d Rehoboam. It was this feeling of
which Jeroboam skilfully availed himself when he split the kingdom of
David in twain.

In the Book of Kings, this remarkable man first appears as an ordinary
workman, or possibly as a foreman of the masons who were engaged in
building Fort Millo, one of the chief defences of the citadel of Zion,
guarding its weakest point, and making it almost impregnable. Under the
system of forced labour then in vogue, the workmen would be inclined to
shirk their toil, and among them Jeroboam stood out in conspicuous
contrast, by reason of his eagerness and industry. Solomon the king, who
always had a keen eye for capacity, saw the young man that he was
industrious, and after making some inquiries about him, raised him to the
remunerative post of superintendent of the tribute payable by the tribe
of Ephraim. It was, no doubt, a difficult office to fill, for the tribe
was restive and powerful, but it would be very profitable, because the
system on which taxes were collected, as is still usual in Eastern
countries, gave immense opportunities for enrichment to an unscrupulous
man. We may be sure, therefore, that Jeroboam quickly became wealthy.
At the same time he won influence with the tribe, by expressing secret
sympathy with his fellow-tribesmen, and he stealthily fostered their
discontent until the opportunity came for asserting himself as a more
successful Wat Tyler, in the kingdom which by that time Solomon had left
to his foolish son, Rehoboam. Little did Solomon imagine that when he
advanced Jeroboam he was preparing the instrument of his son's ruin, and
that this Ephraimite would prove to be like the viper Aesop tells of,
which a kind-hearted man took in from the cold, but which when roused by
warmth from its torpor, killed its benefactor.

I

1. In looking for the elements which contributed to Jeroboam's
rapidly-won success, we must certainly credit him with remarkable natural
ability.

No one can read his biography carefully without noticing his shrewdness
in seeing his chance when it came, and his boldness and promptitude in
seizing it. He possessed such self-control that he kept his plans
absolutely to himself until the critical moment, and then he made a
daring dash for power, and won it. And these characteristics of his were
gifts from God, as Ahijah the prophet emphatically declared.

We are far too timid in the maintenance of our professed belief that
physical and mental