The Old Testament Review

This is part 5 of 6 of chapter 3 of my book, Biblical Glasses.

Joshua, son of Nun, was Moses’ right-hand man. It was up to him to lead the people with Moses dead. God commanded the Israelites to enter the Promised Land and completely wipe out all its inhabitants to make the land spiritually pure. Joshua, an excellent leader, encouraged his people to obey God’s command. But the people did not completely wipe out all the inhabitants, so the land and its people were not spiritually pure.
After Joshua’s death, things really went down hill. The Hebrew people intermarried with the same people that God commanded them to wipe out; they forgot God and worshipped idols instead. There was no real leader among the Israelites. In time, Cushan-Rishathaim, king of Aram Naharaim, conquered and persecuted the Hebrew people, leading them deeper into idol worship during his eight-year reign over them.

Over a period of 450 years (1513–1063 B.C.), the Hebrew people were torn between sin and repentance, idol worship and reverence to God, foreign leadership and national identity under the judges. The first judge to free the Hebrew people was Othniel. He reigned in Israel for forty years, until 1465 B.C. Then Eglon, king of Moab, took over. Ehud and Shamgar came in as judges to set the Israelites straight again. Jabin and Sisera conquered the people and ruled harshly over them for twenty years. Then judges Deborah and Barak came to the peoples’ rescue. After forty years, the Midianites ruled over the Hebrew people, followed by Gideon the judge. Gideon’s son, Abimelech, proclaimed himself king, but he was evil and did not last. Tola and Jair were the next judges to renew Israel’s relationship with God. The period of the judges was marred by extreme immorality and gory violence. Frankly, it is similar to our world today.

The Philistines and Ammorites ruled harshly over the people for eighteen years. Then four consecutive judges, Jepthah, Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon, led the people back to God. The Philistines came back and took over again, until well-known Samson served as judge for twenty years.

Samson had incredible strength, but he was arrogant. His ego got in the way of his leadership skills. You may know the story of Samson and Delilah. Delilah was a prostitute who made a deal with the Philistines to find out the source of Samson’s strength. Samson was a Nazarite, which meant he never had a haircut or shaved, out of devotion to God; his strength was thought to be in his hair. He knew Delilah was trying to set him up, but he told her the source of his strength anyway. Late in his reign, the Philistines captured Samson and cut off his hair; they gauged out his eyes and ridiculed him for months. As a final gesture to his people, Samson, realizing his strength was from God and not from his hair, tugged on his chains and brought down the Philistine city hall. Samson killed thousands of Philistines along with himself, but he freed the Hebrew people and made way for them to begin yearning for a king.

Eli was next in line as judge for the Hebrew people, but he was more of a priest. He loved God and was a decent ruler, but he was a bad parent and lacked confidence in God. Eli raised his own sons poorly, but he was given a young boy named Samuel to rear for God. Samuel was offered to God by Hannah, his prayerful, humble mother. Samuel grew to become one of the great leaders/priests of Israel’s history.

Born around 1100 B.C., Samuel served as high priest, judge, and seer from 1063–1052 B.C. Part of his duty for God was to find a king for the Hebrew people. Samuel found Saul and anointed him as the first true king of Israel in 1052 B.C.

Saul was difficult to handle. The Bible hints that Saul may have been a head taller than any other person in his kingdom, perhaps contributing to his prideful ego. He was an ideal leader on the outside, but his heart was inconsistent toward God. Saul ruled Israel for forty-two years until 1010 B.C., although he was not much of a leader at the end of his reign. Saul led Israel’s army, but he often took the credit, rather than giving credit to God. Told by God to anoint a new king, Samuel was led to the house of Jesse, a descendant of Ruth and Boaz, whose story is told earlier in the Bible.

