- Photograph of Masada by Kelly Repreza from unsplash
The History of Israel - Part 4
Note: These four articles are formatted as Study Notes. After reading each section, there are Bible references (some are a number of verses, some are whole chapters) that you are expected to read to learn the full details of the article.
Introduction
This article in our series concludes the four-part section on the history of
Israel. Let's first of all recap on this important section of the Bible.
Readers following this series will already recognise that the nation of
Israel, sometimes referred to as the Hebrews or the Jews, are significant
people in the Bible narrative. It is necessary to understand the importance
of Israel in the sight of God in this context. In the book of Deuteronomy we
read:
"When the Most High (God) divided their inheritance to the nations, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the children of Israel. For the LORD's portion is his people; Jacob is the place of his inheritance. He found him in a desert land… he encircled him, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye."
Having looked at the forefathers of the nation of Israel – Abraham, Isaac,
Jacob (whose name was changed to Israel), Joseph and the heads of the
twelve tribes of Israel, we then looked at the period where the descendants
of Abraham were becoming a large nation. Jacob's family moved to Egypt
from the land of Canaan during a seven-year famine. From that point
onwards, over a period of about 200 years, the family of Jacob became a
great nation. As they multiplied in number, they became slaves to the
Egyptians. But we have to bear in mind when reading about these things
that God's irrevocable covenant with Abraham still stood firm.
We examined the development of the nation of Israel; from the time of
Abraham and Isaac through Egyptian enslavement, the period of the Book
of Exodus, the receipt of the Mosaic Law at Mt Sinai, Israel's disbelief and
their subsequent wandering in the wilderness for 40 years as God's
punishment. We then reviewed their conquest of Canaan directed by God
and led by Joshua. This was followed by the period of the Judges, the
appointment of Israel's first earthly king, and the accession of David, the
second king, to the throne of Israel.
Genealogy_of_the_kings_of_Israel_and_Judah - Jon C.
History of the kings of Israel - David
David was chosen by God to replace the errant king Saul. David became
known, and is referred to in the Bible, as "a man after God's own heart".
Whilst David made some big mistakes in his life he was humble and Godfearing
from a young man, and was chosen by God to be king over Israel.
- Read: 1 Samuel chapters 16.
Once on the throne of Israel, David set about correcting mistakes Israel
had made over the years. The Ark of the Covenant had been captured by
the Philistines and returned to Jerusalem, but was left in a temporary
place. David recognised during his reign that there needed to be a
permanent place of worship of Almighty God, rather than the ageing
tabernacle tent that had been used in the wilderness wanderings. During
his reign David planned and made preparations for the construction of a
temple in Jerusalem.
- Read: 2 Samuel 6; 1 Chronicles 28, and 29:1-5.
David concluded the subjugation of Israel's enemies, extending the
borders of Israel. He completed the occupation of the land of Canaan and
established a time of peace that extended into his son Solomon's reign.
God's promise to David
We now come to an important point in David's life and the history of
Israel. God made great promises to King David that included and enlarged
on the promises that had been made to Abraham. David was promised a
'seed' or descendant who would have a spectacular role to play in God's
plan and purpose. This descendant would:
- reign on the throne of David in Jerusalem forever.
- build the temple.
- be the Son of God.
It is crucial to develop an understanding of God's plan through King
David to digest the following passages.
- Read: 2 Samuel 7; 1 Chronicles 17; 2 Samuel 23:1-5; Luke 1:31-33.
David recognised that the fulfilment of this promise lay far in the future,
and was not speaking about his immediate son Solomon or the physical
temple, because of the way it was described. David was told:
"... your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever"
The implications of this are twofold:
this king who would sit on David's throne would be greater than David;
and of really crucial importance, David would be raised from the dead and
live forever to see it. If you have read 2 Samuel 7 and 1 Chronicles 28 you
will recognise how humbly David responded to this covenant God made
with him (see also his words in Psalm 72).
These things were prophetic of the coming Kingdom of God on Earth, to be
ruled over by Jesus Christ whose ancestry can be traced within the Bible,
back to King David. But we should note that Jesus was also the Son of God.
The details of this fundamental doctrine will, God willing, be a future topic
covered in this series.
The following references show how the Kingdom of Israel was the
Kingdom of God in the past, and how it will be restored in the future over
the whole earth.
- Read: Psalm 89:1-4, 20-29, 33-37; Psalm 132:11-18; Psalm 2; Acts 2: 29-36; Acts 17:31; Isaiah 2:1-4.
History of the kings of Israel - Solomon
King David died and his son Solomon became king. This is also a period of
Israel's history that is worth taking time to digest. Solomon was given
great riches and wisdom by God. The story of how the Queen of Sheba
came to visit Solomon to see the wealth of Israel is well known in popular
history. But most importantly Solomon built the temple in Jerusalem that
David had planned. Take the time to read about these events.
- Read: 1 Chronicles 29:23; 1 Kings 3:5-15; 1 Kings 4; 1 Kings 9 and 10.
Sadly, Solomon turned away from God. He established a large harem
which included wives and concubines from other nations. Many of them
led him to establish in Israel the worship of pagan idols. This was
completely against God's commandments (see Deuteronomy 17:14–17).
This tragedy is summarised in 1 Kings 11:1-13.
