I Kings 13-22
In the previous blog we covered the events of the splitting of the Kingdom of Israel into the North and South as seen through the lens of the Book. Keeping in mind that these events were written by scribes that lived long after the events took place, writing down people and events from their historical sources as well recording the stories of their history from the perspective of the books of Moses, significantly the book of Deuteronomy. Kings and Chronicles clearly state that the kingdom of Israel to the north is a country that begins the worship of pagan idols pretty much at its inception. While the kingdom of Judah still seats an heir of Yahweh’s chosen bloodline, David, even though his descendants never live up to his standard. This perspective gives us a clear black and white view of history and the people and events therein. However, before we get to the major players and events of these histories I want to go over the kings of the early division, but from the perspective that archaeology gives.
There is a good amount of information that we can gather about these kingdoms and it comes from the people that they fought with in the region, such as the Assyrians and Moabits. Many proclamations inscribed in stone and other such remnants confirm a lot of details within the Book, but also offer different perspectives on certain rulers and their legacies.
For example, in I Kings chapter 16 we meet King Omri, 880 B.C.E., who is a military leader that kills the usurper Zimri and takes the throne. He establishes his capital in Samaria* and according to the book ‘does evil in the sight of the Lord’ by worshiping worthless idols. Yet, archaeological evidence paints a slightly different picture. We see a leader that almost rivals Solomon in his dynamism and expansive mentality. According to ancient records he challenged some enemies like the Moabites and made peace with others such as the Phoenicians, who were excellent builders and tradesmen and only enriched and beautified his kingdom more. He made alliances with his enemies through the marriage of his son to the princess Jezebel and made an altar to her god, Baal, in Samaria. He later made peace with Judah when he had his daughter marry Jehoram.
There is evidence for the tolerance of other gods shown in Israel. In those days rulers honored one another by not only paying tribute to the person, but also to their god(s). However, in the south Judah struggled with this problem of existing in a hostile region while still staying true to their God. For much of their early years Judah fought with their neighbors; Israel, Moab, Philistines, etc. Because of their lack of diplomacy Judah was ransacked from all directions. Finally they recognized the need for allies and king Jehoram married the daughter of Israel’s king Ahab, which in turn brought the pagan ways of Jezebel into the country of Judah.
While Jezebel seems to have a verifiable place in history the same can not be said for the prophet Elijah. There is no archaeological evidence for the events between Elijah and Jezebel. However, at this time in history there were those that still honored the god of king David in the lands of Israel and these ‘prophets’, as they were known, were a constant thorn in the side of the kings who sought advice from the priests and prophets of other lands and gods. These prophets were entrenched in the political workings of the time and were not hermits that secluded themselves from civilization. While the events of this prophet can not be confirmed or denied there were definitely people similar to him and his friend Elisha. People who challenged the establishment’s embrace of idolatry and paganism and warned against the consequences of their actions.
When the books of Kings were compiled, probably in 560 B.C.E., Elijah could have been a folk hero whose story had passed through the generations. By this time the kingdom of Israel would have fallen to the Assyrians and so the warnings of Elijah to Israel in the books of Kings could have been a warning to the people of Judah that their same mistakes led to the Babylonian exile in the mid 500s B.C.E.
*The countryside of Samaria becomes a reviled land by the time Jesus takes the scene 800 years later.
Saturday, October 20, 2012
Saturday, October 13, 2012
A Kingdom Divided
Kings 13-16
Solomon is my favorite character in the Book for many reasons, but one of them is his wonderful humanity. He is the epitome of what it means to be human. He is said to be the wisest man in the history of the People of Israel. It is said that the only request Solomon had of God was to give him Wisdom and Yahweh heaped it on in bucket loads. Yet, all that wisdom became a curse in Solomon's older years as his desire for knowledge and peace led him to allow foreign wives to bring their pagan practices to the Kingdom of Yahweh. Because of this transgression Yahweh's blessing is removed from the Kingdom and after Solomon's death ten tribes of the north have split leaving Judah and Jerusalem under the control of one king and the Northerners with another. According to the Book Yahweh's covenant with David remains steadfast as there is still an heir on the throne in Judah and the Temple of Yahweh remains under the control of the House of David.
Judah and Israel
The southern kingdom of Judah is comprised of the tribe of Judah as well as the remaining Benjaminites and is the home of the Temple of Yahweh built by King Solomon and remains a place of worship no matter who is on the throne. While there were few of them, there were kings that tried to be faithful to Yahweh.
