Outline Studies in the Old Testament for Bible Teachers

by Jesse Lyman Hurlbut

TWELFTH STUDY

The Kingdom of Israel

Part One

The splendors of Sol´o-mon's reign passed away even more suddenly than they arose. In less than a year after his death his empire was broken up, and two quarreling principalities were all that was left of Is´ra-el.

I. Let us ascertain the Causes of the Division of Is´ra-el. These were:

1. The oppressive government of Sol´o-mon (1 Kings 12. 3, 4). How far the complaints of the people were just, and to what degree they were the pretexts of an ambitious demagogue, we have no means of knowing. But it is evident that the government of Sol´o-mon, with its courts, its palaces, its buildings, and its splendor, must have borne heavily upon the people. Probably, also, the luxury of living among the upper classes, so suddenly introduced, led to financial crises and stringency of money, for which the government was held responsible by the discontented people.

2. The opposition of the prophets (1 Kings 11. 11-13, 29-33). It is a suggestive fact that the prophets were opposed to Sol´o-mon and friendly to Jer-o-bo´am. Their reason was a strong resentment to the foreign alliances, foreign customs, and especially to the foreign idolatries which Sol´o-mon introduced.

3. Foreign intrigues, especially in E´gypt. The old kingdoms were not friendly to this Is´ra-el-ite empire, which loomed up so suddenly, and threatened to conquer all the East. Sol´o-mon's attempt to win the favor of E´gypt by a royal marriage (1 Kings 3. 1) was a failure, for two enemies of Sol´o-mon, driven out of his dominions, found refuge in E´gypt, were admitted to the court, married relatives of the king, and stirred up conspiracies against Sol´o-mon's throne (1 Kings 11. 14-22, 40). Another center of conspiracy was Da-mas´cus, where Re´zon kept up a semi-independent relation to Sol´o-mon's empire (1 Kings 11. 23-25).

4. Tribal jealousy; the old sore broken out again. Notice that Jer-o-bo´am belonged to the haughty tribe of E´phra-im (1 Kings 11. 26), always envious of Ju´dah, and restless under the throne of Da´vid. The kingdom of the ten tribes was established mainly through the influence of this tribe.

5. The ambition of Jer-o-bo´am was another force in the disruption. It was unfortunate for Sol´o-mon's kingdom that the ablest young man of that time in Is´ra-el, a wily political leader and an unscrupulous partisan, belonged to the tribe of E´phra-im, and from his environment was an enemy of the then existing government. The fact that he was sent for from E´gypt to the assembly at She´chem showed collusion and preparation of the scheme (1 Kings 12. 2, 3).

6. But all these causes might have been insufficient but for the folly of Re-ho-bo´am (1 Kings 12. 13, 14). If Da´vid had been on the throne that day an empire might have been saved. But Re-ho-bo´am, brought up in the purple, was without sympathy with the people, tried to act the part of a tyrant, and lost his ancestral realm (1 Kings 12. 16).

II. The Results of the Division. These were partly political, partly religious, and were neither of unmixed good nor unmixed evil.

1. The political results were: 1.) The entire disruption of Sol´o-mon's empire. Five kingdoms took the place of one: Syr´i-a on the north, Is´ra-el in the center, Ju´dah west of the Dead Sea, Mo´ab east of the Dead Sea, and E´dom on the extreme south. Mo´ab was nominally subject to Is´ra-el, and E´dom to Ju´dah; but only strong kings, like A´hab in Is´ra-el and Je-hosh´a-phat in Ju´dah, could exact the tribute (2 Kings 3. 4; 1 Kings 22. 47). 2.) With the loss of empire came rivalry, and consequent weakness. For fifty years Is´ra-el and Ju´dah were at war, and spent their strength in civil strife, while Syr´i-a was growing powerful, and in the far northeast As-syr´i-a was threatening. 3.) As a natural result came at last foreign domination. Both Is´ra-el and Ju´dah fell under the power of other nations and were swept into captivity, as the final result of the disruption wrought by Jer-o-bo´am.

