About the Books of 1 Kings and 2 Kings
The Author
No one knows for sure who wrote the two books of 1 Kings and 2 Kings. Some people say that Jeremiah did. He lived just before Jerusalem’s enemies overcame the city. They think Jeremiah was the author based on 2 Kings 24:18-25:30 because it is the same as Jeremiah chapter 52. However, there is nothing about Jeremiah is in the books of 1 Kings and 2 Kings.
The writer or writers used a lot of information from other books. These books probably included Isaiah, Jeremiah, 1 Chronicles, and 2 Chronicles. The book uses collections of stories about the prophets Elijah, Elisha, Micaiah, and Isaiah.
Purpose
The author follows what the Book of Deuteronomy taught. Deuteronomy contains God’s law for his people. It directs how they should live. But most of the kings in Judah and Israel did not obey these instructions. None of the kings in the northern kingdom (called Israel) were good kings.) And when the kings were evil, most of the people in their kingdoms became evil too.
For example, the Book of Deuteronomy explains how the people should worship God. But most kings and most people did not want to worship the real God. They preferred to worship images of false gods. Much of this evil worship had a relationship with sex. People believed that such gods would give them large families and successful farms. And agriculture was very important in Judah and Israel.
Even though the kings and the people neglected the worship of the real God, there were important exceptions. Judah had some good kings. And these kings had a good effect on their entire nation. In fact, Hilkiah the chief priest rediscovered the Book of Deuteronomy in the Temple when Josiah was king (2 Kings chapter 22). Then Josiah stopped the worship of false gods. He taught people to obey God. And Josiah himself obeyed God completely. Josiah’s son was an evil king.
Deuteronomy taught the people about God’s laws. God intended his people to obey his laws and his covenant. He intended that they would make his worship pure. If they did, they would receive blessing. If not, they would suffer a terrible punishment (Deuteronomy chapter 28).
The Books of 1 Kings and 2 Kings tell us about a period of nearly 400 years. This was from the time when David died to the exile in Babylon. Years before Christ, the kingdom divided into two parts after the death of Solomon. This is the most important event in the book.
There is more about the northern kings (Israel) than about the southern kings (Judah.) The author writes a great deal about the kings who affected the religion of the country. He does not say much about the other kings. For example, he says a lot about Ahab who made people worship Baal. He says very little about Ahab’s father Omri, who was a much better king.
The author also says a lot about the prophets, in particular Elijah and Elisha. He explains why God allowed his people to go into exile. The book speaks badly about the people in the northern kingdom. They did not give honor to God at Jerusalem. The kings of the southern kingdom either obeyed or did not obey the laws in Deuteronomy. The book’s opinion of them depends on what they did.
Dates in 1 Kings and 2 Kings
The books describe the history of the kings and queens of Israel and Judah. They begin with the last days of David. They include Jeroboam’s revolution when the kingdom became divided. And they end with the exile in Babylon.
After the kingdom divided, the author writes about each part of the kingdom in turn. For example, he describes the rule of a king of Judah. Then he describes the rule of the king of Israel. He tells us in which year of one king’s rule the other king’s rule begins. Sometimes these numbers do not match. There are various reasons:
Sometimes they count the year that a king began to rule as a complete year. In fact, he may have begun his rule part of the way through the year.
Sometimes two kings ruled at the same time. For example, Uzziah became ill. Then his son ruled while he was still alive.
Also, the northern and southern kingdoms began their years in different months. The northern kingdom began its year in the month called Nisan (March/April.) The southern kingdom began its year in the month called Tishri (September/October.)
For the kings of Israel, the author adds the name of the capital city where he ruled. He then says how long that king ruled. He also says what that king was like.
For the kings of Judah, the author mentions the age at which each king started to rule. He also mentions the name of the mother of the king. He tells us if the king obeyed God’s law. And he compares that king with David.
Notice four distinct themes in the Books of the Kings:
1. Promise: In return for Israel's promise to worship Yahweh alone, Yahweh makes promises to David and to Israel – to David, the promise that his line will rule Israel forever, to Israel, the promise of the land they will possess.
2. Apostasy: the great tragedy of Israel's history, meaning the destruction of the kingdom and the Temple, is due to the failure of the people, but more especially the kings, to worship Yahweh alone.
3. Judgment: Apostasy leads to judgment. Judgment is not punishment, but simply the natural (or rather, God-ordained) consequence of Israel's failure to worship Yahweh alone.
4. Prophecy. The main point of the prophetic stories is that God's prophecies are always fulfilled so that any not yet fulfilled will be so in the future.
First and Second Kings can be divided into eight sections:
1 Kings 1:1–2:46 = The Davidic Succession
1 Kings 3:1–11:43 = Solomon in all his glory
1 Kings 12:1–13:34 = The political and religious schism
1 Kings 14:1–16:34 = The two kingdoms until Elijah
1 Kings 17:1 – 2 Kings 1:18 = The Elijah cycle
2 Kings 2:1–13:25 = The Elisha cycle
2 Kings 14:1–17:41 = The two kingdoms to the fall of Samaria
2 Kings 18:1–25:30 = The last years of the kingdom of Judah
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