The Northern Kingdom of Israel rebelled against the god of Israel under the reign of their first king Jeroboam. The Northern Kingdom is full of usurpers and power grabs and military coups. Despite the wicked rulers of the kingdom there were prophets of Yahweh that spoke on His behalf in the Northern Kingdom.
930-913 B.C. Rehoboam was the first king of Judah and is the one that began the split after Solomon's death. When a Hebrew rebel named Jeroboam, from the tribe of Ephraim, hears of the death of the king he leaves Egypt and heads north to win the people outside of the territory of Judah. At the same time Rehoboam receives ill advice to oppress the northerners further, and who already feel like they are treated badly, which only pushes them further onto Jeroboam's side.
930-909 B.C. Jeroboam wins the northern people to his side and they push out the monarchy of Judah to the edge of their territory. Jeroboam is now the ruler of ten tribes of the twelve tribes of Israel. Ten different tribes all full of their own internal issues and problems. Now that Judah is a separate entity Jeroboam worries that the people will travel to Jerusalem to worship at the Temple and slowly loose their affection for the Northern Monarchy. To avert this Jeroboam commits the act that leads all of his successors to their demise. He builds golden calves to be worshiped in his Kingdom so the people have a place to sacrifice at. This angers Yahweh and the prophet Ahijah delivers a condemnation upon the house of Jeroboam beginning with the death of his child Abijah.
913-910 B.C. Abijam, the son of Rehoboam, takes the throne. He goes to war with the Northern kingdom of Jeroboam, and just before battle Abijam stands on a Mt. Zemaraim and calls out to Jeroboam condemning him for his idolatry and turning away from Yahweh. When Jeroboam out maneuvers him and ambushes him Abijam calls out to Yahweh for deliverance and is given victory. He gains more power, but only reigns for three years before dying in 910 B.C.
909-908 B.C. After the death of Jeroboam, allegedly by Yahweh in human form, his son Nadab takes the throne. Nadab reigns for one year and while he was besieging a city in the territory of Dan under Philistine occupation a man Baasha from the tribe of Issachar conspired to overthrow him. Baasha murders Nadab and the entire house of Jeroboam, fulfilling the prophecy of Ahijah.
910-869 B.C. The grandson of Rehoboam takes the throne, but his grandmother Maachah is still known as Queen Mother to the people. Furthermore she is a foreigner who has introduced the worship of the goddess of her people to the people of Judah. However, Asa is faithful to Yahweh and remembers the covenant of his Fathers. He begins to enact reforms into the land to bring people back to the ways of the Law. In his 15th year as king Judah was invaded by the Cushites, but with the help of Yahweh and the faith of Asa the enemy is defeated despite overwhelming odds. Asa gathers the people of Judah and Benjamin and declares a festival in honor of Yahweh and reaffirms the covenant made with King David. He also takes away the title of Queen Mother from Maachah because of a Asherah pole she had made. He cuts it down and burns it. Despite his reform and dedication to Yahweh he is still unsuccessful at fully removing the pagan idols from the lands. Then, a few months later when confronted with war with Baasha, Asa lacks faith in Yahweh and relies on a treaty with the king of Syria to achieve victory. Because of this lack of faith Yahweh uses the prophet Hanani to warn Asa that his lack of faith has ended the peace time of his land. In 872 B.C. his feet become diseased and he names his son Jehoshaphat as successor.
908-885 B.C. After murdering king Nadab and wiping out the house of Jeroboam Baasha continued in the ways of his predecessors and encouraged the worshiping of the false idols made by Jeroboam. Because of this Yahweh sends a prophet named Jehu to tell Baasha that although Yahweh gave him a chance he had failed. He would suffer the same fate as the family of Jeroboam. In 894 B.C. Baasha enters into war with the southern king, Asa, and takes control of territory close to Jerusalem. He doesn't know that his ally the king of Syria has just switched allegiance to his enemy, Asa, and when confronted by Syrian soldiers Baasha retreats.
885-884 B.C. In fulfillment of Jehu's prophecy the son of Baasha doesn't last long. When Baasha dies his son Elah takes the throne, but it doesn't take long for another conspiracy to develop. in 884 military leader named Zimri confronts Elah while he's drunk in the home of his steward and kills him. He destroys the entire family of Baasha in fulfillment of Jehu's prophecy. However, his reign doesn't last long. When the troops of Israel hear about the murder of their king they stop what their doing, select a leader among them named Omri as the true king, and set out to take the throne from Zimri. After seven days of being king Zimri sees the troops coming for him and kills himself by setting the palace on fire and burning with it.
