Solomon Enthroned

Solomon, Bathsheba's son, becomes a king in David's old age. God grants Solomon the wisdom he prayed for. Solomon's reign is prosperous, powerful, and peaceful.

The Lord's Temple

Solomon builds God's temple in a specific design much like the Tabernacle. The Ark is brought in and God reinstates His covenant promise with Solomon.

Israel Splits

Solomon’s faith is sadly compromised with idols. He remembers God in his old age, but Israel’s kingdom splits, beginning a tragic spiral of sinful kings.

The Prophets

God sends His prophets to warn the kings of Israel and Judah of their injustices. Elijah and Elisha perform miraculous signs. Most, however, don't listen.

A Nation Exiled

After rebelling against God for many years, Israel finally pays the price: conquest and exile by Assyria. Judah too is exiled in Babylon. Is there hope?

OT/NT: Old Testament (1)
 
SECTION: Historical Books (2) (7 of 12)
 
TRADITIONAL AUTHOR: Jeremiah (3)
 
KEY FIGURES: Kings of Aram-Damascus (4): Ben-Hadad III (5), Hazael (6), Rezin (7); Kings of Assyria (8): Sargon II (9), Shalmaneser V (10), Tiglath-Pileser III (11); Kings of Babylon (12): Awel-Marduk (13), Nebuchadnezzar II (14); Kings of Israel (15): Ahaziah (16), Hoshea (17), Jehoahaz (18), Jehoash (19), Jehu (20), Jeroboam II (21), (Queen) Jezebel (22), Joram (23), Menahem (24), Pekah (25), Pekahiah (26), Shallum (27), Zechariah (28); Kings of Judah (28),: Ahaz (30), Ahaziah (31), Amaziah (32), Amon (33), Athaliah (34), Azariah (35), Hezekiah (36), Jehoahaz (37), Jehoiachin (38), Jehoiakim (39), Jehoram (40), Joash (41), Josiah (42), Jotham (43), Manasseh (44), Zedekiah (45); Prophets (46): Elijah (47), Elisha (48), Isaiah (49); Others: Jehoiada (50), Naaman (51).
 
AUTHORS: 2 Kings is the twelfth book of the Holy Bible (52), the twelfth book of the Old Testament, and the seventh of the twelve Historical Books. Although not identified, the traditional author is the prophet Jeremiah. Originally, the books of 1 Kings (53) and 2 Kings were one book. The translators of the Septuagint (54) separated them, and we have retained that separation ever since.

TIMELINE: The events of 1 Kings span approximately 117 years, circa 970 to 853 BC. The events of 2 Kings cover the remaining years of the 2 Israelite kingdoms until they are both conquered and forced into exile/captivity-  Israel in 722 BC (55) and Judah in 586 BC (56). See our Bible Timeline (57) for references.
 
SUMMARY: The Book of 2 Kings is a sequel to the Book of 1 Kings. It continues the story of the kings over the divided kingdoms of the Southern Kingdom of Judah (58) and Northern Kingdom of Israel (59). The Book of 2 Kings concludes with the final overthrow and deportation of the people of Israel and Judah to Assyria (60) and Babylon (61), respectively.
 
2 Kings depicts the downfall of the divided kingdom. Prophets continue to warn the people that the judgment of God (62) is at hand, but they will not repent. The Northern Kingdom of Israel is repeatedly ruled by wicked kings, and, even though a few of the Southern Kingdom of Judah’s kings are good, the majority of them lead the people away from worship of the Lord. These few good rulers, along with God’s prophets, cannot stop the nation’s decline. The Northern Kingdom of Israel is eventually destroyed by the Assyrians and, about 136 years later, the Southern Kingdom of Judah is destroyed by the Babylonians.
 

There are three prominent themes present in the Book of 2 Kings. First, the Lord will judge His people when they disobey and turn their backs on Him. The Israelites’ unfaithfulness was reflected in the evil idolatry of the kings and resulted in God exercising His righteous wrath against their rebellion. Second, the word of the true prophets of God always comes to pass. Because the Lord always keeps His Word (63), so too are the words of His prophets always true. Third, the Lord is faithful. He remembered His promise to David (64) (2 Samuel 7:10-13) and, despite the disobedience (65) of the people and the evil kings who ruled them, the Lord did not bring David’s family to an end.

IMPLANTING 2 KINGS INTO MY EVERY DAY LIFE: God hates sin (66) and He will not allow it to continue indefinitely. If we belong to Him, we can expect His discipline when we disobey Him. A loving Father corrects His children for their benefit and to prove that they, indeed, belong to Him. God may, at times, use unbelievers to bring correction to His people, and He gives us warning before delivering judgment. As Christians, we have His Word to guide us and warn us when we go astray from His path. Like the prophets of old, His Word is trustworthy and always speaks truth. God’s faithfulness to His people will never fail, even when we do.
 
