Israel Divided after Solomon

The Division of the nation

1 Kings 11.28 The man Jeroboam [was] a mighty man of valor; and Solomon, seeing that the young man was industrious, made him the officer over all the labor force of the house of Joseph. 29 Now it happened at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met him on the way; and he had clothed himself with a new garment, and the two [were] alone in the field. 30 Then Ahijah took hold of the new garment that [was] on him, and tore it [into] twelve pieces. 31 And he said to Jeroboam, "Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: `Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and will give ten tribes to you 32 `(but he shall have one tribe for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel), 33 `because they have [he has] forsaken Me, and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the people of Ammon, and have not walked in My ways to do [what] [is] right in My eyes and [keep] My statutes and My judgments, as [did] his father David. 34 `However I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, because I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of My servant David, whom I chose because he kept My commandments and My statutes. 35 `But I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand and give it to you--ten tribes. 36 `And to his son I will give one tribe, that My servant David may always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen for Myself, to put My name there. 37 `So I will take you, and you shall reign over all your heart desires, and you shall be king over Israel.

Divided Kingdom facts:

The northern kingdom of 10 tribes became known as Israel and Ephraim, while the southern kingdom was called Judah (which included Benjamin). Both had a history of 20 kings each: Judah had several godly kings, while Israel’s kings would all do evil in the sight of God (though Jehu kills Jezebel and all the worshipers of Baal--which were good deeds). Judah’s capital is Jerusalem, while Israel’s is Samaria. Israel was taken captive by the Assyrians in 721 BC with no future return; the “Samaritan” people were the result of foreigners into the depopulated land and probably intermingled with those Israelites left in the land. Judah was taken captive by the Babylonians in 606 BC; they had several returns 70 years later to rebuild the temple and Jerusalem.

The King's role was to lead the people in obedience to God, to inspire them in word and example.

Divine judgment came due to Solomon’s sin, but surely the judgment was on the whole nation due to their similar sin; for example, see concerning Judah, 1 Kings 14.22-24: Now Judah did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they provoked Him to jealousy with their sins which they committed, more than all that their fathers had done. For they also built for themselves high places, [sacred] pillars, and wooden images on every high hill and under every green tree. And there were also perverted persons in the land. They did according to all the abominations of the nations which the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel.

A nation does not have to follow their king in rebellion.
The king had a great responsibility: he could have used his authority to remove idolatry from the land; consider the King Hezekiah: 1 Kings 18.4-7 He removed the high places and broke the [sacred] pillars, cut down the wooden image and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it Nehushtan. He trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him. For he held fast to the Lord; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the Lord had commanded Moses. The Lord was with him; he prospered wherever he went.

Though the people surely were disobedient to God, the kings were the ones charged with making Israel sin:

1 Kings 14.16: And He will give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who sinned and who made Israel sin.

1 Kings 16.2, Baasha: Inasmuch as I lifted you out of the dust and made you ruler over My people Israel , and you have walked in the way of Jeroboam, and have made My people Israel sin , to provoke Me to anger with their sins.

Jeremiah 23.2: Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel against the shepherds who feed My people: "You have scattered My flock, driven them away, and not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings," says the Lord.

Why did God chose kings who would eventually do evil in the sight of God? 

They had a choice—they chose evil instead of good.

God gave much and offered much:
to Rehoboam: 1 Ki 11.37,38; 14.7-9
to Baasha: 16.2-3

Prophet	Priest	King
The prophet was to bring and speak forth the word of God--he was God's messenger to the king and the people of God; he should inform, encourage, and admonish the king.	The priest was the mediator between man and God, to minister for the people before God and to help in their approach to God; he should teach the law to the people and the king.	The king was to lead the people, direct them in obedience to God; he was to encourage and exhort the people in righteousness by word and example; he was to lead them in victory over their enemies and idolatry.

All the kings of the North were evil kings. Judah had several good kings, kings who would seek reform by removing the idols of the land and teach the people the Law of God, yet good kings were followed by bad kings, and ultimately, judment would come. They would experience the curses of Deuteronomy 28 and be drivin from the land of promise.

Captivity

Due to persistent disobedience to God, both the Northern (Israel or Ephraim) and Southern (Judah) Kingdoms went into captivity, 2 Kings 17.5-6 and 2 Chron 36.5-6, respectively. Israel was taken captive by the Assyrian Empire in 722BC. Judah was taken captive by the Babylonian Empire in 605BC. The latter actually was done in 3 stages, 605BC 597BC and 586BC, with the third stage resulting in the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple--because they disobeyed God to submit to babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar but rebelled and listened to the false prophets.

Jeremiah: I also spoke to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying, "Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live! 13 Why will you die, you and your people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the Lord has spoken against the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon? 14 Therefore do not listen to the words of the prophets who speak to you, saying, You shall not serve the king of Babylon, for they prophesy a lie to you; 15 for I have not sent them, says the Lord, yet they prophesy a lie in My name, that I may drive you out, and that you may perish, you and the prophets who prophesy to you. 16 Also I spoke to the priests and to all this people, saying, Thus says the Lord: `Do not listen to the words of your prophets who prophesy to you, saying, Behold, the vessels of the Lord's house will now shortly be brought back from Babylon; for they prophesy a lie to you. 17 Do not listen to them; serve the king of Babylon, and live! Why should this city be laid waste? 27.12-17

The true prophets of God were sent to warn the people to obey God, but they would not listen: Jeremiah 25: 3 "From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even to this day, this [is] the twenty-third year in which the word of the Lord has come to me; and I have spoken to you, rising early and speaking, but you have not listened. 4 "And the Lord has sent to you all His servants the prophets, rising early and sending [them], but you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear. 5 "They said, `Repent now everyone of his evil way and his evil doings, and dwell in the land that the Lord has given to you and your fathers forever and ever. 6 `Do not go after other gods to serve them and worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands; and I will not harm you.' 7 "Yet you have not listened to Me," says the Lord, "that you might provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands to your own hurt. 8 " Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: `Because you have not heard My words, 9 `behold, I will send and take all the families of the north,' says the Lord, `and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant, and will bring them against this land, against its inhabitants, and against these nations all around, and will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, a hissing, and perpetual desolations. 10 `Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp. 11 `And this whole land shall be a desolation [and] an astonishment, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.

