Information for the Book of
First Kings
I Kings spans about 120 years of history of which the first 40 are an era of prosperity under Solomon (David's son). After the death of Solomon, the nation split into two rival states, Israel and Judah. The history told in I Kings is paralleled in 2 Chronicles 1-20, but from a different perspective.
Significant sections:
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOKS OF FIRST AND SECOND KINGS
I. CANON: The Canonical Shape of Kings:
A. The early Greek manuscripts of the Old Testament
combined the books of Samuel and Kings under the title
of "kingdoms," or "reigns" (Basileiai,
BASILEIWN)Therefore 1 & 2 Samuel = 1 & 2 Kingdoms; and
1 & 2 Kings = 3 & 4 Kingdoms
B. In the Hebrew Scriptures the book of Kings (<ylm) was
originally one book1
1. Kings was broken into two books for convenience
sake because of its length
2. Josephus' limitation of the Hebrew canon to twenty-
four books seems to verify a unified Kings:2
a. Lamentations may have been with Jeremiah
b. Ruth may have been with Judges
c. Kings may have been one book
C. The English has adopted the fourfold division of the
historical books after the Greek Septuagint but with
the Hebrew names of 1 & 2 Samuel and 1 & 2 Kings
D. The Books of Samuel and Kings cover Israel's period as
a nation under a king:
1. Samuel--Saul
2. Samuel--David
3. Kings--Solomon and the divided kingdom
4. Kings--The fall of the divided kingdoms of Israel
and Judah
E. Placement in the Hebrew Scriptures: One of the Prophets
1. The "Prophets" is grouped into "Former Prophets"
(Joshua-2 Kings [not including Ruth]) and "Latter
Prophets" (Isaiah-Malachi [without Lamentations
and Daniel])
2. They were the last book of the Former Prophets
a. "Labeling them as prophetic rather than
historical suggests that these books are
primarily theological in nature rather than
annalistic."3
b. Classification of the Prophets4: The
prophets may be identified within three basic
categories--(1) pre-monarchy,5 (2) pre-
classical,6 (3) classical7--as the following
chart unfolds:8
PERIOD FUNCTIO AUDIENC MESSAGE EXAMPLE
N E S
PRE- Mouthpi People Nation Moses
MONARCH ece- guidanc Deborah
Y lead e,
Mainten
ance of
justice
,
Spiritu
al
oversee
r
PRE- Mouthpi King Militar Nathan
CLASSIC ece- and y Elijah
AL adviser court advice, Elisha
Pronoun Micaiah
ce-ment
of
rebuke
or
blessin
g
Transit
ion:
North-
Jonah1
South-
Isaiah
CLASSIC Mouthpi People Rebuke Writing
AL ece- concern Prophet
social/ ing s
spiritu current Best
al conditi example
comment on of :
ator society Jeremia
; leads h
to
warning
s of
captivi
ty,
destruc
tion,
exile,
and
promise
of
eventua
l
restora
tion,
Call
for
justice
and
repenta
nce
F. Placement in the Greek/English Scriptures: One of the
Historical Books
1. As with the Greek Septuagint (LXX) 1 & 2 Kings are
grouped along with the twelve historical books
(Joshua to Esther).
2. As Walton and Hill write, "the books share a
prophetic view of history in which cause and
effect are tied to the blessings and cursings of
the covenant."10
II. AUTHOR OF KINGS:11 An Anonymous Editor-Compiler-Author
(Jeremiah?) from the sixth century B.C.
A. The Deuteronomistic School:12
1. A late eighth or early seventh century school
which aligned itself with Judah and the reforms of
Josiah (640-608 B.C.) and extended through the
exilic period writing historical works supports
the principles in Deuteronomy (a late book written
for Josiah's reforms
2. This theory requires Deuteronomy to be a late
document which was composed to support Josiah's
reforms (622 B.C.)
3. The theory suggests that the editors then rewrote
Joshua-Kings to express the interests of
theological reform which were expressed in the
forged Deuteronomy.
4. Kings would have been written in two redactions:
(1) pre-exilic during Josiah's reign and reforms
which explains the pro-southern kingdom tone, and
(2) exilic prompted by the release of Jehoiachin
(560 B.C.) and dated around 550 B.C.
