This week’s readings take us through the reigns of three kings of Judah: Rehoboam, son of King Solomon; Abijah, Rehoboam’s son; and Asa, son of Abijah.

In 2 Chronicles, chapter 10, Israel gathers to make Rehoboam king after the death of King Solomon. This is an interesting chapter because we see the scene set up for a major event in Israel’s history.  First, Jeroboam returns from Egypt.  Jeroboam fled to Egypt because King Solomon tried to kill him (1 Kings 11:40). The leaders of Israel summon Jeroboam to meet with Rehoboam.  Jeroboam and the leaders speak to Rehoboam and ask him to lighten the labor and tax demands of his father, King Solomon. The people of Israel promise to be loyal subjects to Rehoboam in return.

This week we continue an overview of Solomon’s reign over Israel.  Chapter 4 details the specifics of the temple and the important articles created for it.  In the middle of the chapter a name is thrown into the descriptions:  Huram-abi. Solomon is credited for the building of the temple, but God records the specific man gifted in the actual creation of many of the articles.  “So at last Huram-abi completed everything King Solomon had assigned him to make for the temple of God” (2 Chronicles 4:11). I love it when God inserts the name of a specific person in the narrative. It is like He is highlighting an individual that might be obscure in the overall story, but something about that person merited mentioning.

The readings for this week were incredibly interesting. I specifically enjoyed reading about Solomon. We witness King Solomon finally embarking on building the first temple. The location for the temple is rather interesting because it was where God appeared to David, but also where God asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. It’s not a coincidence that God would want His dwelling to be there.