1. Discuss the use of commentary. The modes of narration (direct, dramatic, descriptive, and commentary) are ways of relating events. The pace can be quick or slow. The Former Prophets (Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings - the last two were split out by the church) wrote about blessings for doing right and cursings for doing wrong. The Former Prophets is a name from the Hebrew canon, and some theories about what it meant are as follows: (1) they were written by the prophets (no evidence to support this belief), (2) they were written about the prophets (but Samuel and Kings did not say much about the "writing" or "classical" prophets, and the most important prophets were the ones that did the writing), or (3) they contain a prophetic viewpoint (also called a Deuteronomic Viewpoint), which is a blessing for doing right and a curse for doing wrong. This viewpoint was even prevalent during the writing of the Pentateuch. Other examples are Deuteronomy 8:18-20, I Samuel 12:14-15, and II Kings 18:3-7. These specific examples are commentary because the author expresses his opinion.

2. Discuss the case study of Ahaz. Ahaz was the father of Hezekiah, and both had to deal with the Assyrians (the major power at that time) from the south. For Ahaz, the conflict was in the 8th century BC. Later, it would be Babylon. Assyria wanted to become an empire rather than just be a kingdom. As an empire, they would actually have control of the roadways. Assyria wanted to put Israel under tribute, which meant collecting regular payment and probably having some troops around to maintain control.

Syria (present day Iran) anticipated the movement of the Assyrians and sought to build a coalition against them. The Northern Kingdom joined the coalition, and then, they asked Ahaz of the Southern Kingdom to join, too. In II Kings 16:5, the coalition was formed. While that was happening, the Assyrians, coming from the east, went north and then southwest to get around the desert. When Ahaz refused to join the coalition, Civil War broke out, and that was when Ahaz turned to Assyria for help. The war was called the Syro-Ephramite War and is discussed in II Kings 16 and Isaiah 7 . Some synonyms for the Northern Kingdom were Israel, Ephraim, and the Home of Joseph (this is a type of figure of a speech called substitution).

3. How does Ahaz deal with the coalition? Ahaz refused to join the coalition. In II Kings 16:7, he appealed to Assyria for help by saying, "I am your servant and your son." He gave the Assyrians money even though they were idol worshippers. Isaiah told him that a political alliance with Assyria was wrong. In Isaiah 7:4, it says that Ahaz should trust the Lord, and in II Kings 16:8-11, he was told to not commit idolatry. As a result of these actions, the coalition was abolished. But because of their pact, Assyria wanted to put an idol with Yahweh, and Ahaz agreed to that, too.

4. Discuss the case study of Hezekiah. Hezekiah had to deal with the same conflict that his father had had to handle because the Assyrians were still trying to bring Israel into tribute. But Hezekiah did not yield as quickly as Ahaz. He was tempted (something that might be inferred from Isaiah 30:1 and 31:1), but he continued to trust and obey the Lord. In II Kings 19:6, Isaiah sent Hezekiah words of encouragement and told him to trust the Lord. In II Kings 18:5, Hezekiah received an unconditional approval. In II Kings 23:25, Josiah also got an unconditional approval. It was said that both were the best kings ever in both Israel and Judah, but how can that be? With figures of speech, amplification (absolutism - writing in the extreme case without qualification), the author could make the same comment about both. We do the same thing when we say that that vacation was our best ever and then say the same thing about another vacation a few years later. In other examples, Jeremiah said that Jeconiah would die without further comment, but Jeconiah did not die (because he repented). Jonah said that Nineveh would be destroyed, but they were not (because they repented).

5. State the case study for Lesson 18. For the next lesson, study a couple of imprecating psalms, Psalm 109 and the last two verses of Psalm 137. These are psalms that contain harsh cursings against the enemies of Israel. Were the Israelites allowed to hate their enemies?

				Tom of Bethany

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