The Kingdom Divided, Part Two

Week twenty-six | June 30 – july 6

The divided kingdom of Israel was in rebellion against God. The kings that took the throne in both the Northern and Southern Kingdoms chose to go their own way instead of obeying God’s commands, which leads to the consequences God had warned them would come if they disobeyed. God allowed them to be conquered by their enemies and taken into exile. First the Northern Kingdom is conquered by Assyria. Then less than 200 years later, the Southern Kingdom is conquered by Babylon and taken into exile. The conquerors eventually destroy all that had been built up for Israel, including the temple of God. Once again we are faced with the difficult question of how God will keep his promises to Abraham and David, when the people, land, blessing, and kingdom have all been destroyed? We see sparks of hope throughout the tragic history that follows the divided kingdom, reminding us that God is faithful even when we are not. One day the promised King would come to restore all that was destroyed, just as God designed it to be. 

Memory Verse

And this occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.

2 Kings 17:7

Worship

Day One

Read

Here are some verses for your family to read about how the king of Assyria invaded the northern Kingdom of Israel, capturing the capital city of Samaria and taking the Israelites into exile:

2 Kings 17:1-6

2 Kings 17:1 In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea the son of Elah began to reign in Samaria over Israel, and he reigned nine years. 2 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, yet not as the kings of Israel who were before him. 3 Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria. And Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute. 4 But the king of Assyria found treachery in Hoshea, for he had sent messengers to So, king of Egypt, and offered no tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year. Therefore the king of Assyria shut him up and bound him in prison. 5 Then the king of Assyria invaded all the land and came to Samaria, and for three years he besieged it. 6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria, and he carried the Israelites away to Assyria and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.

Pray

Lead your family in a time of prayer over what you read.

Consider the ACTS model:
A – Adoration/ praise God (remember that this is part of worshiping God)
C – Confession (confess sin and your need of God)
T – Thanksgiving (thank God)
S – Supplication (ask God to supply your needs) 

Lord, you are patient and abounding in steadfast love. You showed faithfulness to your people even when they turned away from you. You warned them what their sin would lead to, and gave them time to repent. I confess that I am also guilty of not listening to your warnings. Thank you for being patient with me and making a way for my sins to be forgiven. Help me listen to your words and walk in obedience. In Jesus name, amen. 

Day Two

Read

Here are some verses for your family to read about why God allowed Israel to be conquered by Assyria:

2 Kings 17:7-23

2 Kings 17:7 And this occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods 8 and walked in the customs of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel, and in the customs that the kings of Israel had practiced. 9 And the people of Israel did secretly against the Lord their God things that were not right. They built for themselves high places in all their towns, from watchtower to fortified city. 10 They set up for themselves pillars and Asherim on every high hill and under every green tree, 11 and there they made offerings on all the high places, as the nations did whom the Lord carried away before them. And they did wicked things, provoking the Lord to anger, 12 and they served idols, of which the Lord had said to them, “You shall not do this.” 13 Yet the Lord warned Israel and Judah by every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the Law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets.” 14 But they would not listen, but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the Lord their God. 15 They despised his statutes and his covenant that he made with their fathers and the warnings that he gave them. They went after false idols and became false, and they followed the nations that were around them, concerning whom the Lord had commanded them that they should not do like them. 16 And they abandoned all the commandments of the Lord their God, and made for themselves metal images of two calves; and they made an Asherah and worshiped all the host of heaven and served Baal. 17 And they burned their sons and their daughters as offerings[a] and used divination and omens and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger. 18 Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them out of his sight. None was left but the tribe of Judah only. 19 Judah also did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God, but walked in the customs that Israel had introduced. 20 And the Lord rejected all the descendants of Israel and afflicted them and gave them into the hand of plunderers, until he had cast them out of his sight. 21 When he had torn Israel from the house of David, they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. And Jeroboam drove Israel from following the Lord and made them commit great sin. 22 The people of Israel walked in all the sins that Jeroboam did. They did not depart from them, 23 until the Lord removed Israel out of his sight, as he had spoken by all his servants the prophets. So Israel was exiled from their own land to Assyria until this day.

Pray

Lead your family in a time of prayer over what you read.

