From the Exodus

to the Divided Kingdom

(& the era of the prophets)
TH 201 Prof. Barczak

Lets review where weve

been
Framing the Covenant:
1. The Patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob)
- God chose them to pass on the Promise.
- Land, descendants, nation x BE FAITHFUL
2. The Exodus:
- God re-members his people!
- Moses, reluctant, is commissioned by God.
- Exodus

What you didnt read?

Moses does not enter the Promised Land.
Joshua leads the Israelites across the
Jordan River to settle in the Land.
Land divided among 12 Tribes of Israel
Period of the Judges
Instability
Loose collection (tribal confederacy)
No centralized government
No organized way to defend themselves
from attack.

Samuel:
Called by God (1 Samuel 3)
Wonderful story of openness to Gods
call
Many ways like Moses and like
Abraham
Emerges as the first of the biblical
Prophets
Then we have those pesky Philistines

Samuel and the People (1

Sam 8ff)
The people want to be like other
nations:
Unity, status, strength, power

Samuel offers warnings:

Yahweh is your only king
Kings will draft your sons into his army
Taxed to build palaces, etc.

Saul is selected by God as the first

King (9:14- 10:1)

King Saul:
Initially a pretty good choice
some successes!
But unpopular b/c of his
temper/impatience and poor
organizational skills.

Rejected by God b/c:

Offers the sacrifice before battle
(w/o Samuel)
Violates the ban (herem)

King David:
Samuel sent to Bethlehem anoints
David (1 Sam 16ff)
Becomes Sauls harpist and armor bearer.
Kills the giant Goliath (Philistine).
Saul becomes jealous of Davids
popularity.
David spares Sauls life.
After Sauls death, Ishbaal is king of the
Northern

Golden Age of Israel

The Ark of the Covenant is returned
to Israel.
Builds the Temple in Jerusalem.
Declining power of neighbors.
DAVIDIC COVENANT:

David is flawed too

2 Samuel 11 12
Adultery!
Murder!
But he repents with help from
Nathan the prophet.

King Solomon:
Known for his wisdom (1 Kings 3)
And his wives!
SEVERAL HUNDRED WIVES!! WOW!!

This leads to problems:

He builds temples for his wives gods.
High taxation.
Widespread idolatry.
Impending collapse of the nation.

When Solomon dies

Northern Kingdom of Israel:
10 tribes with capital at Samaria.
Jeroboam, Solomons servant, is named
king.

Southern Kingdom of Judah:

2 tribes with capital at Jerusalem.
Rehoboam, Solomons son, is named
king.
ERA/ CONTEXT FOR MOST OF THE
PROPHETS

Prophets
Comes from the Hebrew word nabi
which means spokesmen.
Spoke for God to the people & for the
people to God
Biblically Samuel to John the Baptist?
MAJOR v MINOR prophets:
Not impact or effectiveness
Length of text in the Bible

NOT future predictors?

Raised awareness of present problems and
the impact on the future of the
society/people.

Heschels
Characteristics:

Sensitivity to evil
Importance of trivialties
Luminous and explosive
The Highest Good(s) there were 3
Wisdom, Wealth, and Might

An iconoclast
Sweeping allegations (few guilty, all
responsible)
The lifestyle of loneliness
There is hope in time of despair