Open English Translation 1KI Introduction

Introduction

The first summary of the kings of Israel and Yehudah is a continuation of the account about the kingdom of Israeli started in the account by Shemuel. It’s divided into three main parts: 1.) Shelomoh (Solomon) takes over as king of the nation of Israel after the death of his father David. 2.) Shelomoh’s kingdom and his prosperity, especially his construction of the temple in Yerushalem. 3.) The kingdom of Israel becoming split into two: the northern kingdom (which goes on to continue to be called Israel), and the southern kingdom (named Yehudah after the largest of its two tribes), and the accounts about the kings who led them through until around 950 B.C.

Here in the first of the two Summaries of the kings of Israel and Yehudah, each leader is evaluated according to their obedience of God’s instructions, and the prosperity of their entire nations depends of that. Worshipping of false gods and the disobedience of God’s instructions would lead to destruction. The northern kings failed this testing and didn’t prosper, whereas the southern kingdom did have some good leaders and so had times of prosperity.

Also revealed in The first summary of the kings of Israel and Yehudah, are God’s prophets who brought messages from Yahweh—often warning them against the worshipping of false gods and against disobeying God. The most famous of those in this document is Eliyyah (Elijah) and the account about his opposition to Baal’s prophets (chapter 18).

This is still a very early look into the unfinished text of the Open English Translation of the Bible. Please double-check the text in advance before using in public.