SAMUEL’S BIRTH
1 Samuel 1:26 - 28 (NRSV) 26And she said, “Oh, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the LORD. 27For this child I prayed; and the LORD has granted me the petition that I made to him. 28Therefore I have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives, he is given to the LORD.” She left him there for the LORD.
WHAT OTHER STORIES DOES THIS REMIND YOU OF?
SAMUEL’S CALL
1 Samuel 3:7 - 12 (NRSV) 7Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, and the word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him. 8The LORD called Samuel again, a third time. And he got up and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the LORD was calling the boy. 9Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. 10Now the LORD came and stood there, calling as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” 11Then the LORD said to Samuel, “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make both ears of anyone who hears of it tingle. 12On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end.
WHY DIDN’T SAMUEL RECOGNIZE GOD’S VOICE?
SAMUEL’S LEADERSHIP
1 Samuel 7:3 - 6 (NRSV) 3Then Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the LORD with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Astartes from among you. Direct your heart to the LORD, and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” 4So Israel put away the Baals and the Astartes, and they served the LORD only. 5Then Samuel said, “Gather all Israel at Mizpah, and I will pray to the LORD for you.” 6So they gathered at Mizpah, and drew water and poured it out before the LORD. They fasted that day, and said, “We have sinned against the LORD.” And Samuel judged the people of Israel at Mizpah.
WHAT IS SAMUEL TRYING TO TEACH THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL?
THE PEOPLE ASK FOR A KING
1Samuel 8:4 - 19 (NRSV) 4Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, 5and said to him, “You are old and your sons do not follow in your ways; appoint for us, then, a king to govern us, like other nations.” 6But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to govern us.” Samuel prayed to the LORD, 7and the LORD said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. 8Just as they have done to me, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so also they are doing to you. 9Now then, listen to their voice; only—you shall solemnly warn them, and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.” 10So Samuel reported all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking him for a king. 11He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen, and to run before his chariots; 12and he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. 13He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his courtiers. 15He will take one-tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and his courtiers. 16He will take your male and female slaves, and the best of your cattle and donkeys, and put them to his work. 17He will take one-tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. 18And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves; but the LORD will not answer you in that day.”
19But the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel; they said, “No! but we are determined to have a king over us, 20so that we also may be like other nations, and that our king may govern us and go out before us and fight our battles.”
WHY DOESN’T SAMUEL WANT THE PEOPLE TO HAVE A KING?
WHY DOES GOD ALLOW THEM A KING?
SAUL SELECTED TO BE THE FIRST KING
1 Samuel 9:15 - 21 (NRSV) 15Now the day before Saul came, the LORD had revealed to Samuel: 16“Tomorrow about this time I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be ruler over my people Israel. He shall save my people from the hand of the Philistines; for I have seen the suffering of my people, because their outcry has come to me.” 17When Samuel saw Saul, the LORD told him, “Here is the man of whom I spoke to you. He it is who shall rule over my people.” 18Then Saul approached Samuel inside the gate, and said, “Tell me, please, where is the house of the seer?” 19Samuel answered Saul, “I am the seer; go up before me to the shrine, for today you shall eat with me, and in the morning I will let you go and will tell you all that is on your mind. 20As for your donkeys that were lost three days ago, give no further thought to them, for they have been found. And on whom is all Israel’s desire fixed, if not on you and on all your ancestral house?” 21Saul answered, “I am only a Benjaminite, from the least of the tribes of Israel, and my family is the humblest of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin. Why then have you spoken to me in this way?”
WHAT DOES THIS TELL YOU ABOUT THE CHARACTHER OF SAUL
MIXED FEELINGS ABOUT A KING
1 Samuel 10:17 - 27 (NRSV) 17Samuel summoned the people to the LORD at Mizpah 18and said to them, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.’ 19But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your calamities and your distresses; and you have said, ‘No! but set a king over us.’ Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and by your clans.” 20Then Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot. 21He brought the tribe of Benjamin near by its families, and the family of the Matrites was taken by lot. Finally he brought the family of the Matrites near man by man, and Saul the son of Kish was taken by lot. But when they sought him, he could not be found. 22So they inquired again of the LORD, “Did the man come here?” and the LORD said, “See, he has hidden himself among the baggage.” 23Then they ran and brought him from there. When he took his stand among the people, he was head and shoulders taller than any of them. 24Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see the one whom the LORD has chosen? There is no one like him among all the people.” And all the people shouted, “Long live the king!” 25Samuel told the people the rights and duties of the kingship; and he wrote them in a book and laid it up before the LORD. Then Samuel sent all the people back to their homes. 26Saul also went to his home at Gibeah, and with him went warriors whose hearts God had touched. 27But some worthless fellows said, “How can this man save us?” They despised him and brought him no present. But he held his peace. Now Nahash, king of the Ammonites, had been grievously oppressing the Gadites and the Reubenites. He would gouge out the right eye of each of them and would not grant Israel a deliverer. No one was left of the Israelites across the Jordan whose right eye Nahash, king of the Ammonites, had not gouged out. But there were seven thousand men who had escaped from the Ammonites and had entered Jabesh-gilead.
