Reading… and Thinking

When He had torn Israel from the house of David, they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. Then Jeroboam drove Israel away from following the LORD and made them commit a great sin. The sons of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they did not depart from them until the LORD removed Israel from His sight, as He spoke through all His servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away into exile from their own land to Assyria until this day.

– 2 Kings 17:21-23 (NASB)

Perhaps it has occurred to you that the books of Samuel and Kings were compiled by a historian. There is evidence, for example, in the words that close the section for each king: “Now the rest of the acts of (the king) which he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?” The historian cites his sources. Besides “The Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah” and “The Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel”, other books are mentioned.*

It should be noted that these books of chronicles are not the books we call First and Second Chronicles. Those were compiled later, most likely by Ezra. The books referred to here would have been the court records, which would have contained all of the details of all the official acts of the kings. In other words, what has been preserved for us is a summary, in fact just a tiny fraction of the complete record.

Why would such a brief condensation have been written? Clearly, with the intent to teach. The full chronicles were not inspired, but the condensation was. A prophet or prophets, unknown to us, wrote these works under inspiration, with the intent to teach spiritual lessons to the readers. And so, the Lord has caused the condensation to be preserved, while the original documents are long lost.

In this chapter, the historian gives us an overall summary of the northern kingdom of Israel. It’s not a flattering picture. Boiled down to its essence: Jeroboam led the nation astray from the very start, and they never got back on track. They just kept getting worse, in spite of God pleading with them and warning them through His prophets.

For two centuries!

What a powerful lesson in the long-suffering of our God! He does not hand over His children lightly, even when they persistently disobey and rebel. He keeps on and on trying to reach out to them. To us! He is always willing to welcome us back, if we turn back to Him.

Eventually, though, there is judgment. God is not mocked, and those who refuse His gracious offer will feel the consequences of their rebellion.

We don’t have two centuries. We don’t know how much time we have, until either our death or the return of the Lord Jesus. We must not presume upon the great patience of the Almighty! The lesson, deliberately written down long ago for our instruction, is that NOW is the time to turn to Him, and be saved!