The books of the Kingdoms.

Then there are several books in the Bible called the books of the Kingdoms and Paralipomenon

. They deal with the monarchical period in the history of the Jewish people. After Samson,

the prophet Samuel judged the people. Under his leadership, the tribes of Israel decided to unite

into one state under a king. Samuel anointed Saul to be king over Israel. Saul was succeeded by

David and, later, by David.s son Solomon. Under Rehoboam the son of Solomon the one king-

dom split into two: the kingdom of Judah . in the south, and the kingdom of Israel . in the

north of the Holy Land. The books of the Kingdoms cover a period of 500 years from the birth of

Samuel (1100 B.C) to the release of Jeconiah king of Judah from prison in 567 B.C.

  In the Hebrew Bible, the book of the Kingdoms is divided into two parts called Sepher Shemuel

(The Book of Samuel) and Sepher Melakhim (The Book of the Kings). However, in the Bible

of  the  Seventy,  or  Septuagint,  which  is the Greek translation, as well as in the Russian Bible,

Sepher Shemuel is divided into two parts called 1st and 2nd books of the Kingdoms. So is Sepher

Melakhim also divided into two parts called 3rd and 4th books of the Kingdoms. Tradition has it

that the prophet Samuel wrote the first part of the 1st book of the Kingdoms, and the prophets Na-

than and Gad wrote the end of the 1st (Ch. 26-31) and the whole of the 2nd book of the Kingdoms.

The 3rd and 4th books of the Kingdoms were written by several prophets.

The books of Paralipomenon supplement and, in part, repeat the books of the Kingdoms.

In the Hebrew Bible they comprise a single book called  Dibreh-Gaionim, or Chronicles. The

Seventy called this book Paralipomenon, i.e. About That Which Had Been Omitted. They also

divided it into two parts. Here are the main events recounted in the books of the Kingdoms.

The 1st Book of Samuel (1st of Kingdoms according the Septuagint) begins its story with the birth of Sam-

uel. Godly, yet childless, Hannah prayed God to give her a son, which request was granted. She

named him Samuel and, in fulfillment of her vow, consecrated him to God.s service under the

high priest Eli. Hannah.s song of praise for the birth of her son, found in Chapter 2 of the book,

forms the basis for some extollations sung during the evening services. We find a number of in-

teresting lessons in the life of Samuel (Ch. 1-4). For example, one can see the importance of rais-

ing children: the whole family of kind, yet weak-willed, high priest Eli was rejected by God for

the wickedness of Eli.s sons. When Samuel grew old, he relieved himself of the responsibility of

a judge and anointed Saul of the tribe of Benjamin to be king of Israel (Ch. 5-12). Then the book

of the Kingdoms tells us about the reign of Saul. Saul was at first obedient to God, but later be-

came  proud  and  began  to  be negligent about doing the will of God. For this reason God in-

structed Samuel to anoint a boy named David, of the town of Bethlehem, to be king over Israel

(Ch. 13-16). At that time a war broke out between the Jews and the Philistines, and young David,

with God.s assistance, killed a Philistine giant named Goliath (Ch. 17). The defeat of Goliath re-

sulted in a victory for the Jews and made David famous, which moved Saul to envy. After this

event Saul, till the end of his life, persecuted David, trying to kill him (Ch. 18-24). At the end of

the book we read about Saul.s visit to a woman who had a familiar spirit at Endor, a failed war

against the Philistines and the death of Saul (Ch. 25-31). David.s sad feelings over unjust perse-

cution on the part of Saul were expressed in his well-known psalms.

The 2nd Book of Samuel (2 of Kingdoms according the Septuagint) covers the forty-year-long reign of

David. The first few years of David.s reign were quite successful, because God was helping him

in everything he did. David took the fortress of Jerusalem away from the Jebusites and made it

his capital city. Previously Jerusalem had been a Canaanite city of Ushalim, i.e. city founded by

god Shalem. The city is known from the Accadian records of 14th century B.C. (correspondence

of Tell-el-Amarna). The Biblical tradition identifies it with the city of Melchizedek, a contempo-

rary of Abraham, as well as with the mount in the land of Moriah where Abraham offered sacri-

fice. David moved the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem and was about  to  construct  the  first

temple, in place of the portable tabernacle (i.e. tent-temple). But the Lord told David, through a

prophet, that the temple would be built by his son (Ch. 1-10). The second half of David.s reign

was spoiled by his sin with a married woman, Bath-sheba, and the resulting turmoil in his family

life and in the life of the state. David was especially broken-hearted over the rebellion of his son

Absalom and the civil war that followed (Ch. 11-24). David expressed his deep regret over his

sin of adultery in Psalm 50 (51 in the English Bible), which is a psalm of repentance.

  There is much a Christian can learn from the life of David: his deep faith in God, unshak-

able hope in God.s help, his sympathy for the weak and the oppressed, an ability to see his own

faults, to repent of them and to correct them. The apostles write about David with great respect.