The captivity would be for 70 years, a year for every year they did not observe the land Sabbath of the Law, 2 Chron 36.21.

The destruction came because they would not submit to Nebuchadnezzar, but the captivity came for 2 reasons: 1)Idolatry, Ezekiel 36.16-19, and 2) injustice and mistreatment of the poor, Zechariah 7.8-14.

The scattering of the Jews from the land is known as the "diaspora." This is the Greek word for scattering in the Greek translation of the Old Testament. It is the same word used by James in the book of James: James, a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad: Greetings.

Even though there would be returns from Babylon after the 70 years of captivity, the promise of restoration to the land has not been fulfilled. The "diaspora" still exists today, even with a "nation" of Israel in the land.

The writing prophets during the Assyrian captivity were Isaiah, Micah, and Hosea, The writing prophets during the Babylonian captivity were Daniel, Ezekiel, and Jeremiah. Daniel was taken captive to Babylon in the first stage while young and remained there to the end of his life after the Persian Empire domination; his faithfulness to God along with 3 of his friends results in their exaltation in Babylonian government. Ezekiel is taken captive in the second stage, and he prophesies concerning Judah and Jerusalem to the captives. Jeremiah stays in Jerusalem and is taken prisoner to Egypt by those who kill the governor of the people left in the land after the destruction of city and temple.

Daniel chapter 9 has Daniel praying to God for mercy and forgiveness, seeing the 70 years of captivity, according to Jeremiah the prophet, had expired. This is where we learn of the 70 weeks prophecy which is a timetable of restoration for the nation. This timetable gives timing of the Messiah and a future destruction of Jerusalem and final restoration of Israel.

Restoration

Due to Solomon’s sin, David will be afflicted, but not forever: And I will afflict the descendants of David because of this, but not forever. (1 Kings 11.39) The nation will be divided and not as one people under God under a Davidic king, yet someday it will be restored as one nation under God under a son of David, being Jesus Christ.

There will be a new memorial day for Israel and a new Shepherd-King: Jeremiah 23.1-8:

Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture! says the Lord. Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel against the shepherds who feed My people: You have scattered My flock, driven them away, and not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings," says the Lord. But I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and bring them back to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking, says the Lord. Behold, [the] days are coming, says the Lord, That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this [is] His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. Therefore, behold, [the] days are coming," says the Lord, "that they shall no longer say, `As the Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,' "but, `As the Lord lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country and from all the countries where I had driven them.' And they shall dwell in their own land."

A new memorial day will be deliverance from the North and all nations. The reference to the branch of righteousness is concerning a son of David as King who will be a righteous king whose name will be the “Lord our Righteousness.” 

“Branch” is symbolic for a descendant and is sometimes Messianic. He is in contrast to the evil shepherds who scattered Israel. By Him Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell safely. Jesus: I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. John 10.11.

Ezekiel 37 (:15-28) 15 Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 16 "As for you, son of man, take a stick for yourself and write on it: `For Judah and for the children of Israel , his companions.' Then take another stick and write on it, `For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and [for] all the house of Israel , his companions.' 17 "Then join them one to another for yourself into one stick, and they will become one in your hand. 18 " And when the children of your people speak to you, saying, `Will you not show us what you [mean] by these?'-- 19 "say to them, `Thus says the Lord God: "Surely I will take the stick of Joseph, which [is] in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel , his companions; and I will join them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand." ' 20 "And the sticks on which you write will be in your hand before their eyes. 21 "Then say to them, `Thus says the Lord God: "Surely I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, wherever they have gone, and will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; 22 "and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel ; and one king shall be king over them all; they shall no longer be two nations, nor shall they ever be divided into two kingdoms again. 23 "They shall not defile themselves anymore with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions; but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. Then they shall be My people, and I will be their God. 24 " David My servant [shall] [be] king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd; they shall also walk in My judgments and observe My statutes, and do them. 25 "Then they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob My servant, where your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell there, they, their children, and their children's children, forever; and My servant David [shall] [be] their prince forever. 26 "Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore. 27 "My tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 28 "The nations also will know that I, the Lord, sanctify Israel , when My sanctuary is in their midst forevermore."

This is clearly a reference to complete restoration, such as not took place after the captivity. The divided kingdom will be united as one nation under one king. The reference to David, I believe, is dynastical: He will be a son of David, particularly, Christ: Luke 1.32: God will give Him the throne of His father David. This "David My servant" will have its fulfillment in Christ following His second coming:

Romans 11.25-27: For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: "The Deliverer will come out of Zion, And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; For this [is] My covenant with them, When I take away their sins."

Zechariah 12.9-10: It shall be in that day [that] I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they pierced. Yes, they will mourn for Him as one mourns for [his] only [son], and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.

Revelation 1.7: Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.

Mark 12.35-37: Then Jesus answered and said, while He taught in the temple, "How [is] [it] that the scribes say that the Christ is the Son of David ? For David himself said by the Holy Spirit: `The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.' 37 Therefore David himself calls Him `Lord'; how is He [then] his Son ?" And the common people heard Him gladly. Expositor's: The answer Jesus intended to elicit was "The Messiah is indeed to be descended from David, but he has a more exalted role than that of a successor of David; he is the Son of God." Or as Moule puts the answer intended by Jesus: "Because, although he is his son by descent and therefore his junior in age, he is also in some mysterious way, superior to David and therefore his senior in rank" (Gospel of Mark, p. 99).
Mark says that the crowd was delighted to listen to Jesus. Apparently they enjoyed seeing the so-called experts stumped! The remark also serves to show that, though the religious leaders opposed Jesus, the common people were for him.

Luke 1.30-33: Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. "And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end."

