Sweeping Away the Dung
Introduction: The Folly of Managing God
Men are inveterate schemers. We are constantly trying to manage our affairs, which is right and proper, but our fatal flaw is that we believe we can manage God. We treat the Almighty as though He were a difficult senior partner in the firm, one who must be placated, occasionally consulted, but ultimately kept in His corner office while we run the show. We want His power when our child gets sick, His foresight when our investments are shaky, and His blessing when we launch a new enterprise. But we do not want His authority, His commandments, or His intrusive Lordship over every square inch of our lives.
This is the sin of Jeroboam, and it is the besetting sin of the modern church. Jeroboam was a pragmatist. He set up golden calves at Dan and Bethel for pragmatic political reasons, to secure his kingdom. And now, when his own house is threatened, when his son lies dying, he approaches God with the same manipulative pragmatism. He wants a prophet's diagnosis without a prophet's rebuke. He wants a word from God without having to deal with God. So he sends his wife in a cheap disguise, with a paltry bribe of bread and honey, to try and sneak a bit of information out of the divine council.
This is the height of folly. It is like trying to disguise your voice on a phone call to the man who invented telephones. It is attempting to hide in the shadows from the one who created light. Jeroboam's pathetic scheme reveals a heart that sees God as a cosmic vending machine, a tool to be used, not a King to be worshipped. But God is not a tool, and He will not be managed. He is the one who manages all things, and when men try to play games with Him, He responds with terrifying severity. This story is a stark warning to all who would attempt to have a transactional relationship with God, who want the benefits of His power without the submission of their hearts. God sees through the costume, and He will not be mocked.
The Text
At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam became sick. And Jeroboam said to his wife, “Arise now, and disguise yourself so that they will not know that you are the wife of Jeroboam, and go to Shiloh; behold, Ahijah the prophet is there, who spoke concerning me that I would be king over this people. And take ten loaves with you, some cakes, and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy.” Then Jeroboam’s wife did so, and arose and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. Now Ahijah could not see, for his eyes had set because of his old age. Now Yahweh had said to Ahijah, “Behold, the wife of Jeroboam is coming to inquire of you concerning her son, for he is sick. You shall say thus and thus to her, for it will be when she arrives that she will pretend to be another woman.” Now it happened as Ahijah heard the sound of her feet coming in the doorway, that he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam, why do you pretend to be another woman? For I am sent to you with a harsh message. Go, say to Jeroboam, ‘Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, “Because I exalted you from among the people and made you ruler over My people Israel, and tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you, yet you have not been like My servant David, who kept My commandments and who walked after Me with all his heart, to do only that which was right in My sight; you also have done more evil than all who were before you, and have gone and made for yourself other gods and molten images to provoke Me to anger, and have cast Me behind your back, therefore behold, I am bringing evil on the house of Jeroboam: I will cut off from Jeroboam every male person, both bond and free in Israel, and I will make a clean sweep of the house of Jeroboam, as one sweeps away dung until it is all gone. Anyone belonging to Jeroboam who dies in the city the dogs will eat. And he who dies in the field the birds of the sky will eat; for Yahweh has spoken it.” ’ But you, arise, go to your house. When your feet enter the city the child will die. And all Israel shall mourn for him and bury him, for he alone of Jeroboam’s family will come to the grave, because in him something good was found toward Yahweh, the God of Israel, in the house of Jeroboam. Moreover, Yahweh will raise up for Himself a king over Israel who will cut off the house of Jeroboam this day and from now on. “So Yahweh will strike Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water; and He will uproot Israel from this good land which He gave to their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the River, because they have made their Asherim, provoking Yahweh to anger. And He will give Israel over on account of the sins of Jeroboam, which he sinned and with which he made Israel to sin.” Then Jeroboam’s wife arose and went away and came to Tirzah. As she was entering the threshold of the house, the child died. And all Israel buried him and mourned for him, according to the word of Yahweh which He spoke through His servant Ahijah the prophet.
