I enjoyed listening to some of my favorite OT stories: David & Goliath, Jonathan & David’s friendship, Elijah at Mt.Carmel, God’s defeat of the Assyrians after Hezekiah’s prayer. Overall, I could see the rise and slow fall of the nation politically and how it was tied to the spiritual leadership (good or bad) of the kings. I noticed for the first time that I-II Kings seem to spend a lot more time describing the apostate northern kingdom, with its assassinations and coups, than the southern kingdom, which actually had a few godly kings. I also noticed that the opposition of Israel’s kings to God’s prophets is a recurring theme. It’s as if the point of Kings is to show why God was justified in judging both nations.
(This was a seminary class assignment originally dated October 6, 2006. For an introduction and table of contents for this series, see New Series: Old Testament Reading Journal).