Xanthe Hancox

For the last month we’ve been reading about God’s people who, led by their kings and prophets, followed either the path of faith and obedience to the Lord or unbelief and rebellion against him. The period of the kings began with Solomon and played out what God said through Moses: "See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess." (Deuteronomy 30:15-16).

With the exception of a few kings and prophets, through civil war and apostasy, Israel chose death and destruction.

We still don’t know for sure who wrote the books of Kings, but the source material the author made use of was written by participants in and eyewitnesses of the events. It was reliable information, which was historically accurate concerning the sons of Israel, from the death of David and the accession of Solomon to the destruction of the temple and Jerusalem by the Babylonians.

The book of Kings is not only accurate history, but interpreted history. The author, an exile in Babylon, wished to communicate the lessons of Israel’s history to the exiles. Specifically, he taught God’s people why the Lord’s judgment of exile had come. As we’ve seen, he did this by tracing the histories of two sets of kings and two nations of disobedient people, Israel and Judah, both of whom were growing indifferent to God’s law and his prophets and were headed for captivity.

All the stories we’ve read; Solomon’s rise and decline, the building of the temple, the rise of idolatry and the division of the kingdoms, and Elijah’s overthrowing of Baal, were all written down to teach the people of Israel and Judah one key lesson: remain faithful to God.

It’s a lesson that we need to learn too, to decide to follow God, today and every day.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the lessons of the Old Testament. Just like Israel and Judah, I am often selfish, arrogant and disobedient. Forgive me Father. May I be more faithful, more obedient, more ready to do your work wherever I am today. Amen