Matters of Unity and Composition

Remember we said: 1^st & 2^nd Samuel and 1^st & 2^nd Kings may have originally been part of a single work.

The break between 2^nd Samuel 24 and 1^st Kings 1 seem arbitrary.
The break between 1^st Kings 22 and 2^nd Kings 1 also seems arbitrary.[1]

Some of the way 1^st and 2^nd Kings is put together, leads me to believe there are some loose ends that never quite got sewn up. BUT, the theological message is not compromised.

Note that in 1^st Kings 22:50, Jehoshaphat dies. Then in 2^nd Kings 3:9, we read where Jehoshaphat is joining Jehoram in battle against King Mesha of Moab!

1^st & 2^nd Kings are designated historical books. It’s important to remember that Israel saw “history” as the story of a sovereign God, Yahweh, working out his redemptive purposes. So, it’s history from a biased perspective – God’s perspective of love for Israel.

Who wrote 1^st & 2^nd Kings?

We don’t know.
The Jewish Talmud says Jeremiah wrote these books but most dispute this belief.

Geography in 1^st & 2^nd Kings

What do we need to know geographically about 1^st and 2^nd Kings?

See Celia Brewer Marshall’s map of the region on the following pages.
1^st Kings 1-11 takes place mostly in Jerusalem and the surrounding countryside.
Lands outside of Palestine were important because that’s where many of the materials for the Temple came from. Modern day Lebanon is where the cedars came from and also where Abab’s wife came from. Southern Arabia and the Horn of Africa is where Solomon sent for gold and other precious objects. Etc.
1^st Kings 12-22 are mostly played out in the shrines and capitals of the Northern Kingdom (Israel).
2^nd Kings takes on a more international flavor because the work leads up to the eventual captivity of Israel by Assyria and Judah by Babylon.

The Political Situation of 1^st & 2^nd Kings

For a good part of 1^st and 2^nd Kings, God’s people are working out their own situation. It’s not until Assyria and Babylon become stronger that outside international pressures greatly affect the Northern & Southern Kingdoms.

See “An Overview of the Kings of Judah and Israel” for a listing and approximate time of rule for each of the kings of the divided monarchy. Please note that some of the dates are easier to pinpoint than others. Use these as a ‘best-guess-approximation.’

The Theology of 1^st & 2^nd Kings

Key Theme: The prophetic judgment of God will be fulfilled against unfaithful people.

Going back to Deuteronomy 28, obedience to God’s commands brings blessing and disobedience brings punishment.

Interesting Observations and Artist Renditions from 1^st & 2^nd Kings

The Queen Mother notations in Kings. See page 32 of Brueggemann’s commentary. The Queen Mother was a formidable figure in this period. She has a broad scope of influence.

In 1^st Kings 5:16-24, we read about the preparations for building the Temple. See Brueggemann’s page 80 for Gustave Dore’s depiction of what this looked like.

In 1^st Kings 10:23-24 we read about a description of Solomon at the peak of his rule. See Brueggemann’s page 44 for Gustave Dore’s depiction of Solomon.

In 1^st Kings 18:17-40, we read about Elijah’s confrontation with the 450 prophets of Ba’al. See Brueggemann’s page 225 for Gustave Dore’s depiction of this event.

In 2^nd Kings 9:30-37, Jehu comes to Jezreel and has Jezebel thrown out of the window where dogs eat her flesh. See Brueggemann’s page 389 for Gustave Dore’s depiction of this event.

In 2^nd Kings 25, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon gets ready to seize the city of Jerusalem. The year is most likely 588 BC and the siege goes on for 2-3 years and in 586 BC many are deported to Babylon. See Brueggemann’s page 575 for Gustave Dore’s depiction of this event.

The Miracles of 1^st & 2^nd Kings:

a. (1^st Kings 13:1-10) Jeroboam’s withered hand and his healing by an unknown man of God.

b. (1^st Kings 17:8-16) Elijah providing enough food for himself and the widow of Zarephath.

c. (1^st Kings 17:17-24) Elijah reviving the woman of Zarephath’s son.

d. (1^st Kings 18:20-40) Elijah asking God to send fire from heaven and burn up the sacrifice in the competition with the prophets of Ba’al.

e. (2^nd Kings 2:1-12) Elijah ascends into heaven in a whirlwind.

f. (2^nd Kings 2:19-22) Elisha throws some salt in a bad spring of water and the water is made good again – he promises no more miscarriages among the women.

g. (2^nd Kings 4:1-7) Elisha provides enough oil for the Shunammite woman to repay all her debt and live on.

h. (2^nd Kings 4:8-37) Elisha raises the Shunammite woman’s son.

i. (2^nd Kings 4:38-41) Elisha purifies a pot of stew that apparently was made with some poisonous herbs.

j. (2^nd Kings 4:42-44) Elisha feeds 100 people with some loaves of barley and grain. And there was some left over. This parallels some of the Gospel stories of Jesus feeding the multitudes.

k. (2^nd Kings 5:1-27) Elisha cures Naaman’s leprosy by having him wash in the Jordan River seven times. Also note that the leprosy is given to Gehazi for being greedy.

l. (2^nd Kings 6:1-7) Some prophets are building a new house. Someone loses a borrowed axe head in the water. Elisha makes it float so they can find it.

m. (2^nd Kings 13:21) Elisha is the source of one last miracle. When a dead man’s bones were thrown on his, the man came back to life.

Other Miscellaneous Things

Some units of measurement comparisons that you will find in 1^st & 2^nd Kings:

1 cor equals about 6 bushels

1 cubit is about 18-21 inches long

1 talent is a weight from 45-130 pounds

1 shekel is a unit of weight from 8-16 grams

1 minas is a unit of weight from 500-1000 grams

See the reference in 1 Kings 9:10-14 on Solomon giving King Hiram of Tyre some cities in Galilee. Hiram was not pleased. Cross-reference this with John 7:40-52 on what people believed about Galilee. Galilee has received a bad rap for a lot of years.

Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines (1^st Kings 11:3). The foreign women in Solomon’s life enticed him to follow after other gods other than Yahweh. As a result, the kingdom would be divided.

(1^st Kings 12:1-5) The people want the burden of labor lightened. Rehoboam had a choice to make. Did the people sense a weak leader in him?

Look at what it says in 1^st Kings 16:31 about marrying Jezebel.

There’s the great story in 1^st Kings 17 about the creek drying up. Have you ever had your own ‘creek’ dry up in some way?

God was not in the wind, the earthquake, or the fire but the silence (1^st Kings 19:12).

How would you like to be one of the groups of 50 who had to go to bring Elijah to Ahaziah? (2^nd Kings 1:9-16)

The reason why Israel was taken into Assyrian captivity in 722 BC is explained in 2^nd Kings 17.

[1] Simon J. DeVries, Word Biblical Commentary, 1 Kings (Waco, TX: Word Publishing, 1985), p. XIX.