Daniel's Seventy weeks

Daniel 9.24-27: 24 Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city, To finish the transgression, To make an end of sins, To make reconciliation for iniquity, To bring in everlasting righteousness, To seal up vision and prophecy, And to anoint the Most Holy. 25 Know therefore and understand, [That] from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, [There] [shall] [be] seven weeks and sixty-two weeks; The street shall be built again, and the wall, Even in troublesome times. 26 And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it [shall] [be] with a flood, And till the end of the war desolations are determined. 27 Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, is poured out on the desolate.

This prophetic timetable that looks to complete restoration of Israel is 70 times 7 years that begins with a decree. It is after the 69 7s of years—483 years--- that Christ came the first time; it brings us to the approximate time of His crucifixion. The final 7 years are preceded by a gap of undetermined time, but with their beginning and completion comes the second coming of Christ and the Day of the Lord. The Day of the Lord will involve both the restoration of Israel geographically as a people for God’s purpose (under the New Covenant) and the judgment of the nations.
There are three views about the beginning of the 70 weeks with a decree. One view says it is the Artaxerxes I command to Ezra in 457BC using 365-day-years that comes out exact to the beginning of Christ's ministry in AD27. Another popular view says it is the same Artaxerxes who commands Nehemiah in 444BC using 360-day-years comes out exactly to the day of Christ's triumphal entry in AD33. The third view says it was the decree of Cyrus; see the following.

There is a view that takes the 70 7s of years as 365 1/4-day-years with their beginning being a decree by the first Persian king Cyrus. The time would be just following the demise of Babylon, which brought an end to the 70 years of Jewish captivity.

Isaiah 44.28: Who says of Cyrus, He is My shepherd, and he shall perform all My pleasure, saying to Jerusalem, you shall be built, and to the temple, your foundation shall be laid.

2 Chronicles 36.22-23: Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying, Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: All the kingdoms of the earth the Lord God of heaven has given me. And He has commanded me to build Him a house at Jerusalem which is in Judah. Who is among you of all His people? May the Lord his God be with him, and let him go up!

This view says there is an error in the king list; it is 82 years too long.

The Jewish King list gives Persia 123 years; from Cyrus to Alexander is 123 years. The dating from Alexander (331 BC) onward is accurate. Alexander (331 BC) to Herod’s death (4 BC) is 327 years (331-4=327). Adding the Persian years (123) to the Alexander to Herod years (327) equals 450 years. Christ death was 33 years after Herod's death. And so 450 years + 33 years = 483 years. 483 years is 69 7s of years. The termination of the 483 years is during the time of Christ, particularly the year of his crucifixion: Messiah shall be cut off, Daniel 9.26.

The final 7 years will begin with a covenant/ treaty and conclude with the coming of Christ again. The time between the 69 7s of years and the final 7 years has been that period in which God’s people for His purpose has been believers in Christ consisting mainly of Gentiles but is both Jew and Gentile and identified as the “Church” or assembly (“ekklesia” is the Greek word for “assembly”). The last 7 years will be the transitioning of the end of that period of Divine purpose to bring in a new purpose of God at the second coming of Christ; that new purpose is a restoration of Israel geographically under the new covenant in a new world order, the “Millennium.”

Israel’s restoration will include sanctification.

Daniel 9.24 Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city, To finish the transgression, To make an end of sins, To make reconciliation for iniquity, To bring in everlasting righteousness, To seal up vision and prophecy, And to anoint the Most Holy.

This prophetic timetable of restoration concernsIsrael (your people) and Jerusalem (your holy city).

Six things are to be accomplished. All of these things speak of restoration. Restoration in the terms of the six things will not be in the immediate future of the returns recorded in Ezra and Nehemiah.

The 70 weeks prophecy is divided up with a major time gap. The prophecy gives the timing of the first coming and the second coming of Christ. The gap involves the crucifixion, AD 70 destruction of Jerusalem, and the church age. The last ‘week’ is the time of the events of Revelation, particularly the second half as "great tribulation"; which concludes with the second coming of Christ and salvation of Israel.

The six things in 9.24: The first three speak of sanctification from sin both specific and general (the work of Christ as basis). The second three things speak of the establishment of the kingdom of God in its future, temporal aspect.

This Sanctification is practical salvation from sin. How will Israel have an advantage over us (the "Church") today? They will have the subjective impact of coming out of "great tribulation" and the affects of living in a community of believers. Ours (the church)is harder work--see Phil 2.12; 1 Tim 4.16. However, we have the same new birth as they.

A Remnant Returns to Rebuild

Cyrus’ decree: “God has commanded me to build him a house at Jerusalem.”
2 Chron 36.23; Ezra 1.1-4

Cyrus Cylinder (538 BC): “May all the gods whom I have resettled in their sacred cities daily ask Bel and Nebo for a long life for me.”

In the first return from Babylon, there was a total of 42,360 people, Ezra 2.64. Zerubbabel was the governor and Joshua was the high priest, Ezra 2.1-1.

Why didn’t all the people come back? What evidence was there that God was with those who didn’t return? The answer is found in the history of the fate of the Jews in the Book of Esther (during Xerxes, reign).

Why was it important to have a remnant return and rebuild the temple and Jerusalem if not all returned? The answer is found in the need to fulfill prophecy concerning the in the gap between the 69th and 70th weeks of Daniel 9.26 for the creation of the environment and circumstances of the coming of Christ (so Messiah could be "cut off") and the following Divine judgment on Israel in destroying the city and the sanctuary.

The rebuilding of the temple resulted in opposition, Ezra 4.1-4; 24

The foundation was laid, but the result was not as grand as the previous Temple: Ezra 3.11,12

Foreigners wanted to help but were not allowed,and so they cause trouble (which shows their motives were not sincere) 4.1-5. Isn't this the same principle taught in the New testament to not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers?

Why does God allow opposition? To test ones faith? Free will? Doing God’s will is not without opposition, and it doesn’t indicate that proof of God’s will is in lack of conflict.

Why was rebuilding so important? What significance is the temple? It was the visible point of reference of God’s presence and relationship with His people. A verifying reference point where God is connected with His people in holiness.

I see these analogies: The Church is analogous to Israel as the people of God, while the local body of believers is analogous to the temple as the special place of God’s presence in the world.

