The Story of God Kings # 2

At the beginning of Kings The promises made to Abraham (Genesis 12, 13, 15, 17) are being fulfilled They live in the land of promise (Genesis 12.1) They have become a great nation—dominating surrounding nations. Genesis 12.2; I Kings 4.21

Kings are Abraham’s descendants, Genesis 17.6 And through Abraham’s descendants, the world is being blessed. I Kings 4.29-34 His name is great. Genesis 12.2; I Kings 4.31 (“fame” is “name”).

Solomon Builds the Temple: An “Eden” like structure It took 7 years to build ( 6.38), in which some see an echo of the creation God dwelt there: I Kings 8.10 His reign is a preview of Christ’s kingdom. I Kings 4.25; I Kings 10.6-9

But Solomon is no Christ And time—the great tester of our faith—reveals his weakness. I Kings 11.1-10 So now what? Poised to become a blessing TO the world, Israel becomes entangled WITH the world Instead of paradise, there is exile

There is, in fact, a structure to Joshua through Kings Joshua: an obedient people conquer the land. Defying human wisdom secured great victories Judges: there is no king, and anarchy reigns Samuel: God raises up a king, and order returns Kings: a disobedient people lose the land. Pursuing human wisdom destroys the nation

Kings reveals God’s faithfulness to His word Not only are the blessing portions of the Abrahamic covenant in force So are the cursing portions of the Mosaic covenant in force Deuteronomy 28.20-45 In Kings—as in all things with God—the prerequisite to blessing is obedience to the Word of God

David instructed Solomon to walk in the commands of the Law. I Kings 2 Every king is measured by his obedience or disobedience to the word The prophets serve to proclaim and illustrate the faithfulness of God to His word

The Word of God was Jeroboam’s mercy—he ignored it I Kings 11.29-36; 12.1-15 I Kings 13.1-34 The story pivots on one theme—the word of the Lord. 13.1; 2; 5; 9; 17; 18; 20; 26; 32 The Word of God was Jeroboam’s mercy—he ignored it The Word of God was the prophet from Judah’s safety—he ignored it The Word of God was the calling of the old prophet—and he abused it This outline is from DRD’s book on I Kings: “The Wisdom and the Folly”

I Kings 14: it was the prophecy of Ahijah that brought about the death of the son of wicked king Jeroboam. 14.18 It is Elijah and Elisha who wage war on the false god Baal—in the name of the Lord, through the Word of the Lord And the Babylonians came, “according to the Word of the LORD,” II Kings 24.2