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Introduction to 1 Kings                            

 

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS

This and the following book properly are but one book divided into two parts and went with the Jews under the common name of Kings. This in the Syriac version is called the Book of Kings; and in the Arabic version the Book of Solomon the Son of David the Prophet because it begins with his reign upon the death of his father; and in the Vulgate Latin version the Third Book of Kings the two preceding books of Samuel being sometimes called the First and Second Books of Kings they containing the reigns of Saul and David; and in the Septuagint version both this and the following book are called Kingdoms because they treat of the kingdom of Israel and Judah after the division in the times of Rehoboam son of Solomon and of the several kings of them; as of Solomon before the division so afterwards of the kings of Judah; Rehoboam Abijam Asa Jehoshaphat Jehoram Ahaziah Jehoash Amaziah Uzziah or Azariah Jotham Ahaz Hezekiah Manasseh Amon Josiah Jehoahaz Jehoiakim Jehoiachin and Zedekiah; and of the kings of Israel Jeroboam Nadab Baasha Elah Zimri Omri Ahab Ahaziah Jehu Jehoahaz Jehoash Jeroboam the son of Joash Zachariah Shallum Menahem Pekahiah Pekah and Hoshea; so that these books may with great propriety be called the books or histories of the kings in the two kingdoms of Judah and Israel: who they were written by is not easy to say; some think they were written by piecemeal by the prophets that lived in the several reigns successively as Nathan Ahijah the Shilonite Iddo Isaiah and Jeremiah and afterwards put together by an inspired writer. The Jews commonly sayF1T. Bab. Bava Bathra fol. 15. 1. that Jeremiah wrote the book of the Kings by which they mean this and the following book; though very probably they were written by Ezra since the history in them is carried down to the liberty granted to Jehoiachin in Babylon; but that Ezra was the writer of all the preceding historical books and even of the Pentateuch cannot be admitted which is the conceit of SpinosaF2Tractat. Theolog. Politic. c. 8. & 9. p. 150 &c. ; part of whose tract is just now republished by somebody word for word under a title as in the marginF3Tractatus de Primis 12. Vet. Test. Lib. &c. Londini 1763. ; but that Ezra was not the writer of the Pentateuch is clear since he refers to it as written by Moses and as the rule of religion and worship in his times Ezra 3:2; and it is certain these writings were in being in the times of Josiah Amaziah Joash yea of David and even of Joshua 2 Chronicles 34:14; and as for the book of Joshua that also was written long before Ezra's time; it must be written long before the times of David before the Jebusites were expelled from Jerusalem since the writer of it says that they dwelt there in his days Joshua 15:63; the book of Judges must be written before the times of Samuel and David since the former refers to the annals of it 1 Samuel 12:9; and the latter alludes to some passages in it Psalm 68:7; see Judges 5:4; and a speech of Joab's 2 Samuel 11:21 shows it to be an history then extant: to which may be added that in it Jerusalem is called Jebus Judges 19:10; which it never was after it was taken by David out of the hands of the Jebusites 2 Samuel 5:6; the book of Ruth very probably was written by Samuel; had it been of a later date or written by Ezra the genealogy with which it concludes would doubtless have been carried further than to David: the Book of Samuel and particularly the song of Hannah in it were written in all probability before the penning of the hundred thirteenth psalm Psalm 113:1 in which some expressions seem to be taken from it wherefore though the two books of Kings may be allowed to be written or compiled by Ezra the ten preceding ones cannot be assigned to him: however there is no room to doubt of the divine authority of these two books when the honour our Lord has done them is observed by quoting or referring to several histories in them; as to the account of the queen of Sheba coming to hear the wisdom of Solomon; of the famine in the times of Elijah; and of that prophet being sent to the widow of Sarepta and of the cleansing of Naaman the Syrian in the times of Elisha Matthew 12:42 from 1 Kings 17:1 2 Kings 5:10; to which may be added the quotations and references made by the apostles to passages in them as by the Apostle Paul in Romans 11:2 from 1 Kings 19:14 where this book is expressly called the Scripture; and by the Apostle James James 5:17; who manifestly refers to 1 Kings 17:1; and there are various things in this part of Scripture which are confirmed by the testimonies of Heathen writers as will be observed in the exposition of it. The use of these books is to carry on the history of the Jewish nation to show the state of the church of God in those times and his providential care of it amidst all the changes and vicissitudes in the state; and above all to transmit to us the true genealogy of the Messiah which serves to confirm the Evangelist Matthew's account of it.

 

Commentator

John Gill (November 23 1697-October 14 1771) was an English Baptist a biblical scholar and a staunch Calvinist. Gill's relationship with hyper-Calvinism is a matter of academic debate.

He was born in Kettering Northamptonshire. In his youth he attended Kettering Grammar School mastering the Latin classics and learning Greek by age eleven. The young scholar continued self-study in everything from logic to Hebrew. His love for Hebrew would follow Gill throughout his life.

At the age of about twelve Gill heard a sermon from his pastor William Wallis on the text "And the Lord called unto Adam and said unto him where art thou?" (Genesis 3:9). The message stayed with Gill and eventually led to his conversion. It was not until seven years later that young John made a public profession when he was almost nineteen years of age.

His first pastoral work was as an intern assisting John Davis at Higham Ferrers in 1718 at age twenty one. He was subsequently called to pastor the Strict Baptist church at Goat Yard Chapel Horsleydown Southwark in 1719. In 1757 his congregation needed larger premises and moved to a Carter Lane St. Olave's Street Southwark. His pastorate lasted 51 years. This Baptist Church was once pastored by Benjamin Keach and would later become the New Park Street Chapel and then the Metropolitan Tabernacle pastored by Charles Spurgeon.

During Gill's ministry the church strongly supported the preaching of George Whitefield at nearby Kennington Common.

In 1748 Gill was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity by the University of Aberdeen. He was a profound scholar and a prolific author. His most important works are:

John Gill is the first major writing Baptist theologian. His work retains its influence into the twenty-first century. Gill's relationship with hyper-Calvinism in English Baptist life is a matter of debate. Peter Toon has argued that Gill was himself a hyper-Calvinist which would make Gill the father of Baptist hyper-Calvinism. Tom Nettles has argued that Gill was not a hyper-Calvinist himself which would make him merely a precursor and hero to Baptist hyper-Calvinists.

 

¢w¢w¡mJohn Gill¡¦s Exposition of the Bible¡n

 

New King James Version Bible NKJV

The NKJV was commissioned in 1975 by Thomas Nelson Publishers. One-hundred-and-thirty respected Bible scholars church leaders and lay Christians worked for seven years with the goal of updating the vocabulary and grammar of the King James Version while preserving the classic style of the of the 1611 version.

The task of updating the English of the KJV involved many changes in word order grammar vocabulary and spelling. One of the most significant features of the NKJV was its removal of the second person pronouns "thou" "thee" "ye " "thy " and "thine." Verb forms were also modernized in the NKJV (for example "speaks" rather than "speaketh").

 

Young¡¦s Literal Translation (YLT)

Young¡¦s Literal Translation was completed in 1898 by Robert Young who also compiled Young¡¦s Analytical Concordance. It is an extremely literal translation that attempts to preserve the tense and word usage as found in the original Greek and Hebrew writings. The online text is from a reprint of the 1898 edition as published by Baker Book House Grand Rapids Michigan. Obvious errors in spelling or inconsistent spellings of the same word were corrected in the online edition of the text. This text is Public Domain in the United States.