5. However, Deuteronomy demonstrates unity on the
level of a second millennium Hittite suzerainty-
vassel treaty. This argues sharply against a late
creation of the document, and thus the necessity
of a Deuteronomistic school as its creators and
thus the creators of Kings
6. Yes, Kings are Deuteronomistic in that they
reflect the theology of Deuteronomy, but it is a
Mosaic theology and not a fabricated theology to
support the reform under Josiah13
B. Jeremiah the Prophet:
1. Traditional Jewish scholarship has identified the
writing/compiling of this book with the prophet
Jeremiah14
2. Some of the basis for the identification of
Jeremiah with Kings is the similarity of Jeremiah
52 with 2 Kings 24--25
3. Another support for Jeremiah as the author is that
the history of Kings gives prominence to the place
of true prophets in both the Israelite and Judean
ministries
4. Another support for Jeremiah is that the writer
seems to have been an eye witness to the fall of
Jerusalem (586 B.C.)
5. Those who identify Jeremiah as the author consider
the historical abstracts at the end of 2 Kings
(Gedaliah, governor of Judah in 2 Ki. 25:22-26,
and Jehoiachin's release in Babylon in 2 Ki. 25:27-
30) as being latter additions
6. Also the author of Kings does not use the familiar
names for the kings of Judah as Jeremiah did (cf.
2 Ki. 24:8)
7. Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel write,
"Despite the lack of dogmatic certainty, a
reasonable case can be made for Jeremianic
authorship (cf. G. Archer, SOTI rev. p. 289). S.
J. Shultz (`Kings,' ZPEB, 3:812) affirms the
likelihood that `the prophets kept the records
throughout the generations of the Hebrew
Kingdoms.' Since he was descended from the
priestly line of Abiathar, and since in all
probability his father, Hilkiah, was active in
communicating both the traditional facts and the
teaching of Israel's past, it is very likely that
Jeremiah had access to historical and theological
source materials. Furthermore he would have had
more ready entr‚e to royal annals than any other
prophet. Certainly no other prophet was so
intimately involved in the final stages of Judah's
history. If so, Jeremiah may have been active in
composing the greater part of the history of the
book of Kings (1 Kings 14-- 2Kings 23:30) during
the so-called silent years of his prophetic
ministry after his call in 627 B.C., during the
long reign of the godly Josiah. Certainly the
contents of all but the last appendix (2 Kings
25:27-30) could have been written by Jeremiah.
Perhaps this was added by Baruch or drawn from
Jeremiah 40--44, possibly also was written by the
same writer as a bridge to the later historical
notice concerning Jehoiachin."15
C. An Anonymous Editor-Compiler-Author of the Sixth
Century B.C.16
1. This allows for the historical abstracts at the
end of 2 Kings 25
2. This writer probably was a an exile who lived in
Babylon during the captivity (2 Kings 25:27-30)
This could not have been Jeremiah since he died in
captivity in Egypt
3. This may or may not have been a prophet
4. Some have felt that it was either Ezra or Ezekiel
5. He certainly used sources
6. He had a sense of how the northern and southern
kingdoms' histories were built upon their covenant
relationship with the Lord
III. SOURCES USED IN KINGS: Several sources were used in the
construction of the books of kings:
A. Those which are specifically mentioned:17
1. The "Book of Acts of Solomon" (1 Kings 11:41)18
2. The "Book of the Chronicles/Annals of the Kings of
Israel" (mentioned seventeen times in 1 Kings
14:29--2 Kings 15:31)19
3. The "Book of the Chronicles/Annals of the Kings of
Judah" (1 Kings 15:23)20
B. Those which are not specifically mentioned, but are
proposed by some:21
1. The "Succession Narrative or "Court
Memoirs/History of David" 1 Kings 1:1--2:1122
2. An "Elijah-Elisha Prophetic Cycle with the House
of Ahab" (1 Kings 16:29--2 Kings 13)23
3. An "Isaiah Source" (2 Kings 18:13--20:19)24
4. An independent "Prophetic Source"25
5. Two concluding "Historical Abstracts" (2 Kings
25:22-26, 27-30)
IV. DATES AND CHRONOLOGY FOR THE BOOKS OF KINGS:
A. The books of Kings were Written between 560 and 538/539
B.C.
