1 Kings 15:1-8

1 Kings 15:1-8

[1] Now in the eighteenth  year  of king  Jeroboam  the son  of Nebat  reigned  Abijam  over Judah.  [2] Three  years  reigned  he in Jerusalem.  And his mother's  name  was Maachah,  the daughter  of Abishalom.  [3] 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.  [4] Nevertheless for David's  sake did the LORD  his God  give  him a lamp  in Jerusalem,  to set up  his son  after  him, and to establish  Jerusalem:  [5] Because David  did  that which was right  in the eyes  of the LORD,  and turned not aside  from any thing that he commanded  him all the days  of his life,  save only in the matter  of Uriah  the Hittite.  [6] And there was war  between Rehoboam  and Jeroboam  all the days  of his life.  [7] Now the rest  of the acts  of Abijam,  and all that he did,  are they not written  in the book  of the chronicles  of the kings  of Judah?  And there was war  between Abijam  and Jeroboam.  [8] And Abijam  slept  with his fathers;  and they buried  him in the city  of David:  and Asa  his son  reigned  in his stead.

What does 1 Kings 15:1-8 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Abijam (or Abijah, lit. my father is Yah[1]) reigned from913to911 B.C. while Jeroboam ruled over Israel. [2]
"The accession formulae from this reign onwards make cross-references between Judah and Israel. It is not clear whether this was to correlate the sources for the reader or to emphasize the essential unity which should have marked both peoples." [3]
The king"s mother was a descendant of "Absalom," a variant spelling of "Abishalom" ( 1 Kings 15:2). According to 2 Chronicles 13:2, Maacah was the daughter of Uriel and therefore the granddaughter of Absalom. Abijam continued to tolerate the pagan worship reintroduced to Judah during his father"s reign ( 1 Kings 14:23-24). He experienced chastening from the Lord because his heart did not fully belong to Yahweh ( 1 Kings 15:3; 1 Kings 15:6; cf. 2 Chronicles 13:2-20). God"s patience with Abijam was due to His promises to David more than to Abijam"s own character ( 1 Kings 15:4-5; cf. 2 Samuel 21:17; 1 Kings 11:36). [4]