Chapter 36 Basha makes himself king

In order to protect themselves from the wrath of the gods, the primitive man, who is dominated by the forces of nature, had to turn to the priests for help.And the special status of the priest gave the person who held this position unlimited power.They do not voluntarily relinquish this power.So the change of regime from theocracy to monarchy was often accompanied by terrible wars. Only among the Jews was theocracy firmly in the imagination and never broken. Moses practiced a strict theocracy from the beginning. The Ten Commandments were actually the constitution of his new country.By his command the high priest became the administrative head of the people.The Tabernacle was in a sense the capital of the nation.

The conquest of Canaan weakened the power of the Church, while the military leaders benefited enormously.Even so, many judges were also priests, with a double influence on the life of the nation. During the reigns of David and Solomon, it seems that the kings had established an absolute monarchy, with the high priest executing the will of the earthly masters, not the will of Yahweh. However, Jeroboam's revolution and the split of the country into two kingdoms gave the priests new opportunities to regain their privileges to these cunning people. King Rehoboam of Judah lost two-thirds of his subjects and three-quarters of his territory, but he kept Jerusalem.As the religious center of the Jews, this city is much more valuable than five or six Samaria and Shechem.If you remember that in the tenth century BC, the Temple of Jerusalem was designated as the only place where sacrifices could be performed, you will understand its value.

This situation is not easy to understand.Because we can belong to many different factions.Or a Methodist, or a Catholic, or a Jew, or a Christian Scientist, or a Baptist, or a Lutheran, and so on.But we live in harmony with decent neighbors, and on Sundays (or any other day we like) we go to the church of our choice and worship as we wish. However, the ancient Jews had no such choice.They had to sacrifice at the altar of the Temple in Jerusalem. The Jewish state is small, and a trip to Jerusalem is physically bearable.However, most Jews visit the Temple only two or three times in their lifetime, and only on very solemn days.They don't care that it takes a few days to reach the Holy of Holies.This gives Jerusalem a supreme status in people's minds.

In the Middle Ages, it was said that all roads lead to Rome.In ancient Palestine, all roads led to the temple. When the kings of Israel erected a barrier to separate their subjects from their hated neighbors in Judah, Jerusalem gained unexpected prestige.It became a shrine to the martyrs.The priests of the Temple stood with the King of Judah.They identified Israel's rulers as "illegitimate."They denounced the “rebels” in the north as violating Jehovah’s will by refusing to accept the “rightful” heir to the throne.They actually excommunicated all the Israelites and cursed them for their evil deeds.The defenders of the altar of Judah rejoiced when the poor northern kingdom was greedily swallowed up by Assyria.

They claimed that it was Yahweh who punished his unfaithful followers and that the world is now at peace. Unfortunately, a hundred years later, they did not get rid of the same bad luck.Centuries of exile taught them a painful lesson in tolerance. It is not easy for our contemporary children to understand such a situation.If his parents (for one reason or another) didn't like their pastor, they switched to another church without feeling guilty.But the Israelites in the tenth century BC, like the Jews of their generation, considered themselves faithful servants of Jehovah.They do not admit that they are "heretics".

They want to maintain a connection with the Temple.But the Temple is in Jerusalem, the capital of a rival state.In desperation, they had to build a few temples of their own. However, this did not bring much benefit. On the contrary, things got worse.They fell into the same embarrassing position as Europeans in the fourteenth century AD.These Europeans dared to elect a Pope of their own against the recognized Pope who lived in Rome. I'm sorry for telling so much history in this chapter.Only in this way, however, can the reader gain a clear understanding of the complex and unfortunate relationship between Israel and Judah.

Israel enjoys all worldly benefits. Judas retained a great religious advantage, and later proved that Judas was the stronger of the two. The following briefly describes the political development of the two kingdoms from the division to the era of exile. The invasion from the east brought a definitive end to the strife between Israel and Judah.The independent Egyptian king Shishak established a new dynasty.He closely watched the situation in the Jewish state.When Jeroboam fled to Egypt, he showed kindness and friendship.He encouraged his guests to return to Jerusalem to stage an uprising, depriving the Davidic dynasty of most of its possessions.

Now that the Jewish tribes were in civil war, Shishak did not miss the opportunity.He invaded Israel, captured Jerusalem, and allowed his men to destroy the temple.He then went north to capture and destroy one hundred and thirty-three towns in Israel, and returned to Egypt laden with loot from the Jewish state. Israel recovered quickly, but Judah suffered heavy losses.The wealth of the country was robbed.The temple was rebuilt, but the collapsed finances could no longer restore the old luxury.Iron and copper replaced gold and silver.The magnificent scene has become a memory.Nor will the curious Queen of Sheba visit again.

Shortly after this invasion, Jeroboam died and was succeeded by his son Nadab. The young man did what many of his predecessors had done.He declared war on the Philistines. He besieged the city of Gibbidon, which refused to surrender, and before he could give the city a look, he was assassinated by Baasha of the tribe of Issachar.This person appears to be one of his generals. Baasha made himself king of Israel, killed all the relatives of Nadab, and moved the capital to Tirzah. He continued to besiege Gibbiton and declared war on Judah. In Judah, Rehoboam died and was succeeded by his son Abijam.Abijah died three years after his reign, and was succeeded by Asa, one of his forty-two sons.