1. The last event recorded in 2 Kings 25:27-30 is the
release of Jehoichin from prison during the thirty-
seventh year of his imprisonment (560 B.C. [597
B.C. minus 37 years of captivity = 560 B.C.]).
This marks the earliest date that Kings could have
been completed26
2. Since there is no mention of a return to Jerusalem
after the captivity, it is probable that the book
was written before that event in 538/539 B.C. This
marks the latest date that Kings could have been
written.27
B. This material covers a period from the end of David's
reign (c. 970 B.C.) to the captivity of Israel (587/586
B.C.) and then the release of Jehoiachin (560 B.C.).
C. "Foreign Powers Mentioned in the Books of Kings"28
Egyptians An unnamed Pharoah 1 Kings 3:1
Shishak [945-924]
So or Osorkon [726-
715]
Necho [609-594]
Aramaeans Rexon [940-915] 1 Kings 11:23-25;
Tabrimmon [915-900] 15:18
Ben-Hadad I [900- 1 Kings 15:18
960] 1 Kings 15:18, 20
Ben-Hadad II [860- 1 Kings 20
841] 2 Kings 8:15
Hazael [841-806] 2 Kings 13:3
Ben-Hadad III [806- 2 Kings 15:37
770]
Rezin [750-732]
Phoenicians Ethbaal [874-853] 1 Kings 16:31
Edomites Hadad [?] 1 Kings 11:14-22
Moabites Mesha [853-841] 2 Kings 3:4ff.
Assyrians Tiglath-Pileser III 2 Kings 15:19-22
[745-727] 2 Kings 17:3-6
Shalmaneser V [727- Isaiah 20:1; 2
722] Kings 18:17
Sargon II [721-705] 2 Kings 18--19
Sennarcherib [704-
681]
Babylonians Merodach-Baladan II 2 Kings 20:12-13
[703] 2 Kings 24--25
Nebuchadrezzar [604-2 Kings 25:27-30
562]
Evil-Merodach [562-
560]
D. The Chronology of the Kings of Israel and Judah29
The Kings of Israel (Northern Kingdom)
Hayes and Thiele Bright Cogan and
Hooker Tadmor
Jeroboam 927-906 931-910 922-901 928-907
Nadab 905-904 910-909 901-900 907-906
Baasha 903- 909-886 900-877 906-883
882(880)
Elah 881-880 886-885 877-876 883-882
Zimri 7 days 885 876 882
Omri 879-869 885-874 876-869 882-871
Ahab 868-854 874-853 869-850 873-852
Ahaziah 853-852 853-852 850-849 852-851
Jehoram(Joram 851-840 852-841 849- 851-842
) 843/2
Jehu 839-822 841-814 843/2- 842-814
815
Jehoahaz 821-805 814-798 815-802 817-800
Jehoash(Joas 804-789 798-782 802-786 800-784
h)
Jeroboam II 788-748 793-- 786-746 789-748
753
Zechariah 6 months 753-752 746-745 748-747
Shallum 1 month 752 745 747
Menahem 746-737 752-742 745-737 747-737
Pekahiah 736-735 742-740 737-736 737-735
Pekah 734-731 752-732 736-732 735-732
Hoshea 730-722 732-722 732-724 732-724
The Kings of Judah (Southern Kingdom)
Rehoboam 926-910 931-913 922-915 928-911
Abijah 909-910 913-911 915-913 911-908
Asa 906- 911-870 913-873 908-867
878(866)
Jehoshaphat 877-853 872-848 873-849 870-846
Jehoram 852-841 853-841 849-843 851-843
Ahaziah 840 841 843/2 843-842
Athaliah 839-833 841-835 842-837 842-836
Joash(Jehosa 832- 835-796 837-800 836-798
sh) 803(793)
Amaziah 802- 796-767 800-783 798-769
786(774)
Azariah(Uzzi 785- 792-740 783-742 785-733
ah) 760(734)
Jotham 759-744 750-732 750-735 758-743
Ahaz 743-728 735-716 735-715 743-727
Hezekiah 727-699 716-687 715- 727-698
687/6
Manasseh 698-655 697-643 687/6- 698-642
642
Amon 643-642 643-641 642-640 641-640
Josiah 641-610 641-609 640-609 639-609
Jehoahaz 3 months 609 609 609
Jehoiakim 608-598 609-598 609-598 609-598
Jehoiachin 3 months 598-597 598/7 597
Zedekiah 596-586 597-586 597-587 596-586
V. THE LITERARY STRUCTURE OF KINGS:30
A. For the most part 1--2 Kings is in chronological order
from the rise of Solomon to the fall of Jerusalem31
B. Some parts of Kings are thematic:
1. The summary account of Solomon's administration (1
Kings 4)
2. The overview of Solomon's architectural
achievements (1 Kings 5:1--7:12
3. Events related to Jeroboam I and Hezekiah (1 Kings
13; 14:1-20; 2 Kings 18:7--19:37; 20)
4. The prophetic ministries of Elijah and Elisha (1