2. The religious results of the division were more favorable. They were: 1.) Preservation of the true religion. A great empire would inevitably have been the spiritual ruin of Is´ra-el, for it must have been worldly, secular, and, in the end, idolatrous. The disruption broke off relation with the world, put an end to schemes of secular empire, and placed Is´ra-el and Ju´dah once more alone among their mountains. In this sense the event was from the Lord, who had higher and more enduring purposes than an earthly empire (1 Kings 12. 15-24). 2.) Protection of the true religion. Is´ra-el on the north stood as a "buffer," warding off the world from Ju´dah on the south. It was neither wholly idolatrous nor wholly religious, but was a debatable land for centuries. It fell at last, but it saved Ju´dah; and in Ju´dah was the unconscious hope of the world. 3.) Concentration of the true religion. The departure of Is´ra-el from the true faith led to the gathering of the priests, Le´vites, and worshiping element of the people in Ju´dah (2 Chron. 11. 13-16). Thus the Jew´ish kingdom was far more devoted to Je-ho´vah than it might otherwise have been.

Blackboard Outline

I.	Cau. Div. 1. Opp. gov. 2. Opp. pro. 3. For. int. 4. Tri. jeal. 5. Am. Jer. 6. Fol. Re.
II.	Res. Div. 1. Pol. res. 1.) Dis. emp. 2.) Riv. and weak. 3.) For. dom.
	2. Rel. res. 1.) Pres. rel. 2.) Pro. rel. 3.) Conc. rel.

Review Questions

What causes may be assigned for the division of Is´ra-el? How far was Sol´o-mon's government responsible? What was the relation of the prophets to the revolution? What foreign intrigues contributed to break up the kingdom? Who were connected with these intrigues? What ancient jealousy aided, and how? What man led in the breaking up of the kingdom? Whose folly enabled the plot to succeed? What were the political results of the division? What were its religious results? How was this event from the Lord?

Part Two

III. The Kingdom of Is´ra-el. From the division the name Is´ra-el was applied to the northern kingdom and Ju´dah to the southern. We notice the general aspects of Is´ra-el during its history, from B. C. 934 to 721.

1. Its extent. It embraced all the territory of the twelve tribes except Ju´dah and a part of Ben´ja-min (1 Kings 12. 19-21), held a nominal supremacy over Mo´ab east of the Dead Sea, and embraced about 9,375 square miles, while Ju´dah included only 3,435. Is´ra-el was about equal in area to Massachusetts and Rhode Island together.

2. Its capital was first at She´chem, in the center of the land (1 Kings 12. 25); then, during several reigns, at Tir´zah (1 Kings 15. 33; 16. 23); then at Sa-ma´ri-a (1 Kings 16. 24), where it remained until the end of the kingdom. That city after a time gave its name to the kingdom (1 Kings 21. 1), and after the fall of the kingdom to the province in the center of Pal´es-tine (John 4. 3, 4).

3. Its religion. 1.) Very soon after the institution of the new kingdom Jer-o-bo´am established a national religion, the worship of the calves (1 Kings 12. 26-33). This was not a new form of worship, but had been maintained in Is´ra-el ever since the exodus (Exod. 32. 1-4). In character it was a modified idolatry, halfway between the pure religion and the abominations of the heathen. 2.) A´hab and his house introduced the Phœ-ni´cian worship of Ba´al, an idolatry of the most abominable and immoral sort (1 Kings 16. 30-33), but it never gained control in Is´ra-el, and was doubtless one cause of the revolution which placed another family on the throne. 3.) Through the history of Is´ra-el there remained a remnant of worshipers of Je-ho´vah, who were watched over by a noble array of prophets, and though often persecuted remained faithful (1 Kings 19. 14, 18).

4. Its rulers. During two hundred and fifty years Is´ra-el was governed by nineteen kings, with intervals of anarchy. Five houses in turn held sway, each established by a usurper, generally a soldier, and each dynasty ending in a murder.

1.) The House of Jer-o-bo´am, with two kings, followed by a general massacre of Jer-o-bo´am's family (1 Kings 15. 29, 30).

2.) The House of Ba´a-sha, two kings, followed by a civil war (1 Kings 16. 16-22).

3.) The House of Om´ri, four kings, of whom Om´ri and A´hab were the most powerful. This was the age of the prophet E-li´jah and the great struggle between the worship of Je-ho´vah and of Ba´al (1 Kings 18. 4-21).

4.) The House of Je´hu, five kings, under whom were great changes of fortune. The reign of Je-ho´a-haz saw Is´ra-el reduced to a mere province of Syr´i-a (2 Kings 13. 1-9). His son Jo´ash threw off the Syr´i-an yoke, and his son, Jer-o-bo´am II, raised Is´ra-el almost to its condition of empire in the days of Sol´o-mon (2 Kings 14. 23-29). His reign is called "the Indian summer of Is´ra-el."

