1 Kings 21-22

Greetings!  These chapters wrap up 1 Kings then we’ll go straight to 2 Kings.
This story demonstrates the evils of greed, pride and covetousness.  Be careful in choosing a spouse, as they have great influence over what we think and do.

Naboth’s Vineyard
21     Some time later there was an incident involving a vineyard belonging to Naboth the [...]

1 Kings 19-20

Greetings!  Elijah just finished one of the great spiritual victories ever, showing the power of God and the impotence of the false god Baal and wiping out his prophets.  He did it in dramatic style and had an overwhelming victory.  But the feeling was short lived.

Elijah Flees to Horeb
19     Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah [...]

1 Kings 17-18

Greetings!

Elijah Fed by Ravens
17     Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.”
2 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: 3 “Leave here, [...]

1 Kings 15-16

Greetings!  These chapters document more evil and rebellion of kings in the northern and southern kingdoms.

Abijah King of Judah
15     In the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam son of Nebat, Abijah became king of Judah, 2 and he reigned in Jerusalem three years. His mother’s name was Maacah daughter of Abishalom.
3 He committed [...]

1 Kings 13-14

Greetings!

The Man of God From Judah
13     By the word of the Lord a man of God came from Judah to Bethel, as Jeroboam was standing by the altar to make an offering. 2 He cried out against the altar by the word of the Lord: “O altar, altar! This is what the Lord says: ‘A [...]

1 Kings 11-12

Greetings!  Here’s where Solomon goes off track.  Was he not trusting in God and doing what he thought was the politically expedient thing?  Or did he have some sort of sexual addiction? 
We all have our ups and downs spiritually, but we must try to root out the “gods” in our lives that distract us from [...]

1 Kings 9-10

Greetings!

The Lord Appears to Solomon
9     When Solomon had finished building the temple of the Lord and the royal palace, and had achieved all he had desired to do, 2 the Lord appeared to him a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. 3 The Lord said to him:
“I have heard the [...]

1 Kings 7-8

Greetings!  It took 7 years to build the temple but 13 to build Solomon’s palace.  Did they move at a fast pace for the temple, or did Solomon put more emphasis on his “temple” than on God’s?  It appears to be larger than the temple.

Solomon Builds His Palace
7     It took Solomon thirteen years, however, to [...]

1 Kings 5-6

Greetings!

Preparations for Building the Temple
5     When Hiram king of Tyre heard that Solomon had been anointed king to succeed his father David, he sent his envoys to Solomon, because he had always been on friendly terms with David. 2 Solomon sent back this message to Hiram:
3 “You know that because of the wars waged [...]

1 Kings 3-4

Greetings! 

Solomon Asks for Wisdom
3     Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt and married his daughter. He brought her to the City of David until he finished building his palace and the temple of the Lord, and the wall around Jerusalem. 2 The people, however, were still sacrificing at the high places, because a [...]

1 Kings 1-2

Greetings!  King David was at the end of his life.  We learned much about him in 1 Samuel and 2 Samuel.  He killed Goliath, ran for his life from King Saul (Israel’s first king), was made King of Israel, sinned with Bathsheba and had her husband killed, and so much more. 

1 Kings
Adonijah Sets Himself [...]

1 & 2 Kings introduction

Greetings!  The books of 1Kings and 2 Kings were originally one book, so we’ll do them consecutively.
These books contain history about the Israelites.  Here are some major themes / portions:

Solomon becomes king after David dies.  He chooses wisely at first and is given incredible wisdom.  But he makes poor choices after that and suffers the [...]