SeniorSeeker
Active member
[size=x-large]The Politics of Religion[/size]
After the death of Solomon, the poor judgment of Rehoboam, his son, led to the division of the nation, with King Jeroboam ruling in Israel, the northern kingdom, and Rehoboam in Judah, the southern kingdom.
Not long after the break, Jeroboam set the northern kingdom on a very dangerous path. He did not deliberately set out to lead Israel from a worship of God to idolatry; instead, he was acting from political expediency. He created two centers of worship, one at Bethel and one at Dan. He claimed to be trying to make things easier for the Israelites, so that they would not have to travel all the way to Jerusalem in order to worship. The golden calves were simply to be a visual reminder of God and were to make worship more credible for the common Israelite. What started as a political move, however, led to the breaking of the Ten Command- ments (Exod. 20:4, 5).
What similarities can be noted between the golden calf episode in Exodus 32 and Jeroboam
After the death of Solomon, the poor judgment of Rehoboam, his son, led to the division of the nation, with King Jeroboam ruling in Israel, the northern kingdom, and Rehoboam in Judah, the southern kingdom.
Not long after the break, Jeroboam set the northern kingdom on a very dangerous path. He did not deliberately set out to lead Israel from a worship of God to idolatry; instead, he was acting from political expediency. He created two centers of worship, one at Bethel and one at Dan. He claimed to be trying to make things easier for the Israelites, so that they would not have to travel all the way to Jerusalem in order to worship. The golden calves were simply to be a visual reminder of God and were to make worship more credible for the common Israelite. What started as a political move, however, led to the breaking of the Ten Command- ments (Exod. 20:4, 5).
What similarities can be noted between the golden calf episode in Exodus 32 and Jeroboam