(1 Kings 14:1-18 LSB)
A Pathetic Disguise (vv. 1-6)
Jeroboam is in a crisis. The son who would secure his dynasty is sick, and the court physicians are useless. So where does he turn? He remembers the prophet Ahijah, the very man who foretold his rise to power. Jeroboam knows where true power and knowledge lie. But his approach is shot through with duplicity. He tells his wife to disguise herself. Why? Because he knows he is in rebellion. He knows he cannot approach the prophet of Yahweh as the king who has filled the land with idols. He is ashamed, but he is not repentant.
He wants God's information, but he wants it anonymously. He is like a man who calls a crisis hotline using a fake name, hoping for a quick fix without having to change his life. He even sends a pathetic gift, ten loaves, some cakes, a jar of honey, as if the prophet of God were a country fortune teller who could be bought off. This is not the tribute of a humble king; it is the fee of a desperate client.
But the plan is doomed before it begins. God is not taken by surprise. He reveals the whole charade to the prophet. And here is the beautiful irony: Ahijah is old and blind. He cannot see the woman's costume, but he sees her heart with perfect clarity because God has shown him. The world thinks seeing is believing, but the Bible teaches that the man of God walks by faith, not by sight. The king with his eyes wide open is utterly blind to spiritual reality, while the blind prophet sees everything. As soon as she steps through the door, Ahijah demolishes her disguise. "Come in, wife of Jeroboam, why do you pretend to be another woman?" God does not play along with our games. He confronts our hypocrisy head-on. The first thing this woman hears is not a word about her son, but a word about her sin. This is always God's order of business.
Grace Spurned and Judgment Earned (vv. 7-9)
The message Ahijah delivers is not his own. It is a covenant lawsuit, brought by Yahweh, the God of Israel. And like any formal indictment, it begins by recounting the prior relationship. God reminds Jeroboam of His grace. "I exalted you... I made you ruler... I tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you." This was not Jeroboam's clever maneuvering. This was a gift. God took him from obscurity and placed him on a throne. God gave him the opportunity to be a new David, a faithful covenant king.
But Jeroboam failed spectacularly. The charge is blunt: "you have not been like My servant David." David was the standard, and though he was a great sinner, his heart was fundamentally loyal to Yahweh. Jeroboam's heart was loyal only to Jeroboam. The indictment gets worse. He has done "more evil than all who were before you." This is a staggering charge. He has surpassed the sins of Solomon in his apostasy. How? By institutionalizing idolatry, by making it the state religion. He made "other gods and molten images," the golden calves, a direct violation of the first and second commandments.
And then we have the most visceral description of his sin: you "have cast Me behind your back." This is not an image of forgetfulness. It is an image of active, contemptuous rejection. It is to treat God as a piece of garbage, something to be thrown over your shoulder and forgotten. After all of God's grace, this was Jeroboam's response. He took God's gifts and then threw God Himself away. This is the essence of all sin. It is a profound insult to the honor of our Creator. And such an insult cannot go unanswered.
The Dung Heap of History (vv. 10-11)
Because Jeroboam has cast God behind his back, God now brings a judgment that is fittingly contemptuous. The language here is coarse and shocking, and it is meant to be. God says, "I will make a clean sweep of the house of Jeroboam, as one sweeps away dung until it is all gone." Dung is worthless, unclean, and offensive. It is to be removed with utter finality. This is God's verdict on the proud dynasty Jeroboam thought he was building. In God's sight, it is a pile of filth to be shoveled off the land.
The curse extends to every male, "both bond and free," ensuring the line is completely extinguished. And the judgment is not just death, but shameful death. Those who die in the city will be eaten by feral dogs. Those who die in the field will be eaten by vultures. In the ancient world, to be left unburied was the ultimate curse, a sign of total divine rejection. This is the outworking of the covenant curses laid out in Deuteronomy. Jeroboam chose idolatry, and so he and his house will receive the full measure of the curse attached to it. When men treat God like refuse, they should not be surprised when God treats them and their ambitions in the same way.