Church Fathers frequently use examples from the life of David in their teachings. His inspired

psalms are an eternal masterpiece of religious poetry and lie in the foundation of divine services.

The 2nd Book of the Kingdoms contains a prophecy about the eternal kingdom of the Messiah-

Christ. This prophecy was given to David through the prophet Nathan (see 7:12-16. Cf. Matt.

22:42 and Luke 1:32-33).

The 1st Book of the Kingdoms (3rd of Kingdoms according the Septuagint). Here we read about the

reign of Solomon who, for his faith and humility, was gifted by God with great wisdom. Solo-

mon built in Jerusalem a temple, the beauty and riches of which surpassed those of all palaces

and pagan temples of the time. Under Solomon, the nation of Israel reached the peak of its well-

being and glory (Ch. 1-11). Yet, high taxes and harsh construction labors were a heavy burden on

the  people and caused protests. Solomon.s reputation of a wise ruler was spoiled by polygamy

and  construction  of pagan shrines around Jerusalem. Dissatisfaction with Solomon among the

people led to the division of his kingdom after his death, under his son, Rehoboam (Ch. 12). The

kingdom split into two parts: the kingdom of Judah with the capital in Jerusalem, ruled by the

kings  of  the  family  of David,  and  the  kingdom of  Israel  with  the  capital  in  Samaria,  ruled by

kings  of  various dynasties (980 B.C.). The 1st and 2nd (3rd and 4th) books of the Kingdoms re-

count, in parallel, the events in both kingdoms: the acts of kings, heroic feats of prophets as well

as wars and religious life of these kingdoms.

  The kings  of  Israel were afraid  that, if their subjects visited the temple in Jerusalem, they

might  want  to  reunite  with  the  kingdom  of  Judah.  For  this  reason  the  Israelite  kings  began  to

build pagan shrines in various parts of Israel and to encourage people to worship  idols. These

policies led to apostasy of the Israelite people from God. During this time of religious decline,

God sent Israel a few remarkable prophets who slowed down the process of spiritual decay. Two

of  these messengers from God . the prophet Elijah and his disciple, Elisha . stand out in a

special way.

  The prophet Elijah (900 years B.C). was one of the strongest defenders of true faith and god-

liness  (Ch.  17-21).  Grieving  over  the  spiritual  death  of  his  people,  Elijah  was  determined  and

tough in punishing the wicked. Elijah was called to prophetic ministry under the wicked Israelite

king Ahab. Ahab.s blood-thirsty wife, Jezebel, who was a daughter of a pagan priest from Sidon,

put many  Jewish  prophets to death and filled the land of Israel with pagan priests of Baal. To

teach Ahab and the people of Israel a lesson,  Elijah  struck  the  land  with  a  three-year-long

drought. The prophet himself was first hiding at a creek, where he was fed by a raven that

brought him food daily. After the creek had dried up, the prophet lived in the house of a widow

in Zarephath. The prophet prayed, and a small amount of flour and oil miraculously lasted two

years, providing food for the widow.s family and the prophet. When the widow.s only son died,

Elijah prayed, and the boy rose from the dead. At the end of the three-year-long drought, Elijah

invited the king, the pagan priests and all the people of Israel to come to the mount of Carmel.

Here, at Elijah.s prayer, fire in the form of lightning came down from heaven and, in front of all

that were present, devoured the sacrifice offered by Elijah. Having seen such a great miracle, the

people believed in God and, in tears, repented of idol worship. The priests of Baal that came to

the mountain were put to death. Then, at last, it began to rain. The famine was over.

  For his holy life and a great love for God, the prophet Elijah was taken to heaven alive in a

fiery chariot. The story of the 2nd (4th) Book of the Kingdoms starts with this event. According

to prophecy, Elijah will come again before the end of the world in order to expose the lies of the

antichrist. At that time he will die as a martyr.

  The holy prophet Elisha was a disciple of the prophet Elijah and received the mantle and the

prophetic gift of Elijah, when Elijah was being taken up into heaven. Elisha labored for over 65

years, under six different kings of Israel, from Ahab to Joash. He was fearless in telling the

wicked kings the truth and rebuking them for their wickedness. He was greatly respected by the

people of Israel, he was strong in the spirit and in the faith, and he also had a gift of seeing the

future. During his life, prophetic brotherhoods in the kingdom of Israel thrived more than ever

before or after him. Among his most glorious miracles were  the  resurrection  of  a young  man,

turning fresh the salty waters of a spring in Jericho, and healing Naaman, a Syrian military com-

mander, from leprosy.  Besides, the prophet Elisha secured numerous victories for the kings of

Israel by his wisdom and ability to see the future. Elisha died a very old man in the city of Sa-

maria during the reign of king Joash (Ch. 2-13). Our Lord Jesus Christ mentioned the prophets

Elijah and Elisha several times in His discourses. Every believer should be familiar with the lives

and acts of these prophets.

