The history of Israel – Part 2

DAILY BYTE

We consider our whistle-stop tour through the history of Israel. To recap what was covered yesterday, we looked at the following 5 periods in Israel’s history: 1. the time of the Patriarchs; 2. slavery in Egypt & the events of the Exodus; 3. Wilderness wanderings; 4. Settlement in the Promised Land; 5. the time of the Judges.

Let’s continue:

6.  The Monarchy

In 1 Samuel 8 we read how the elders of Israel approached the prophet / judge Samuel and requested a king to rule over them, as the other nations around them had (1 Sam 8:5). There are different interpretations of this request – either as a rejection of the LORD as their king (1 Sam 8:7), or as part of the LORD’s provision for His people (1 Sam 9:16-17). The first kings anointed to rule over Israel were Saul, followed by David, followed by his son Solomon. (1 & 2 Samuel; 1 Kings; 1 & 2 Chronicles).

The most important events during this early period of the Monarchy was the establishment of Jerusalem as the David’s capital city, and then later during the reign of Solomon, the building of the Temple in Jerusalem, and the centralization of the sacrificial cult there.

However, with the institution of the Monarchy, there came the imposition of burdensome taxes as well as corvée (forced unpaid labour), especially under the reign of Solomon. Also, political power games entered the scene as will be seen in the next period.

7. The Divided Kingdom

The reign of Solomon and his oppressive policies had alienated the northern part of the Kingdom, and so after Solomon’s death in 922 BCE, the national structure erected by David fell apart, as the Kingdom divided into two rival states – Israel in the north and Judah in the south. These two kingdoms lived side by side, sometimes at war, sometimes in friendly alliance with one another, until the northern kingdom of Israel was destroyed by the Assyrians about 200 years later. (1 & 2 Kings; 2 Chronicles)

8. Assyrian conquest of Israel.

In 722 BCE the northern kingdom of Israel was conquered by the Assyrians. The period leading up to this national calamity saw the emergence of what is known as the classical (or writing) prophets, Amos being the first. (2 Kings; Amos; Hosea; Micah; Isaiah 1-39; Nahum; Habakkuk; Zephaniah.)

9. The Babylonian Exile

In the period between the Assyrian destruction of Samaria, the capital of Israel (722 BC) and the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem (587 BC), the southern kingdom of Judah underwent two major religious reforms - those of Hezekiah (715 - 686 BC) and Josiah (640 - 609 BC). Other than these two kings, all the other kings of Judah “did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord”. According to the prophets of this time, these failings in righteousness and justice resulted in the experience of the exile, which was understood as the judgement of God.

The Babylonian exile designates the period from the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 587 BC to the rebuilding of Jerusalem under the Persians, beginning in 537 BC. During this period, the nobles, leaders, priests, aristocracy and skilled artisans of Judah were deported to Babylon.

The Exile represented a crisis of faith of unprecedented proportions. It also precipitated a flowering of religious thought and the proliferation of work on the sacred books and traditions of Israel. It seems quite likely that most of the historical books of the OT were collected and edited during the exile. The same is true in much of the prophetic literature, and two major prophetic works - Ezekiel and Isaiah 40-55 - were written during this period. It is also suggested that the codification of Hebrew law was at least begun during the exile. (2 Kings; 2 Chronicles; Isaiah 40-55; Jeremiah; Ezekiel.)

10. Restoration and Beyond.

In 537 BCE the exiles returned from Babylon, and about 20 years later completed the task of rebuilding the Temple. In the period following there were sweeping reforms instituted by the priest Ezra and further reconstruction work undertaken by a governor called Nehemiah. Greek influence arose with the rise of Hellenism under Alexander the Great, and there were times of religious persecution of the Jews, most notably under Antiochus Epiphanes. In 165 BCE there was armed resistance with the Maccabean Revolt, which marked a period of relative religious independence. The book of Daniel probably dates from this period of the Maccabeans, the latest of the Old Testament writings. (Ezra; Nehemiah; Ruth; Isaiah 56-66; Joel; Obadiah; Jonah; Haggai; Zechariah; Malachi; Daniel.)

PRAY AS YOU GO

Thank you Lord that through the changing contours of life, with its winding paths, detours, dead-ends, about-turns, peaks & valleys, you remain the same God – sovereign and unchanging in your faithfulness, goodness and grace. Thank you for your long-suffering love, seen so clearly in the long, winding road of Israel’s history. Thank you for the assurance this gives us that likewise you will never forsake us, but are always with us, in good times and bad. Thank you God! Amen