The Message of Kings

Contents

Author’s preface

Commentaries and other works

Introducing 1 and 2 Kings

Chronology

A. Solomon’s reign (1 Kings 1 – 11)

1. Solomon becomes king (1:1 – 2:46)

2. Setting the scene (3:1–3)

3. Receiving and demonstrating wisdom (3:4 – 4:34)

4. The temple – building and dedicating (5:1 – 8:66)

5. After building the temple (9:1 – 11:43)

B. Division – the first 160 years (1 Kings 12:1 – 16:28)

6. Leadership: power, pragmatism and God’s evaluation (12:1 – 14:20)

7. Two nations and eight kings: similarities and differences (14:21 – 16:28)

C. Elijah and kings (1 Kings 16:29 – 2 Kings 2:25)

8. Elijah confronts crisis (16:29 – 19:21)

9. Ahab and some prophets – leading to death (20:1 – 22:40)

10. Ahaziah king of Israel and Elijah (1 Kings 22:51 – 2 Kings 1:18)

11. Elijah’s ascension and the transition to Elisha (2:1–25)

D. Elisha and individuals, kings and revolution (2 Kings 3 – 13)

12. Kings of Israel, Judah and Moab – and Elisha (3:1–26)

13. Elisha: agent of Yahweh’s compassion (4:1 – 6:7)

14. Elisha and Arameans (6:8 – 8:15)

15. Revolution and reform in Israel and Judah (8:16 – 13:25)

E. To the end of Israel (2 Kings 14 – 17)

16. Kings of Judah and Israel (14:1 – 17:6)

17. Understanding change to Israel and in Israel (17:7–41)

F. From trust to exile – to the end of Judah (2 Kings 18 – 25)

18. Hezekiah and Trust (18:1 – 20:21)

19. Apostasy of Manasseh and Amon (21:1–26)

20. Josiah and whole-hearted turning to God (22:1 – 23:30)

21. The end comes quickly (23:31 – 25:26)

22. A glimmer of hope in Babylon (25:27–30)

Author’s preface

How long does it take to prepare a sermon? ‘All of my life up till now’ fits my reading of 1 and 2 Kings. I am grateful to parents and church leaders who started me early on Scripture Union readings covering the whole Bible regularly, including Kings. The first Sunday School class I taught made a model of Solomon’s temple and while a university student my participation in Beach Missions included dramatising Josiah’s discovery of the Book of the Law. Stories of Elijah on Mount Carmel and Naaman’s healing had their place in sermons I heard and preached. These were however generally treated as isolated stories, not part of an extended narrative. Studies for pastoral ministry at Morling College, Sydney, helped me to look carefully at the biblical text itself and I saw how much the Old Testament related to everyday life, especially when taken in large blocks. That did not sit easily with readings in church services and ‘sermon texts’ being much shorter. Teaching in Hong Kong for a decade brought fresh challenges – I began to see how my own cultural background influenced my reading of Scripture.

In the 1980s I began to look at the historical books in new light. Several works were appearing on features of biblical narrative. There was narrative artistry as biblical writers told not simply to inform, or to record the past, but to communicate and bring about change amongst the hearers. The questions were not only what did words mean and what did we learn about the past, but what was being said to hearers in a writer’s present – and hence to subsequent readers such as ourselves. As I looked at aspects such as selection and arrangement of material, style and language, and links with other parts of Scripture, the message came alive, often with a fresh directness and surprising depth of relevance. Narrative with its various characters and plot is able to describe and illuminate the complexities of life – life as we experience it. It engages us as people, not just as minds.

In classes at Vose Seminary, Perth, I began to explore these areas, including relevance for today, with students from varied cultural backgrounds. Other opportunities came with an invitation to teach on 1 and 2 Kings at the Singapore Baptist Theological Seminary and later during some study leave at Spurgeon’s College, London. The relevance of the book of Kings to many issues became evident that were rarely handled in sermons, due to time constraints or styles of sermon. I saw that people needed help in how to read biblical narrative. My experience is that, after crossing the initial barrier of foreignness and habits of short readings, many soon find Kings closer to the world we know today than perhaps any other book in Scripture! We read of material prosperity, political manoeuvring, buildings for worship, power plays and wars between nations, changing national fortunes and alliances, compromised worship, bloody coup d’états (one in the name of God), fight for survival in famine, mixed religious affiliations, injustice, violence and oppres­sion, international trade, state-led religious reforms, and compassionate care for people on the fringe. Throughout is the presence of God and repeated calls to follow his ways. Here is a book which throws light on following God in all areas of life, not only within the walls of church or family.

One outcome of my teaching and preaching was a series of studies, First and Second Kings Then and Now: ‘In the midst of change, God’.1 I am grateful to David Firth, then at Morling College, for encour­aging me in the publication and to Ross Clifford, Principal, for permission to include material from that work in the present exposi­tion. The invitation to write on the book of Kings for The Bible Speak Today series has been a humbling and rewarding opportunity to interact more intensively with the text, including passages not included in the earlier work. The encouragement and feedback from Alec Motyer (General Editor) and Philip Duce (Senior Commissioning Editor) has been greatly valued. The journey over many years has been shared with my wife, Elaine (this is the fiftieth year of our marriage). Together we have learned to listen to what God is saying in his Word. She has continually helped me in grappling with the ‘today’ of God’s message and in communicating to others. Our children, David, Linda and Catherine and their families have ensured lively family discussions, a reminder that faith is to be lived across generations – also a feature of the Kings narrative.

As I complete the writing (but not the end of seeking to hear God speak through Kings), I affirm the value of reading the Bible in ‘books’, and how God’s Spirit uses narrative to shine light into many facets of our lives in the world today. In a variety of ways images of success still current today are critiqued and diverse situations faced as we seek to know and walk in God’s ways. I have seen how God in his grace uses imperfect people. Alongside ways in which syncretism ‘aroused the Lord’s anger’ there are amazing reminders of God’s compassion and grace. New Testament parallels and develop­ments came readily to mind – not least regarding Davidic kingship, the temple, idolatry, the prophetic word and living an obedient faith in the complexities of communities and nations. Kings is indeed a light along the path of following Christ today.

This work is naturally a result of my own journey with the text and before God. I have sought to make clear in the text features which have informed my understanding of what the text is com­municating, aided by many others – my journey has been in company with many, as footnotes will demonstrate. The exposition discusses ways in which I have heard the text speaking to life and witness today. I invite you to journey with me – or rather with the God whose Spirit inspired the writer of Kings. Solomon’s prayer expresses the goal: ‘so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other’.

John Olley