1 Kings 14:26, commentary and pictures

Shishak king of Egypt came against Jerusalem in the reign of Rehoboam son of Solomon, took the city and carried away all the treasures of the house of the Lord and of the king's house, including all the shields of gold which Solomon had made. His campaign is confirmed by his sculptured record at Karnak on the wall of the great temple of Ammon-Ra, showing captives taken in Palestine with a list of captured places. The plundering was punishment for idolatry and departure from the Lord, yet when Rehoboam humbled himself wrath was turned away from him. Rehoboam replaced the lost gold shields with shields of brass or copper, which the guard bore when he went to the house of the Lord and kept under guard. The loss pictures how a precious spiritual treasure is carelessly let slip and valued only after it is gone, and how putting an inferior thing in its place cannot restore what was lost.

Historical Setting and Confirmation

In the reign of Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah, Shishak king of Egypt came against Jerusalem, conquered and captured the city, and took away all the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king's house, even all, including all the shields of gold which Solomon had made. The pillaging stripped Solomon's temple of its treasures and removed the palace wealth together with the golden shields. This was Jerusalem's first capture and plunder after Solomon's death, coming four years later. It occurred in 971 B.C., thirty-four years after the dedication of the temple.

The invasion reached beyond Jerusalem to cities in both Israel and Judah, carrying away people and towns. The captured places are listed, and the event is more fully recorded in 2 Chronicles 12. The Egyptian record of the campaign at Karnak confirms the removal of Judah's people and towns and supports the historical setting of the account.

The campaign is confirmed by Shishak's sculptured record at Karnak, a little north of Luxor, on the wall of the great sun temple dedicated to Ammon-Ra, on its southern wall. Shishak is Sheshonk I, also called Sheshenk and Shashang in Egyptian, founder of the Egyptian Twenty-second Dynasty. His conquest of Palestine in the time of Rehoboam is memorialized by inscription and triumphal monument, which shows the large form of Ammon wearing the double crown, grasping in his right hand the sword of victory and in his left cords binding five rows of captives taken in Palestine. The monument gives a list of captured places and a full description in pictures of the ancient processional of the priests of Ammon. The agreement between the sculptured account and the capture of Jerusalem supplies a firm point in chronology from which later kings can be traced.

Judgment for Sin and Aftermath

The stripping of the treasures of the house of the Lord and of the king's house was punishment for idolatry, a calamity brought by sin and by departure from the Lord. Shishak king of Egypt carried away the gold shields Solomon had made together with those treasures, and the loss came because of Rehoboam's sin. It stands as an instance of the temple suffering violence when Israel departed from the Lord. When Rehoboam humbled himself, the wrath of God was turned away from him.

In place of the lost shields of gold, Rehoboam made shields of copper, also called brass, and appointed guards to bear them when he went to the house of the Lord. Those shields were brought to the temple and kept under guard as a lesser replacement for what had been lost. The loss of this treasure marked the beginning of continuing financial trouble, which lasted until the kingdom ceased to be independent.

Spiritual Loss and Substitutes

The taking of the shields of gold made by Solomon pictures how a precious spiritual treasure may be carelessly allowed to slip away. It is a lesson in failing to value a blessing until it is lost, with its worth recognized only after it is gone. Attempting to replace what was lost with something inferior, as copper for gold, cannot restore what was taken.

The copper shields later carried to the temple and kept under guard were a lesser replacement, and their contrast with the gold illustrates the loss of simple faith, love for others, and a sense of God's presence, with the effort to cherish substitutes for these lost qualities. It is better not to lose the gold. Giving those substitutes the care that should have been given to the gold, guarding them with great zeal, may reflect regret for the vanished treasure rather than love for what remains.