Now Jesse was a farmer; he had many sons. Samuel was to examine the sons, and God would choose which one to anoint as king. Jesse brought his sons to Samuel, who examined them, starting with the oldest. When God chose none of them, Jesse said: “There is still the youngest … but he is tending the sheep” (1 Samuel 16:11). This youngest son was not considered worthy to be regarded as royalty. Nevertheless, Samuel examined Jesse’s youngest son, David, and he was chosen to be the next king of Israel. Ray Boltz wrote the following song lyrics, telling the story of David:

One by one, Jesse’s sons stood before the prophet. Their father knew a king
would soon be found. And each one passed, except the last; no one thought to
call him. Surely he would never wear a crown. But when others see a shepherd
boy, God may see a king. Even though your life seems filled with ordinary
things, in just a moment, He can touch you and everything will change. When
others see a shepherd boy, God may see a king. One by one, problems come,
and dreams get shattered. And sometimes it’s hard to understand. But things like
chance and circumstance, they don’t really matter. Our Father holds tomorrow in
His hands. And when others see a shepherd boy, God may see a king. Even though
your life seems filled with ordinary things, in just a moment, He can touch you
and everything will change. When others see a shepherd boy, God may see a king.
Well it wasn’t the oldest; it wasn’t the strongest, chosen on that day. And yet
the giants fell, and nations trembled when they stood in his way. But when
others see a shepherd boy, God may see a king. Even though your life seems
filled with ordinary things, in just a moment, He can touch you, and everything
will change. When others see a shepherd boy, God may see a king.

One day, David went to visit his older brothers, who were fighting against the Philistines in battle. Upon his arrival, David saw Goliath and heard how the Israelites were scared to fight him because of his gigantic size. Goliath was over nine feet tall (see 1 Samuel 17:4); many of the Philistine descendants of Rapha were giants. “One was a huge man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot” (1 Chronicles 20:6; 2 Samuel 21:20).

David wanted to fight Goliath, so he asked King Saul for permission. Saul thought he was nuts, but decided to let him fight. David took only a slingshot and five smooth stones into battle. After some trash-talking from Goliath, David knocked out the giant with one shot. David did not rely on his own strength, but on the strength of Almighty God. Then David used Goliath’s own sword to kill him, chopping off his head in the name of the Lord. David earned not only a high rank in the army because of his victory, but also the respect of the people over the next few years by winning many victories in battle.

Saul became jealous of David and spent his later years chasing David around trying to kill him. Despite Saul’s aggression toward him, David ran from Saul rather than confronting him. David had chances to kill Saul but chose to let God punish Saul, rather than take on that task himself. At Saul’s death by suicide, David was immediately made king of the two southern tribes of Israel, called Judah; but Ish-Bosheth, Saul’s son, declared himself king of the ten northern tribes, called Israel. This arrangement lasted just seven years, and then David became king of a united Israel.

Well respected by the people, David was thirty years old when he began reigning as king. He was a military leader and enjoyed being in battles. He moved to Jerusalem, called his area the City of David, and brought the Tabernacle of the Lord there. David wanted to build a Temple for the Lord, but God had the prophet Nathan instruct him not to build the Temple because of the blood on his hands. David was a warrior, not a builder. Because David loved God, God promised him that his son would build the Temple and his descendants would sit on the throne of Israel forever. Jesus came from the lineage of David and was given the moniker, King of the Jews, at His death. He is and forever will be King of Israel and the entire world throughout eternity, thereby fulfilling God’s promise to David.

David was always looking for God’s will in his life. He wanted so desperately to be near God. He is often referred to as being a man after God’s own heart (see 1 Samuel 13:14; Acts 13:22); we are to see the similarities between his life and our own lives. So far in what has been mentioned about David, you probably do not see any likeness; however, David had much difficulty in his life, beginning with lust.

David stayed at home during a battle one time and became bored. He saw a beautiful woman bathing in her courtyard across the way, so he called for her. Bathsheba was her name, and she was married to one of David’s Mighty Men, Uriah the Hittite. David committed adultery with Bathsheba, leading him to have her husband killed so he could marry her. Because David was king, no man could punish him, but God did!

God had the prophet Nathan gently confront David about his sin, and David realized what he had done. He repented and was forgiven, but he still had to suffer the consequences of his sin. Bathsheba had a son from the adulterous relationship, but the child died very early in life. David grieved and repented. Throughout the rest of his life, David’s family was a wreck, all because of his sin. He had four sons die tragic deaths as prophesied. He had a daughter, Tamar, who was raped by one of his sons. Another of his sons, Absalom, rebelled against him and tried to overthrow him.

