1 But when Rehoboam was firmly established and strong, he abandoned the Law of the Lord, and all Israel followed him in this sin. 2 Because they were unfaithful to the Lord, King Shishak of Egypt came up and attacked Jerusalem in the fifth year of King Rehoboam’s reign. 3 He came with 1,200 chariots, 60,000 horses, and a countless army of foot soldiers, including Libyans, Sukkites, and Ethiopians. 4 Shishak conquered Judah’s fortified towns and then advanced to attack Jerusalem.
But then, God sent a prophet to confront them and explain the situation:
5 The prophet Shemaiah then met with Rehoboam and Judah’s leaders, who had all fled to Jerusalem because of Shishak. Shemaiah told them, “This is what the Lord says: You have abandoned me, so I am abandoning you to Shishak.”
6 Then the leaders of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is right in doing this to us!”
7 When the Lord saw their change of heart, he gave this message to Shemaiah: “Since the people have humbled themselves, I will not completely destroy them and will soon give them some relief. I will not use Shishak to pour out my anger on Jerusalem. 8 But they will become his subjects, so they will know the difference between serving me and serving earthly rulers.”
The thing I was struck with was that when they repented, God gave them SOME relief, but He still allowed them to become Shishak's subjects. There are always consequences for sin. Even though God has given us His word and examples from the past, we still are unfaithful to Him. May He continue to give us consequences for our sin so that we learn to obey, love and honor Him.
Our country was founded on the concept of freedom. The constitution and declaration may have some Judeo-Christian ideas, but the founding documents of our country are non-religious. While our country has moved away from God, it is hard to say if we ever were truly there. We aren't a theocracy, as was Israel. Our country cannot be held to the same standards as was Israel.
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