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With Solomon’s death the kingdom established by David almost immediately comes to an end. It should be recalled that Jeroboam had already received a prophetic word concerning his gaining control over a major portion of the kingdom (11:29-39) and that he fled to Egypt to escape Solomon’s wrath. Now, however, Jeroboam freely returns, and he serves as the northern tribes' representative at a summit of sorts at Shechem (vv.1-3).
During this summit, Jeroboam and other northerners confronted Rehoboam, Solomon’s son, whose kingship had already been recognized by those in Judah (11:43). But the Davidic family typically enjoyed less acceptance in the North. Recall, for example, that a similar division of the house occurred during David’s time when he himself ruled over Judah for seven years before extending his authority over all of Israel (2Sa 5:5). As such, the northern delegation now presented Rehoboam with certain demands that had to be met before they would recognize him as king.
At this point the severity of Solomon’s policies, only alluded to in chs. 1-11, is completely unmasked (v.4). For Rehoboam to exercise control over a unified Israel, he first had to agree to free the people of such oppressive policies. When he refuses, the northerners remove their allegiance.
What now begins is the period known as the divided monarchy, and what remains are two far less powerful and important states that spend much of their time quarreling with each other. The name Israel comes to refer specifically to the northern kingdom, a nation under the kingship of Jeroboam. In the South the original tribal name Judah comes now to designate the resulting nation under the kingship of Rehoboam. This situation continues for over 200 years until the northern kingdom of Israel is destroyed. Following that event, Judah will continue to exist, generally in a weakened condition, for nearly 150 years longer.