From this point onward, Israel experienced trouble. The long period of peace won by David and enjoyed by Solomon ended. Wars returned. Worse, a civil war began that seethed for generations. After Solomon’s death, in about 930 B.C., the nation divided into two kingdoms, north and south. In memory of David, God allowed Solomon’s son Rehoboam to keep the two southern tribes, Judah and Benjamin. God gave the northern ten tribes—now called Israel (as distinct from Judah)—to King Jeroboam. Instead of showing gratitude, Jeroboam rebelled against God. To prevent
Israel from worshipping at Judah’s capital, Jerusalem, Jeroboam appointed his own priests and built his own altars. At these unauthorized centers, the people worshipped Jeroboam’s golden calves (1 Kings 12:26-33), violating the first of the Ten Commandments. No king of Israel after Jeroboam attempted to correct his rebellious policy. Leadership often changed hands, fueled by power struggles and assassinations. God sent His prophets to call Israel back to the covenant. The famous prophets Elijah and Elisha proved their message true by powerful miracles (1 Kings 17 – 2 Kings 13). Prophets who also warned of impending Judgments included Hosea, Amos and Micah.
Rather than listen, the kings and the people became worse, even killing their children as sacrifices to pagan gods. Continual rejection of God led eventually to the complete destruction of Israel as a nation. The history of that sad decline— despite God’s many interventions—extends from 1 Kings 11 through 2 Kings 17.
God used Assyria to defeat Israel and to carry its people away into exile as slaves (721 B.C.). Assyria then moved other conquered peoples to Israel’s land and to its capital Samaria. These immigrants created a mixed religion that claimed to honor the God of Israel while continuing pagan practices (2 Kings 17:27-41). Thus began the “Samaritans” who featured later in the accounts about Jesus and His disciples (Luke 9:52-56; John 4:9, 20; Acts 1:8; 8:5).