Our Lord and our God,
now as we hear your Word, fill us with your Spirit.
Soften our hearts that we may delight in your presence.
Sharpen our minds that we may discern your truth.
Shape our wills that we may desire your ways.
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Chapter 17 is very important. It starts with the last king of the northern kingdom of Israel and leads into the exile of the people to Assyria. This is the end of the northern kingdom. Some groups are exiled, and the rest are mixed in with the nations that are brought in to repopulate. This isn’t simply a retelling of history, though. It is a theological summary of what happened. Much of the chapter is a summary of why the people were exiled. It reads like a prosecuting attorney’s case. Since God’s presence is a dominant theme in the Bible, don’t miss the importance of verses 20 and 23. Covenant is also crucial (see verses 15, 35, 40-41). Verses 24-41 are the basis for the New Testament hatred of the Samaritans by the Jews. The Samaritans are a mixture of nationalities, and even though there is an effort to teach the ways of God, there is no desire to serve only him. The ideal of the 12 tribes being one people under one God in the context of the covenant is decimated.
Chapter 18 continues the history of the southern kingdom of Judah, and it starts with a breath of fresh air. Many of the details of Hezekiah and Sennacherib were recorded in the Assyrian histories, and those have been discovered (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sennacherib%27s_Prism).
22:8 is the discovery of the Book of the Law. This is exactly what every king was supposed to have, according to Moses. Manasseh probably hid it away during his 55 year evil reign.
There is a ray of hope at the end of the book.
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