II Chronicles 10-12  Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, was made king in his father's place. But, he did not ask for or receive the wisdom that his father tried to give him.  His mother was Naaman, and Ammonitess.   ...  maybe that explains some things. A mother's influence  can make a world of difference .

 Rehoboam refused to negotiate with his fellow citizens, he "forsook the counsel of the elders",  and would not "listen to the people".  His arrogance and foolishness lost him the rule of most of the country. 12 tribes turned away and became the nation of Israel, making Jeroboam their king.  Only Judah and Benjamin stayed loyal to Rehoboam. He fled to Jerusalem and began fortifying all the cities in Judah and Benjamin.  He was ready to go to war with Israel, but God sent a prophet, Shemaiah, to put a stop to that. 

All of this happened because the Lord chose to do it, because of  the sins of Solomon, whose heart "was not wholly devoted to the Lord his God... [who] went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and after Milcom the detestable idol of the Ammonites... and.. did what was evil in the sight of the Lord." ( I Kings 11:4-13)  And just as God said He would do.. He did. The 10 tribes were torn out of the hands of Rehoboam and given to another. 

The priests and Levites followed Rehoboam to Jerusalem. "And those from the tribes of Israel who set their hearts on seeking the Lord God of Israel, followed them to Jerusalem to sacrifice to the Lord God of their fathers." ( 11:16)  For three years "they walked in the way of David and Solomon". 

But then... "It took place when the kingdom of Rehoboam was established and strong that he and all Israel with him forsook the law of the Lord." (12:1)  As discipline, the Lord sent Egypt against Judah.  "You have forsaken Me, so I have forsaken you to Shishak" the prophet told Rehoboam (12:5).  At this Rehoboam humbled himself and a measure of deliverance was given. They became slaves of Egypt once again and many of the treasures that Solomon had amassed were taken. Yet.. "when he humbled himself, the anger of the Lord turned away from him, so as not to destroy him completely;" He reigned in Judah for 17 years. 

The final words about Rehoboam are these.."and he did evil because he did not set his heart to seek the Lord."

Rehoboam had 18 wives and 60 concubines. He fathered 28 sons and 60 daughters. He favored Maacah, one of his wives, over the others. Maacah was the daughter of Absalom. She would have actually been his cousin. What a mess.  All of this would have broken David's heart. His sons, his grandchildren, and his great-grandchildren.. turned away from the Lord, whom David loved. 

We pray and pray for our children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren... seeing the evil in our world today. It is vital that we do so.. but we must also lead by example.. to be fully devoted to the Lord our God.. to set our hearts to seek Him always.. to be the right influence for our children and their children. It will make all the difference in the world.. and for eternity. 

Father in heaven, we humble ourselves before You and confess our failure to live wholly devoted lives. Forgive us Lord. Help us to set our hearts on You alone.. to seek You, to draw nearer and nearer to You, to be humble and yielded to You always.. in all we do, especially in our roles as parents and grandparents. Father, You are the God of peace who has promised to sanctify us.. to make us devoted, through Christ Jesus. ( I Thess. 5:23-24) You are faithful and You will bring it to pass! Hallelujah! Let your will be done in us Father, for it is in the wonderful Name of Jesus that we pray. Amen.