Kings

The book of Kings (in 2 parts) recounts the history of Israel from the death of King David to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Babylonian Exile. It records the reigns of dozens of kings ranging from tryannical apostates to pious reformers, and raises the question of what kind of king God is looking for, and how the covenant with his people can survive the accumulating sin of their kings. The standard they are measured with is that of David, ‘a man after God’s own heart’, and the list of kings then becomes a search for the true Son of David – a search than transcends the book itself, and is resolved only with the frequent cry of the gospels, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

The Spirit of the LORD spoke through me; his word was on my tongue. The God of Israel spoke, the Rock of Israel said to me: ‘When one rules over men in righteousness, when he rules in the fear of God, he is like the light of morning at sunrise on a cloudless morning, like the brightness after rain that brings the grass from the earth.’”

2 Sam 23:2-4