Kings 17--2 Kings 8:15)32
C. The formulaic structure of the "kings" accounts:33
1. The Judahite Kingship:
a. Introduction of the kings:
1) By name
2) Name of the king's father
3) Report of the kings accession (usually
synchronized with the reign of his
Israelite counterpart)
b. Biographical information is given:
1) The king's age at accession
2) The length of the king's reign
3) The name of the queen mother
4) Jerusalem as the capital of the king
5) An evaluation of the king's moral
character and spiritual leadership
c. Closing Information:
1) Identification of additional sources
documenting information about the kings
reign
2) A death and burial statement
3) An announcement of the king's successor
2. Israelite Kings:
a. Basically the same as above
b. In the biographical information the following
changes were made:
1) The royal city was usually Samaria
2) The name of the queen mother was usually
omitted
3. Placed within a king's reign were placed:
a. Prophetic speeches (1 Kings 18:20-29)
b. Direct discourse (2 Kings 18:19-27)
c. Wisdom sayings (1 Kings 20:11; 2 Kings 14:9)
d. Poetic materials (1 Kings 22:17; 2 Kings
19:21-28)
D. Differences between the Books of Samuel, Kings, and
Chronicles:34
1. The Books of Samuel
a. Author uses a biographical style
b. Author writes thematically from a "special
interest in the prophetic unfolding of the
kingdom of Israel, especially as centered in
the emergence, triumph, and struggles within
the house of David ..."35
2. The Books of Kings
a. The author relates the facts in a narrative-
annalistic format
b. The author "attempts to give a balanced
account of the general activities that
characterized the outworking of the divine
covenant in Israel's first kingdom period."36
c. The author gives attention to the royal and
prophetic elements of the Kingdom37
d. The author is interested in the Kings of
Israel and Judah
e. The kings are evaluated by the Mosaic law
3. The Books of Chronicles
a. Author uses a theological viewpoint
b. The author writes from the particular
viewpoint of divine evaluation of how Israel
(and particularly Judah) responded to the
revealed standards of the sovereign God,
..."38
c. The author emphasizes the "priestly elements
in the nation's history, such as the temple
and worship ..."39
d. The author is primarily interested in the
kings of Judah
e. In 2 Chronicles the kings of Judah are
evaluated in reference to David and the
worship of YHWH40
VI. THE NATURE OF THE DIVIDED KINGDOM:41
A. The Less Stable Northern Kingdom--Israel:
1. Only existed as an independent nation for 209
years
2. All of the kings were characterized as "evil"
because they continued the "golden calf' cult of
Jeroboam
3. The average reign was ten years
4. There were nine different ruling families42
5. Charisma was as important as ancestry to take the
throne43
6. The fate of all the kings was tragic:
a. Seven kings were assassinated
b. One king committed suicide
c. One king was stricken by God
d. One king was taken to Assyria
B. The More Stable Southern Kingdom--Judah:
1. Existed a century and half longer than the
northern kingdom for 345 years
2. The reign of Judah's nineteen kings and one queen
averaged more than seventeen years each
3. The Davidic family was the only family that
claimed the throne44Queen Athaliah's evil reign
was the only interruption to the Davidic family
4. Judah also had tragic fates for the kings:
a. Five kings were assassinated
b. Two kings were stricken by God
c. Three kings were exiled to foreign lands
5. But eight of Judah's rulers were "good" because
they followed the example of David and obeyed
YHWH:
a. Asa
b. Jehosaphat
c. Joash [Jehoash]
d. Amaziah
e. Azariah [Uzziah]
f. Jotham
g. Hezekiah
