The scene keeps jumping back and forth between Judah and Israel; hopefully you can keep it all straight.  In these chapters we encounter a queen, a 7-year-old king, Elisha's final miracle, a war between Israel and Judah, six assassinations, and the beginning of Hezekiah's reign in Judah.  Pay particular attention to Chapter 17, where the author offers an explanation for why Israel was taken away into captivity.  Notice also throughout the chapters the repeated phrases of the "sin of Jeroboam" and "the high places were not removed."  In the midst of all the events in these chapters, do you see glimpses of God's grace?  What message do these chapters have for us today? Be sure to check out the blog for the guiding questions as you read and for the opportunity to interact with each other.  We enter our rhythm of LEARN-READ-INTERACT.

From How to Read the Bible through the Jesus Lens, Michael Williams makes these points about 1 & 2 Kings:

Phrase: Turning Away

Theme: God expels Israel and Judah from his presence in the Promised Land when their kings turn away from Torah.

Christ-Focus: God turns away from Jesus on the cross as judgment against those who have turned away from him (Romans 3:10-12; Matthew 27:45-46).

Implications: We need to rely on God's strength and the encouragement of each other to keep from turning away from the path of life (Hebrews 3:12-13).

Questions: What is your "rule of life"?  What are you more likely to do: what you know is right or what you want to do at the time?  What are you doing to guard against turning away from God?

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