Jeroboam’s unauthorized feast cemented religious division in Israel.
Jeroboam, ruling as the first king of the northern kingdom of Israel around 931-910 BC, continues in 1 Kings 12 to establish his own system of worship to prevent his subjects from returning to Jerusalem. He chooses Bethel, located about ten miles north of Jerusalem in the hill country of the tribal allotment of Benjamin, as one of his alternate worship centers. In this verse, the scripture states, “Then he went up to the altar which he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised in his own heart; and he instituted a feast for the sons of Israel and went up to the altar to burn incense.” (v.33) Through these actions, Jeroboam creates religious practices that diverge from God’s instructions given through Moses.
By forming a feast on a day “which he had devised in his own heart” (v.33), Jeroboam reveals a disregard for the sacred calendar established by the Lord. Rather than following the divinely instituted feasts (Leviticus 23), he crafts a separate observance that competes with the prescribed festivals in Jerusalem. This move is a clear attempt to solidify his political power, ensuring that people have a convenient alternative to traveling to Jerusalem in the southern kingdom of Judah. Yet this decision also sets a precedent of disobedience to the true worship of God, an act which later prophets condemn (Hosea 8:5).
His decision to offer incense, “and went up to the altar to burn incense” (v.33), further severs the northern kingdom’s worship from God’s commands. Incense burning was traditionally connected with priestly duties, underscoring Jeroboam’s assumption of spiritual authority. In the broader biblical narrative, the Lord’s expectation of faithful worship ultimately points to the perfect atoning work of Jesus Christ, involving heartfelt obedience and sincerity rather than ritual invention (John 4:24). Jeroboam’s self-fashioned approach, conceived “in his own heart” (v.33), therefore stands in sharp contrast to the faithful worship that God desires.
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1 Kings 12:33 meaning
Jeroboam, ruling as the first king of the northern kingdom of Israel around 931-910 BC, continues in 1 Kings 12 to establish his own system of worship to prevent his subjects from returning to Jerusalem. He chooses Bethel, located about ten miles north of Jerusalem in the hill country of the tribal allotment of Benjamin, as one of his alternate worship centers. In this verse, the scripture states, “Then he went up to the altar which he had made in Bethel on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised in his own heart; and he instituted a feast for the sons of Israel and went up to the altar to burn incense.” (v.33) Through these actions, Jeroboam creates religious practices that diverge from God’s instructions given through Moses.
By forming a feast on a day “which he had devised in his own heart” (v.33), Jeroboam reveals a disregard for the sacred calendar established by the Lord. Rather than following the divinely instituted feasts (Leviticus 23), he crafts a separate observance that competes with the prescribed festivals in Jerusalem. This move is a clear attempt to solidify his political power, ensuring that people have a convenient alternative to traveling to Jerusalem in the southern kingdom of Judah. Yet this decision also sets a precedent of disobedience to the true worship of God, an act which later prophets condemn (Hosea 8:5).
His decision to offer incense, “and went up to the altar to burn incense” (v.33), further severs the northern kingdom’s worship from God’s commands. Incense burning was traditionally connected with priestly duties, underscoring Jeroboam’s assumption of spiritual authority. In the broader biblical narrative, the Lord’s expectation of faithful worship ultimately points to the perfect atoning work of Jesus Christ, involving heartfelt obedience and sincerity rather than ritual invention (John 4:24). Jeroboam’s self-fashioned approach, conceived “in his own heart” (v.33), therefore stands in sharp contrast to the faithful worship that God desires.