YHWH's Verdict And Judgment On The House Of Solomon (1 Kings 11:9-13).
Solomon had no doubt appeased his conscience by persuading himself that he was still honouring YHWH at the regular feasts when he took up his position as Intercessor of Israel, not realising that in fact by that very compromise he was demeaning YHWH. He was bringing Him down to the level of the other ‘gods'.
We are not told how YHWH conveyed His message to Solomon, but it was probably through a prophet (Ahijah (1 Kings 11:29) may well be a contender), and in it He brought out the seriousness of what Solomon had done. In spite of his privilege of being specifically illuminated twice by God at crucial points in his life, he had broken every promise and had defied the covenant. From now on therefore his house was only to have responsibility for two of the tribes of Israel. The other ‘ten' would be handed over to one of his ‘servants'.
As often with God's judgments this would actually occur through historical events, and much of the blame would lie at the door of the recalcitrance of his own son. But it is a reminder that behind all history lies the controlling hand of God.
Analysis.
a And YHWH was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned away from YHWH, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods. But he did not keep what YHWH commanded (1 Kings 11:10).
b For which reason YHWH said to Solomon, “Forasmuch as this is done by you, and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely rend the kingdom from you, and will give it to your servant” (1 Kings 11:11).
a “Notwithstanding in your days I will not do it, for David your father's sake, but I will rend it out of the hand of your son. However that may be I will not rend away all the kingdom, but I will give one tribe to your son, for David my servant's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen” (1 Kings 11:12-13).
Note that in ‘a' Solomon had turned away his heart from God, and in the parallel God will in turn rend the kingdom from Solomon's son. Central in ‘b' is the detailed explanation of why this will be. Note how ‘b' is the glue that holds all together. It looks back to the breaking of the commandment in ‘a' and forward to the rending away of the kingdom in the parallel ‘a'.
‘ And YHWH was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned away from YHWH, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods. But he did not keep what YHWH commanded.'
The result was that YHWH was ‘angry with Solomon'. In other words He took an antipathy to him because of his sin. It was no mild antipathy for it was to affect Solomon's children and his house from then on. And Solomon's sin was seen as especially heinous because YHWH had twice appeared to Solomon in dreams and warned him of the consequences of turning away from Him and going after other gods (compare 1 Kings 3:5-15 where it is implied in the command to walk in His ways and keep His commandment; 1 Kings 9:2-9), and besides he had less excuse than later kings because, unlike them, he was not under any other kind of threat (at least later kings had the excuse that they were being pressurised politically by powerful overlords). He was thus totally inexcusable. The final verdict, like that on Adam and Eve, was that he had not kept what YHWH had commanded and would thus be thrust out of his kingdom.
The idea of the ‘anger of God' is used regularly in the Old Testament as a way of describing God's antipathy to sin. Compare 1 Kings 8:46; Deuteronomy 1:37; Deuteronomy 4:21; Deuteronomy 9:8; Deuteronomy 9:20. > While a parallel idea of ‘the anger of God' was also to be found in the Moabite stone (the anger of Chemosh) and in Assyrian and Hittite texts, there it was a crude polytheism that was in mind that was reflected in violence, whereas here it will be noted that God did not lash out violently but gave a merciful and considered judgment which was far more merciful than was deserved. To speak of God's anger is an anthropomorphism indicating God's necessary antipathy to sin.
‘ For which reason YHWH said to Solomon, “Forasmuch as this is done by you, and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely rend the kingdom from you, and will give it to your servant”.'
YHWH's verdict was then declared. Because Solomon had failed to keep His covenant and His statutes which YHWH had commanded him, the kingdom that YHWH had given him was to be torn away from him and given to one of his ‘servants'. Solomon was now in total disgrace, and his name was to be humiliated. Solomon's son, instead of inheriting an empire, would become a petty king.