Word: 2 Chronicles
Before we get to 2 Chronicles, I need to address something. Last week I made a comment that insinuated that there were only 2 people that read my blog. Well, apparently I was wrong. Thanks to an outpouring of gratitude from all my fans, I now know that there are at least 10 people (possibly more!) who follow my Word project. Obviously, with this newfound fame comes all sorts of media attention and unfortunately, rumors. For those of you who have been with me since the beginning, I just want to take some time to address a couple of the rumors that have surfaced in the tabloids this past week.
- I plan to turn my blog into a pay service, where people will need to pay $50 per blog post. This is completely false. Even if I someday get to the point where I have a huge fan base – to the point where I have 25 or 26 readers – I assure you that my posts will always remain free. Plus, if I did charge, my posts are worth way more than $50! Am I right or am I right!
- I will be selling my (now quite valuable) blog to Apple. Again, this is preposterous. Technically, I haven't even been contacted by Apple, although my pager has been acting up recently, so they probably just haven't been able to get through.
Now that I've cleared the air about that, let's get our Word on.
Who's on First?
Last week, we found out that 1 Chronicles was a rerun of 1 Samuel. Logically, it seems like 2 Chronicles would be a rerun of 2 Samuel, right? Think again. 2 Chronicles actually covers some of the same material as 1 and 2 Kings. Confused yet? Welcome to the Old Testament.
2 Chronicles starts with the reign of David's son, King Solomon (more on him in a bit) and ends on a bit of a downer – the Babylonian captivity. In order to fully understand the Babylonian captivity, we'll need to do a quick recap of the adventures of the Israelites up to this point.
We're Free! Oh wait, we're captive again.
So the Israelites were delivered out of captivity in Egypt long ago and were like "yeah, Yahweh is awesome! We'll follow him forever!" Great intentions, poor follow through. Time and time again, the Israelites fall away, ignore God's commands and mock the prophets that God used to guide them. God is incredibly patient and faithful and helps them become a strong nation, despite their unfaithfulness. But finally God says, "OK, if you really want to live on your own without me, go ahead." The Israelites are like "Awesome! Now we can really break free and show everyone how cool we are now that we don't have this annoying creator of the universe on our back all the time, just like when Tina Turner split from Ike! We'll probably win a Grammy or something too!" Alas, God is not Ike Turner and rather than going gold with "What's Manna Got to Do with It," the Israelites were attacked. Many were killed and the ones that weren't (the "remnants") end up back in captivity, this time in Babylon. Can someone say full circle?
Hmmmm... those stubborn, selfish Israelites remind me of someone.
Solomon Slices and Dices
For this week's design, I went with Solomon. He took over the throne from his father, David. Early on, God came to Solomon and said he'd give him anything he wanted. I know what you're thinking, but he didn't ask for an iPad. Instead he asked for wisdom and knowledge so he could be a good leader for the people. One of the ways Solomon used his wisdom is recommending that a baby should be sliced in half. (There's a little more to the story than that, but I think it' sounds crazier without all that extra "context.")
Next week, a big bowl full of Ezra.