Metaphysical meaning of Jeroboam (mbd)
Jeroboam, jer-o-bo'-am (Heb.)--whose people is many; many people; multiplying people; adverse people; hostile people; contentious people; the people's advocate; who pleads for the people.
The first king of Israel after the ten tribes revolted and broke away from the rule of Rehoboam, Solomon's son (I Kings 12:20).
Meta. Jeroboam symbolizes what the name implies--the people are adverse (adverse people, hostile people, contentious people). The thoughts of man are his people.
The Rehoboam kingdom, called the kingdom of Judah, stands for the natural life forces of the organism, the subjective consciousness. The Jeroboam kingdom, the kingdom of Israel, signifies the intellect, or the objective consciousness. The division of the Israelites into two kingdoms represents the separation between the subjective and objective planes of consciousness. Jeroboam's withdrawal of the ten tribes of Israel from the kingdom of Rehoboam represents man's withdrawal into intellectual realms of consciousness, thus leaving the life forces to express the dominant ideas in body consciousness. This separation comes about as follows:
The memory of past experiences is stored in the subjective consciousness; also, the "book of the law" as given by Moses. By recognition of these stored-up treasures, and by constant looking to the one true God for help, man comes surely, step by step, into his Divine birthright: sonship with God. The intellect perceives powers and possibilities beyond its present demonstration, and endeavors to make a short cut in the attainment and use of these possessions.
After this separation in consciousness occurs, man lives in sense consciousness so long as he fails to unify the intellect and its activities with the wisdom of the subjective mind, wherein are also the life forces of the organism.
The ten tribes of Israel failed to prosper and grow spiritually under the leadership of Jeroboam because states of consciousness not founded on Principle must be broken up and reorganized. The ten tribes, faculties of mind, had withdrawn from Judah, representing the central faculty of consciousness. This faculty operates in body consciousness through the spinal cord and finds its outer expression through the life center, which, if unregenerated, is "Judas," who had a devil. When life is separated from the other faculties and endeavors to express without their cooperation man gives himself over to his animal nature.
But man works out his salvation even when he has broken the natural laws. His salvation comes through his remembering his innate spirituality. The Israelites are God's chosen people, and there is ever at the center of consciousness a divine urge to return to God and a sure feeling that the fullness of good is man's birthright. The Spirit of truth is ever present, seeking to reveal the Son to man, and man will receive the Word when he has convinced himself that sense efforts cannot set up a personal kingdom.
Jeroboam made false gods to worship because man is inherently religious and when he turns away mentally from Divine Mind he becomes restless. If he is being ruled by his intellect he naturally turns to the objective world and tries to deify some house of worship, a personality, material things, or an object of sense.
True worship is the recognition of God as omnipresent Spirit and the realization and identification of man as a spiritual being. When man takes up the study of Truth he begins to feel the quickening of Spirit. Spiritual understanding shows man that mind and body must be united, and both thoughts and acts must come under the dominion of the spiritual I AM, the Christ mind. As the mind is opened to receive this Truth, it flows into consciousness, a cleansing, purifying, strengthening, illuminating stream of life and light (I Kings 12:633).
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Preceding Entry: Jerioth
Following Entry: Jeroham
