In the foregoing chapter we saw that the high places caused the damage and the loss of the ground of oneness. Before Solomon and Jeroboam set up the high places, the children of Israel had been preserved in oneness by the temple in Jerusalem, the unique place of God's choice. At the time of the annual feasts, God's people gathered together in oneness. As they ascended Mount Zion, they even chanted the words of Psalm 133: "How good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in oneness." However, to indulge his lust, Solomon took the lead to build high places. These high places damaged the genuine oneness of God's people, for they hindered many from going up to Jerusalem to worship. Some might have gone to the high places under the pretense of worshipping God. Nevertheless, in the high places there were idols. Furthermore, in order to carry out his ambition, Jeroboam also set up high places. We are told that high places were set up on every high hill and under every green tree. This indicates how widespread and common they were.
The high places were the source of all manner of evil. Since the high places signify division, this indicates that division is a source of evil. The high places came in through man's flesh and ambition. Solomon set up high places because of lust, whereas Jeroboam did so because of ambition. Hence, lust and ambition were the main factors of the building of the high places. In today's terms, division is the result of the flesh and of ambition. In Christianity today there are "high places" everywhere, for Christianity is filled with divisions. All these "high places" are elevations where something other than Christ is exalted. By this we see that the situation of today's Christianity is a definite fulfillment of the type in the Old Testament.
Firstly, the oneness of God's people was damaged by the high places. This damage provoked God to wrath. Unable to tolerate the situation, He sent the Assyrian army to invade the northern kingdom of Israel. Israel's experience should have been a warning to Judah, the southern kingdom. Nevertheless, those in Judah went on worshipping at the high places. Although some were carried away to Egypt by Pharaoh-nechoh, the people refused to heed even this warning. Eventually, the Babylonian army not only conquered the land of Judah, but also destroyed the temple and carried away a large number of people to captivity in Babylon. Furthermore, the vessels of the temple were taken to Babylon and put in the house of idols. Thus, the ground of oneness was not only damaged, but fully lost.
This is a picture of the situation among today's Christians. The denominations and independent groups are "high places," divisions. In each of these "high places" something other than Christ is exalted. Even very good and spiritual things are elevated and used to cause division.