A Merciful Severity (vv. 12-14)
The judgment begins immediately, and it begins with the very boy they were trying to save. "When your feet enter the city the child will die." The timing is precise, a clear and undeniable sign that this prophecy is from God. The death of this one child will be the down payment on the destruction of the entire house. It is a severe and heartbreaking blow.
And yet, in the midst of this terrible sentence, there is a strange and beautiful glimmer of mercy. This boy, Abijah, will be the only one of Jeroboam's house to receive a proper burial and be mourned by the nation. Why? "Because in him something good was found toward Yahweh, the God of Israel, in the house of Jeroboam." This is a profound statement. God sees everything. In that corrupt, idolatrous, and wicked palace, there was one heart, a young boy's heart, that was inclined toward the true God. And God honors it. He spares this boy the shame that will befall the rest of his family.
This tells us that God's judgment is never a blind rage. It is meticulous and discerning. He knows how to distinguish the righteous from the wicked, even when they live under the same roof. This is a comfort for believers who find themselves in ungodly families or situations. God sees your faithfulness. But it is also a warning. The goodness of this one boy did not save the house. A little bit of piety is not enough to avert the judgment on systemic rebellion. God then announces that He has already chosen His instrument of judgment, a new king who will carry out this sentence. God's decrees are not idle threats; He always has His man ready to execute His will.
The King's Sin and the People's Exile (vv. 15-16)
The consequences of Jeroboam's sin do not stop at the palace gates. A king never sins in a vacuum. His choices have national implications. Because Jeroboam "made Israel to sin," the entire nation will now face judgment. First, they will be unstable, "as a reed is shaken in the water." A nation that forsakes the Rock of its salvation will find no solid ground to stand on. Political, economic, and social turmoil will be the order of the day.
But this instability is just the beginning. The final judgment will be exile. God "will uproot Israel from this good land... and will scatter them beyond the River." This is a prophecy of the Assyrian captivity, which would come to pass some two hundred years later. The sin of the first king of the Northern Kingdom set the nation on a trajectory that would end in its complete destruction. This is the principle of federal headship. The leader represents the people, for good or for ill. When a leader establishes wickedness in the land, he is pulling the whole nation down with him. This is why we are commanded to pray for our leaders, and why we have a duty to work for righteous rule. The stakes are not just political; they are covenantal.
Conclusion: The True King
The story ends as it began, with the precise fulfillment of God's Word. The queen returns home, and as she crosses the threshold, her son dies. The nation mourns. The first part of the prophecy has come true, guaranteeing that the rest will follow. God's Word does not return to Him void.
This is a grim and terrifying story, and it should be. It is a story about the consequences of casting God behind your back. We are all tempted to be Jeroboam, to craft a religion of convenience, to put on disguises, and to try and manage God for our own ends. We have all taken the good gifts of God and used them to fuel our own rebellion. We have all earned the curse. Our proud houses and ambitious plans are nothing more than a dung heap in the sight of a holy God, destined to be swept away.
But the story of the Bible does not end with the house of Jeroboam. It points us to the house of David, and to David's greater Son. God raised up another king, Jesus Christ, who was not like Jeroboam. He was like His servant David, a man after God's own heart. He never cast His Father behind His back but did only what was right in His sight. And yet, He received the curse that Jeroboam deserved. He was cast out of the city. He was stripped and shamed. His body was not eaten by dogs, but it was pierced for our transgressions.
The judgment that fell on the house of Jeroboam is a picture of the final judgment that will fall on all who remain in their sins. But the cross of Jesus Christ is the place where God sweeps away the dung of our sin and rebellion. He takes our filthy record and nails it to the cross. He takes our pathetic disguises and clothes us in the perfect righteousness of His Son. The choice before us is simple. We can cling to our idolatrous kingdoms and be swept away as dung, or we can abandon our thrones, bend the knee to the true King, and be welcomed into the house that will never be cut off.