The Instant Shriveling of King Jeroboam’s Hand
Idolatry and the Demise of the Northern Kingdom
Who was Jeroboam?
King Solomon, the third king of Israel, worshipped pagan gods. As punishment, ten of the twelve tribes of Israel were ripped away from his heir.
One of the benefactors of Solomon’s stumble was a commoner named Jeroboam.
The Lord handpicked him to be king of the ten northern tribes of Israel. God also promised to be with Jeroboam and to establish a dynasty for him.
It was a sweet deal.
All Jeroboam had to do was obey God.
Do the Right Thing
And yet, Jeroboam didn’t trust or obey God. Like Solomon before him, he readily worshipped idols.
In no time the brand-new king of Israel commissioned two golden cow statues. Then he stationed them at both ends of his kingdom.
He didn’t stop there.
Jeroboam went all out in his rebellion against God and instituted pagan religious festivals.
He made sacrificial offerings to the idols. He ordained priests and built shrines. Then he encouraged the northern Israelites to worship the golden cow gods.
And many of them did.
God’s Warning
Then the Lord sent an unnamed prophet to condemn King Jeroboam’s actions.
While the king was at the altar, God’s man suddenly stepped forward. The prophet-with-no-name proclaimed that in the future God would kill the pagan priests on that very altar at which Jeroboam was worshiping:
“The Lord has promised to give this sign: This altar will split apart, and its ashes will be poured out on the ground.” 1 Kings 13:3 New Living Translation
Jeroboam’s Withered Hand
Jeroboam pointed at the man of God and ordered his capture.
And at that very moment, King Jeroboam experienced the power of the God he’d rejected.
As he pointed at the prophet, Jeroboam’s hand withered before his eyes. And he couldn’t pull it back.
Suddenly the altar split in half and all of the ashes spilled on the ground — exactly like the prophet had announced only moments before.
In a moment of clarity, Jeroboam realized that Israel’s God could restore his health. He pleaded with the no-name prophet to pray for the restoration of his hand.
The prophet prayed. Jeroboam’s hand miraculously became healthy again.
Jeroboam’s Stubbornness
Even after that traumatic event, Jeroboam still refused to obey God.
For twenty-two years he encouraged Israel’s idolatrous worship of the gold cows. His disobedience stirred up God’s anger.
Ahijah, another of God’s prophets, prophesized that Jeroboam’s dynasty would be destroyed. Sure enough, after Jeroboam’s death, a man named Baasha assassinated Nadab, Jeroboam’s son. He’d been on the throne for a mere two years.
Baasha then wiped out every single one of Jeroboam’s descendants, which fulfilled Ahijah’s prophecy.
Downfall of the Northern Kingdom
Jeroboam’s adamant refusal to stay loyal to Israel’s God negatively influenced his people and future of the entire northern kingdom.
Even after his death and the reign of over a dozen more kings, the northern kingdom still clung to idol worship.
They couldn’t shake Jeroboam’s influence.
Eventually, the Lord orchestrated their exile by allowing the Assyrians to invade the land.
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