The rebuilding of the temple seemed insignificant, but if it was of God, then don’t despise even that which appears small. It’s like comparing the small assembly of believers with the mega-churches with multi-level auditoriums and escalators and satellite broadcasts.

Opposition cause work to cease and 15 years passed from the laying of the foundation. God raises up prophets, Haggai and Zechariah, to admonish and encourage the people with the word of God’s will. Ezra 5.1-2

Haggai: 1.13; 2.4: “I am with you.”

Zechariah 3.7: Zerrubabel shall finish the temple.

The Persian governor of the region, Tatenai, challenges the rebuilding, and sends a letter to the Persian King Darius. Darius finds the decree of Cyrus, Ezra 6.1-3, and he issues a decree to leave the building continue, 6.6,8,11,12. The law of the Persians works to their advantage here (cp. Daniel 6.8).

The temple is completed: 6.13-16: So the elders of the Jews built, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they built and finished [it], according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and according to the command of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia. Now the temple was finished on the third day of the month of Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius. Then the children of Israel, the priests and the Levites and the rest of the descendants of the captivity, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy.

In doing the will of God, expect opposition. Your faith will be tested and made stronger. Faith must act upon that will of God revealed. If it is God’s will, then He is with you through the opposition. Opposition is the mountain made into a plain, when one is led by the Spirit of God. And this takes place when one knows and believes and acts by faith in the word of God:

Zech 4.6-10: `Who [are] you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel [you] [shall] [become] a plain ! And he shall bring forth the capstone With shouts of "Grace, grace to it!" ' " Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying: "The hands of Zerubbabel Have laid the foundation of this temple; His hands shall also finish [it]. Then you will know That the Lord of hosts has sent Me to you. For who has despised the day of small things? For these seven rejoice to see The plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel

Major issues in the returns...the Jews who returned again failed to obey God, in the mistreatment of the poor by charging interest (charging usury contrary to the law) and taking their lands and children as slaves. They also violated the Sabbath Day. The other big problem was intermarriage with foriegnors who were non-believers. After 70 years captivity, and though allowed to come back to Jerusalem, they return to the same sins that brought Divine wrath on them before.
Ezra was commissioned by Artaxerxes to beautify the temple. (Ezra 7.12-13, 23,27-28) Ezra had to address the problem of intermarriage. (Ezra 9.1-4; 10.1-4, 11-14, 19, 44)
Nehemiah, also commissioned by Artaxerxes (to rebuild Jerusalem's walls, Neh 1.2-4; 2.1-6), had to address the problem of intermarriage. Nehemiah 13.26: Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? Yet among many nations there was no king like him, who was beloved of his God; and God made him king over all Israel. Nevertheless pagan women caused even him to sin. Should we then hear of your doing all this great evil, transgressing against our God by marrying pagan women?

Deut 7.1-6 When the Lord your God brings you into the land which you go to possess, … You shall make no covenant with them nor show mercy to them. Nor shall you make marriages with them. You shall not give your daughter to their son, nor take their daughter for your son. For they will turn your sons away from following Me, to serve other gods; so the anger of the Lord will be aroused against you and destroy you suddenly. … For you [are] a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth.

BKC: One of God’s major prohibitions was that His people were not to marry outside the community of believers (Ex. 34:11-16; Deut. 7:1-4). This was not because of racial difference, for the peoples of the surrounding areas were of the same Semitic race. The reason was strictly religious. If God’s people married outside Israel they would be tempted (as was Solomon; 1 Kings 11:3-5) to get caught up in pagan idolatrous worship. Intermarrying with people who did not worship Yahweh was symptomatic of the way the people forsook other aspects of God’s Law. If they would break this aspect of the Law in the most intimate of human relationships then they would probably also break the Law in other less intimate human relationships.

By obedience and trusting God to provide, you reveal to others that you fear God and believe His way is best. You reveal different motives than that of the world’s viewpoint. Others will see the outcome of doing it God’s way in your life.

Solomon

Solomon -- of all my sons … He has  chosen  my son  Solomon to sit on the throne 1 Ch 28.5

Of all that Solomon could have requested from God, he chose wisdom and knowledge.

On that night God appeared to Solomon, and said to him, "Ask! What shall I give you?"
And Solomon said to God: ... "Now give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people; for who can judge this great people of Yours?"
And God said to Solomon: "Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked riches or wealth or honor or the life of your enemies, nor have you asked long life--but have asked wisdom and knowledge for yourself, that you may judge My people over whom I have made you king-- wisdom and knowledge are granted to you; and I will give you riches and wealth and honor, such as none of the kings have had who were before you, nor shall any after you have the like." 2 Ch 1.7-12

One of the most memorable stories of the Old Testament is the account of Solomon's wisdom in determining which of two prostitutes belonged a baby of which both claimed to be the mother. 1 Kings 3.16-28

And the king said, "Divide the living child in two, and give half to one, and half to the other."
Then the woman whose son was living spoke to the king, for she yearned with compassion for her son; and she said, "O my lord, give her the living child, and by no means kill him!" But the other said, "Let him be neither mine nor yours, but divide him."
So the king answered and said, "Give the first woman the living child, and by no means kill him; she is his mother."
And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had rendered; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to administer justice. vs 28

1 Kings 4.29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and exceedingly great understanding, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore. 30 Thus Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the men of the East and all the wisdom of Egypt. 31 For he was wiser than all men--than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all the surrounding nations. 32 He spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs were one thousand and five. 33 Also he spoke of trees, from the cedar tree of Lebanon even to the hyssop that springs out of the wall; he spoke also of animals, of birds, of creeping things, and of fish. 34 And men of all nations, from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom, came to hear the wisdom of Solomon.

Chapters 2 through 7 of Second Chronicles gives details concerning the building of the Temple on Mount Moriah.

The Temple was the designated place of God's special presence in Israel’s midsts.