884-874 B.C. After these events there is confusion and mayhem in the land of Israel. Half the territory is allied with the military leader, Omri, while the other half allied with a man named Tibni. In the end the followers of Omri prevailed and in the 31st year of king Asa's rule in Judah Omri became king of the North, Israel. He established Israeli rule over the land of Samaria and took over the territory of the Moabites forcing them to pay heavy tribute that lasted for forty years. Omri continued down the same path as his predecessors worshiping idols and foreign gods until his death in 874.
Judah and Israel
The southern kingdom of Judah is comprised of the tribe of Judah as well as the remaining Benjaminites and is the home of the Temple of Yahweh built by King Solomon and remains a place of worship no matter who is on the throne. While there were few of them, there were kings that tried to be faithful to Yahweh.
The Northern Kingdom of Israel rebelled against the god of Israel under the reign of their first king Jeroboam. The Northern Kingdom is full of usurpers and power grabs and military coups. Despite the wicked rulers of the kingdom there were prophets of Yahweh that spoke on His behalf in the Northern Kingdom.
930-913 B.C. Rehoboam was the first king of Judah and is the one that began the split after Solomon's death. When a Hebrew rebel named Jeroboam, from the tribe of Ephraim, hears of the death of the king he leaves Egypt and heads north to win the people outside of the territory of Judah. At the same time Rehoboam receives ill advice to oppress the northerners further, and who already feel like they are treated badly, which only pushes them further onto Jeroboam's side.
930-909 B.C. Jeroboam wins the northern people to his side and they push out the monarchy of Judah to the edge of their territory. Jeroboam is now the ruler of ten tribes of the twelve tribes of Israel. Ten different tribes all full of their own internal issues and problems. Now that Judah is a separate entity Jeroboam worries that the people will travel to Jerusalem to worship at the Temple and slowly loose their affection for the Northern Monarchy. To avert this Jeroboam commits the act that leads all of his successors to their demise. He builds golden calves to be worshiped in his Kingdom so the people have a place to sacrifice at. This angers Yahweh and the prophet Ahijah delivers a condemnation upon the house of Jeroboam beginning with the death of his child Abijah.
913-910 B.C. Abijam, the son of Rehoboam, takes the throne. He goes to war with the Northern kingdom of Jeroboam, and just before battle Abijam stands on a Mt. Zemaraim and calls out to Jeroboam condemning him for his idolatry and turning away from Yahweh. When Jeroboam out maneuvers him and ambushes him Abijam calls out to Yahweh for deliverance and is given victory. He gains more power, but only reigns for three years before dying in 910 B.C.
909-908 B.C. After the death of Jeroboam, allegedly by Yahweh in human form, his son Nadab takes the throne. Nadab reigns for one year and while he was besieging a city in the territory of Dan under Philistine occupation a man Baasha from the tribe of Issachar conspired to overthrow him. Baasha murders Nadab and the entire house of Jeroboam, fulfilling the prophecy of Ahijah.
910-869 B.C. The grandson of Rehoboam takes the throne, but his grandmother Maachah is still known as Queen Mother to the people. Furthermore she is a foreigner who has introduced the worship of the goddess of her people to the people of Judah. However, Asa is faithful to Yahweh and remembers the covenant of his Fathers. He begins to enact reforms into the land to bring people back to the ways of the Law. In his 15th year as king Judah was invaded by the Cushites, but with the help of Yahweh and the faith of Asa the enemy is defeated despite overwhelming odds. Asa gathers the people of Judah and Benjamin and declares a festival in honor of Yahweh and reaffirms the covenant made with King David. He also takes away the title of Queen Mother from Maachah because of a Asherah pole she had made. He cuts it down and burns it. Despite his reform and dedication to Yahweh he is still unsuccessful at fully removing the pagan idols from the lands. Then, a few months later when confronted with war with Baasha, Asa lacks faith in Yahweh and relies on a treaty with the king of Syria to achieve victory. Because of this lack of faith Yahweh uses the prophet Hanani to warn Asa that his lack of faith has ended the peace time of his land. In 872 B.C. his feet become diseased and he names his son Jehoshaphat as successor.
908-885 B.C. After murdering king Nadab and wiping out the house of Jeroboam Baasha continued in the ways of his predecessors and encouraged the worshiping of the false idols made by Jeroboam. Because of this Yahweh sends a prophet named Jehu to tell Baasha that although Yahweh gave him a chance he had failed. He would suffer the same fate as the family of Jeroboam. In 894 B.C. Baasha enters into war with the southern king, Asa, and takes control of territory close to Jerusalem. He doesn't know that his ally the king of Syria has just switched allegiance to his enemy, Asa, and when confronted by Syrian soldiers Baasha retreats.
