The Book of Kings and Exilic Identity: 1 and 2 Kings as a Work of Political Historiography

Description

Nathan Lovell proposes that 1 and 2 Kings might be read as a work of written history, produced with the explicit purpose of shaping the communal identity of its first readers in the Babylonian exile. By drawing on sociological approaches to the role historiography plays in the construction of political identity, Lovell argues the book of Kings is intended to reconstruct a sense of Israelite identity in the context of these losses, and that the book of Kings moves beyond providing a reason for the exile in Israel’s history, and beyond even connecting its exilic audience to that history. The book recalls the past in order to demonstrate what it means to be Israel in the (exilic) present, and to encourage hope for the Israelite nation in the future. After developing a reading strategy for 1–2 Kings that treats the book as a coherent narrative, Lovell examines the construction of Israelite identity within Kings under the headings of covenant, nationhood, land, and rule. In each case he suggests that the narrative of the book creates room for a genuine but temporary expression of Israelite identity in exile: genuine to show that it remains possible for Israel to be Yahweh’s people during the exile, but temporary to encourage hope for a future restoration. Cover Title Copyright Contents List of Figures and Tables List of Abbreviations Preface Chapter 1 Kings as Political Historiography 1.1. Introduction 1.2. Method and Previous Work 1.3. Challenges to Reading Kings as Political Historiography 1.3.1. The Literary Context of Kings and DtrH 1.3.2. The Historical Context of Kings 1.3.3. Summary and Synopsis of the Present Work Chapter 2 The Narrative Strategy of Kings 2.1. The Challenge of Structuring Kings 2.2. Juxtaposition and Meaning: The Aborted Attack on Moab 2.3. The Literary Structure of Kings 2.3.1. Narrative Arcs in Kings: The Word of God and Its Fulfilment 2.3.2. Kings as Narrative Intercalation 2.3.3. The Plot: Inner and Outer Kings 2.3.4. Supporting Evidence 2.4. Conclusions: The Narrative Strategy of Kings Chapter 3 Covenant: What Is Israel? 3.1. The Mosaic Covenant in Kings 3.2. The Covenant as Destiny: A Framework for Political Identity 3.2.1. Deuteronomy and Political Identity 3.2.2. David within the Covenant 3.2.3. The Covenant and Repentance: Josiah’s Reforms 3.2.4. Covenant, Grace, and Destiny 3.3. The Covenant within the Historiography of Kings: Political Redefinition 3.3.1. Conquest: Solomon’s Golden Age 3.3.2. Conflict: Elijah’s Struggle for the Soul of Israel 3.3.3. Crisis: The Assyrian Dark Ages 3.3.4. Why the Exile? Manasseh as Culmination 3.4. Conclusions Chapter 4 Nationhood: Who Is Israel? 4.1. Nationhood: The Name ‘Israel’ 4.1.1. The United Monarchy 4.1.2. Judah 4.1.3. Both Peoples, but Neither Kingdom 4.2. Israelite Boundary Markers and the Nations: The Resettlement of 2 Kings 17 4.3. Israel-Incipient: The Preservation of a Remnant 4.3.1. The Ahab Cycle: From Baal to Jeroboam’s Yahwism 4.3.2. The Jeroboam Cycle: From Israel to Judah 4.3.3. From Judah to Exile 4.4. Conclusions Chapter 5 Land: Where Is Israel? 5.1. The Political Significance of the Promised Land 5.2. Centralisation of Worship in the Book of Kings 5.2.1. Name Theology, Sacrifice, and Prayer 5.2.2. The Shrine ( במות ) Theme: Yahweh or Apostasy 2.3. Centralisation of Worship: Summary 5.3. Israel’s Relationship to the Land: The Status of the Land during the Exile 5.3.1. The ‘Empty Land’ Motif and Land Ideology 5.3.2. Land, City, and Temple: 2 Kings 24–25 5.3.3. The Empty Land in Kings 5.4. Yahweh’s Relationship to the Land 5.4.1. Yahweh Uncontainable: God Over Every Land 5.4.2. Yahweh Locatable: Found in a Place 5.5. Conclusions Chapter 6 Rule: The King after Exile 6.1. Royal Ideology and the Book of Kings 6.2. The Deuteronomic Ideal for Kingship 6.2.1. The Exemplary Role of David 6.2.2. The Paradigmatic Virtues of the Incomparable Kings 6.2.3. Democratisation of Monarchy: Rehoboam and the Role of the ‘People of the Land’ 6.3. The Deuteronomic Moderation of Zion Kingship 6.3.1. Solomon’s Zion and the ANE Royal Ideal 6.3.2. Zion and Ancient Near Eastern Shepherd Kings 6.4. The Future of the Monarchy 6.4.1. Prophetic and Royal Power: Elisha and the Aramaean Wars 6.4.2. The Question of a Messiah 6.4.3. Conclusions Chapter 7 Conclusions: Israel among the Nations 7.1. The Political Vision of Outer Kings 7.2. The Political Vision of Inner Kings Appendix: Promise and Fulfilment Narrative Arcs in Kings Bibliography Index of References Index of Authors Index of Names and Places