Wars Continually

After Solomon’s death, Israel split into two kingdoms. His son Rehoboam ruled over the southern kingdom, known as Judah. Jeroboam ruled over the northern kingdom, Israel. Rehoboam wanted to reclaim the northern kingdom, but a prophet named Shemaiah forbade it:

Thus saith the Lord, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren: return every man to his house: for this thing is done of me.

2 Chronicles 11:4

Whether or not Rehoboam agreed with the message, his warriors all heard it, and they all went home.

Rehoboam fortified cities, welcomed priests who fled from Jeroboam, took many wives, and eventually weakened his kingdom by forsaking the law of God. At the end of his reign, almost as a footnote, the authors of Chronicles write:

And there were wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually.

2 Chronicles 12:15

So the initial rift was not the end of hostilities, even though it was endorsed by a prophet of God. This simple observation about constant fighting reminded me of Nephi’s description of life after leaving his brothers.

Laman and Lemuel had treated him badly for many years, but after their father’s death, the animosity escalated. Nephi felt that his life was in danger, and the Lord warned him to take everyone who would follow him and “flee into the wilderness” (2 Nephi 5:5). After traveling many days, they set up camp and began to build a city. Nephi described their joyful labor: planting crops, raising herds, and constructing a temple. He wrote, “It came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness” (2 Nephi 5:27). Then, he ends the story on this dark note:

And it sufficeth me to say that forty years had passed away, and we had already had wars and contentions with our brethren.

2 Nephi 5:34

Why couldn’t they leave each other alone?

Before Nephi’s departure, Laman and Lemuel complained that he had taken on too much of a leadership role. “Our younger brother thinks to rule over us,” they said. But “it belongs unto us, who are the elder brethren, to rule over this people” (2 Nephi 5:3). You might think that after Nephi left with anyone who wanted to follow him, that problem would be solved, but apparently not. They resented not only Nephi’s leadership but also his lack of followership. Like Rehoboam, they wanted to be in charge, and they were willing to fight for their continued authority.

Centuries later, a leader of their descendants laid out this still-festering grievance in a letter to a Nephite commander named Moroni:

Your fathers did wrong their brethren, insomuch that they did rob them of their right to the government when it rightly belonged unto them.

Alma 54:17

When Rehoboam’s son and successor, Abijah, went to war against the kingdom of Israel, he used similar language:

Hear me, thou Jeroboam, and all Israel;
Ought ye not to know that the Lord God of Israel gave the kingdom over Israel to David for ever, even to him and to his sons by a covenant of salt?
Yet Jeroboam the son of Nebat, the servant of Solomon the son of David, is risen up, and hath rebelled against his lord.

2 Chronicles 13:4-6

He didn’t regain control of the kingdom of Israel with that argument, but he did perpetuate the violence between the kingdoms.

It does seem to be human nature to want to control other people, particularly, as the Lord taught Joseph Smith in Liberty Jail, when they gain “a little authority, as they suppose” (Doctrine and Covenants 121:39).

The Book of Mormon also provides contrasting examples of respectful servant leadership. King Benjamin labored with his own hands to not be a burden to his people (Mosiah 2:14). His son Mosiah followed in Benjamin’s footsteps (Mosiah 6:7), and eventually abolished the monarchy, giving the people authority to govern themselves (Mosiah 29). Not all leaders desire to dominate.

In fact, the Nephite/Lamanite conflicts are generally framed in terms of unequal motivations. Moroni knew that the Lamanites under Zerahemnah intended “to destroy their brethren, or to subject them and bring them into bondage,” while the Nephites desired only “to preserve their lands, and their liberty, and their church” (Alma 43:29-30).

Why did the wars continue following the Israel/Judah and Nephite/Lamanite rifts? Because of improper desires for domination. Because of a lack of understanding that leadership cannot be sustained by force, “only by persuasion, by long-suffering, by gentleness and meekness, and by love unfeigned” (Doctrine and Covenants 121:41).

Today I will examine my motives for the battles I fight. I will ensure that my goal, like that of Benjamin and Mosiah, is to increase people’s freedom and reduce their burdens, not to control them.