Title
The book we call the First Book of Kings in the KJV is called the Third Book of Kings in the Alexandrian LXX with First and Second Samuel there being called First and Second Kings.
In Hebrew manuscripts, there are two books of Kings. 1st and 2nd Samuel are called 1st Kings and 1st and 2nd Kings are called 2nd Kings. The two books of Kings as found in our translations were not divided until 1518 with the first printed edition produced by Bomberg.
Introduction to Contents
The books are a history of the Israelitish monarchy from the death of David to the captivity of the nation. The primary concern of the book is spiritual rather than historical. Moral lessons are emphasized for the benefit of those who would follow. Good and evil actions of king and people are pointed out and much is recorded showing the intervention of the hand of God into the affairs of men and His great attributes that are thereby revealed.
By including I Samuel and II Samuel in our perspective, we see a historical, chronological progression in the Scripture record. I Samuel bridges the period of the judges to the period of the kings. Samuel is the last judge under God, the rightful king, and the first prophet-adviser to the first human king, Saul.
I Samuel gives the life and background of Samuel and Saul with detailed references to the development of David. The antagonistic attitude of Saul toward David is presented as well as the outstanding attributes of David.
II Samuel presents an account of the life of David from the time he becomes king until he is near death.Here we are presented with the portrait of a man of God wrestling with himself as he deals with the problems of ruling his people, his family and himself. There is nothing of the glamorized portrayal of national heroes that permeates human writings. Yet through it all, David stands out as an example of one who readily accepts the chastening of God. (It is quite helpful–in fact necessary—to read the Psalms to appreciate the impact that God had on David.)
The books of Kings center around the prophecy to David found in II Samuel 7:12-16 with the following key points emphasized:
- Yahweh would establish David’s house.
- David’s successor would build a “house” for worshipping God.
- There would be chastisement because of sin (specifically idolatry).
- Mercy would not depart from David’s house like it had from Saul’s. God would not totally reject David’s seed.
The books emphasize the prophetic and leadership roles of the prophets Elijah and Elisha, both of whom were instrumental in combating Baal worship. The oft repeated lesson is that of fidelity to the one, true God — a lesson not to be lost by ourselves. Jeroboam’s sin (calf worship) brought about the eventual rejection of the ten tribes; he became the hallmark of apostate religion.
Date Compiled
In determining the time of a writing, several factors are considered: the last recorded event, the linguistic characteristics and any great event which is omitted. The last recorded event describes the release of Jehoiachin by Evil-merodach (II Kings 25:27-30). This event occurred approximately 561 B.C. The great event not recorded was the release from captivity by Cyrus. Chronicles records that event but Kings does not. The language of the Kings bears a close resemblance in its general character to Jeremiah and Ezekiel which would place the compilation sometime in the sixth century B.C. It would seem the time of writing can safely be placed between 561 and 539 B.C.
Author
The author is God. However, some individual was used as the medium of the Spirit for compiling the books and writing them in their existing form. There are three commonly offered suggestions for the individual involved: Jeremiah, Ezra or some person(s) unknown to us.
I believe we can eliminate Ezra from consideration as he would certainly have included the return from exile as was done in Chronicles.
The reasons for favoring Jeremiah are reasonably strong. Jeremiah’s authorship is, and has been, Jewish tradition. He was the primary prophet before the fall but is not mentioned at all in Kings while he is mentioned twice in II Chronicles (35:25; 36:12). This peculiarity could be explained easily if Jeremiah were the writer as he might prefer to leave himself out. Finally, there is a close parallel in the language of Jeremiah and Kings. The following parallels between Kings and Jeremiah can be compared:
I Kings 8:25 — Jer. 33:17
II Kings 17:13 — Jer. 18:11; 25:5; 35:15
II Kings 17:14— Jer. 7:26
II Kings 17:15 —Jer. 2:5
II Kings 17:20 — Jer.7:15; 31:37
II Kings 21:12 — Jer. 19:3
II Kings 21:13 — Lam. 2:8
II Kings 21:14 — Jer. 30:16
II Kings 22:17— Jer. 7:20
II Kings 22:19 —Jer. 42:18;44:12,22
II Kings 23:2; 25:26 — Jer. 42:1,8; 44:12; 8:10
II Kings 23:2 — Jer. 36:6,10,13
II Kings 23:3,25 — Jer. 32:41
II Kings 23:5 — Jer. 19:13
II Kings 23:10 — Jer. 7:31
II Kings 23:13 — Jer. 51:25
II Kings 23:33 — Jer. 39:5
II Kings 24:14 — Jer. 29:2.