Behold, I am building a temple for the name of the Lord my God, to dedicate it to Him...
And the temple which I build will be great, for our God is greater than all gods.
But who is able to build Him a temple, since heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain Him? Who am I then, that I should build Him a temple, except to burn sacrifice before Him? 2 Ch 2.4-6

God’s glory fills the temple with the placing of the ark and the praising of the priests. 5.13-14

Indeed it came to pass, when the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord, and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the Lord, saying: "[For] [He] [is] good, For His mercy [endures] forever," that the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God.

Solomon’s prayer of dedication of the Temple requests God's special recognition for those who recognize the Temple as the place of special meeting with and prayer before God. 6.18-21; 40; 7.1-3

But will God indeed dwell with men on the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You. How much less this temple which I have built!
Yet regard the prayer of Your servant and his supplication, O Lord my God, and listen to the cry and the prayer which Your servant is praying before You: that Your eyes may be open toward this temple day and night, toward the place where You said You would put Your name, that You may hear the prayer which Your servant prays toward this place. And may You hear the supplications of Your servant and of Your people Israel, when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven Your dwelling place, and when You hear, forgive.
Now, my God, I pray, let Your eyes be open and let Your ears be attentive to the prayer made in this place.

God’s choosing of the temple as that special place of His presence in the midsts of Israel was evident by the Cloud that filled the temple and by the fire from heaven that consummed the sacrifices. 7.1-3

When Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord had filled the Lord's house.
When all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the Lord on the temple, they bowed their faces to the ground on the pavement, and worshiped and praised the Lord, saying: "For He is good, For His mercy endures forever."

The state of the temple is evidence of God’s relationship to Israel. 2 Ch 7.12-22

Then the Lord appeared to Solomon by night, and said to him: 'I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice.'
When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people,
2 Chron 7.14: if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to prayer made in this place. For now I have chosen and sanctified this house, that My name may be there forever; and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually.

Concerning Solomon as leader to direct the people in obedience to God: As for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, and do according to all that I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and My judgments, then I will establish the throne of your kingdom, as I covenanted with David your father, saying, `You shall not fail to have a man as ruler in Israel.' But if you turn away and forsake My statutes and My commandments which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods, and worship them,...
then I will uproot them from My land which I have given them; and this house which I have sanctified for My name I will cast out of My sight, and will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples.
And as for this house, which is exalted, everyone who passes by it will be astonished and say, `Why has the Lord done thus to this land and this house?' Then they will answer, `Because they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and embraced other gods, and worshiped them and served them; therefore He has brought all this calamity on them.'

When the church prays today, they do not face any particular direction or towards any particular building. This is because the special presence of God is not in a physical building. Today, it is as Jesus said: John 4:21-24: Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth ; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit , and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."

There is a special presence of God in the assembly of believers today, but not in a physical structure. It is wrong to carry over Old Testament ideas into the building believers meet in today. There is no altar or sanctuary in the build structure. The special presence of God is among the assembly of believers, wherever that may be: Ephesians 2.19-22: Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

It is also wrong to apply 2 Chronicles 7.14 to the United States. This applies to a theocracy only, namely Israel. It could apply in principle to the local Church as God's people, but the promise of a healed land is with reference to the geographical people of israel--the church is not a geograpical people. Of course, any nation that is governed righteously will benefit from such a governing, but no nation has ever been called the people of God as was Israel, and so it is inaccurate to apply to the USA or the church what applies to Israel.

The half of the greatness of your wisdom was not told me--The Queen of Sheba 2 Ch 9.1-2, 5-6

Jesus: The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here. Luke 11.31
The greatest extent of the boundries of Israel were during Solomon's reign. 2 Ch 9.26; 1 Kings 4.21

Solomon’s kingdom authority was to the extent of Genesis 15.18, yet his reign did not fulfill it; for though many countries paid tribute to Solomon, they were not assimilated into those boundaries.

1 Kings 4.20 Judah and Israel [were] as numerous as the sand by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking and rejoicing. 21 So Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the River [to] the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. [They] brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life. ...24 For he had dominion over all [the] [region] on this side of the River from Tiphsah even to Gaza, namely over all the kings on this side of the River; and he had peace on every side all around him.

Zondervan Encyclopedia: Solomon reigned over a vital portion of real estate, Palestine, which has been called the land bridge of the ancient Near East. His counry was strategically located for maximum political power and for tight control over trade routes which criss-crossed his realm. Solomon had troublesome neighbors, but no true rivals. It was a golden opportunity for Israel to make an optimum impact on her world; it was her "Golden Age."

The picture of Solomon's reign does seem to prefigure the Millennial reign of Christ after He returns, restores Israel to the land, and reigns from Jerusalem.

1 Kings 4.25 And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, each man under his vine and his fig tree, from Dan as far as Beersheba, all the days of Solomon.
Micah 4:1 Now it shall come to pass in the latter days [That] the mountain of the Lord's house Shall be established on the top of the mountains, And shall be exalted above the hills; And peoples shall flow to it. 2 Many nations shall come and say, "Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths." For out of Zion the law shall go forth, And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 3 He shall judge between many peoples, And rebuke strong nations afar off; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war any more. 4 But everyone shall sit under his vine and under his fig tree, And no one shall make [them] afraid; For the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken.

Solomon's taking of many foreign women as wives resulted in his his heart not being loyal to God and his practices in idolatry. 1 Kings 11.1-4; see Deut 17.16

But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, [and] Hittites-- from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, "You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods. Solomon clung to these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David.

Solomon's wives' influences is a reminder of the necessity to marry that person who shares the the same belief system you do, for one will influence the other or you will be in conflict. Also, the husband is to be the spiritual leader, but in Solomon's case, his foreign wives led him.

Solomon disobeyed all of Deuteronomy 17.16,17 which said the kings are not to multiply to themselves horses, wives, gold and silver.