h. Josiah
VII. PURPOSES FOR THE BOOKS OF KINGS:
A. To "complete the written history of Hebrew kingship as
a sequel to the books of Samuel"45
B. To show the repeated, divine reasons for the fall of
the Jewish nation46
C. To "relate the history of the Hebrew united and divided
monarchies in their 'covenant failure'"47
D. To legitimize "the Davidic dynasty through the agency
of the prophetic office because the kingship covenant
previously announced by Nathan sanctioned the tribe of
Judah and the family of David as rightful heirs to the
Hebrew throne."48
E. To warn the kings and the people of the consequence of
covenant disobedience
F. To demonstrate that the one who was to fulfill the
promise to David in 2 Samuel 7 had not yet arrived
since none of the kings who followed David were greater
than David
G. To provide hope for Israel through the two historical
appendicies that God would yet fulfill his promise to
the house of David
___________________________
1 The unity of the books is seen in the recurring phrase,
"To this day" (I Kings 9:13; 10:12; 2 Kings 2:22; 10:27; 14:7;
16:6; 17:23, 34, 41; 21:15) and the continuance of the Elijah
narrative from 1 Kings 17--2 Kings 2).
2 Contra Apion 1.8.
3 Walton and Hill, SOT, 155.
4 La Sor et al offers a complete list with central passages,
Old, pp. 301-303.
5 These are Joshua, Deborah, Samuel (although Samuel is
transitional as the last of the judges and the first of the
monarchical [pre-classical] prophets).
They were called prophets because: (1) they were chosen in
order to received revelation, (2) Moses is the prototype of a
prophet [Deut. 18:18; 34:10], (3) Samuel marked a time when
prophecy resumed [1 Sam. 3:7-9]. See La Sor et al, Old, pp. 300-
301.
6 These are scattered throughout the historical books
including oracles by Nathan, Elijah, Elisha.
"Although somewhat artificial, some general distinctions
have been made between the pre-classical and classical prophets.
The former slightly predate the latter. The records of the
nonwriting prophets tend to be preserved in story form, including
accounts of their miraculous signs confirming divine authority in
their message. The ministry of the nonwriting prophets was
essentially to the royal family, and their message was one of
judgment and national destruction for covenant violation.
By contrast, the message of the classical (or writing)
prophets (e.g., Hosea, Amos, Isaiah) was generally preserved in
oracle form and was often underscored with symbolic behavior
rather than a miraculous event. The prophets took their message
to the political and religious leaders of the monarchies as well
as to the populace. In some cases their prophetic ministry was
even expanded to the surrounding nations ..." (Walton and Hill,
SOT, 212).
7 These are most commonly identified with the "writing"
prophets from the eighth through fourth century B.C. primarily
including those who wrote books (Obadiah, Joel, Jonah, Amos,
Hosea, Micah, Isaiah, Obed, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Jeremiah,
Ezekiel, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi).
8 Hill and Walton, A Survey, p. 311.
9 Jonah is unique because it does not contain a collection
of prophetic oracles to the nation, but is narrative about the
prophet.
10 Walton and Hill, SOT, 155; cf. 201.
11 See Walton and Hill, SOT, 201-204; Constable, "1 Kings,"
BKC, I:483-84; Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1,2,
Kings," Expositor's Bible Commentary, 4:4-7.
12 Most critical scholars today hold to this view or a form
of this view. See G. H. Jones, 1 and 2 Kings, 28-46; Simon J.
DeVries, 1 Kings, WBC, xxxv-xxxviii, xlii ff; Childs,
Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture, 285-287.