  Despite the efforts of the prophets Elijah, Elisha and others, idol-worship and disgusting pa-

gan customs eventually did damage to the spiritual foundation of the people of Israel. Because of

this sin of apostasy, God allowed the kingdom of Israel to be destroyed. After being defeated by

the  Assyrian  armies  several times in 722 B.C, the kingdom of Israel fell (Ch.17). Then large

numbers of Israelites were relocated to Assyria, and some inhabitants of Assyria were relocated

to  Israel. The Israelites intermarried with the Assyrians, and the nation of Samaritans was thus

formed.

  From this point on, the story of the 4th Book of the Kingdoms focuses on the kingdom of

Judah. From among the kings of Judah, we should mention the godly king Hezekiah. Having

inherited the throne from his wicked father, Hezekiah was determined to bring law and order to

the weakened Judea. First of all, he took care of the internal affairs of the nation whose religious

life had declined. Influenced by their pagan neighbors, the Jews began to gradually forget the true

God and started building altars to pagan deities. These altars were sometimes erected next to the

temple. Hezekiah boldly demolished the shrines of idols, cut down groves devoted to pagan gods

and destroyed everything that reminded the people about idols. Thus he restored the true faith in

Judea. Among the events that took place during his reign, the most remarkable was the miracu-

lous defeat, by an angel, of 185,000-strong Assyrian army that besieged Jerusalem  under  the

command of Sennacherib (Ch. 19). Good lessons can also be learned from the miraculous heal-

ing of Hezekiah who was about to die, yet God had mercy on him because of his faith and his

good works. The people of Judah remembered Hezekiah along with the godly kings David and

Josiah (Ch. 23). Hezekiah was a contemporary of the prophet  Isaiah . one of the greatest

prophets of all time. Being a highly educated man and a poet, the prophet Isaiah wrote a remark-

able book full of prophesies about the Messiah and His Kingdom of grace. Isaiah is also known

as the Old Testament Evangelist.

  Hezekiah.s successors on the throne encouraged idolatry. The prophets were persecuted and

put  to  death  under  these  kings. For example, the elderly prophet Isaiah was cut in half with a

wooden saw during the reign of Hezekiah.s son Manasseh. The prophet Jeremiah also suffered

a lot. The kingdom of Judah was filled with lawlessness, just as it happened in Israel some years

earlier. Despite the alliance with Egypt, the kingdom of Judah fell, having been defeated several

times by the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar. The magnificent temple and the city of Jerusa-

lem were leveled with the ground. Numerous inhabitants were killed or taken away to Babylon as

captives (586 B.C., cf. Ch. 19-25). The  Babylonian captivity lasted 70 years from 605 B.C.,

when the  first group  of  people was taken away. The captivity ended in the third year after the

conquest  of Babylonian  Empire by the Persian king Cyrus in 539 B.C. The captive Jews were

spiritually supported by the prophets Ezekiel and Daniel.

  The stories of the books of the Kingdoms clearly illustrate a general and unchangeable spiri-

tual law: faith in God and godly living prolong the well-being of a nation, whereas wickedness

inevitably leads to destruction. Military power, diplomatic skills and other apparent advantages

are of secondary importance for the well-being of a country. The validity  of  this  law  can  be

traced throughout the history of many nations!

Chronology.

Kings of Israel  Kings of Judah  Prophets  Events

Ahab 875-852

Ahaziah 853-851

Jehoram 851-842

Jehu 842-814

Jehoahaz 814-797

Joash 797-881

Jeroboam 782-740

Menahem 740-737

Pekah 737-733

Hoshea 733-722

Jehoshaphat 876-851

Jehoram 851-842

Ahaziah 843-842

Athaliah 842-836

Jehoash 836-796

Àmaziah 796-782

Àzariah 782-737

Jotham 737-735

Àhaz 735-725

Hezekiah 725-696

Ìànasseh 696-641

Àmon 641-639

Josiah 639-608

Jehoiakim 608-597

Jehoiachin 597

Zedekiah 597-586

Elijah

Elisha 850-790

Joel

Jonah

Àmos

Hosea

Isaiah 730-690

Ìicah, Nahum

Zephaniah, Habakkuk

Jeremiah

Obadiah

Ezekiel

Daniel

Haggai

Zechariah

    Ìàlachi 475

Growth of Phoenicia.

Growth of Assyria.

Founding of Rome 750

Fall  of  Israel  722.  Siege

of Jerusalem 700

Persecution  of  the  proph-

ets.

Fall of Nineveh 606

Fall of Jerusalem 586 and

Babylonian captivity.

Fall  of  Babylon  539.  Cy-

rus the king of Persia 559-

29.

Return  from  the  captivity

536

Darius  I, Rebuilding of

the Temple 534-516.

The Decree of Artaxerxes

446,  the  beginning  of  the

weeks of Daniel.

Ezra collects the books of

the  Holy  Scripture  450.

425.