Both David and Solomon failed according to Psalm 33:16-17: No king is saved by the multitude of an army;  A mighty man is not delivered by great strength.  A horse is a vain hope for safety;  Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength.
However, David never turned away from God for idols. David did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, and had not turned aside from anything that He commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite. 1 Kings 15.5

About Solomon's personal life...1) He should have had one wife, a godly woman, the daughter of a priest or prophet, to encourage him in the right ways of God; and God would provide an heir for him; 2) he was God's chosen, he did not need to have accummulated great numbers of horses, gold and silver--he did not have to folow the world's standards but trust in God's provision and will.
Because Solomon turns from being loyal to God and practices idolatry (to please his wives), God brings adversity by enemies of Israel and eventual division of the nation into two nations.  1 Kings 11.14,23,25 / 11.11; 26, 29-31

Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, "Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant."
Now the Lord raised up an adversary against Solomon...And God raised up another adversary against him.

Evidence that something is not right between God and Israel is adversity from their enemies,the division of the nation, and being driven from the land with the temple in ruins.

Samuel

And the child Samuel grew in stature, and in favor both with the Lord and men. 1 Samuel 2.26

And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. Luke 2.52

Samuel was conceived in response to a prayer of a childless woman: And she [was] in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord and wept in anguish. Then she made a vow and said, "O Lord of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head." 1 Samuel 1.10-11

He would grow up with the high priest Eli, and God called him a prophet.
The books by Samuel's name record the history of the first 2 kings of Israel, Saul and David, whom he anoints. The first King, Saul, is a King according to the preference of men, while David is the King according to the preference of God. The latter king is the beginning of a lineage from which the king of kings would come, Jesus Christ.

Samuel is the first or establisher of a school of prophets who would write the history that is contained in the books we call First and Second Samuel, First and Second Kings, and First and Second Chronicles: when they saw the group of prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing [as] leader over them 1 Sam 19.20; Now the acts of King David, first and last, indeed they [are] written in the book of Samuel the seer, in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the book of Gad the seer, 30 with all his reign and his might, and the events that happened to him, to Israel, and to all the kingdoms of the lands. 1 Chron 29.29

The Divine authority of Samuel-Kings-Chronicles is in that they were written by the prophets. They were probably collections of writings by the prophets and compiled by a prophet.

First Samuel is transitional from the Judges stage to the Monarchical stage. Samuel is the last official judge of Israel. His judgeship overlaps the reign of Saul as first king.

We learn that Samuel functioned as a priest, Samuel ministered before the Lord, [even] [as] a child, wearing a linen ephod.1 Sam 2.18.

He grew in favor with God and man, And the child Samuel grew in stature, and in favor both with the Lord and men. 1 Samuel 2.26 (The same was said of Christ.)

He was established as a prophet, and the Lord revealed himself to Samuel: And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel [had] [been] established as a prophet of the Lord. Then the Lord appeared again in Shiloh. For the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the Lord. And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. 1 Sam 3.20-4.1.

Samuel served as a judge to Israel, to lead them in obedience to God and deliver them from their enemies: Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, "If you return to the Lord with all your hearts, [then] put away the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths from among you, and prepare your hearts for the Lord, and serve Him only; and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines." So the children of Israel put away the Baals and the Ashtoreths, and served the Lord only. And Samuel said, "Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray to the Lord for you." So they gathered together at Mizpah, drew water, and poured [it] out before the Lord. And they fasted that day, and said there, "We have sinned against the Lord." And Samuel judged the children of Israel at Mizpah. ... 15 And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. 1 Samuel 7.3-12, 15

Like Eli, Samuel failed to be a good father: 1 Sam 8.3. One reason the people wanted a king is because Samuel’s sons were evil, whom he made judges: Now it came to pass when Samuel was old that he made his sons judges over Israel. ... But his sons did not walk in his ways; they turned aside after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice. Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, and said to him, "Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations." 1 Sam 8.1-5. ( Note: Could it be that if the judges are like the apostles, a limited number were official by Divine appointment or will, while the title had a more general application for others?)

Samuel 1 is a history of transition from the last judge, Samuel, to the monarchy. Saul was first official king. (362 years pass from entrance into the land under Joshua to first King Saul.) Samuel 2 is the history of David as king. Kings 1 and 2 are the reigns of Solomon to the Babylonian captivity, from the end of a single kingdom under one king to a divided kingdom of North and South followed by captivity and displacement. Chronicles 1 and 2 are the same periods of Samuel and kings, but with brevity and different perspective.

Samuel and Kings are written from a moral and prophetic perspective, centering on the history of Israel and their Kings; it is the political history of Israel and Judah, while Chronicles, covering roughly the same periods of Samuel through Kings, covers a spiritual and priestly perspective, with emphasis on the Temple; it gives the religious history of Judah. Little history of Saul is found in Chronicles, while much of David’s history is, yet no reference is made to the events of David's sin involving Uriah and the family problems that follow.

SAUL - "Make us a king to judge us like all the nations." But the thing displeased Samuel ... So Samuel prayed to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, "Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them. 1 Samuel 8.5-7

[There] [was] not a more handsome person than he among the children of Israel. From his shoulders upward [he] [was] taller than any of the people. 1 Samuel 9.2

Saul was "anointed" king: Samuel took a flask of oil and poured [it] on his head, and kissed him and said: "[Is] [it] not because the Lord has anointed you commander over His inheritance? 1 Samuel 10.1

“Anointed” is the Hebrew word from which we get “Messiah.” The idea is that he is the Lord’s anointed one.

This was a ritual anointing, but the real anointing is with the Spirit of God, to enable the King in his service under God to lead the people.

"Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man. And let it be, when these signs come to you, [that] you do as the occasion demands; for God [is] with you. You shall go down before me to Gilgal; and surely I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings [and] make sacrifices of peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait, till I come to you and show you what you should do." So it was, when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, that God gave him another heart; and all those signs came to pass that day. When they came there to the hill, there was a group of prophets to meet him; then the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them. 1 Samuel 10.6-10.

SAUL’s FALL: Saul’s first disobedience as king came in an ominous confrontation between Israel and the Philistines: he waited seven days, according to the time set by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him. So Saul said, "Bring a burnt offering and peace offerings here to me." And he offered the burnt offering. 1 Sam 13.8-9.

Saul took upon himself the role of a priest, contrary to the law of God. This act reveals a lack of the fear of God, taking seriously His commands.