NAME THE DIVERSE REACTIONS TO A KING.
SAUL’S ERROR IN JUDGEMENT
1 Samuel 13:5 - 15 (NRSV) 5The Philistines mustered to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and troops like the sand on the seashore in multitude; they came up and encamped at Michmash, to the east of Beth-aven. 6When the Israelites saw that they were in distress (for the troops were hard pressed), the people hid themselves in caves and in holes and in rocks and in tombs and in cisterns. 7Some Hebrews crossed the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. Saul was still at Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling. 8He waited seven days, the time appointed by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people began to slip away from Saul. 9So Saul said, “Bring the burnt offering here to me, and the offerings of well-being.” And he offered the burnt offering. 10As soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, Samuel arrived; and Saul went out to meet him and salute him. 11Samuel said, “What have you done?” Saul replied, “When I saw that the people were slipping away from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines were mustering at Michmash, 12I said, ‘Now the Philistines will come down upon me at Gilgal, and I have not entreated the favor of the LORD’; so I forced myself, and offered the burnt offering.” 13Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly; you have not kept the commandment of the LORD your God, which he commanded you. The LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel forever, 14but now your kingdom will not continue; the LORD has sought out a man after his own heart; and the LORD has appointed him to be ruler over his people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you.” 15And Samuel left and went on his way from Gilgal. The rest of the people followed Saul to join the army; they went up from Gilgal toward Gibeah of Benjamin.
WHAT DOES THIS TELL YOU ABOUT SAUL’S CHARACTHER?
WHY IS SAMUEL UPSET?
A NEW KING IS TO BE CHOSEN
1 Samuel 16:1 - 7 (NRSV) 1The LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul? I have rejected him from being king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and set out; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.” 2Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will kill me.” And the LORD said, “Take a heifer with you, and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’ 3Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; and you shall anoint for me the one whom I name to you.” 4Samuel did what the LORD commanded, and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling, and said, “Do you come peaceably?” 5He said, “Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD; sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” And he sanctified Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. 6When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, “Surely the LORD’S anointed is now before the LORD.” 7But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the LORD does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.”
WHAT CRITERIA DO YOU THINK GOD USES TO CHOOSE LEADERS?
1 Samuel Chap 21-31: David gains and Saul diminishes
WHY COULDN’T SAUL LET GO OF LEADERSHIP AND HAND IT OVER TO DAVID?
2 Samuel Chap 21-31: David become king
· Eliminates the old order
· Unites north and south
· Moves capital to Jerusalem; a strategic military and social location
· Battles and subdues neighbors
DAVIDS ERROR
2 Samuel 11:1 – 11, 14 (NRSV) 1In the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David sent Joab with his officers and all Israel with him; they ravaged the Ammonites, and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem. 2It happened, late one afternoon, when David rose from his couch and was walking about on the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; the woman was very beautiful. 3David sent someone to inquire about the woman. It was reported, “This is Bathsheba daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” 4So David sent messengers to get her, and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now she was purifying herself after her period.) Then she returned to her house. 5The woman conceived; and she sent and told David, “I am pregnant.” 6So David sent word to Joab, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent Uriah to David. 7When Uriah came to him, David asked how Joab and the people fared, and how the war was going. 8Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house, and wash your feet.” Uriah went out of the king’s house, and there followed him a present from the king. 9But Uriah slept at the entrance of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. 10When they told David, “Uriah did not go down to his house,” David said to Uriah, “You have just come from a journey. Why did you not go down to your house?” 11Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah remain in booths; and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field; shall I then go to my house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do such a thing.”
