What we know as 1st and 2nd Kings were actually written as one book together. This is helpful to keep in mind when we read it, so that we do not miss half of the story!

For a broader view of this book of the Bible, we encourage you to watch this video:

Bible Journaling Tip: In some Bibles there are ribbons to keep your place. Have you considered adding additional ones? It’s really simple. You can take a piece of ribbon and tie it onto the existing one, or glue it next to it. You can also consider tying things to these ribbons that are meaningful to you: dried flowers, beads, or even little bells. If you're Bible journaling online, you can use JournalOwl's built-in bookmarking feature to ensure you never lose your spot!

LOOK UP:
(information)  -  encounter God through the Scripture 

Author:

The author is not identified, but traditionally Jeremiah has been believed to have written 1 and 2 Kings (as one book). When you read, see if you can find any places where the author is referring to themselves? Is the author at the forefront of the text, or in the background?

Audience:

The nation of Israel was the intended audience of this book, which would serve as a reminder of all that God had done for them. Today, we can read this text to discover the character of people, the character of God, and to learn from the mistakes of the Israelites.

History:

We just read in the books of 1st and 2nd Samuel about how the Israelites went from functioning in twelve separate tribes with leaders being called ‘Judges’, to becoming one kingdom being led by a king. We learned about the successes and failures of both Saul and then David, and finally, we read about God’s promise to bring a Messianic kingdom that will rule forever. The book of Kings begins here. It tells us about all the kings that came after David, but none of them lived up to the promise … not yet anyway. 

Genre:

This is a historical account of king Solomon’s reign, how Israel splits into two kingdoms, and how God responds to this. Note the similarities between the reign of all of these kings. You could take a pen and mark themes in each king’s timeline: leading the people well, failing morally, returning to God, etc.

LOOK IN:
(revelation)  -  contemplate / reflect on our own lives

Key verse:

1 Kings 2:1-6 NIV

When the time drew near for David to die, he gave a charge to Solomon his son. 2 “I am about to go the way of all the earth,” he said. “So be strong, … 3 and observe what the Lord your God requires: Walk in obedience to him, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and regulations, … and 6 Deal with Joab according to your wisdom (kill him), … do not let his gray head go down to the grave in peace.

Inspiration:

Do you see how David had a mixed agenda in this speech? Mark which parts of what he says are his own desires, and which parts are God’s will. We sometimes want to bend the will of God to suit our own needs and wishes.  Is there a place in your life where you have a mixed agenda?

LOOK OUT:
(transformation)  -  respond with creative worship action  

Drawing prompt:

Look at Chapters 6-7, and the detail with which the temple is described. Use this to draw or paint what the temple might have looked like - include all the elements, from the bronze works to the gold furnishings. Do you see how these images point back to the garden of Eden?

Note the beautiful detail of the pillars for example and see how God inspires human creativity. Is there something that God wants you to create? Your creativity can be worship unto him. 

Bible Journey with JournalOwl:

Here are some questions / prompts provided by the JournalOwl community. 

• When David was in a weakened condition, what did Adonijah decide to do? (I Kings 1:5)
• Of what promise did Bathsheba remind David? (I Kings 1:17)

Follow this link to dive into this book with an online Bible Study group.

Writing prompt:

Read Solomon’s prayer in chapter 8 and write down your own prayer that is similar. Solomon was praying this over the temple - perhaps you could pray it over your home, or your children’s bedrooms, or even your dining table? The Bible is full of rich faith-resources that can give us words when we are uncertain how to speak to God about certain things.

For example: (verse 27-29)
Here, I am praying this over my home whilst Solomon was praying this over the temple.
 

But will God indeed live on earth? Even heaven, the highest heaven, cannot contain you, much less this home of our family. Listen to your servant’s prayer and her petition, Lord my God, so that you may hear the cry and the prayer that your servant prays before you today, So that your eyes may watch over this home night and day

Prayer:

God, I want to thank you for the book of 1 Kings. Thank you that the beauty that you are can co-exist with our human brokenness. Help me to read this text, and to let it read my life too. Let my response to this text be worship unto you!