Jamieson, Fausset and Brown on 1 Kings 12:4

4. Thy father made our yoke grievous--The splendor of Solomon's court and the magnitude of his undertakings being such, that neither the tribute of dependent states, nor the presents of foreign princes, nor the profits of his commercial enterprises, were adequate to carry them on, he had been obliged, for obtaining the necessary revenue, to begin a system of heavy taxation. The people looked only to the burdens, not to the benefits they derived from Solomon's peaceful and prosperous reign--and the evils from which they demanded deliverance were civil oppressions, not idolatry, to which they appear to have been indifferent or approving.