A guide to 1 Kings

Who wrote 1 Kings, and when?

Unnamed; tradition names Jeremiah. Events about 970–850 BC; compiled during the exile, about 550 BC.

1 Kings does not name its author. Jewish tradition credits Jeremiah, the prophet who lived through the fall of Jerusalem. The book was originally joined with 2 Kings as a single work, and the two together end with an event around 560 BC, so the final form dates from the exile in Babylon, about 550 BC. The events of 1 Kings run from about 970 to 850 BC, from David's last days to the reign of Ahab's son. The writer names his sources, including a book of the acts of Solomon and the official records of the kings of Israel and Judah. Most scholars think an editor, or a group of editors, shaped those records into the book we have, judging each king by the standard of Deuteronomy.

Who was 1 Kings written to?

Judah in exile in Babylon, asking why the kingdom fell and whether God had finished with them.

The first readers were the people of Judah living in exile in Babylon. Jerusalem had fallen, the temple was ash and the last king of David's line was a prisoner. They were asking hard questions. Had the LORD been defeated by Babylon's gods? Had he broken his promise to David? Was there any future? 1 Kings answered by telling the story from Solomon onward and showing at every step that the fall was Israel's failure, not God's. The kings had led the people into idolatry, and the prophets had warned them for centuries. The book also kept hope alive. God's word through the prophets had come true in judgment, so it could be trusted to come true in restoration. And the promise to David had not been cancelled.

What was happening at the time?

Solomon builds the temple and reaches the height of Israel’s wealth and wisdom, then his heart turns to other gods. On his death the kingdom splits into Israel in the north and Judah in the south. The northern kings are judged by one standard: did they walk in the sins of Jeroboam? Into Ahab’s reign steps the prophet Elijah.

Why was 1 Kings written?

To explain the exile by showing how kings and people broke covenant, and to hold up the prophets’ word as what truly rules history.

1 Kings was written to explain the exile and to show that God's word, not royal power, decides the course of history. It opens with Solomon at the height of wisdom and wealth, building the temple where God's name would dwell, and then shows his heart turning to the gods of his foreign wives. The kingdom splits, and the northern kings are judged one after another by whether they followed Jeroboam's idolatry. Into the darkest reign steps Elijah, and the contest on Mount Carmel in chapter 18 puts the question the whole book asks: who is God, the LORD or Baal? The book wants readers to take idolatry seriously and to trust the prophets' word. In the wider story of the Bible, it shows why Israel needed a king who would not fall and a temple that could not be destroyed.

How to read 1 Kings today

Start with chapter 3, where Solomon asks for wisdom, and chapter 8, his prayer at the dedication of the temple. Then read chapters 11 and 12 to see the kingdom split, and chapters 17 to 19 for Elijah, the ravens, the widow, Mount Carmel and the quiet voice on the mountain. The lists of kings in between can blur together; the writer's verdict on each is the thing to watch for, since every king is measured by whether he did right in the eyes of the LORD. Do not force the numbers and dates to line up neatly, as the book uses more than one way of counting reigns. As you read, pray for wisdom the way Solomon did, and ask God to show you any divided loyalty in your own heart.

The key verse in 1 Kings

And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people answered him not a word.

Passages worth knowing in 1 Kings

• 1 Kings 3

  Solomon asks for wisdom

  A listening heart above riches and long life.

• 1 Kings 8

  Solomon dedicates the temple

  Will God indeed dwell on the earth?

• 1 Kings 11

  Solomon’s heart turns away

  Foreign wives lead the wisest man into idolatry.

• 1 Kings 12

  The kingdom divides

  Rehoboam’s folly and Jeroboam’s golden calves.

• 1 Kings 17

  Elijah and the widow

  Ravens, a jar of flour, and a boy raised.

• 1 Kings 18–19

  Mount Carmel and the still small voice

  Fire falls, then Elijah despairs and God whispers.

The main themes of 1 Kings

• Wisdom and its limits
• The temple
• Idolatry and the divided heart
• The word of the prophets
• Judgment on kings

An outline of 1 Kings