Friday, September 09, 2016

1 Kings

This may be a record that I finished a whole book of the Bible in just over a month.  I did really enjoy this book, and I've been really trying to be in it more often.  Daily is the goal!

  • King David is old and they find a young woman to come care for him; Abishag (he doesn't not have sexual relations with her)
  • David's some Adonijah tries to become King instead of Solomon without David knowing
  • Bathsheba, David's wife/Solomon's mom, goes to David tot ell him what is going on at the prophet Nathan's direction
  • David makes Solomon king; the celebration interrupts Adonijah's party and they are afraid and scatter
  • Adonijah goes to the alter and pleads his life to Solomon, who agress as long as he is a man of honor
  • David near death gave Solomon guidance to follow as king - reminded him of those who had done wrong and those that were kind
  • Solomon takes control after David dies
  • Many are killed for their wrongs as Solomon takes control
  • Solomon is building a palace and temple, currently worship and sacrifice is given in many places
  • Solomon asks God for an obedient heart and wisdom, God grants this request
  • Two prostitutes living together have babies 3 days apart; one mother rolls onto her baby and kills him during the night; she switches the babies
  • The women take the fight for the baby to the king who rules with wisdom
  • He says to cut the baby in half for them, but the real mother steps up and stops it
  • Solomon had officer in charge of things and responsible; he also had 12 governors, one for each district
  • Each district provided king and his table with food for 1 month of the year
  • There was peace in all the land, Israel & Judah
  • People came to see Solomon's great wisdom
  • Now that there was peace from David defeating all his enemies, Solomon fulfilled his wishes by preparing to build a temple for worship
  • Solomon builds the temple in 7 years with stone and cedar and pine and olive wood; the most holy place covered in gold
  • Solomon built a palace for himself in 13 years and for his wife, the daughter of an Egyptian King
  • Huram came and built things of bronze to finish the temple
  • Much of the work was done with carvings and stampings of winged creatures, lions, flowers and palm trees
  • Solomon brought everything into the temple that David had set aside for it
  • The Ark of the Agreement was brought in and God filled the place
  • Solomon shares what has been done with his people
  • Solomon prays that everyone will sin, then sorry-ness and prayer, then forgiveness
  • Sacrifices offered
  • The Lord appears to Solomon and reminds him to obey and his family will rule or destruction will come
  • Solomon built many towns and anything he wanted
  • Solomon used non-Israelites in their land as slaves
  • The Queen of Sheba came to see the wisdom of Solomon and give gifts
  • Solomon was very wealthy
  • Solomon's 700 wives were foreigners who led him away from God to worship their gods
  • Because Solomon didn't follow when his sone takes power it will be mostly taken from him
  • Solomon had enemies
  • Ahijah, a prophet, told Jeroboam, and officer of Solomon that he would rule 10 tribes of Israel
  • Solomon's son would keep a tribe
  • Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but he ran away
  • Rehoboam succeeded Solomon on the throne
  • The people went to Rehoboam and asked for a little easier work than under Solomon
  • Wise advisors of Solomon suggested he give a kind answer and win their favor so they serve him
  • Rehoboam rejected that advise and insisted they work much harder and he be much meaner
  • The tribes left him and selected Jeroboam as their King
  • Judah was still Rehoboam's to rule
  • Rehoboam gathered men and wanted to fight for Israel's rule, but God stopped him with Shemaiah
  • Jeroboam feared people leaving his rule since they still worshipped in Rehoboam's land, so he built two calves to worship instead and put them in 2 different cities; he made his own festival
  • Jeroboam selected priest from all tribes, not just the Levi's
  • A man of God went to Jeroboam to speak against his actions; they warned him, then those things happened because of his disbelief (alter broke, ashes fell, arm paralyzed)
  • At prayer request his arm is healed (Jeroboam's) and he invited the prophet in to eat
  • The prophet rejected at God's directions he'd received
  • An old prophet went after him and lied to get him to come eat with him, then more death occurred because he didn't follow god's order
  • On his way back a lion got him; they went after his body and he was curried there away from his family
  • Jeroboam's son was ill, so he sent his wife to a prophet in disguise
  • The prophet knew she was coming called her out of her disguise, told her that her son would die and that Israel will face great consequences for Jeroboam's evil
