2 Chronicles 12:13 - Meaning and Application

The story of Rehoboam’s reign is brought to a close here, as the stories of other kings often are. Two things stand out in this verse.

First, he was at last fairly settled in his kingdom, though not in a secure way that honored God. The fortified cities in Judah did not meet his hopes, so he turned to strengthening Jerusalem, which he made his main concern to defend. There he reigned seventeen years, in the city the Lord had chosen for his name to dwell. That was a mark of honor and privilege, since his royal seat was in the holy city. Yet it also made his sin worse, because he lived near the temple and still kept far from God. There were frequent clashes between his people and Jeroboam’s, amounting to continual war (2 Chronicles 12:15), but he kept his throne and, it seems, did not fall back into the same open departure from God he had shown in his fourth year (2 Chronicles 12:1).

Second, he was never truly settled in his religion. He never fully cast off God, and yet he did wrong because he did not prepare his heart to seek the Lord. Notice where the blame is placed. He did not serve the Lord because he did not seek the Lord. He did not pray, as Solomon had, for wisdom and grace. If we prayed better, we would be better in every other way too. Or he did not turn to God’s word and treat it as his guide and answer.

He also made little of religion because he did not set his heart on it. He never gave it careful attention, and he never had a sincere desire for it. He never came to a firm decision for God. Whatever good he had was brief, like a morning cloud that soon disappears. He did evil because he was never settled on doing good. Satan easily leads those into evil who are wavering, unstable, and never truly resolved to make religion their serious work.