Sources
Guided by the Spirit, the compiler makes reference to three sources used in gathering the information: The book of the acts of Solomon, the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah and a similar volume for the kings of Israel (I Kings 11:41; 14:29; 14:19; etc.). The reference to “the Chronicles” is not to our two books of Chronicles but to then current records of Israel and Judah.
Some Key Places Mentioned
Abelbethmaacha — a town situated in the extreme north of Palestine and described as “a city and a mother in Israel.”
Abelmeholah — a town in the north part of the Jordan valley.
Anathoth — a priestly city in the tribe of Benjamin lying on or near the great road from the north to Jerusalem. It has been identified with Anata on a ridge NE of Jerusalem.
Aphek — the place referred to in Kings is in the plain of Jezreel on the road from Syria to Israel.
Bahurim — a village either on or close to the road leading from Jerusalem to the Jordan valley.
Beersheba— one of the oldest places in Palestine; it formed the southern limit of the country.
Bethel— its ancient name was Luz. It was situated on the extreme south of Ephraim on the border of the kingdom of Israel.
Bethhoron— the name of two places, an “upper” and a”nether” on the boundary between Benjamin and Ephraim. They commanded the steep and difficult pass by which the road from the maritime plain of Philistia ascended into the interior of Judah. Upper Bethhoron is at the top of the ascent while the nether stands on a low eminence on the edge of the plain. Thus, the lower Bethhoron was a barrier against armies from Philistia and Egypt and was fortified by Solomon.
Carmel — a ridge about 12 miles in length running SSE from the Mediterranean.
Damascus — the great city of Syria situated in a fertile plain some 30 miles in diameter.
Dan —a town in the extreme north of Palestine originally called Laish.
Enrogel — a spring which formed one of the landmarks on the border between Judah and Benjamin.
Eziongeber — a town of Edom situated at the head of the gulf of Akabah.
Geba — a priestly town of Benjamin about eight miles north of Jerusalem on the border with Ephraim.
Gezer — an important city in the south commanding the approach from Egypt.
Gibeon — about four miles north of Jerusalem, a well known city of the Hivites situated in Benjamin.
Gihon— near Jerusalem where Solomon was anointed king.
Gilead — a district east of Jordan bounded by Bashan on the north, Ammon on the east and Moab on the south.
Hamath — an important city to the north commanding the valley which was the main invasion route from Assyria and Babylon.
Hazor — in Naphtali on high ground overlooking the waters of Merom.
Jericho — in the plain of the Jordan exactly over the place where Israel under Joshua crossed the river.
Jezreel — a city on an eminence rising out of the plain of Jezreel commanding a view of Jordan on the east and Carmel on the west.
Joppa — a town on the southwest coast 30 miles from Jerusalem and acting as its port.
Kishon — a river draining the plain of Jezreel flowing northwesterly into the Mediterranean at the bay of Akka.
Mahanaim — a town on the east of Jordan in the mountains of Gilead.
Megiddo — a town commanding a vital pass connecting the plain of Jezreel to the interior of the land.
Mizpah — a town in Benjamin on the border with Ephraim near Ramah and Gibeon.
Mt. Ephraim — this hilly part of the territory of Ephraim was one of the most fertile and beautiful regions in Palestine. Shechem and Samaria were situated in this area.
Penuel — a place east of Jordan in Gilead.
Ramah — a town between Gibeon and Beeroth five miles north of Jerusalem. There was a place of the same name in Mt. Ephraim.
Ramoth-gilead — the chief town east of the Jordan in Gilead.
Samaria — a site bought by Omri and developed into the later capital of the kingdom of Israel
Shechem — key city in Ephraim between Mt. Ebal and Mt. Gerizim. Shiloh— a town in Ephraim central to the land.
Succoth — a town in Gad on the east of Jordan.
Tadmor — a town 120 miles northeast of Damascus in a well-watered desert oasis.
Zobah — a portion of Syria forming a separate kingdom in the times of Saul, David and Solomon.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One