Samuel: You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you. For now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not continue.... 13.13

The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him [to] [be] commander over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you." 13.14

Of course, these words set forth the difference between Saul and David.
The second disobedience is Saul's failure to fulfill the command of God to destroy all the Amalekites and all their livestock: He also took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all [that] [was] good, and were unwilling to utterly destroy them. But everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed. 1 Samuel 15.8-9,
God: "I greatly regret that I have set up Saul [as] king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not performed My commandments." 15.11a
And it grieved Samuel, and he cried out to the Lord all night. 15.11b

Samuel: "Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? Why did you swoop down on the spoil, and do evil in the sight of the Lord?" 15.19

Saul: "But I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal." 15.20-21

Samuel: "Has the Lord [as] [great] delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, [And] to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion [is] [as] the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness [is] [as] iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from [being] king." 15.22-23

Saul: "I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. Now therefore, please pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord." 15.24-25

Samuel: "I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel." 15.26

And as Samuel turned around to go away, [Saul] seized the edge of his robe, and it tore. 15.27

Samuel: "The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and has given it to a neighbor of yours, [who] [is] better than you." 15.28

Keil and D commentary writes:
By saying this, Samuel did not reject sacrifices as worthless; he did not say that God took no pleasure in burnt-offerings and slain-offerings, but simply compared sacrifice with obedience to the command of God, and pronounced the latter of greater worth than the former. “It was as much as to say that the sum and substance of divine worship consisted in obedience, with which it should always begin, and that sacrifices were, so to speak, simple appendices, the force and worth of which were not so great as of obedience to the precepts of God” (Calvin). But it necessarily follows that sacrifices without obedience to the commandments of God are utterly worthless; in fact, are displeasing to God,

What would you put here as the “sacrifice” for today from our Christian perspective?

In Christianity today, do we see the violation of this truth?

Isn't it the attitude or approach that seeks to do what suits one's self or seems reasonable or logical?

People establish ministries that are in service to God, yet are they obedient in doing God’s revealed will?

There are areas in which people disobey God’s moral will and yet continue in a form of Christianity. For example, the movement to approve homosexuality and the increasing role of women in Church leadership.

Knowing and obeying God’s will is more important than maintaining the form or ritual.

Don’t think God is appeased just by fulfilling the ritual or form of religion.
God is pleased with the one who treasures His word and aligns himself with it.

For rebellion [ is ] [as] the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness [ is ] [as] iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from [being] king." 1 Samuel 15.23

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me. Hosea 4.6

Keil and D commentary:
Opposition to God is compared by Samuel to soothsaying and oracles, because idolatry was manifested in both of them. All conscious disobedience is actually idolatry, because it makes self-will, the human I, into a god. So that all manifest opposition to the word and commandment of God is, like idolatry, a rejection ofthe true God.

In service to God, one should seek to bring all things in alignment with God’s will as we have it in Scripture.

Joshua and Ruth

Joshua was commissioned by God to lead the people of Israel to conquer and divide the land of Canaan, the "Promised Land."
Joshua’s success is conditioned on obedience. (1.1-3,6-8)
How do we justify the killing God commanded Israel?
Deuteronomy 20:16-17 But of the cities of these peoples which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance, you shall let nothing that breathes remain alive, but you shall utterly destroy the…

How did this differ from such attempts in recent history of “ethnic cleansing?” Could such a thing be claimed in our time as the will of God?

The sin of the Canaanites reached the point of Divine judgment. God said they were more wicked than the Israelites.

Deuteronomy 9.1-6 Do not think in your heart, after the Lord your God has cast them out before you, saying, `Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land'; but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving them out from before you.

Ethnic cleansing is a personal hatred for another people and culture. There is no Divine initiative or justice in such an effort.
Though there was great victory by Israel over many Kings and cities, there was failure to drive out all the inhabitants: Joshua 15.63; 16.10; 17.12

God’s will for Israel was to kill or drive out all the inhabitants of the land. This required faith and persistence in obedience to God's will and promise to give them all the land as their possession. God’s blessing requires faith and persistence and obedience. Their failure to do God's will resulted in many inhabitants remaining, and the lifestyle of those remaining was a temptation and their presence a cause of affliction for Israel. God allowed this because of Israel’s failure and for a constant reminder of the failure to believe and be obedient; see Judges 2.1-3, 20-23)

What are some reasons for failure to obey God, as in the case of Israel?

·        It is a lack of faith in what God promises.

·        It is being satisfied with the way things are.

·        It is an indifference or being unmotivated.

·        It is the attraction of sin (Such as the ways of the people Israel were to dispossess).

24.14-16: Joshua's challenge to the people of Israel: Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
Judges - In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. (17.6; 21.25)

The Cycle

·        Sin: They did evil in the sight of the Lord.

·        Servitude: They were sold into the hand of and served their enemies.

·        Supplication: They cried out to the Lord.

·        Salvation: The Lord raised up a deliverer.

3.5-12: The children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons; and they served their gods. So the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord. They forgot the Lord their God, and served the Baals and Asherahs. Therefore the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel, and He sold them into the hand of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the children of Israel served Cushan-Rishathaim eight years. When the children of Israel cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer for the children of Israel, who delivered them: Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother. The Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and the Lord delivered Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed over Cushan-Rishathaim. So the land had rest for forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died. And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord. So the Lord strengthened Eglon king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the Lord.
What was a Judge? 2.16-18: The Lord raised up judges who delivered them out of the hand of those who plundered them... And when the Lord raised up judges for them, the Lord was with the judge and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge.

The judges delivered the people from the power of the enemy—this was primary, but some judges admonished the people and directed them in the rites and Laws of God. Deborah is an example, 4.4-5: Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, was judging Israel at that time. And she would sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the mountains of Ephraim. And the children of Israel came up to her for judgment.

How many Judges? There were twelve recorded in the book of Judges and two in the book of Samuel. In the latter book, Eli and Samuel were the last two official judges (though Samuel appointed his two sons as judges in parts of Israel), Samuel being the transitional judge, overlapping into the Monarchic stage of Israel. The more notable or memorable Judges were Gideon, Samson, Deborah, and Samuel.