885-884 B.C. In fulfillment of Jehu's prophecy the son of Baasha doesn't last long. When Baasha dies his son Elah takes the throne, but it doesn't take long for another conspiracy to develop. in 884 military leader named Zimri confronts Elah while he's drunk in the home of his steward and kills him. He destroys the entire family of Baasha in fulfillment of Jehu's prophecy. However, his reign doesn't last long. When the troops of Israel hear about the murder of their king they stop what their doing, select a leader among them named Omri as the true king, and set out to take the throne from Zimri. After seven days of being king Zimri sees the troops coming for him and kills himself by setting the palace on fire and burning with it.
884-874 B.C. After these events there is confusion and mayhem in the land of Israel. Half the territory is allied with the military leader, Omri, while the other half allied with a man named Tibni. In the end the followers of Omri prevailed and in the 31st year of king Asa's rule in Judah Omri became king of the North, Israel. He established Israeli rule over the land of Samaria and took over the territory of the Moabites forcing them to pay heavy tribute that lasted for forty years. Omri continued down the same path as his predecessors worshiping idols and foreign gods until his death in 874.
Before We Continue...
If you are as sad as I am to see the tragic end of Solomon come so quickly in the huge tome of the Old Testament do not fret. There are a few books coming up later that are attributed to him. Mostly philosophy, poetry and the classification of trees and shrubs. That Solomon was quite the hippie tree hugger after he violently took the throne in 970 B.C.
One thing to keep in mind as we get into the history of the Monarchy of the Divided Kingdoms is that up until this point our Journey through the books of the Book have taken a basically linear path. Once we finish these books of Kings the Journey takes a different course. We will revisit a few of the kings we read about as well as whole books attributed to certain prophets mentioned during different reigns at different points in history. The stories of the prophets are interwoven into the political dealings of the monarchs. The books of Kings and Chronicles are almost an outline of things to be more fleshed out later in the books of the Major and Minor Prophets.
Unlike the reign of Solomon the reign of these kings are a little more substantial in archaeological history. Because they had dealings with the other major empires of the time, such as the Syrians and Babylonians, there is a little more evidence to back up various events, rulers and situations. There are a few books referenced within the book of Kings that have now been lost to time and history. These are mentioned as the Annals of King Solomon and the same for Israel and Judah.
As with the other books we have read since Deuteronomy the book of Kings is considered to be part of the DH (Deuteronomical History). The DH is believed to be the perspective that the author/s are trying to convey in their interpretation of history based off the books of Moses, the only pre-monarchical prophet besides Samuel. Again, these books (Joshua - Kings) are thought to have been collected and composed during the reign of King Josiah during the Babylonian occupation and exile. The thought was that the tragedy that was falling on Judah and the tragedy that had already become of Israel, was a direct result of the tribes of Israel turning away from their god Yahweh and worshiping the Baals and the Asherahs. The baals and asherahs mentioned are terms used to describe the various gods (baals) and goddesses (asherahs) of the many cultures of the region. This is the major theme running through the books of Kings.
One thing to keep in mind as we get into the history of the Monarchy of the Divided Kingdoms is that up until this point our Journey through the books of the Book have taken a basically linear path. Once we finish these books of Kings the Journey takes a different course. We will revisit a few of the kings we read about as well as whole books attributed to certain prophets mentioned during different reigns at different points in history. The stories of the prophets are interwoven into the political dealings of the monarchs. The books of Kings and Chronicles are almost an outline of things to be more fleshed out later in the books of the Major and Minor Prophets.
Unlike the reign of Solomon the reign of these kings are a little more substantial in archaeological history. Because they had dealings with the other major empires of the time, such as the Syrians and Babylonians, there is a little more evidence to back up various events, rulers and situations. There are a few books referenced within the book of Kings that have now been lost to time and history. These are mentioned as the Annals of King Solomon and the same for Israel and Judah.
As with the other books we have read since Deuteronomy the book of Kings is considered to be part of the DH (Deuteronomical History). The DH is believed to be the perspective that the author/s are trying to convey in their interpretation of history based off the books of Moses, the only pre-monarchical prophet besides Samuel. Again, these books (Joshua - Kings) are thought to have been collected and composed during the reign of King Josiah during the Babylonian occupation and exile. The thought was that the tragedy that was falling on Judah and the tragedy that had already become of Israel, was a direct result of the tribes of Israel turning away from their god Yahweh and worshiping the Baals and the Asherahs. The baals and asherahs mentioned are terms used to describe the various gods (baals) and goddesses (asherahs) of the many cultures of the region. This is the major theme running through the books of Kings.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)