The Book of Judges ends, 21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes. This is stated four times in Judges 17-21 and is kind of a set up for what follows in Samuel and Kings.
1&2 Samuel
The period of the judges is still in force as 1 Samuel
begins: Eli the priest was judge for 40 years; he raised Samuel who was judge
for many years; when Samuel grew old he set his sons up as judges, but they were
wicked (not counting Samuel’s sons, the Bible names 15 judges). Samuel
ministered as seer (prophet), priest, and judge for Israel. When he was old,
the people said unto him … now make us a king to
judge us like all the nations. (8:5) So Samuel anointed Saul, son of
Kish, who was tall and looked like a king. (10:23-24). His reign began well,
but quickly deteriorated. After a couple of big failure, he is told, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the
commandment of the LORD thy God… for now would the LORD have established thy
kingdom upon Israel for ever. But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD
hath sought him a man after his own heart (13:13-14). Then in ch 16
Samuel anoints David, son of Jesse, as king, but he does not begin to reign
immediately. In fact, the rest of 1 Samuel is devoted to Saul’s attempt to kill
David. 1 Samuel ends with the death of Saul (ch 31).
2 Samuel is devoted to David’s reign. He enjoyed much success as king, the highlight of his reign and life is in ch 7, where God tells him, And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. (7:16) That is, the Promised One will be your son. Hallelujah! But, David is not perfect. There was Bathsheba and at the end of 2 Samuel he, contrary to the will of God, conducts a census of the people.
1&2 Kings
1 Kings opens with David old and
stricken in years. He appoints Solomon as his successor and in 2:10
David dies. Solomon reigns as king for 40 years, chapters 2-11.
When Solomon dies, Israel goes on a wild roller coaster ride! The people divide into the northern 10 tribes, Israel, and the southern 2 tribes, Judah. Israel rebels against the house of David while Judah remains faithful. There were 19 kings in Judah (and one queen), all of the house of David, some evil and some righteous. Israel also had 19 kings, but from 9 different families, none of whom were the house of David. All 19 kings of Israel were wicked. In 2 Kings 17 Israel (the northern 10 tribes) was carried away by Assyria (721 BC). 2 Kings ends with Judah being carried into Babylon (605 & 597 BC; in 587 the Babylonians destroyed the temple). Israel scattered to the winds, Judah in Babylon. Very sad times indeed.
1&2 Chronicles
These books cover the same period as 2 Samuel-2 Kings, but
with a spiritual emphasis. Saul is mentioned but almost in passing. Israel’s
Assyrian captivity is not mentioned. The final chapter of 2 Chronicles has
Judah in Babylon but ends with the proclamation of Cyrus, 36:23 the LORD God of heaven… hath charged me to build him an
house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. And thus the restoration
is anticipated!
Ezra-Nehemiah
I’m combining these books because the Jews have
traditionally considered them one book and they treat the same subject – the
return of the Jews from Babylon. They were separated when the Jews translated
the Hebrew Bible into Greek, the Septuagint, probably because they are about
two strong and godly leaders, Ezra and Nehemiah. These books have a three-fold
significance:
2) Jeremiah had prophesied that the Babylonian captivity would last 70 years (Jer 25). Daniel noticed that while himself a captive in Babylon and prayed for restoration. This is the record of the fulfillment of that prophecy and answer to that prayer.
3) Daniel prophesied that there would be 70 weeks or 490 years from the commandment to restore and rebuild Jerusalem to the coming of the Messiah. These books provide the starting point for this amazingly specific prophecy!
Esther
The main characters are two Jews, Mordecai and his niece
Esther, who were living in Persia 100 years after the Babylonian exile;
apparently, not all the Jews returned to Jerusalem.
The book was written to explain the origin of the (still
celebrated) Jewish feast of Purim. You’ll have to read the book for the story!
Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? (Exodus 15:11)
NEXT: The Poetical Books
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