1 Kings Chapter 14

Old Testament Historical 31 Verses

What is 1 Kings 14 about?

From Solomon's glory and Temple dedication through the kingdom's division and the ministry of Elijah. The complete chapter text below provides the immediate literary context for study.

Text — American Standard Version (1901)

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. For original Hebrew/Greek interlinear text, open in BibleWord.ai.
1At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick.
2And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh: behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, who spake concerning me that I should be king over this people.
3And take with thee ten loaves, and cakes, and a cruse of honey, and go to him: he will tell thee what shall become of the child.
4And Jeroboam`s wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. Now Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age.
5And Jehovah said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to inquire of thee concerning her son; for he is sick: thus and thus shalt thou say unto her; for it will be, when she cometh in, that she will feign herself to be another woman.
6And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings.
7Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel: Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel,
8and rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee; and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes,
9but hast done evil above all that were before thee, and hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back:
10therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam every man-child, him that is shut up and him that is left at large in Israel, and will utterly sweep away the house of Jeroboam, as a man sweepeth away dung, till it be all gone.
11Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the birds of the heavens eat: for Jehovah hath spoken it.
12Arise thou therefore, get thee to thy house: [and] when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die.
13And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him; for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing toward Jehovah, the God of Israel, in the house of Jeroboam.
14Moreover Jehovah will raise him up a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam that day: but what? even now.
15For Jehovah will smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water; and he will root up Israel out of this good land which he gave to their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the River, because they have made their Asherim, provoking Jehovah to anger.
16And he will give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, which he hath sinned, and wherewith he hath made Israel to sin.
17And Jeroboam`s wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah: [and] as she came to the threshold of the house, the child died.
18And all Israel buried him, and mourned for him, according to the word of Jehovah, which he spake by his servant Ahijah the prophet.
19And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred, and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
20And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years: and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his stead.
21And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which Jehovah had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there: and his mother`s name was Naamah the Ammonitess.
22And Judah did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they committed, above all that their fathers had done.
23For they also built them high places, and pillars, and Asherim, on every high hill, and under every green tree;
24and there were also sodomites in the land: they did according to all the abominations of the nations which Jehovah drove out before the children of Israel.
25And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem;
26and he took away the treasures of the house of Jehovah, and the treasures of the king`s house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.
27And king Rehoboam made in their stead shields of brass, and committed them to the hands of the captains of the guard, who kept the door of the king`s house.
28And it was so, that, as oft as the king went into the house of Jehovah, the guard bare them, and brought them back into the guard-chamber.
29Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
30And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually.
31And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David: and his mother`s name was Naamah the Ammonitess. And Abijam his son reigned in his stead.

What do historical commentaries say about this chapter?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · on verse 1
“At that time Abijah, the son of Jeroboam, fell sick.] Being smitten of God with some disease, as a punishment of Jeroboam’s sin; how long this was after the above things were done cannot be said.”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · on verse 1
“AHIJAH DENOUNCES GOD'S JUDGMENTS AGAINST JEROBOAM. (1Ki. 14:1-20) At that time--a phrase used often loosely and indefinitely in sacred history. This domestic incident in the family of Jeroboam probably occurred towards the end of his reign; his son Abijah was of age and considered by the people the heir to the throne.”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · on verse 1
“At that time - The phrase here connects the narrative which follows with Jeroboam’s persistence in his evil courses. The event related is the first judgment upon him for his obduracy, the beginning of the cutting off of his house from the face of the earth. Abijah - We see by this name that Jeroboam did not intend to desert the worship of Yahweh, since its signification is “Yahweh is my father,” or “Yahweh is my desire” Job 34:36. return to 'Top of Page'”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · on verse 1
“At that time - Presently after the things described in the former chapter; which, though related in the beginning of his reign, yet might be done a good while after it, and so Ahijah the prophet might be very old, as he is described to be Kg1 14:4. It is probable he was his eldest son. 3 Kings (1 Kings) 14:2”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · on verse 2
“14:2 Disguise yourself: Jeroboam apparently recognized that his sin had separated him from any right to approach God’s prophet. He knew that the man who had predicted his accession to Israel’s throne could predict the child’s fate and perhaps intercede with the Lord on his behalf. • Shiloh had earlier been destroyed by the Philistines in the time of Eli (1 Sam 4). Before that, the Tabernacle resided there (Josh 18:1; 1 Sam 1:3). A small community once again inhabited the site, which remained largely undeveloped throughout the divided monarchy.”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · on verse 1
“that time: Kg1 13:33, Kg1 13:34 the son: Kg1 14:12, Kg1 14:13; Exo 20:5; Sa1 4:19, Sa1 4:20, Sa1 31:2; Sa2 12:15 3 Kings (1 Kings) 14:2”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · on verse 1
“Reign of Jeroboam. - Vv. 1-18. Ahijah's prophecy against Jeroboam and the kingdom of Israel. - As Jeroboam did not desist from his idolatry notwithstanding the threatened punishment, the Lord visited him with the illness of his son, and directed the prophet Ahijah, to whom his wife had gone to ask counsel concerning the result of the illness, to predict to him not only the cutting off of his house and the death of his sick son, but also the thrusting away of Israel out of the land of its fathers beyond the Euphrates, and in confirmation of this threat caused the sick son to die when the returning mother crossed…”
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