14In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15In the letter he wrote, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, so that he may be struck down and die.”
CONTRAST THE CHARACTER OF DAVID, BATHSHEBA AND URIAH.
WHAT DOES THIS TELL YOU ABOUT HUMAN NATURE?
THE TRADGEDY AND TRIUMPH OF DAVID
2 Samuel Chapters 12 – 24
· A New Prophet, Nathan, condemns David
· The child dies
· David’s son leads a rebellion against David
· David consolidates power externally while losing it internally
· Absalom killed in battle
· 1 Kings 1:1 (NRSV) 1King David was old and advanced in years; and although they covered him with clothes, he could not get warm.
· Solomon “appointed” to succeed David over his siblings protests and schemes
DAVID IS CONSIDERED ISRAEL’S GREATEST KING…WHY?
WHAT IS DIFFERENT ABOUT THE WAY SOLOMON BECOMES KING?
SOLOMON ASKS FOR WISDOM
1 Kings 3:3 - 14 (NRSV) 3Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of his father David; only, he sacrificed and offered incense at the high places. 4The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the principal high place; Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask what I should give you.” 6And Solomon said, “You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant my father David, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you; and you have kept for him this great and steadfast love, and have given him a son to sit on his throne today. 7And now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David, although I am only a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. 8And your servant is in the midst of the people whom you have chosen, a great people, so numerous they cannot be numbered or counted. 9Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?” 10It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. 11God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, 12I now do according to your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind; no one like you has been before you and no one like you shall arise after you. 13I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor all your life; no other king shall compare with you. 14If you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your life.”
WHAT WOULD YOU ASK OF GOD IF YOU RECEIVED THIS OFFER?
SOLOMON’S REIGN
1 Kings Chapters 2-10
· Consolidates wealth
· Forms alliances
· Builds temple and palace
· Establishes and flourishing kingdom based on his wisdom
· Kingdom is based on power, wealth and information
IN WHAT WAYS CAN POWER, WEALTH AND INFORMATION BECOME THE TRIAD OF DEATH?
SOLOMON’S ERROR AND THE PATTERN FOR ISRAEL’S KINGS
1 Kings 11:4 - 13 (NRSV) 4For when Solomon was old, his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his heart was not true to the LORD his God, as was the heart of his father David. 5For Solomon followed Astarte the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and did not completely follow the LORD, as his father David had done. 7Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites, on the mountain east of Jerusalem. 8He did the same for all his foreign wives, who offered incense and sacrificed to their gods. 9Then the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, 10and had commanded him concerning this matter, that he should not follow other gods; but he did not observe what the LORD commanded. 11Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, “Since this has been your mind and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and give it to your servant. 12Yet for the sake of your father David I will not do it in your lifetime; I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13I will not, however, tear away the entire kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son, for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”
HOW DO WE EXEMPLIFY THIS ERROR IN OUR LIVES AND WORLD TODAY?
THE KINGDOM SPLITS
1 Kings 12:3 - 16 (NRSV) 3And they sent and called him; and Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came and said to Rehoboam, 4“Your father made our yoke heavy. Now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke that he placed on us, and we will serve you.” 5He said to them, “Go away for three days, then come again to me.” So the people went away. 6Then King Rehoboam took counsel with the older men who had attended his father Solomon while he was still alive, saying, “How do you advise me to answer this people?” 7They answered him, “If you will be a servant to this people today and serve them, and speak good words to them when you answer them, then they will be your servants forever.” 8But he disregarded the advice that the older men gave him, and consulted with the young men who had grown up with him and now attended him. 9He said to them, “What do you advise that we answer this people who have said to me, ‘Lighten the yoke that your father put on us’?” 10The young men who had grown up with him said to him, “Thus you should say to this people who spoke to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you must lighten it for us’; thus you should say to them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins. 11Now, whereas my father laid on you a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.’” 12So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had said, “Come to me again the third day.” 13The king answered the people harshly. He disregarded the advice that the older men had given him 14and spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.” 15So the king did not listen to the people, because it was a turn of affairs brought about by the LORD that he might fulfill his word, which the LORD had spoken by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat. 16When all Israel saw that the king would not listen to them, the people answered the king, “What share do we have in David? We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, O Israel! Look now to your own house, O David.” So Israel went away to their tents.
