|
|
1 KINGS
Jul 25, 2022 11:03:44 GMT -5
Post by Admin on Jul 25, 2022 11:03:44 GMT -5
|
|
|
|
1 KINGS
Jul 25, 2022 11:06:32 GMT -5
Post by Admin on Jul 25, 2022 11:06:32 GMT -5
|
|
|
|
1 KINGS
Jul 25, 2022 11:13:31 GMT -5
Post by Admin on Jul 25, 2022 11:13:31 GMT -5
1-7 AUG MW 1. What lesson can we learn from the mistake of Shimei? ( 1 Kings 2:37, 41-46) "How dangerous it is to think that one can step out of bounds with impunity! Those who deliberately deviate from following ‘the cramped road leading off into life’ will suffer the consequences of that unwise decision.—Matthew 7:14." [ w05 7/1 30 par 1] 8-14 AUG MW 2. What is significant about the expression “as numerous as the grains of sand by the sea”? ( 1 Kings 4:20) "With Abraham’s descendants organized as a nation under the Law, Jehovah blessed them according to his promise to the patriarch. In 1473 B.C.E., Moses’ successor, Joshua, led Israel into Canaan. The subsequent division of the land among the tribes fulfilled Jehovah’s promise to give the land to Abraham’s seed. When Israel was faithful, Jehovah fulfilled his promise to give them victory over their enemies. This was especially true during the rule of King David. By the time of David’s son Solomon, a third aspect of the Abrahamic covenant was fulfilled. “Judah and Israel were many, like the grains of sand that are by the sea for multitude, eating and drinking and rejoicing.”—1 Kings 4:20." [ w98 2/1 11 par 15] 15-21 AUG MW 3. What does this verse illustrate about the Bible? ( 1 Kings 6:1) PRECISE TIMEKEEPING An example of the value of the Bible’s precise timekeeping is demonstrated at 1 Kings 6:1, which points to the time when King Solomon commenced work on the temple in Jerusalem. We read: “It came about in the four hundred and eightieth year [479 full years] after the sons of Israel came out from the land of Egypt, in the fourth year [of Solomon’s reign], in the month of Ziv, that is, the second month, after Solomon became king over Israel, that he proceeded to build the house to Jehovah.”
Bible chronology places the fourth year of Solomon’s reign at 1034 B.C.E. Counting back from that date 479 full years brings us to 1513 B.C.E. as the year of Israel’s Exodus." [ g 5/12 17, box] 22-28 AUG MW 4. What lesson can we learn from the large “Sea of cast metal” that was constructed for the temple? ( 1 Kings 7:23) "Physical cleanliness is required of those who worship Jehovah in holiness and purity. This was demonstrated in connection with the tabernacle arrangement and the later temple service. At their installation, High Priest Aaron and his sons bathed before donning the official garments. (Ex 29:4-9; 40:12-15; Le 8:6, 7) To wash their hands and feet, the priests used water from the copper basin in the courtyard of the tabernacle and, later, from the huge molten sea at Solomon’s temple. (Ex 30:18-21; 40:30-32; 2Ch 4:2-6) On the Day of Atonement the high priest bathed twice. (Le 16:4, 23, 24) Those who took the goat for Azazel, the remains of the animal sacrifices, and the sacrificial red cow outside the camp had to bathe their flesh and wash their garments before reentering the camp.—Le 16:26-28; Nu 19:2-10." [ it-1 263]
|
|
|
|
1 KINGS
Sept 27, 2022 17:43:37 GMT -5
Post by Admin on Sept 27, 2022 17:43:37 GMT -5
29-04 SEP MW 5. What does Solomon’s statement not mean? ( 1 Kings 8:27) "Solomon, the constructor of the temple at Jerusalem, stated that the “heavens, yes, the heaven of the heavens” cannot contain God. (1Ki 8:27) As the Creator of the heavens, Jehovah’s position is far above them all, and “his name alone is unreachably high. His dignity is above earth and heaven.” (Ps 148:13) Jehovah measures the physical heavens as easily as a man would measure an object by spreading his fingers so that the object lies between the tips of the thumb and the little finger. (Isa 40:12) Solomon’s statement does not mean that God has no specific place of residence. Nor does it mean that he is omnipresent in the sense of being literally everywhere and in everything. This can be seen from the fact that Solomon also spoke of Jehovah as hearing “from the heavens, your established place of dwelling,” that is, the heavens of the spirit realm.—1Ki 8:30, 39." [ it-1 1060 par 4] 05-11 SEP MW 6. What evidence shows that the amount of gold that King Solomon possessed was not exaggerated? ( 1 Kings 10:10, 14) "The Scriptures say that Hiram, king of Tyre, sent four tons [4 t] of gold to Solomon, the queen of Sheba gave him a similar amount, and Solomon’s fleet brought over 15 tons [14 t] of gold from Ophir. “The weight of the gold that came to Solomon in one year,” says the account, “amounted up to six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold,” or more than 25 tons [22 t]. (1 Kings 9:14, 28; 10:10, 14) Is this plausible? How big were royal gold reserves in antiquity?