  • Nadab (son) took Jeroboam's throne after death
  • Rehoboam ruled and his people didn't follow God
  • Rehoboam and Jeroboam were at war all the time
  • Rehoboam's son, Abijah, took the throne after his death; he was a sinful king
  • Everything the kings did was recorded in the book of the history of the kings
  • Asa (son) followed Abijah's rule
  • Asa followed God and pushed evil out
  • War continued with Israel
  • Nadab (sinful) ruled Jeroboam's Israel, but was killed by Ahijah's son (Baasha) and Baasha (sinful) became king
  • Elah (sinful) followed Baasha's reign
  • Baasha killed all of Jeroboam's family
  • Elah was killed by one of this officers, Zimri, and he took reign as king
  • Zimri killed all of Baasha's family
  • Omri the arm captain hear Zimri conspired against and killed Elah, so he captured the city and made himself king
  • Zimri was angry and burned his palace with himself inside
  • Israel was divided, some wanted Omri, other Tibni
  • Tibni died, Omri's followers were stronger
  • Omri was very bad, his son Ahab succeeded him on the throne
  • Ahab was worse than the kings before him
  • He married Jezebel, worshipped Baal
  • He rebuilt Jericho during his reign and lost his older and youngest son to the cause
  • Elijah the prophet stops the rain in the land
  • The Lord commanded birds and a widow to care for Elijah
  • The widow was poor (no rain) and couldn't feed him; Elijah told her to use what she had for them and her flour and oil jar wouldn't empty until rain returned - isn't God amazing! :)
  • Widow's son became ill; Elijah took him and prayed over him and he was fine
  • Elijah goes to King Ahab via Obadiah (God said rain will come)
  • Obadiah was a Godly man who hid prophet in caves when Jezebel was killing them - Elijah escaped and wasn't found
  • Obadiah was afraid to go to the king but continued
  • Elijah told Ahab to gather Israel after he reminded Ahab he had caused trouble, not himself
  • Elijah in front of the Israelites challenged them to follow God
  • Elijah challenged the 400 prophets to Baal to sacrifice a bull but pray to light the fire and he alone would do the same
  • Elijah even covered his alter with 12 jars of water
  • God burnt the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and dried the water
  • Israel worshipped God
  • The worshipped Baal by cutting themselves to bleed
  • Elijah captured the prophets of Baal, led them way and killed them
  • Elijah tells Ahab to go eat and Eligah goes to Mt. Carmel - he sends his servant to go look toward the sea 7 times
  • The 7th time he returns and says a cloud has formed over the water
  • Elijah sends Ahab home, but runs ahead with God's power
  • Jezebel hears of Elijah's doing and threatens his life, so he runs away with his servant
  • Elijah leaves his servant in Judah and continues to the desert for a day before laying by a bush and asking to die; then he sleeps
  • An angel wakes Elijah to eat the bread wnas water provided and drink twice before he returns to sleep
  • Elijah walked 40 days to Mt. Sinai where he spoke with God
  • God passed by Elijah after wind and earthquake and fire
  • God told him to go anoint Hazael (Aram king), Jehu (Israel King), and Elisha (prophet)
  • The Lord knew he had 7,000 people left in Israel who hadn't worshipped Baal
  • Elijah found Elisha plowing with oxen and put his coat on Elisha; Elisha followed him but asked to say goodbye
  • Elisha killed his oxen, cooked them and gave to the people to eat; he followed Elijah and became his helper
  • Be-Hadad of Aram and Ahab of Israel go to war; God allows Israel to defeat the much larger Aram army in the mountains and they valley to prove he is Lord
  • A prophet let an enemy soldier escape, he had to give his life in his place
  • Ahab wanted Naboth's winery, but Naboth refused
  • Jezebel didn't like Ahab sadness; he wasn't eating
  • She took matters into her own hands and had Naboth accused of speaking against God and king and killed him by stoning
  • Ahab went to take the vineyard then and Elijah warned him of harm coming for his choices
  • Ahab showed remorse and delayed punishment for his family until his son became king at his death
  • There was peace between Israel and Aram
  • Jehoshaphat (Judah) and Ahab (Israel) went to war to get Ramoth in Gilead abck against the advice of prophet Micaiah
  • All other prophets were tricked and said to go to war
  • Abah died in battle
  • Jehoshaphat is king of Judah and is good
  • Ahaziah is king of Israel and is bad
As I read this book it was a challenge to keep the Kings straight, so I googled and found a neat chart I'm keeping in my Bible of the kings of Judah and Israel and their times and their prophets and if they were good and bad.  It's helpful!