13 See Patterson and Hermann, "1 Kings," EBC, 4:5. Walter
Kaiser, Jr., Toward an Old Testament Theology, 63-66.
14 B. Talmud, Baba Barthra 15a.
15 Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1, 2,
Kings," Expositor's Bible Commentary, 6. See also LaSor, Hubbard
and Bush, Old Testament Survey, 253; Gleason L. Archer, Jr. A
Survey of Old Testament Introduction,, 295.
16 Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel write, "At
least the majority of the book bears the impress of being the
product of one author, who, as an eyewitness of the Jewish
nation's final demise, was concerned to show the divine reasons
for the fall. In so doing he utilized many sources, weaving the
details together into an integrated whole that graphically
portrayed Israel's covenant failure" ("1, 2, Kings," Expositor's
Bible Commentary, 6).
17 Walton and Hill write, "These documents were probably
official court histories kept by royal scribes (cf. 2 Sam. 8:16;
20:24-25) and very likely parallel the royal annals of the
Mesopotamian civilizations of Assyria and Babylonia" (SOT, 203).
18 Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel affirm that
this is "drawn from biographical annalistic, and archival
material contemporary with the details of 1 Kings 1--11"("1,2,
Kings," Expositor's Bible Commentary, 4:4).
19 These were, "drawn largely from the official records of
the northern kingdom that were kept by the court recorder (cf. 2
Sam 8:16; 20:24; 1 Kings 4:3; 2 Kings 18:18,37; 2 Chron 34:8)"
(Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1, 2, Kings,"
Expositor's Bible Commentary, 4:4).
20 These were "a record of the events of the reigns of the
kings of the southern kingdom from Rehoboam to Jehoiakim"
(Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1, 2, Kings,"
Expositor's Bible Commentary, 4:4).
21 Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1, 2,
Kings," Expositor's Bible Commentary, 4:4; Walton and Hill, SOT,
203-204; Gleason L. Archer, Jr. A Survey of Old Testament
Introduction, 294-295; LaSor, Hubbard and Bush, Old Testament
Survey, 253.
22 "A united monarchy narrative comprising 2 Samuel 9--20,
with 1 Kings 1--2 usually associated with the present books of
Samuel" (Walton and Hill, SOT, 204).
23 Walton and Hill note a separate "Dynasty of Ahab" record
by also not that it may be contained within 1 Kings 16--2 Kings
12 (Walton and Hill, SOT, 204).
24 This is almost identical to Isaiah 36:1--39:8.
25 This source "contained biographies of Old Testament
prophets associated with the Israelite monarchies (e.g., Ahijah,
1 Kings 11:29-33 and 14:1-16; Micaiah, 1 Kings 21:13-28; and
certain unnamed prophets, 1 Kings 12--13 and 20:35-43)" (Walton
and Hill, SOT, 204).
26 It is possible that the bulk of Kings was written before
the appendix in 2 Kings 25. LaSor, Hubbard, and Bush write,
"Jehoiachin's release from prison (ca 560) described in 2 Kgs.
25:27-30 sets the earliest possible date for the completion of
the book. However, most of it probably was compiled and edited
two or three decades earlier" (Old Testament Survey, 253, n. 19).
See also Gleason L. Archer, Jr. A Survey of Old Testament
Introduction, 295; Donald J. Wiseman, 1 & 2 Kings, 52-54.
27 Walton and Hill write, "It is possible that the book was
composed in two stages. Most of the history of Hebrew kingship
could have been completed between the fall of Jerusalem and the
Babylonian reprisal for the assassination of the governor
Gedaliah (a third deportation in 582 or 581 B.C., which was
described in the first historical appendix, 2 Kings 25:22-26 and
Jer. 52:30). The final edition of the work may have been
published sometime after the release of King Jehoiachin from
prison in Babylon by Nebuchadrezzar's successor, Evil-Marodach
(ca. 562/561 B.C., reported in the second historical appendix, 2
Kings 25:27-30). A date of 550 B.C. appears reasonable for the
completed Kings record" (SOT, 204).