An ancient inscription, which scholars judge as credible, states that Pharaoh Thutmose III of Egypt (second millennium B.C.E.) presented some 13.5 tons [12 t] of gold to the temple of Amun-Ra at Karnak. During the eighth century B.C.E., the Assyrian King Tiglath-pileser III received over 4 tons [4 t] of gold in tribute from Tyre, and Sargon II gave the same amount of gold as a gift to the gods of Babylon. King Philip II of Macedonia (359-336 B.C.E.) is reported to have extracted more than 28 tons [25 t] of gold each year from the mines of Pangaeum in Thrace.
When Philip’s son Alexander the Great (336-323 B.C.E.) captured the Persian city of Susa, he is said to have taken some 1,180 tons [1,070 t] of gold from it and almost 7,000 tons [more than 6,000 t] from the whole of Persia. So when compared with these reports, the Bible’s description of King Solomon’s gold is not exaggerated." [ w08 11/1 22 par 4-6] |
|
|
|
1 KINGS
Sept 28, 2022 2:21:58 GMT -5
Post by Admin on Sept 28, 2022 2:21:58 GMT -5
12-18 SEP MW 7. What lesson do we learn from King Rehoboam’s obedience? ( 1 Kings 12:21-24) "In response to the revolt, Rehoboam mustered his army. But Jehovah intervened through the prophet Shemaiah, saying: “You must not go up and fight against your Israelite brothers. Each one of you must return to his house, for I have caused this to happen.”—1 Ki. 12:21-24.
What was the result for Rehoboam? Obediently abandoning his plan to fight the newly established nation, he turned his attention to building cities in the tribal territories of Judah and Benjamin over which he still reigned. He reinforced a number of cities “to a very great degree.” (2 Chron. 11:5-12) More important, for a time he adhered to Jehovah’s laws. As the ten-tribe kingdom of Israel under Jeroboam sank into idolatry, many from there “supported Rehoboam” by traveling to Jerusalem to take their stand for true worship. (2 Chron. 11:16, 17) Thus, Rehoboam’s obedience strengthened his kingship." [ w18.06 14 par 1-4] 19-25 SEP MW 8. What does this verse teach us about Jehovah? ( 1 Kings 14:13) "Most important, the words of 1 Kings 14:13 teach us something beautiful about Jehovah and what he looks for in us. Recall that something good was “found in” Abijah. Jehovah evidently searched through Abijah’s heart until He found a trace of goodness. Compared to his family, Abijah was, as one scholar put it, the lone pearl “in a heap of pebbles.” Jehovah cherished this goodness and rewarded it, granting a measure of mercy to this one member of a wicked family." [ w10 7/1 29 par 5] 26-02 OCT MW 9. How does this verse strengthen faith in Jehovah’s prophetic word? ( 1 Kings 16:34) "For example, read the prophecy about the penalty for rebuilding Jericho and then consider its fulfillment. Joshua 6:26 states: “Joshua had an oath pronounced at that particular time, saying: ‘Cursed may the man be before Jehovah who gets up and does build this city, even Jericho. At the forfeit of his firstborn let him lay the foundation of it, and at the forfeit of his youngest let him put up its doors.’” Fulfillment came some 500 years later, for we read at 1 Kings 16:34: “In [King Ahab’s] days Hiel the Bethelite built Jericho. At the forfeit of Abiram his firstborn he laid the foundation of it, and at the forfeit of Segub his youngest he put up its doors, according to Jehovah’s word that he spoke by means of Joshua the son of Nun.”* Only a real God could inspire such prophecies and see to their fulfillment." [ w98 9/15 21-22]
|
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Oct 1, 2022 5:40:12 GMT -5