Consider the ACTS model:
A – Adoration/ praise God (remember that this is part of worshiping God)
C – Confession (confess sin and your need of God)
T – Thanksgiving (thank God)
S – Supplication (ask God to supply your needs) 

Lord, you are great and greatly to be praised. We have sinned against you and are undeserving of your mercy. Yet you pour it out onto us through your son Jesus, redeeming us from the sin we were enslaved to. Thank you for making us free through faith in Jesus! Renew our mind in the goodness of the gospel and let us be transformed anew today. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

Day Three

Read

Here are some verses for your family to read about how King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon invaded Judah:

2 Kings 25:1-7 (ICB)

2 Kings 25:1 Then Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his whole army. This happened during Zedekiah’s ninth year, tenth month and tenth day as king. He made a camp around the city. Then he built devices all around the city walls to attack it. 2 The city was under attack until Zedekiah’s eleventh year as king. 3 By the ninth day of the fourth month, the hunger was terrible in the city. There was no food for the people to eat. 4 Then the city wall was broken through. And the whole army ran away at night. They went through the gate between the two walls by the king’s garden. The Babylonians were still surrounding the city. Zedekiah and his men ran toward the Jordan Valley. 5 But the Babylonian army chased King Zedekiah. They caught up with him in the plains of Jericho. All of his army was scattered from him. 6 So they captured Zedekiah and took him to the king of Babylon at Riblah. There he passed sentence on Zedekiah. 7 They killed Zedekiah’s sons as he watched. Then they put out his eyes. They put bronze chains on him and took him to Babylon.

Pray

Lead your family in a time of prayer over what you read.

Consider the ACTS model:
A – Adoration/ praise God (remember that this is part of worshiping God)
C – Confession (confess sin and your need of God)
T – Thanksgiving (thank God)
S – Supplication (ask God to supply your needs) 

Heavenly Father, what we read today seems harsh. It is a sad picture of the devastating effects of sin. You are patient and abounding in steadfast love, warning your people, yet faithful to fulfill your word. You will not allow sin to go unpunished. As we reflect on Israel’s history, let it remind us of the seriousness of sin and teach us to trust and obey with our whole heart. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

Day Four

Read

Here are some verses for your family to read about how King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquers Judah and destroys the capital city of Jerusalem, including the temple of God:

2 Kings 25:8-21 (ICB)

2 Kings 25:8 Nebuzaradan was the commander of the king’s special guards. This officer of the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem. This was on the seventh day of the fifth month. This was in Nebuchadnezzar’s nineteenth year as king of Babylon. 9 Nebuzaradan set fire to the Temple of the Lord and the palace. He also set fire to all the houses of Jerusalem. Every important building was burned. 10 The whole Babylonian army broke down the walls around Jerusalem. That army was led by the commander of the king’s special guards. 11 Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guards, took captive the people left in Jerusalem. And he took captive those who had surrendered to the king of Babylon. The rest of the people were also taken away. 12 But the commander left behind some of the poorest people of the land. They were to take care of the vineyards and fields. 13 The Babylonians broke up the bronze pillars, the bronze stands and the large bronze bowl, which was called the Sea. These were in the Temple of the Lord. Then they carried the bronze to Babylon. 14 They also took the pots, shovels, wick trimmers, dishes and all the bronze objects. These were used to serve in the Temple. 15 The commander of the king’s special guards took away the pans for carrying hot coals. He also took the bowls and everything made of pure gold or silver. 16 There was so much bronze that it could not be weighed. There were two pillars and the large bronze bowl. There were also the movable stands which Solomon had made for the Temple of the Lord. 17 Each pillar was about 27 feet high. The bronze capital on top of the pillar was about 4½ feet high. It was decorated with a net design and bronze pomegranates all around it. The other pillar also had a net design. It was like the first pillar. 18 The commander of the guards took some prisoners. He took Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest next in rank, and the three doorkeepers. 19 The commander also took other people who were still in the city. He took the officer in charge of the fighting men. He also took five people who advised the king. And he took the royal assistant who selected people for the army. And he took 60 other men who were in the city. 20 Nebuzaradan, the commander, took all these people. And he brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 21 There at Riblah, in the land of Hamath, the king had them killed. So the people of Judah were led away from their country as captives.

Pray

Lead your family in a time of prayer over what you read.

Consider the ACTS model:
A – Adoration/ praise God (remember that this is part of worshiping God)
C – Confession (confess sin and your need of God)
T – Thanksgiving (thank God)
S – Supplication (ask God to supply your needs) 

Day Five: Family Sabbath

Be Present

Set aside distractions (electronics, work, chores, etc.) and spend time with God and each other. 

Pray

God, thank you for giving us rest. You created us with limitations and command us to rest to remember You and all You provide. Help us rest in You today. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Play

Choose a fun activity to do together as your family rests from work. 

• Draw a map of your neighborhood or city
• Make up a song 
• Skip down the sidewalk

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