This cycle among Israel during this Judges stage in the land is a common phenomenon among the people of God.

Life's difficulties due to sin are intended by God to turn people to Him. How can the things that people replace God with help them? They can’t. The God we are to know and trust has to be as He is, as He has revealed Himself in Scripture. If you don’t like the God you see in Scripture, then you have a big problem. You need to believe the Scriptures concerning God and obey His will for your life.
Ruth takes place during the time of the Judges (Ruth 1.1). The period of the Judges span over 350 years. The story of Ruth and Boaz takes place about 100 years before the death of Samuel, being the end of the period, technically.

A Jewish family travels to Moab due to famine in the land. There, the husband/ father dies. The two sons marry Moabite women. These sons die. The mother, Naomi, decides to go back to her country. She tells her daughter-in-laws to go back to their own people and gods. But one, Ruth, clings to Naomi, and says she will make Naomi’s people her own, and their God hers. And so they together go to Bethlehem of Judea.
And she [Naomi] said, "Look, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law." But Ruth said: "Entreat me not to leave you, Or to turn back from following after you; For wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, And your God , my God. Where you die, I will die, And there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, If anything but death parts you and me." When she [Naomi] saw that she was determined to go with her, she stopped speaking to her. 1.15-18
Ruth: Her decision to stay with Naomi and go to a foreign place and stay by her side indicates to me she valued a new relationship over family relationship due to her belief in God. Ruth seeks to provide for herself and her mother-in-law by gleaning after the reapers during harvest. She works hard. She is humble and grateful. She follows her mother-in-law’s advice.

Boaz: He is a relative of Naomi’s. He is wealthy land owner and an older man. Ruth happens upon his land. Boaz discovers her, and he treats her kindly, generously, and protectively. He knows of her care for Naomi and sacrifice, 2.12. He is a godly man, for he invokes God reward for Ruth, and he recognizes Ruth trusting God, 2.13.
Boaz says: It has been fully reported to me, all that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom you did not know before. The Lord repay your work, and a full reward be given you by the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge. 2.11-12
The Kinsman-Redeemer (literally of a “close relative”) would have the privilege and responsibility to buy back sold land in poverty to keep it in the family and to take a brother’s widow as wife to raise up and heir. (Lev 25.24-25; Deut 25.5-6)

Naomi knew Boaz was a relative who could meet these requirements and instructs Ruth in what to do, 3.1-4.

All that takes place in the account was moral and culturally acceptable. Ruth’s behavior toward and request to Boaz concern fulfilling the duties of a close relative, 3.6-11. Boaz understands what is all involved and requested.

Boaz, being a near relative to Naomi, could buy the property being sold due to poverty, belonging to Naomi and Ruth, and take on the responsibility to raise up an heir through Ruth—the land was Ruth’s if her husband was the heir.

There was a closer relative than Boaz, but he refused to fulfill that role, and so the right fell to Boaz. The account reveals that Boaz handled the affair both properly and eagerly.

God blessed the union of Boaz and Ruth with a son, heir. This son would be grandfather of King David. Ruth become part of the royal linage and the Divine linage, Matthew 1.5.

Ruth teaches us

·        The Kinsman – Redeemer: Ultimately, the role of such was a foreshadowing of Christ, who became flesh and blood to redeem us from the slavery of sin.

·        The lineage of David and Christ. The controversy (see below) about Ruth must be decided on the clear testimony that Ruth was a Moabitess, not of a particular tribe of Israel. She was an exception.

·        A relationship more valued: Ruth embraced the God of Israel, and so she was willing to leave her family and culture. Just like Rahab, Ruth, a gentile, became an example of faith in God and blessing. Ruth’s husband was Rahab’s son, or more likely, an ancestor. “God shows no partiality, but in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him.” (Acts 10.34-35)

There is a controversy over the identity of Ruth.

One view says: Let nobody deceive you into believing that Ruth was a racial Moabite, a cursed people, arrogant, cruel, and haughty in the eyes of God Almighty. Our Bible clearly teaches that she was a great woman of Israel and a wonderful example of faith for all to follow. The genealogy of Jesus Christ as listed in the book of Matthew chapter One contains only a heritage of Israel people and no others. Our Savior's ancestor Ruth was of racial Israel, yet she dwelt in the land of ancient Moab.
Another view quotes Ruth 2:12: THE LORD RECOMPENSE THY WORK, AND A FULL REWARD BE GIVEN THEE OF THE LORD GOD OF ISRAEL, UNDER WHOSE WINGS THOU ART COME TO TRUST.

Notice Boaz praises Ruth for leaving her family and the land of her birth and coming to live amongst a people she was not familiar with beforehand and also for coming to place her trust in the God of Israel.
These words are pertinent to someone who was born a non-Israelite and who came of their own free will to join themselves to Israel and place their trust in the god of Israel.
Deuteronomy 23:3: AN AMMONITE OR MOABITE SHALL NOT ENTER INTO THE CONGREGATION OF THE LORD; EVEN TO THEIR TENTH GENERATION SHALL THEY NOT ENTER INTO THE CONGREGATION OF THE LORD FOR EVER.

We see from above that it was forbidden to intermarry with the Moabites.
How then did Machlon and later Boaz marry Ruth?
Certain "Identity" type articles (some of which are quite well written) say that Ruth was a descendant of Israelites who had settled in Moab.
There is however no basis for this assumption in the Bible.
The Sages (Talmud, Yebamot 73;a) explained that the prohibition against Ammonites and Moabites applied to the males and not the females.
The non-Israelite stranger who identifies with Israel could always be counted as part of Israel after being accepted by the community.
The prohibition against the Moabites applied to the males and not the females.
This is what the sages decided and we were commanded to obey them in matters of law even if we did not agree with their decisions.
My conclusion is that Ruth (Rahab is a similar situation) was an exception because of her faith in and fear of God. The quote in Acts 10.34-35 applies to Ruth (and Rahab): “God shows no partiality, but in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him.” (As for the chronology problem with Rahab and Salmon, which is evident, I would say they were ‘ancestors’ of Boaz, not his parents).