03-09 OCT MW 10. Why did Jesus say that the drought in Elijah’s day lasted “three years and six months”? ( 1 Kings 18:1) "Jehovah’s prophet Elijah announced to King Ahab that the long drought would end soon. That happened “in the third year”—evidently counting from the day Elijah first announced the drought. (1 Kings 18:1) Jehovah sent rain soon after Elijah said that He would. Some might conclude, then, that the drought ended during the course of its third year and that it was therefore less than three years long. However, both Jesus and James tell us that the drought lasted “three years and six months.” (Luke 4:25; James 5:17) Is this a contradiction?
Not at all. You see, the dry season in ancient Israel was quite long, lasting up to six months. No doubt Elijah came to Ahab to announce the drought when the dry season was already proving to be unusually long and severe. In effect, the drought had begun nearly half a year earlier. Thus, when Elijah announced the end of the drought “in the third year” from his previous announcement, the drought had already lasted nearly three and a half years. The full “three years and six months” had elapsed by the time all the people assembled to witness the great test on Mount Carmel.
Consider, then, the timing of Elijah’s first visit to Ahab. The people believed that Baal was “the rider of the clouds,” the god who would bring rains to end the dry season. If the dry season was unusually long, people likely wondered: ‘Where is Baal? When will he bring the rains?’ Elijah’s announcement that neither rain nor dew would occur until he said so must have been devastating to those Baal worshippers.—1 Kings 17:1." [ Lu 4:25; w08 4/1 19, box] 10-16 OCT MW 11. What does this account teach us about accepting a new assignment of sacred service? ( 1 Kings 19:19-21) "Many of God’s servants today display a similar spirit of self-sacrifice. Some have left their “fields,” their livelihoods, to preach the good news in distant territories or to serve as members of a Bethel family. Others have traveled to foreign lands to work on the Society’s construction projects. Many have accepted what might be called lowly tasks. Yet, no one who slaves for Jehovah is performing an insignificant service. Jehovah appreciates all who serve him willingly, and he will bless their spirit of self-sacrifice.—Mark 10:29, 30." [ w97 11/1 31 par 2] 17-23 OCT MW 12. How do we know that Ahab’s actions did not indicate true repentance? ( 1 Kings 21:27-29) "Although Ahab humbled himself on that occasion, his conduct afterward showed that he was not truly repentant. He did not try to remove Baal worship from his kingdom. And he did not promote the worship of Jehovah. Ahab showed his lack of repentance in other ways as well.
6 Later, when Ahab invited good King Jehoshaphat of Judah to join him in the war against the Syrians, Jehoshaphat suggested that they first consult a prophet of Jehovah. Initially, Ahab rejected the idea, saying: “There is still one more man through whom we can inquire of Jehovah; but I hate him, for he never prophesies good things concerning me, only bad.” Even so, they consulted the prophet Micaiah. Sure enough, the man of God foretold bad news for Ahab! Rather than repentantly seek Jehovah’s forgiveness, wicked Ahab had the prophet thrown into prison. (1 Ki. 22:7-9, 23, 27) Although the king managed to imprison Jehovah’s prophet, he could not prevent the prophecy from coming true. In the battle that followed, Ahab was killed.—1 Ki. 22:34-38." [ w21.10 3 par 4-6]
|
|
|
|
1 KINGS
Oct 4, 2022 18:50:24 GMT -5
Post by Admin on Oct 4, 2022 18:50:24 GMT -5
|
|
