1 Kings 14

At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam became sick.

Jeroboam said to his wife, “Please get up and disguise yourself, so that you won’t be recognized as Jeroboam’s wife. Go to Shiloh. Behold, Ahijah the prophet is there, who said that I would be king over this people.

Take with you ten loaves of bread, some cakes, and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will become of the child.”

Jeroboam’s wife did so, and arose and went to Shiloh, and came to Ahijah’s house. Now Ahijah could not see, for his eyes were set by reason of his age.

The LORD said to Ahijah, “Behold, Jeroboam’s wife is coming to inquire of you concerning her son, for he is sick. Tell her such and such; for it will be, when she comes in, that she will pretend to be another woman.”

So when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet as she came in at the door, he said, “Come in, Jeroboam’s wife! Why do you pretend to be another? For I am sent to you with heavy news.

Go, tell Jeroboam, ‘The LORD, the God of Israel, says: “Because I exalted you from among the people, and made you prince over my people Israel,

and tore the kingdom away from David’s house, and gave it to you; and yet you have 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 my eyes,

but have done evil above all who were before you, and have gone and made for yourself other gods, molten images, to provoke me to anger, and have cast me behind your back,

therefore, behold, I will bring evil on the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam everyone who urinates on a wall, he who is shut up and he who is left at large in Israel, and will utterly sweep away the house of Jeroboam, as a man sweeps away dung until it is all gone.

The dogs will eat he who belongs to Jeroboam who dies in the city; and the birds of the sky will eat he who dies in the field, for the LORD has spoken it.”’

Arise therefore, and go to your house. When your feet enter into the city, the child will die.

All Israel will mourn for him and bury him; for he only of Jeroboam will come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing toward the LORD, the God of Israel, in the house of Jeroboam.

Moreover the LORD will raise up a king for himself over Israel who will cut off the house of Jeroboam. This is the day! What? Even now.

For the LORD will strike 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 Asherah poles, provoking the LORD to anger.

He will give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, which he has sinned, and with which he has made Israel to sin.”

Jeroboam’s wife arose and departed, and came to Tirzah. As she came to the threshold of the house, the child died.

All Israel buried him and mourned for him, according to the LORD’s word, which he spoke by his servant Ahijah the prophet.

The rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he fought and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

The days which Jeroboam reigned were twenty two years; then he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his place.

Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonitess.

Judah did that which was evil in the LORD’s sight, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they committed, above all that their fathers had done.

For they also built for themselves high places, sacred pillars, and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree.

There were also sodomites in the land. They did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD drove out before the children of Israel.

In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem;

and he took away the treasures of the LORD’s house and the treasures of the king’s house. He even took away all of it, including all the gold shields which Solomon had made.

King Rehoboam made shields of bronze in their place, and committed them to the hands of the captains of the guard, who kept the door of the king’s house.

It was so, that as often as the king went into the LORD’s house, the guard bore them, and brought them back into the guard room.

Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that he did, aren’t they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually.

Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in David’s city. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonitess. Abijam his son reigned in his place.

Chapter overviewAI-generated

Overview. This chapter marks the turning point in the narrative of the divided monarchy, as God pronounces judgment on Jeroboam’s dynasty through the prophet Ahijah. Though Jeroboam sought a private oracle for his sick son, he receives instead a public word of divine condemnation for his idolatry and rebellion, signaling the impending destruction of his royal line. Simultaneously, the chapter introduces the parallel decline of Judah under Rehoboam, showing that both kingdoms have turned from the Lord.

Flow.

Jeroboam sends his wife in disguise to consult the aged prophet Ahijah about their sick son.
Though Ahijah is blind, the Lord reveals the woman’s identity and charges him to deliver a message of judgment on Jeroboam’s house.
The prophecy foretells the death of the child, the destruction of Jeroboam’s dynasty, and Israel’s future exile due to persistent idolatry.
The scene shifts to Judah, where Rehoboam’s reign begins, marked by widespread apostasy, invasion by Egypt, and the loss of temple treasures.

Connections. Following chapter 13, which foreshadowed judgment on Jeroboam’s altar and dynasty through a prophetic sign, chapter 14 confirms and expands that judgment as irreversible. The Lord’s word through Ahijah now explicitly declares the end of Jeroboam’s line, fulfilling earlier warnings. This prepares for chapter 15, which records the fulfillment of these prophecies as Jeroboam’s son dies and is succeeded by Nadab, whose brief reign ends in assassination—just as the Lord foretold.

What it teaches. The chapter underscores God’s holiness and the seriousness of covenant unfaithfulness, especially among those in leadership. Though Jeroboam was raised up by the Lord (WCF 5.7), his establishment of golden calves and rejection of true worship violated God’s commandments (WCF 19.4), provoking divine judgment. The judgment on Israel is compared to a reed shaken in water—temporary and unstable—because they had forsaken the land the Lord gave them (WCF 7.3). Even in Judah, where the Davidic line continues, idolatry flourishes, showing that both kingdoms are under wrath. Yet the sparing of Abijah for a burial reflects a remnant of grace where even a trace of good toward the Lord is honored (; cf. HC LD 10).

Apply. When the king entered the house, the child died—judgment came not in spectacle, but in silence, as the Lord’s word proved true.

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