5.) The House of Men´a-hem, two reigns. Is´ra-el had by this time fallen under the power of As-syr´i-a, now dominant over the East, and its history is the story of kings rising and falling in rapid succession, with long intervals of anarchy. From the fall of this dynasty there was only the semblance of a state until the final destruction of Sa-ma´ri-a, B. C. 721.

5. Its foreign relations. During the period of the Is´ra-el-ite kingdom we see lands struggling for the dominion of the East. The history of Is´ra-el is interwoven with that of Syr´i-a and As-syr´i-a, which may now be read from the monuments.

1.) There was a Period of Division. During the reign of the houses of Jer-o-bo´am and Ba´a-sha there were constant wars between Is´ra-el, Syr´i-a, and Ju´dah; and as a result all were kept weak, and "a balance of power" was maintained.

2.) Then followed a Period of Alliance—that is, between Is´ra-el and Ju´dah, during the sway of the House of Om´ri. The two lands were in friendly relations, and the two thrones were connected by marriages. As a result both Is´ra-el and Ju´dah were strong, Mo´ab and E´dom were kept under control, and Syr´i-a was held in check.

3.) Next came the Period of Syr´i-an Ascendency. During the first two reigns of the House of Je´hu, Syr´i-a rose to great power under Haz´a-el, and overran both Is´ra-el and Ju´dah. At one time Is´ra-el was in danger of utter destruction, but was preserved. Near the close of these periods the dying prophecy of E-li´sha was uttered (2 Kings 13. 14-25).

4.) The Period of Is´ra-el-ite Ascendency. Is´ra-el under Jer-o-bo´am II took its turn of power, and for a brief period was again dominant to the Eu-phra´tes, as in the days of Sol´o-mon.

5.) The Period of As-syr´i-an Ascendency. But its glory soon faded away before that of As-syr´i-a, which was now rapidly becoming the empire of the East. Its rise meant the fall of Is´ra-el; and under the unfortunate Ho-she´a, Sa-ma´ri-a was taken, what was left of the ten tribes were carried captive, and the kingdom of Is´ra-el was extinguished (2 Kings 17. 1-6).

IV. The Fate of the Ten Tribes. There has been much idle discussion over this subject and some absurd claims set up; for example, that the Anglo-Saxon race are descended from the ten lost tribes—a statement opposed to all history, to ethnology, and to every evidence of language.

1. After their deposition nearly all the Is´ra-el-ites, having lost their national religion and having no bond of union, mingled with the Gen´tiles around them and lost their identity, just as hundreds of other races have done. The only bond which will keep a nation long alive is that of religion.

2. Some remained in Pal´es-tine, others returned thither and formed the nucleus of the Sa-mar´i-tan people, a race of mingled origin (2 Kings 17. 24-29).

3. Some of those who remained in the East retained their religion, or were revived in it, and later became a part of the Jews of the dispersion; though "the dispersion" was mainly Jew´ish, and not Is´ra-el-ite.

4. A few families united with the Jews, returned with them to Pal´es-tine after the exile, yet retained their tribal relationship; for example, An´na (Luke 2. 36).

Blackboard Outline

III.	Kin. Isr. 1. Ext. 9,375. 2. Cap. 1.) Sh. 2.) Tir. 3.) Sam.
	3. Rel. 1.) Wor. cal. 2.) Wor. Ba. 3.) Wor. Jeh.
	4. Rul. 1.) Hou. Jer. 2.) Hou. Ba. 3.) Hou. Om. 4.) Hou. Je. 5.) Hou. Men.
	5. For. Rel. 1.) Per. Div. 2.) Per. All. 3.) Per. Syr. Asc. 4.) Per. Isr. Asc. 5.) Per. Ass. Asc.
IV.	Fat. Ten. Tri. 1. Min. Gen. 2. Sam. Peo. 3. Disp. 4. Jews.

Review Questions

How long did the new kingdom of Is´ra-el last? What was its extent? What were its three successive capitals? What three forms of religion were found in it? Who was the first king of the ten tribes? What family introduced foreign idolatry? How many kings ruled over the ten tribes? What were the five royal houses? Which house raised Is´ra-el almost to its ancient power? What is this period of prosperity called? Who was the greatest king of Is´ra-el? With what other history is that of Is´ra el interwoven? What were the five periods in the foreign relations of Is´ra-el? By what kingdom was Is´ra-el destroyed? Who was its last king? What finally became of the ten tribes?

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