Over his lifetime, David realized that his sin caused problems in his life. David trusted God to provide salvation from his sin and praised Him for all the blessings and forgiveness in his life. David was made righteous by his faith. He was always surrounded by courageous men, called Mighty Men, and they earned the praises of future generations. David was an emotional man who expressed his feelings toward God with songs, laments, and poetry. Many of his writings are compiled in the Bible (half of the Psalms are by David).

At David’s death in 970 B.C., there was some turmoil in the land. David’s oldest remaining son, Adonijah, thought he should be king, but God had other plans; He used the adulterous relationship between David and Bathsheba to bring another son, Solomon, to the throne. The Bible says: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). God accomplishes his plans often by unusual means in His own time frame, as we see even in our own lives. So Solomon ruled a united Israel from 970 B.C. until his death in 930 B.C.

Solomon led the nation in prayer and asked for discernment at his coronation. God was impressed! Solomon could have asked for wealth, peace, women, land, or power, but instead he simply and humbly asked for wisdom. So God made him the wisest man on earth; God also provided Solomon with wealth, peace, land, and power. Solomon was the wealthiest king in the whole world. Other kings came from all over the world just to see Solomon’s realm. Solomon ruled during a time of peace. He was not a warrior, because he did not have to be one.

Solomon had a large harem, many wives and concubines, and numerous children. Now God did not condone this, and we will see how it haunted Solomon later in his life. God always provides justice in His time. Solomon ruled Israel, which had increased its territory under King David. Solomon’s Israel was spacious, unlike the Israel we see today, which is just fifteen miles wide at one point. Solomon was powerful; his wisdom was power. Respected worldwide because of his knowledge and wisdom, Solomon was an expert botanist, among many other talents. Solomon wrote the Book of Proverbs, which is filled with the wisdom, morality, and truth of God.

Solomon’s goal was to build the Temple of the Lord in the City of David—Jerusalem. He did it beautifully, following the specific instructions God prescribed. Solomon revered God and offered a prayer of praise and dedication when the Temple was complete. The Temple was to be the House of the Lord, but Solomon knew even then that the Holy Temple could not contain the Almighty God. God blessed Solomon’s early life because of his reverence.

Later in life, Solomon strayed from God. He treated the Israelites like slaves, and his female companions led him astray with their idol worship and astrology practices. God raised up adversaries against Solomon because of his spiritual, moral, and civil decay. Jeroboam was the fiercest adversary; he threatened to take the kingdom from Solomon. But God would not allow Solomon to lose the kingdom for the sake of David and the promise made to him.

Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but he fled to Egypt and stayed there until Solomon’s death. Solomon’s son, Rehoboam, inherited the throne when Solomon died. The Israelites did not like him, because he treated them with disrespect. Solomon realized, probably on his death bed, he had everything a man could desire in his lifetime, but he still suffered without the presence of God. He wrote the Book of Ecclesiastes, one of my favorite Books of the Bible, to describe the meaninglessness of life without God.

Upon ascending to the throne, Rehoboam asked his advisers if he should treat the people harshly or with respect. His advisers suggested respect, but he chose to rule more harshly than Solomon! So the people brought Jeroboam back from Egypt as their ruler. Israel split again into the northern ten tribes (Israel) and the southern two tribes (Judah). Rehoboam ruled Judah; Jeroboam ruled Israel.

Rehoboam planned to attack Jeroboam in an effort to keep the country united under one ruler, but God prevented him. Over time, Jeroboam separated his people from the people of Rehoboam by allowing new methods of worship, including idol veneration and unlawful sacrifices. All Jews were supposed to go to Jerusalem to worship, but since Rehoboam controlled Jerusalem, Jeroboam kept his people from going into the enemy’s territory by setting new rules.God was displeased with this arrangement and sent many prophets over the next several hundred years to warn the people to repent of their evil ways. (See the timeline in Appendix A for a full view of the time period.) Rehoboam ruled Judah in Jerusalem from 930–913 B.C., and Jeroboam ruled Israel in Shechem from 930–909 B.C. The period of kings, similar to the period of judges, was like a rollercoaster ride with lots of evil and a few moments of good.