Rehoboam is Solomon's eldest son and as such at the time of his father's death becomes Israels new king. The only real problem was despite his father's instruction Rehoboam did not have any wisdom and the kingdom became divided between the northern ten tribes and the southern kingdom of Judah.In regards to marriage, Rehoboam followed in his fathers footsteps and had many wives (18) and concubines (60) but it is said that he did love one above them all Maacah. Not as many as dad, but then again he was not as prosperous. It also indicates that he may have had one thing his father did not -- a close relationship covenant with one woman although in the context of polygamy.
This is the pattern for the rest of the kingdom period, if a king is prosperous it will mention that he also had many wives/concubines. If a king struggles, he might have one wife or there is silence. One thing is for certain, the idea of polygamy is ingrained in society and whenever a man has means he practices it.
One advantage this rampant polygamy had was the the line of David remains so large there is never a problem finding an heir to the throne. It meant that God was fulfilling his promise to David and one of those ways was to make sure the women attached to that line were both fertile, productive and many.
Next: Jezebel and Athaliah - Mixed Marriage Issues
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