to the rash and imperious young king, in whose veins Ammonite blood flowed" (Bahr), and consulted with the young men see on ver. 1. "The very change argues weakness.. Green wood is ever shrinking" (Hall) that were grown up with him possibly his companions in the harem, and which stood before him i.e. , as his courtiers and counsellors (of. ver. 6). The old men were the counsellors of Solomon; the young men alone are spoken of as the ministers of Rehoboam.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v10 My little finger shall be thicker than my fathers…
1Ki_12:10-14
My little finger shall be thicker than my fathers loins.
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Rehoboams foolish answer
These were the words of an infatuated fool--a fool led on to his own destruction by the irony of destiny.
I. Wisdom is not hereditary. The question is often asked, as this kind of phenomenon comes under notice, how does it happen that great men seldom have great children? Does genius wear itself out? We incline to think that the gross neglect which geniuses manifest towards their children has much to do with it. Still, it cannot be denied that the descendants of many of our greatest men have been little better than drivelling idiots.
II. Curse of evil company. We could not find a more painful instance than the one under consideration, either in profane or sacred history. It was fraught with terrible consequences.
1. It is a curse to the man himself. Do evil, unholy, foolish companions make a person happy? Does it not rather bring trouble, sorrow, regrets, and present inconvenience? It is expensive, humiliating, degrading.
2. It is a curse to the mans influence. Character is assimilated with those with whom we associate. And even if the evil influence does not produce evil results, the name of the evil clings to him who mixes with it.
3. It is a curse to his future. It will ultimately bring him ruin. No person was ever yet strong enough in his integrity to resist the united influence of boon cornpardons. Their influence sows a seed which will ultimately produce an abundant harvest.
III. Stupidity of despotism. A despot uses his power for the mere sake of using it, and not to effect any good purpose, or to bring about any desirable end. There are many minor despots in the world--persons put into little offices, who love to manifest and to parade their brief authority.
IV. The overruling power of God. He maketh even the wrath and the folly of man to praise Him. Had Rehoboam acted wisely, we do not know whether the Judgment might not have been still further postponed; but as it was, this act precipitated Gods wrath and effected His purposes. (Homilist.)
The character of Rehoboam
I. The circumstances in which Rehoboam commenced his reign were unusually hazardous.
II. The manner in which this demand on the part of the people was met by the king.
III. The final reply of Rehoboam to the demand of his people. It was nothing else, we cannot but say, than downright infatuation.
IV. The cause was from the Lord. And this is one among many proofs of Gods absolute predestination, and of the perfect freedom of human actions. The division of the kingdom from Rehoboam was absolutely certain; it was determined by God; it was positively predicted by a prophet of God.
V. Those points in the character and history of rehoboam, which may be calculated to convey suitable instruction. And let me remark:
1. Talent and piety are not inherited by birth. No part of Solomons far-famed wisdom descended to his son. He was even more than usually deficient in common prudence, and in the capacity for government. A father may convey to his heirs the riches he has accumulated; but there is a nobler wealth, which cannot be bequeathed, and which cannot be transferred. Knowledge, mental opulence, talent--these are the result of individual application, of laborious industry, and of perseverance. Without these, no fancied gifts of nature can avail; and with these there is scarcely any extent of acquisition, which it is not possible to secure. But it is yet far more important to notice, that true piety does not descend by birth: Religion is a personal and individual thing; it is not transferred like property, it does not descend like any civil privilege. Religion is an individual matter; it is a change wrought upon the individuals mind; it is a living principle and energy within the individual heart and the individual nature. Talent and piety are not inherited by birth.
2. The kings rejection of wise counsel. The aged are not always wise, and they are often too cold and too calculating to be safe guides; and sometimes also their manner is unfortunate and repulsing; they are unamiable, they are irmpatient of the habits and feelings of youth, and they pronounce too magisterially to be very easily borne. But these are exceptions, and beyond all doubt, a multitude of years should teach wisdom. It was one of the laws of ancient Sparta (a heathen State), that whenever an old man appeared, the young in the assembly should rise up in token of their reverence. Reverence for age lies at the foundation of a sound moral character; it is not only becoming, it is not only beautiful, but it is essential; and where it is wanting in measure, it shows there is something utterly wrong, utterly unsound, in the moral constitution.
3. His arbitrary disposition. Instead of soothing, and gradually quenching the spirit of revolt, Rehoboam sought to cut down the clamours of his subjects, by arbitrary measures. The saying of the wise man cannot be too often repeated, A soft answer turneth away wrath.
4. Rehoboams imprudent choice of his associates. We cannot question that the ruin of this prince is to be ascribed to those whom he selected as his companions. Had it not been for the young men who grew up along with him, the kingdoms of Israel and Judah bad been undivided, and he had retained the crown. And, in connection with this, Evil communications corrupt good manners. There is nothing, so far as personal piety is concerned, so far as the salvation of the soul is concerned, of so much importance as the choice of your associates. (J. Young, M. A.)
Dangerous counsellors of James II.
But there was at the court a small knot of Roman Catholics whose hearts had been ulcerated by old injuries, whose heads had been turned by recent elevation, who were impatient to climb to the highest honours of the State, and who, having little to lose, were not troubled by thoughts of the day of reckoning. These men called with one voice for war on the constitution of the Church and the State. They told their master that he owed it to his religion and to the dignity of his crown to stand firm against the outcry of heretical demagogues, and to let the Parliament see from the first that he would be master in spite of opposition, and that the only effect of opposition would be to make him a hard master. (Macaulays England.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv8, 10 Lighten the yoke that your father put on us
Lighten the yoke that your father put on us
To "lighten the yoke" is a metaphor to represent lifting of the burden. AT: "Do not treat us as cruelly as your father did" or "Do not force us to work as hard as your father did" (See: Metaphor)
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translationWords
Rehoboam
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv8, 11 12:8-10 young men: Rehoboam’s appointed contemporaries took a hard…
12:8-10 young men: Rehoboam’s appointed contemporaries took a hard line and advised the opposite of the older men.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.