Israel and Judah Divided

In the next few weeks, we are starting to study portions of Scripture  that are much less familiar to most Christians than the chapters we  have already read. It is my impression that many Christians have the  stories of Genesis, the exodus, and some of the wilderness wanderings  of the Israelites, firmly in their imaginations. They probably also  know some about the life of David and Solomon. But then, when all the  politics kicks in here in 1 & 2 Kings, and later, when the Israelites  go into exile, that part of the history is much more vague.  Am I right?

This is partially because the history of the division of the two  kingdoms is very complicated, describing the turnover of lots of kings  and leaders. The exile is also hard to understand because it isn't  recorded in a straightforward fashion, and some of it you have to pick  up by reading the prophetic books. If you have purchased one of the  study bibles we are using, I recommend turning in the back of your  bibles to the chronology, and looking at the general outline of kings  and prophets so you can get a sense of what comes when in the history.

If you decide to read more of 1 and 2 Kings than has been assigned for the daily readings, here is a helpful outline of the difference between the reports of the kings of Judah and the reports of the kings of Israel. The Judah reports follow this standard outline:

1)    the date the king began to rule in terms of how long the current king in Israel had been ruling
2)    his age
3)    the name of his mother, and
4)    an evaluation of his conduct measured against the conduct of Israel’s greatest king, David.

The kings of Israel are introduced in a slightly different way: 
1)    the date he began to rule Israel in terms of how long the current king of Judah had been ruling
2)    the location of his capital
3)    the period of time he ruled, and
4)    a negative judgment of the king.

Overall, these books describe a tragic history, a failure of the nation to keep their agreement (covenant) with God.  Both kingdoms eventually fall. In 772 B.C. the Assyrians destroy the northern kingdom (Israel). In 568 B.C. Nebuchadnezzer and the Babylonians destroy the southern kingdom (Judah).  The temple is destroyed, and the people are taken into exile.

I have an article I can photocopy and have available here in the office if you are interested, the title of which is “From Joshua to the Exile: The People of Israel in the Promised Land,” that helps explain this whole period in greater detail. 

Many of the assigned readings for the next two weeks cover the narratives of Elijah and Elisha. Although there are also many books of Scripture that record the deeds and words of the prophets of Israel, these two prophets are incorporated into the kings narrative rather than having their own books. They are considered to be the “earliest” prophets of Israel. The whole structure of the book of kings changes when we reach this section. Instead of a report on kings, the book becomes a fascinating narrative of the ministry of these two prophets. This is personally one of my favorite places in the whole bible. Some great questions to ask yourself while you read this narrative include (I’ve borrowed and edited these questions from my own study bible): How are Elijah and Elisha alike or different? Who functions like an Elisha in our world today?

Prophets don’t just preach against injustice. They dramatize what they have to say. Is there an injustice in our community that you’re concerned about? What would you like to say to the people who have the power to change this injustice? How could you dramatize your statement?