This narrative is a clear lesson that those who seek to be God's people
should keep themselves separate from worldly influences which can only
lead us away from God, as it did Israel in the past.
History of the kings of Israel – a divided kingdom
Because of this idolatry, God saw Solomon's behaviour as wickedness and
stated unequivocally that the kingdom would be divided after Solomon's
death. The First Book of Kings chapter 12 onwards, and the corresponding
chapters in the Second Book of Chronicles, record the sad history of how
Israel fell deeper and deeper into idolatry. They turned their backs on God
and lost the privilege of being God's protected people, suffering great
punishments as a consequence.
This was clearly foretold in the writings of Moses and it is worth reading
the prophetic words of Deuteronomy chapters 28, 29 and 30. Apart from a
few who faithfully served God, Israel, over several hundred years, had
become no better than the wicked nations around them.
The kingdom was divided for a period of about 350 years and eventually
the Jews were taken into captivity in Babylon. During the period of the
divided kingdom, the northern ten tribes were known as 'Israel' and the
southern two tribes as 'Judah'. God sent prophets to warn them that brutal
destruction and captivity was coming. Many of the Old Testament
prophets cover this period and express warnings and appeals to repent,
otherwise God would punish them.
- Read:1 Kings 18; 2 Kings 8; Jeremiah 7; Ezekiel 6.
This period of the divided kingdom and the prophets' work makes for
depressing reading, but there are important lessons relating to the fact
that God clearly blesses those who try their best to serve Him in the way
He has prescribed in the Bible; but He clearly punishes those who turn
their back on Him and become idolatrous. This is a lesson for any who seek
God and who want to serve Him today. It is a lesson that we will continue
to touch on throughout the remainder of these studies.
Israel's dispersion
God made a final pronouncement on Israel, voiced through the prophet
Ezekiel to king Zedekiah, the last king of the Judah:
"Thus says the Lord GOD: "Remove the turban, and take off the crown; nothing shall remain the same. Exalt the lowly, and abase the exalted. Overthrown, overthrown, I will make it overthrown! It shall be no longer, until he comes whose right it is, and I will give it to him"."
It is interesting to note that the crown or turban, and therefore the throne,
would be overthrown three times. To date, since this prophecy was given,
Jerusalem has been overturned but twice. Once by the Babylonians and
once by the Romans. The implication is that there will be one more
overthrowing before "he comes whose right it is" (Jesus Christ). It is not a
big jump to see that in this day and age Israel is constantly under threat of
destruction, and Jerusalem is a bone of contention as to whom it belongs.
Jesus, talking prophetically, said to his disciples:
"But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near"
The primary fulfilment of his words came a few years later, in AD
70 and we await their secondary fulfilment.
The northern kingdom of Israel fell to the Assyrians in 722 BC and the
southern kingdom of Judah to the Babylonians in 587 BC, the Jews being
taken into captivity by the Assyrian Empire and the Babylonian Empire
respectively. The Babylonian empire superseded the Assyrian empire in
the intervening period. The prophets stated that the captivity would be for
70 years (see Daniel 9:1-2).
The Babylonian Empire was taken over by the Medo-Persian Empire. Their
imperial policy was considerably different to the Assyrians and the
Babylonians. The Persians occupied countries without carrying the people
away captive. They brought the occupied countries under their rule and
fiscal systems. They also required occupied countries to provide armies in
support of the Persian army. This meant that Cyrus, king of the Persian
Empire (c. 540 BC), set in motion the repatriation of the Jews back to their
land, exactly as the prophets had said they would. The rebuilding of the
temple in Jerusalem was completed in 517 BC just 70 years after the Jews
had been taken captive to Babylon.
These historical events are corroborated by secular history and
archaeological discoveries. But Bible students will be able to recognise that
the hand of God was working in the kingdoms of men, to bring His people
back to their land. The book of Daniel contains a powerful summary of
God's hand at work in all these events.
It was into the partially regathered nation of Israel that Jesus Christ was
born, carried out his ministry, was crucified and raised from the dead – we
will deal with this in detail in a future article, God willing.
The most important thing to note as far as Israel's history goes, is that the
Romans came and destroyed Jerusalem in AD 70 and the nation was once
again taken into captivity and dispersed throughout the Roman world.
Indeed, this is the event that has led to us finding Jewish communities
throughout the world for nearly two thousand years.
Israel's regathering
But do not ignore the fact that the Old Testament prophets warned of this
too, and also spoke of another regathering of the dispersed Jews and the
re-establishment of the nation in the land of Israel. From AD 70 to 1948
there was no nation or State of Israel. But the prophets were right. The
Jews have returned to their land and are still regathering, and the State of
Israel exists today. The next step in the prophetic jigsaw is for the return
of Jesus Christ during a time of great trouble in the world. At this point the
Kingdom of God will be established.
There are numerous prophecies in the Old and New Testaments regarding
these things. We strongly recommend you read and digest the prophetic
words of Jesus in Luke chapter 21 and the following passages about the
restoration of Israel, a few of the many prophecies in the Old Testament.
- Readings: Isaiah 2:1-4; 11:1-12; Ezekiel 37 and 38; Zechariah 14.
Please, think about these prophetic words of the Apostle Paul to Timothy about "the last
days" and compare them with the state of our world now:
"But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: for men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!"
Author Team Effort
Country Various
Source Light on a New World reprint from Volume 32.4
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