WHERE DO YOU FIND PARALLELS TO THIS IN HUMAN HISTORY AND TODAY?
KINGS COME AND GO:
1 Kings Chapters 13 – 16
WHAT MAKES A KING GOOD OR BAD?
ELIJAH AND ELISHA WRESTLE WITH THE RULERS TO MAKE ISRAEL RIGHTEOUS
1 Kings 17 TO 2 Kings 13
· Elijah and the starving widow (17)
· Elijah on Carmel triumphs over priests of Baal (18)
· Elijah flees and encounters God in the ‘voice of sheer silence’ (19)
· Swing Low Sweet Chariot: Elijah taken to heaven, Elisha receives mantel (2 Kings 1)
· A succession of Kings
· Elisha does his own miracles (2 Kings 2-5)
WHAT DOES A PROPHET NEED TO ENDURE TO SERVE GOD?
MORE KINGS:
2 Kings Chap 13 – 16
ASSYRIA TAKES CHARGE
2 Kings Chap 17 – 19
WHAT ARE THE POLICIES OF ASSYRIA IN RELATION TO THEIR CAPTIVES?
BABYLON EMERGES
2 Kings Chap 20 - 25
HOW IS BABYLON DIFFERENT FROM ASSYRIA?
LINEAGE
1 Chronicles chap 1-8
From Adam to Saul
WHY IS LINEAGE IMPORTANT? WHAT DOES YOUR LINEAGE SAY ABOUT YOU?
From Bible Query: http://www.muslimhope.com/BibleAnswers/1chr.htm
Q: What is the difference in emphasis between the books of Chronicles and Kings? A: There are a number of differences between these two writings. Time: Chronicles was written later, during the exile. It emphasizes the genealogies, which would be important for the returning Jews. Numbers: Chronicles is the most number-oriented book in the Bible, with the size of armies, and numbers of priests and descendants. References: Kings mentions the Book/Annals of Kings of Israel, the Book/Annals of Kings of Judah, and the Book/Annals of Kings of Israel and Judah in 32 verses. Chronicles mentions books of various kings only 12 times, and it never mentions "the Book/Annals of the Kings of Judah" without mentioning Israel too. Kingdom vs. Temple: Nehemiah as well as 1 and 2 Kings emphasize the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Chronicles and Ezra also mention those, but they have a greater emphasis on the Temple. International Affairs: Kings focuses on battles and alliances with Aram, Edom, Moab, and nearby kingdoms, including Egypt. Chronicles focuses on trading alliances with Hiram of Tyre, the Queen of Sheba, and Egypt. Consequences of Wickedness vs. Repentance: Kings focuses more on the results of the sins of the kings, while Chronicles tells of their personal walk with God. David: Chronicles does not tell us much about David, except that he wanted to build the Temple. Kings tells us almost nothing about David, since David was covered in 1 and 2 Samuel. Solomon: Chronicles tells us little about Solomon, except as it related to building the temple and his wealth. With the exception of Pharaoh’s daughter, only Kings tell of the serious moral compromises Solomon made. Manasseh’s repentance, which had no political impact, is mentioned only in Chronicles. Manasseh removed many idol altars, but his repentance had almost no effect on the kingdom. Jehoiakim is given more attention in 2 Chronicles 36 than in 2 Kings 24. Geography: Between the time of the Divided Kingdom and Hezekiah, Chronicles, being concerned with the Temple, has a southern emphasis on Judah, while Kings discusses both kingdoms at length. Consequently, Chronicles provides no dates or lengths of reign of the kings of Israel, while Kings provides information on both Judah and Israel. Kings also has more material on Elijah and Elisha. Time Written: Chronicles was written later, and likely presumed the reader had a knowledge of Kings. Chronicles and not kings tells of the return of the Jews under the reign of Cyrus of Persia.
1 Chronicles chap 9: Saul
1 Chronicles chap 10 – 29; David
1 Chronicles chap 23 - 2 Chronicles chap 9: Solomon and the Temple
2 Chronicles chap 10 – 31 Stories of Kings with focus on their relationship and obedience to God
1 Chronicles chap 31 – 35: Assyria rises and falls
1 Chronicles chap 36: Babylon arises
WHAT DIFFERENCES DO YOU SEE IN THE HISTORICAL ACCOUNTS AND PERSPECTIVES BETWEEN KINGS AND CHRONICLES?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment