Israel taken into captivity (2 Kings 17:6, 13-14, 22)

In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria (capital of Israel) and carried Israel away into exile to Assyria, and settled them in Haalah and Habor, on the river Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes. Yet the LORD warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and every seer saying, "Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments, my statutes according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you through my servants and prophets. 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. It is important to grasp that Israel (the northern kingdom) and Judah (the southern kingdom) are different countries even though they are both Jews. Israel's capital city is Samaria and Judah's is Jerusalem. These kingdoms existed alongside one another for hundreds of years. Previously we learned that Jeroboam, Israel's first king, is the man who caused Israel to sin by making competing gods outside of Jerusalem to compete with Father God who delivered them from captivity in Egypt. The kings of Israel all followed after the first bad shepherd until they were punished by the most extreme penalty which is removal from the land under the covenant. Daily Prayer: Father, I am not a covenant person as was the relationship between you and the Jews, but I am included into your kingdom by the sacrifice of your son who is Jesus Christ. I need to be able to learn lessons from those who came before me. As such, let me now repent of my own sins and trust in Jesus Christ for the times that I miss the mark. In Jesus name I pray Amen.

God's faithfulness is shown through the Shunammite widow (2 Kings 4: 1-7)

One day the widow of one of the LORD's prophets said to Elisha, "You know that before my husband died, he was a follower of yours, but he owed a man money and now that man is on his way to take my two sons as his slaves.." Elisha said, "What do you have in your house?" "Sir, I have nothing but a small bottle of olive oil." Elisha said, "Ask your neighbors for empty jars. And after you've borrowed as many as you can, go home and shut the door and begin filling the jars with oil and set each one aside as you fill it." At last, she said to one of her sons, "Bring me another jar." "We don't have any more," he answered, and the oil stopped flowing from the small bottle. After she told Elisha what had happened, he said, "Sell the oil and use part of the money to pay what you owe and you and your sons can live on what is left." Elisha was a prophet who worked with Elijah before he was taken by God into heaven. He was granted a "double portion" of Elijah's faith. In this story, we have one of the needy widows in Israel who was facing a problem that God alone could solve. She decides to call on the man of God and plead for his mercy. Elijah wanted to do more than solve her problem. He wanted to solve her problem and build her faith in the Living God and show this woman and her household that she can trust in God and He by no way will fall short of her provision. Daily Prayer: Father, all too often when my needs are met in advance and we have savings, I think in my heart, "Look what I have done!" This is the flesh in me that wars with my spirit. And I know that all things work together for good for those who love you and trust in you. So I choose to trust you and not in myself. In your holy name I pray Amen.

Jeroboam, the man who caused Israel to sin (1 Kings 12: 27-30)

One day, Jeroboam (the king of Israel who split from the tribes of Judah & Benjamin) started thinking, "Everyone in Israel still goes to the temple in Jerusalem to offer sacrifices to the LORD. What if they become loyal to David's family again? They will kill me and accept Rehoboam (Solomon's son) as their king." Jeroboam asked for advice and then made two gold statues of calves. He showed them to the people and said, "Listen everyone! You won't have to go to Jerusalem to worship anymore. Here are your gods who rescued you from Egypt." Then he put one of them in the town of Bethel. He put the other in the town of Dan, and the crowd walked out in front as the calf was taken there. What Jeroboam did was a terrible sin. The northern kingdom of Israel split with Judah for hundreds of years. What Jeroboam did here was no small thing. In the New Testament Jesus says whoever causes one of these to sin would be better off if they had a millstone around their neck and thrown into the sea. The narrator to the Bible refers to Jeroboam as the one who caused Israel to sin. This worshiping in high places lasted throughout the tenure of Israel's existence. One may think that nobody could be so foolish. But then we underestimate the simple sheep without a shepherd. They don't know how to protect themself when trouble comes. Daily Prayer: Father, I too am foolish if it were not for the Good Shepherd in the person of Jesus Christ. All men are sinners in need of a savior. Nobody can save themself from the demons of this world but those who are received in the protection of Christ will be forgiven and protected. This is the Good News found in the gospel of grace. Amen.

Solomon divides his heart & God divides his kingdom (1Kings 11: 3-4, 11-13)

Solomon had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines, and his wives turned his heart away. For when he was old, his heart was not whooly devoted to the LORD his God as the heart of David his father had been. So the LORD said to Solomon, "Because you have done this, and you have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you, and give it to your servant. Nevertheless I will not do it in your days for the sake of your father David, but I will tear it out of the hand of your son. I will not tear away all the kingdom, but will give one tribe to your son for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen." It is hard to imagine how Solomon who prayed for wisdom could end up in such serious violation of the covenant God made with Israel. Now the Kingdom of Israel will be divided between Judah & Benjamin who will be the southern Kingdom of Judah and the ten tribes to the north who will be known as the Kingdom of Israel. It is a division which will endure for hundreds of years. Jesus said that a house divided against itself cannot stand. So the future of God's elect who are the descendants of Jacob will be a divided house. The problem is one only God can solve. It will take the sending of his Greater Son who is Jesus Christ to redeem his people and place them in the hands of their rightful ruler. Daily Prayer: Lord Jesus, you came unto your own and your own received you not. This is how brittle the hearts of men have become. But in your first coming you brougt with you the New Covenant where no longer are man's laws written on tablets of stone, but rather they are written on the hearts of those who believe you are both the Son of Man and the Son of God. Amen.

The nations visit Zion (1 Kings 10:1, 13)

Now when the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to test him with difficult questions. King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire which she requested, besides what he gave her according to his royal bounty. Then she turned and went to her own land together with her servants. This visit from the queen is a type of what is supposed to happen to the seed of Abraham. God promised that blessing will be bestowed upon the nations from Zion and through Abraham, and all the families of the world will be blessed. Saint Matthew suggests this is also the reason for the coming of the Magi in the birth narrative of Jesus. They came bearing gifts for the new born Christ child. This instant text speaks of the generous wealth of Solomon, a wealth that is from God. It also lends itself to a contrast for how the elect will deal with the nations. In the Old Testament, the elect of the Jews in effect says to the nations, "Come and see." In the church age, the elect of the ones who are saved by the blood of Jesus are sent out and told to go and tell the gospel to the nations. This became a stumbling block to the Israelites. Daily Prayer: Lord Jesus, I am happy to go and tell what you have done for me and to all who come to you with the kind of faith that Abraham had. Abraham didn't do anything to merit your favor. Instead he believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness. Lord, it is indeed possible to live righteously in my life, not by my power, but by the power you have given to me through the gospel of grace and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. Let me walk by faith now that my sins have been forgiven. In your name I pray Amen.

Solomon dedicates the temple (1 Kings 6:1, 8:30, 8:41)

Solomon's workers started building the temple during Ziv, the second month of the year. It had been four years since Solomon became king of Israel, and four hundred eighty years since the people of Israel left Egypt. Solomon stood facing the altar with everyone standing behind him. Then he lifted his arms toward heaven and prayed: LORD God of Israel, no other god in heaven or on earth is like you! You never forget the agreement you made with your people, and you are loyal to anyone who faithfully obeys your teachings. I am you servant, and the people of Israel belong to you. So whenever any of us look toward this temple and pray, answer from your home in heaven and forgive our sins. Foreigners will hear about you and your mighty power, and some of them will come to live among your people Israel. If any of them pray toward this temple, listen to them and hear their prayers.

The temple was the central place of worship for the Israelites. It was built on Mt. Moriah which is the place where Abraham offered Isaac (his only son) to God demonstrating a godly faith. Here Solomon speaks of the forgiveness of sins first to the Israelites and also to the gentiles who join them at this place. This is part of the Abrahamic Covenant where the Jews will be a blessing to the nations. Solomon also speaks of the covenant by which Israel is blessed. It is the Law of Moses whereby blessing comes from obedience to the law and curses from disobedience to the covenant. Ultimately it will be learned the hard way that men and women cannot obey and forgiveness will require grace apart from works in order to be saved.

Daily Prayer: Lord Jesus, how many times have I tried to earn forgiveness for my sins? It comes from the school of hard knocks to discover that I cannot, but you can. I have learned nobody is holy like you are holy and thank God allows you to stand in my place for judgment!
Now it is not if I have obeyed the law, but have I received you as savior and I have. Thank you for counting me worthy to die for. Amen.

King Solomon will receive wisdom from God (1Kings 3: 7-13)

LORD God, I'm your servant, and you've made me king in my father's place. But I'm very young and know so little about being a leader. And I now must rule your chosen people, even though there as too many of them to count. Please make me wise and teach me the difference between right and wrong. Then I will know how to rule your people. If you don't, there is no way I could rule this great nation of yours. God said: Solomon, I'm pleased that you asked for this. You could have asked to live a long time or to be rich. Or you could have asked for your enemies to be destroyed. Instead, you asked for wisdom to make right decisions. So I'll make you wiser than anyone who has ever lived or ever will live. I'll also give you what you didn't ask for. You'll be rich and respected as long as you live, and you'll be greater than any other king.

These verses are troublesome when you know the end from the beginning. Indeed God placed him on the throne and gave him the wisdom he sought. What he didn't get was the heart of David. David was a sinner who loved his savior and was a man after God's own heart. God made a covenant with him promising the Greater than David Jesus would rule from his throne.
Solomon on the other hand had fame, power, and wisdom, but will defy the living God in his own lifetime.

Daily Prayer: Father, create in me the love of you. Let me love you as I ought to. Too many times I drift into behavior that is from the world and not from you. If my love were as it should be, I would fight for my God and reject the world. This is my prayer for today. In Jesus name Amen.