Ironworks

  And Nadab the son of Jeroboam began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned over Israel two years.   And he did evil in the sight of the  Lord , and walked in the way of his father, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin . 1 Kings 15:25-26             It has been well documented in the article concerning Jeroboam that his desire to remain relevant lead to many unauthorized practices by the northern kingdom of Israel. Upon his death, Nadab, his son, became king, and we must take notice of some things about his reign. We almost miss Nadab because his reign was brief, as was his father’s, but it was certainly not inconsequential. Joseph de Maistre said, "Every country has the government it deserves." For Israel, this certainly is true. When Jeroboam walked away from Jerusalem and set to establish his own form of pseudo-Judaism, it opened the door to all sorts of chaos continu...

  Now in the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam the son of Nebat reigned Abijam (also Abijah) over Judah.Three years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom. And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father. 1 Kings 15:1-3        Do you ever wonder how someone who gets things mostly right can still be so wrong? It is mind-boggling if we do not consider that God judges man in totality. From our text above, it is hard to see anything good that can be said about Abijam (Abijah) son of Rehoboam. After all, it is evident that he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father.      So where do we learn the details? 2 Chronicles 13:1-22 gives us further evidence of Abijah’s issues. We know he i...