28 This chart comes from Walton and Hill, SOT, 205.
29 For excellent discussions of this topic see LaSor,
Hubbard and Bush, Old Testament Survey, 288-297; Gleason L.
Archer, Jr. A Survey of Old Testament Introduction, 297-301;
Brevard S. Childs, Introduction to the Old Testament as
Scripture, 294-300; E. R. Thiele, The Mysterious Numbers of the
Hebrew Kings Rev. ed. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1983; Richard D.
Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1, 2, Kings," Expositor's Bible
Commentary, 4:10-17; Donald J. Wiseman, 1 & 2 Kings, 26-35.
Even though Childs does not hold to the historicity of the
chronology in Kings, he does consider it to be a literary device
which a "canonical function by the manner in which it renders
accessible Israel's narrative tradition in terms of particular,
cumulative, and critical historical experience" (Childs,
Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture, 300). He develops
its function in a threefold way: (1) "the various chronological
patterns in the book of Kings serve to establish a sequence in
the historical experience of Israel." [Ibid., 297], (2) "the use
of chronology in Kings, especially its synchronism, provides the
story of Israel with a comprehensive character which embraces the
whole people of God. The synchronism accommodates the political
realities of Israel's divided history, and yet establishes the
interrelatedness of the two kings" [Ibid., 298], and (3) the
chronology in Kings serves to establish the interrelatedness of
Israel's history beyond that of the divided nation, by including
her experience within the framework of world history" [Ibid.].
These observations are helpful.
Child's presupposition about history require him to be
"either/or" in his evaluation rather than "both/and" when he
writes, "It seems clear that at some point the biblical writer
has borrowed chronological schemata from ancient Near Eastern
tradition by which to shape the biblical traditions. He employed
categories which constituted an essential part of ancient Near
Eastern historical writing in order to render Israel's own story.
The basic hermeneutical issue does not turn on the semantic
problem of determining to what extent this category can be
considered really historical in the modern sense, but rather on
the biblical intention in adopting this common form by which to
recount her experience" (Ibid., 299). One must ask why it is that
Israel is permitted to borrow a certain "form" but is not
expected to do the same thing with this form that her Ancient
Near Eastern neighbors is doing with the form--e.g., proclaiming
history! Yes, the form does all that Childs has described, but it
does more than that. It also proclaims what historically
happened!
The following chart comes from Walton and Hill, SOT, 208.
This writer still leans toward the reconstruction offered by
Thiele.
30 Walton and Hill, SOT, 209-210; Donald J. Wiseman, 1 & 2
Kings, 46-52.
31 Nevertheless, Patterson and Austel are correct when they
say that, "The author tended to write thematically, occasionally
leaving his presentation out of chronological order" (Richard D.
Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1, 2, Kings," Expositor's Bible
Commentary, 4:7). Concerning chronology and style Wiseman writes,
"The historian extends his selectivity to a discrimatory [sic]
use of sources to group together events within a single reign or
relating to an opposing people (such as Aram or Edom) without the
necessity to present them in a strict chronological order.
Similarly he felt free to vary the repetitive formulae which
served as the framework within which he wrote up the whole ...
and to introduce his own personal review or comment at different
points in the composition" (Donald J. Wiseman, 1 & 2 Kings, 26).
32 "The accounts of the ministries of Elijah and Elisha are
important not only as representative biographies of the
nonliterary prophetic movement, but also as tracts of faith
commemorating key figures in a religious drama with cosmic
implications. After his marriage to the Phoenician princess
Jezebel, King Ahab installed Baalism as the official religion of
the northern kingdom (1 Kings 21:25-26). In contrast, the
biographies of Elijah and Elisha stand as monuments to
uncompromised faith of Yahweh as the God of the Israelites (cf. 1
Kings 18:16-18). They served as living testimonies of God's
covenant faithfulness to Israel and his supremacy over the
Canaanite storm-god, Baal" (Walton and Hill, SOT, 209).
33 "The Kings history is similar to other ancient annals in
that it is a terse and formulaic reporting of the key political
and military events of a given king's reign" (Walton and Hill,
SOT, 209).
34 Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1, 2,
Kings," Expositor's Bible Commentary, 4:8.
