1 Kings 15 Summary - 5 Minute Bible Study

1 Kings 15 Short Summary:

1 Kings 15 begins by documenting the key details of the reigns of Abijam and Asa, Judah’s second and third king after the nation split in half. The second half of chapter 15 records key details about Israel’s second and third king, Nadab and Baasha. These kings were successors to Rehoboam (Judah) and Jeroboam (Israel).

1 Kings 15 Extended Summary

WHEN:

• According to the timeline we are using for this study, the kingdom of Israel and Judah divided in 975 B.C.

• The period that followed, sometimes called the period of the “Divided Kingdom,” lasted the next few centuries. Israel remained a cohesive nation until 721 B.C. (Assyrian captivity), while Judah lasted until 607 B.C. (Babylonian exile).

• All the kings mentioned in 1 Kings 15 reigned between 975-900 B.C.

CHARACTERS:

• Abijam – 2nd king of Judah after the nation divided.

• Asa – 3rd king of Judah after the nation divided.

• Nadab – 2nd king of Israel after the nation divided.

• Baasha – 3rd king of Israel after the nation divided.

WHERE:

• After the nations of Israel and Judah divided, Jerusalem remained as the capital of Judah.

• Baasha reigned over Israel from Tirzah.

• He built up Ramah to stop Israelites from going south to Judah.

• The high places were sites where sacrifices were offered to the gods. These locations were not authorized by God.

OUTLINE:

• THE REIGN OF ABIJAM IN JUDAH (15:1-8):

  • Abijam became king after his father’s death.

  • He reigned 3 years and continued the sinful policies of his father.

  • God allowed him to reign for David’s sake.

  • The civil war between Israel and Judah continued throughout his reign.

  • His life was documented in the “Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah.”

• THE REIGN OF ASA IN JUDAH (15:9-24):

  • Asa took the throne of Judah after Abijam’s short 3-year reign.

  • He “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, as David his father had done” (15:11).

  • He did away with idol worship and the cult prostitutes in the land.

  • He even removed his mother from the role of queen mother because she had made an “abominable image for Asherah.” (Many historians believe Asherah was a pagan fertility goddess.)

  • One thing Asa failed to remove from Judah were the high places, but the Bible still describes him as a man’s whose heart was “wholly true” to the Lord.

  • Asa fought continually with Baasha, king of Israel.

  • When Baasha built up the city of Ramah to prevent his people from going to Judah, Asa bribed the Syrians to attack Israel using the treasures in the Temple.

  • Baasha was forced to withdraw from Ramah and live in Tirzah.

  • In his old age, Asa was “diseased in his feet.” He died and was buried in Jerusalem.

  • Jehoshaphat, Asa’s son, reigned in his place.

• THE REIGN OF NADAB IN ISRAEL (15:25-32):

  • Nadab, the son of Jeroboam, reigned over Israel after his father’s death.

  • He reigned 2 years before Baasha of Issachar conspired against him and killed him.

  • Baasha killed all the relatives of Jeroboam, as Ahijah the prophet had foretold (14:10).

• THE REIGN OF BAASHA IN ISRAEL (15:33-34):

  • Baasha reigned over Israel for 24 years. He took the throne in Asa’s 3rd year.

  • “He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.”

APPLICATIONS:

• A person is not doomed by their upbringing or the influences of their youth.

• You don’t have to repeat the generational sins of your family.

• After the wicked years of Solomon’s later reign, Rehoboam’s influence, and Abijam’s godlessness, Asa flipped the script. He gave his heart to God and reformed the nation.

• If your family has a bad reputation and a past stained with sin, determine to be like Asa, determine to change things. God will help you do it!