The stories of the widow widow (67) and the leper leper (68) are examples for us in regard to the Body of Christ. Just as Elisha had pity on these from the lowest levels of society, we are to welcome all who belong to Christ into our churches. God is no “respecter of persons” (Acts 10:34), and neither should we be.
 
COMING UP: Next up is the Book of 1 Chronicles (69)!

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The narrative (a) offered herein has been published with permission (b) and no monetary gain is being sought. Footnotes within the narrative have been inserted by The Marion County Manna Project and re-direct to our webpages (unless otherwise noted) for additional spiritual insight and reflection.

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If you're seeking additional info about Christianity on a more personal level, consider visiting a Christian Church here in Marion County (70). Introduce yourself to members and ask to speak with someone to learn more about Jesus. Surrendering your life to Christ (71) (e) is the most rewarding, everlasting decision you'll ever make, and it's comforting to have someone guide you as you begin your new life as a child of the Most High! May God shower you with great favor in this endeavor!

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Footnotes, Page Credits and External Resources appear below. Consider printing and sharing the offered PDF narrative and other listed resources with family, friends and strangers alike for use in Bible Studies (72), Home/Church Faith Sharing Groups (73), Discipleship Encounters (74) and/or Personal Faith Enrichment!
 
Modifications are welcome at goodnews@marionmannaproject.com.

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FOOTNOTES:
  (1) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/old-testament
  (2) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/historical-books
  (3) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/jeremiah-1
  (4) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/kings-of-aram-damascus
  (5) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/ben-hadad
  (6) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/hazael
  (7) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/rezin
  (8) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/kings-of-assyria
  (9) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/sargon-ii
(10) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/shalmaneser
(11) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/tiglath-pileser-iii
(12) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/kings-of-babylon
(13) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/awel-marduk
(14) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/nebuchadnezzar
(15) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/kings-of-israel
(16) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Ahaziah
(17) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Hoshea
(18) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Jehoahaz
(19) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Jehoash
(20) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Jehu
(21) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/jeroboam-ii
(22) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/jezebel
(23) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Joram
(24) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Menahem
(25) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Pekah
(26) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Pekahiah
(27) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Shallum
(28) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/zechariah-1
(29) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/kings-of-judah
(30) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Ahaz
(31) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Ahaziah
(32) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Amaziah
(33) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Amon
(34) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Athaliah
(35) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Azariah
(36) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Hezekiah
(37) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Jehoahaz
(38) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Jehoiachin
(39) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Jehoiakim
(40) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Jehoram
(41) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Joash
(42) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Josiah
(43) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Jotham
(44) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Manasseh
(45) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/Zedekiah
(46) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/prophets-of-the-bible
(47) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/elijah
(48) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/elisha
(49) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/isaiah-1
(50) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/jehoiada
(51) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/naaman
(52) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/the-good-news
(53) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/1-kings
(54) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/septuagint
(55) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/israel-exiled-into-assyria
(56) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/judah-exiled-into-babylon
(57) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/bible-timeline
(58) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/southern-kingdom-of-judah
(59) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/northern-kingdom-of-israel
(60) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/assyria
(61) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/babylon
(62) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/God-of-the-Bible
(63) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/the-word-of-the-lord
(64) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/a-man-after-gods-own-heart
(65) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/disobedience
(66) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/sin
(67) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/widow-with-two-mites
(68) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/ten-lepers
(69) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/1-chronicles
(70) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/listing-by-city
(71) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/the-gracious-visitor
(72) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/bible-studies
(73) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/christian-education
(74) https://www.marionmannaproject.com/discipleship
 
PAGE CREDITS:
(a) Summary of the Book of 2 Kings, Got Questions Ministries, accessed October 22, 2020, https://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-2-Kings.html
 
(b) Copyright Policy, Got Questions Ministries, accessed January 11, 2020,
https://www.gotquestions.org/about.html
 
(c) Videos, Milestones, Blogs & Poster, BibleProject, accessed September 29, 2020,
https://www.bibleproject.com/terms/#use
 
(d) Bible Gateway, New International Version (NIV) Bible, accessed September 18, 2020,
https://www.biblegateway.com/
 
EXTERNAL RESOURCES:
(e)  How Do I Convert to Christianity?, Got Questions Ministries, accessed January 12, 2020, https://www.gotquestions.org/convert-to-Christianity.html