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Humbling and Repentance

After Solomon’s death, Israel divided itself from Judah and set up its own king (Jeroboam). Judah continued to follow Rehoboam, the son of Solomon. Both kingdoms forsook the law of God, essentially usurping their kingdoms for themselves. We read in 2 Chronicles 12:1-4,

¹ When the kingdom of Rehoboam was established and strong, he and all Israel with him forsook the law of the Lord. ² And it came about in King Rehoboam’s fifth year, because they had been unfaithful to the Lord, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem… ⁴ He captured the fortified cities of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem.

The first lesson to be learned from this is that when a supposedly-kingdom nation forsakes the law of the Lord, God raises up foreigners to bring judgment upon the nation. The average citizen, who lacks spiritual insight, views the threat from a “patriotic” point of view, believing that the invader is the problem and that God will always back our “righteous” nation.

That is the normal view that the carnal mind holds, but it is not the biblical view. Men tend to rise up in righteous indignation to defend their country. They pray that God will bless their lawless nation. They seldom understand (as Pogo says), “We have met the enemy, and he is us.” Such is the condition of the carnal mind, which, though often religious, is not spiritual.

In the example above, it is unlikely that Shishak, king of Egypt, said to himself: “Those Israelites have forsaken the law of the Lord, so let us now attack them while God’s hand of protection has been removed from them.” No, Shishak thought it was his own idea. He did not know that God Himself had given him that idea. God tends to work anonymously.

2 Chronicles 12:5 continues,

⁵ Then Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and the princes of Judah who had gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak, and he said to them, “Thus says the Lord, ‘You have forsaken Me, so I also have forsaken you to Shishak’.”

Many Christians understand Rehoboam’s problem, though he himself did not seem to know it until the prophet told him. Yet many Christians fail to apply this biblical principle to their own nation (particularly America and the Israeli state). They know that the Bible prophesies of an invasion of Israel, but they do not seem to understand why the Israeli state is being invaded. They assume that the foreign invaders simply hate God and hate Israel for no other reason.

But Scripture tells a different story. If a nation is invaded, it is because God has raised up “enemies” to bring judgment. From man’s carnal viewpoint, the invaders are defined as their “enemies,” and they always assume that “our enemies are God’s enemies.” They fail to see that when God raises up invaders, He is the One leading those foreign troops.

God’s Siege of Jerusalem

Another striking example of this is seen in Isaiah 29:1-3, where God tells Jerusalem,

¹ Woe, O Ariel [i.e., Jerusalem] the city where David once camped!... ² I will bring distress to Ariel, and she will be a city of lamenting and mourning; and she will be like an Ariel [“hearth, or fireplace”] to me. ³ I will camp against you encircling you, and I will set siegeworks against you, and I will raise up battle towers against you.

Here we see how God takes full credit for laying siege to the city, even though foreign armies did the actual work. God sets forth the truth that He is the great General leading the foreign armies against Jerusalem. Why? Obviously, because the people of Jerusalem are lawless and in rebellion against God Himself. Their genealogy is not a factor here. One cannot say, “They are God’s chosen people, so God is always on their side.”

God defined His enemies in Leviticus 26:40-42 by pointing out that those who reject the law of God are acting with “hostility” against Him. Therefore, God will act with “hostility” against the lawless ones. One’s genealogy is irrelevant, except perhaps to make them more liable. Having vowed to be obedient to God and to align one’s behavior with the nature of God—and then to disregard this and break their vow—makes them more liable than other nations which never received the revelation of God nor did they ever make such a vow.

The entire chapter of Leviticus 26 warns Israel that God will bring them into tribulation, captivity, and even exile if they forsake the law of the Lord. Christians ought to respect God’s right to be obeyed and to be in agreement with God when He raises up foreigners to bring judgment upon the nation which they call Israel. Yet instead, we find that the vast majority of evangelical Christians throw their support behind the Israeli state, apparently not understanding that they have decided to fight God and His army.

I would never advocate joining a foreign army, even when it is led by God. But we ought not to join the Israeli army either, for that would put us in direct conflict with God Himself. In fact, that would put us in the category of being God’s enemy by God’s own definition.

God Gives Partial Credit to Rehoboam

Getting back to the story of Shishak’s invasion of Judah, 2 Chronicles 12:6-8 concludes,

⁶ So the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is righteous.” ⁷ When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, saying, “They have humbled themselves so I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some measure of deliverance, and My wrath shall not be poured out on Jerusalem by means of Shishak. ⁸ But they will become his slaves so that they may learn the difference between My service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.”

The wording here is similar to what we see later in the story of King Ahab, who “humbled himself” (1 Kings 21:29) and thereby gained a measure of deliverance—in this case, three years. It is clear that there is a difference between humbling and repentance. Genuine repentance may cancel the judgment altogether, while humbling gains only a temporary reprieve or some other lesser form of divine judgment.

In the case of Rehoboam, we see how the judgment was reduced in 2 Chronicles 12:9-12,

⁹ So Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, and took the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king’s palace. He took everything; he even took the golden shields which Solomon had made. ¹⁰ Then King Rehoboam made shields of bronze in their place and committed them to the care of the commanders of the guard who guarded the door of the king’s house… ¹² And when he humbled himself, the anger of the Lord turned away from him, so as not to destroy him completely; and also conditions were good in Judah.

We see how the judgment was not averted entirely, but Rehoboam was able to continue his reign in Jerusalem. The country was not destroyed, nor was it annexed by Egypt. But the cost was still heavy, because they did not repent. In fact, we read also in 2 Chronicles 12:14,

¹⁴ He did evil because he did not set his heart to seek the Lord.

Biblically speaking, this is the key to national prosperity. If Rehoboam had wanted to Make Judah Great Again, he should have done more than just humble himself. He should have actively sought the will of God, as revealed by the laws of God. Recall Romans 2:17, 18,

¹⁷ But if you bear the name “Jew” and rely upon the Law and boast in God, ¹⁸ and know His will and approve the things that are essential, being structed out of the Law.

The law tells us the will of God, because it defines the nature of God. It is therefore God’s will that we do not kill, steal, covet, or take His name in vain. John 3:4 says, “sin is lawlessness.”

Yet I thank God that there are believers who have not cast aside God’s law and who “seek the Lord.” These are the ones who seek to know the nature and character of God so that they may be conformed to the image of Christ, who knew no sin.

For these, Scripture extends the hope of protection when their lawless nation brings divine judgment. God’s judgment is not designed to destroy the righteous but to protect, guide, and provide for them through such times of crisis.