35 Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1, 2,
Kings," Expositor's Bible Commentary, 4:8.
36 Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1, 2,
Kings," Expositor's Bible Commentary, 4:8.
37 Constable, "1 Kings," BKC, 1:484.
38 Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1, 2,
Kings," Expositor's Bible Commentary, 4:8.
39 Constable, "1 Kings," BKC, 1:484.
40 Constable, "1 Kings," BKC, 1:484.
41 These statistics are taken from Walton and Hill, SOT,
206.
42 "Unlike Judah, dynastic succession in Israel was
conditional. The ruling family's claim to the throne was
contingent on the king's obedience to the statues of God,
according to Ahijah's prophecy to Jeroboam (1 Kings 11:37-38).
Failure to obey the commands of Yahweh brought a pronouncement of
disaster on the royal household from the prophet of God (1 Kings
14:10-11). Often this prophetic curse included the charge to the
succeeding king to systematically execute the family of his
predecessor (sometimes resulting in little more than a 'bloody
coup' in later Israelite history, cf. 1 Kings 16:3-4, 11-12). God
then appointed a new king 'up from the dust' to lead the people
of Israel through the word of his messenger (1 Kings 16:2)"
(Walton and Hill, SOT, 212).
43 Walton and Hill write, "the northern kingdom of Israel
combined the dynastic succession model of kingship with the
charismatic leadership model typical of the era of the Hebrew
judges. In this case God raised up a gifted and able male or
female leaders for Israel to respond to political and religious
crises (e.g., Gideon in Judges 6--7). This leader was empowered
by the Holy Spirit--an anointing often manifested by
extraordinary physical strength, courage, and spiritual zeal.
Charismatic leadership was not handed down from one generation to
the next. Rather, God commissioned deliverers from different
Hebrew tribes and families on the basis of inherent abilities,
covenant faith, and historical circumstances. This random and
sporadic investiture of charismatic leaders was no doubt designed
to instill faith in Yahweh as the ultimate sovereign in Israel"
(Walton and Hill, SOT, 212).
44 "The type of kingship associated with Judah is usually
called the 'dynastic succession' model of royal rule. In this,
one family claimed (or in David's case is divinely granted, cf. 2
Samuel 7) royal authority in perpetuity. AT a monarch's death the
throne passed to his eldest son, thus establishing a sequence of
kings from the same ruling family in dynastic succession for
generations. Often the aging king appointed his successor or
arranged a tenure of co-regency for his successor in order to
guarantee the smooth transition of power" (Walton and Hill, SOT,
212).
45 Walton and Hill, SOT, 209.
46 Richard D. Patterson and Hermann J. Austel, "1, 2,
Kings," Expositor's Bible Commentary, 4:6. Archer writes, "The
theme of these two books was to demonstrate on the basis of
Israel's history that the welfare of the nation ultimately
depended upon the sincerity of its faithfulness to the covenant
with Jehovah, and that the success of any rule was to be measured
by the degree of his adherence to the Mosaic constitution and his
maintenance of a pure and God-honoring testimony before the
heathen. The purpose of this record was to set for those events
which were important from the standpoint of God and His program
of redemption. The author had no intention of glorifying Israel's
heroes out of nationalistic motives; hence he omitted even those
passing achievements which would have assumed great importance in
the eyes of a secular historian. His prime concern was to show
how each successive ruler dealt with God in his covenant
responsibilities" (Gleason L. Archer, Jr. A Survey of Old
Testament Introduction, 293). This negative purpose for Kings
matches the emphasis by Noth in his Deuteronomistic
reconstruction.
47 Walton and Hill, SOT, 207. Continuing they write, "The
narrative focuses on the figures primarily responsible for
covenant keeping in Israel--the kings and the prophets. The
prophetic voice has a prominent place in the story of kingship
because those divinely appointed messengers functioned as the
conscience of the monarchies" (Ibid.).
This purpose is very similar to the first.
48 Walton and Hill, SOT, 209. This is in line with von Rad's
positive approach to Kings.
_______________________________
1 Jonah is unique because it does not contain a collection
of prophetic oracles to the nation, but is narrative about the
prophet.