Commentaries:
Barnes' Notes
He made an house of high places - i. e., "He built a temple, or sanctuary, at each of the two cities where the calves were set up." The writer uses the expression "house of high places" in contempt, meaning that the buildings were not real temples, or houses of God, like that at Jerusalem, but only on a par with the temples upon high places which had long existed in various parts of the land.
Made priests of the lowest of the people - More correctly, "from all ranks of the people." That the Levites did not accept Jeroboam' s innovations, and transfer their services to his two sanctuaries, must have been the consequence of their faithful attachment to the true worship of Yahweh. In all probability Jeroboam confiscated the Levitical lands within his dominions for the benefit of the new priestly order II Chronicles 11:13-14.
Other Barnes' Notes entries containing 1 Kings 12:31:
1 Samuel 12:6
1 Kings 14:23
2 Kings 17:29
2 Kings 23:4-20
Psalms 78:58
Hosea 8:5
Hosea 10:8
Amos 7:13
DISCLAIMER: Church of the Great God (CGG) provides these resources to aid the individual in studying the Bible. However, it is up to the individual to "prove all things, and hold fast to that which is good" (I Thessalonians 5:21). The content of these resources does not necessarily reflect the views of CGG. They are provided for information purposes only.
