The Bible by David Alley

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 13, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 13 we observe that there are different types of people - those that want to improve things their own way apart from God, those that want to do things for God, but make assumptions, as David did in this chapter, and those who seek the Lord.In this chapter David tries to bring the ark into Jerusalem but without knowing what God requires. HIs failure gives him the fear of the Lord, leading to seeking God all the more.His failure leaves the ark in the house of Obed Edom - a gittite. The Gittites were Philistines, from the city of Gath - so now the ark is being cared for by a Philistine for the second time in the Bible, and this video compares the two occasions.

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 12, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 12 even before David is king of Judah, men are leaving the tribe of Benjamin, even while David is hiding from Saul. When we are persecuted for our faith, it is a witness to the Lord, and just as David drew people to his way during his persecution, so can we. In fact this is often the easiest time to be a witness because we don’t have to say much, simply forgive those who oppress and do our best to love in return. Our actions speak louder than any word.Not only did valiant men of Benjamin join David, now we are given a list of valiant men from Gad, and also from Manasseh, both from across the Jordan. Even men of Simeon and some of Ephraim join David.Under the new covenant Israel is the church, and all Israel is all who have given their loyalty to Christ. They come from all walks of life, some at Gadites, some Benjamites, some Simeonites and some from the tribes of Joseph, but all believers regardless of stripe, culture, or denomination, if they love Christ are a part of Israel. Thus all Israel will serve Him.When Christ is king there will be joy in all the Earth. Christ is already king - seated on the throne at the right hand of the father in Heaven, and he rules the nations. But yet not all have seen his kingship, but the day is coming, and there will be joy.

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 11, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 11 we discuss why the Chronicles account skips so much history that was included in Samuel and Kings.And in this chapter we go back over David's mighty men, and ask - why are there extra people listed here that were not in the Samuel list? Then we talk about Bethlehem, which was in Philistine occupied territory. And we talk about the Philistines and the Palestinians, and make three points.Show less

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 10, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 10 we cover for the second time, the death of King Saul. He is one of just a handful of people who commit suicide in scripture. He was afraid of capture because tThe things that happened when the enemy leader was captured were often terrible. There was often the risk of torture, humiliation and a painful drawn out death. In modern times we saw what happened when Muammar Gaddafi fell into the hands of people who despised him.In this account Saul falls on his sword, and yet it says in verse 14 that the Lord killed him. The Chronicler is writing from a later viewpoint and more from the perspective of salvation history - from what happened and why. The reason why was because he was unfaithful to God and not interested in what God’s opinion was. So this chapter has theology in it.This video also discusses the valiant men of Jabesh Gilead and their 50 kilometre incursion into enemy territory to retrieve Saul’s body. We also discuss whether it was an oak tree, or a tamarisk tree, and why different versions say different trees.

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 9, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 9 is the last of 9 entire chapters of genealogies of the people of God and Israel right through to the exile. After this the book proceeds to narrative.The last of nine chapters which present as incredibly dull, and yet are somehow quite remarkable. Burt Coffmans wrote that “These nine chapters, composed principally of genealogical tables, must, without doubt, be among the most neglected chapters in the Bible.” That seems true, and yet if one would take the time to dig into the names, one finds a structure that reinforces the scriptures, as does steel inside concrete. There is nothing like this in all ancient writings that I’m aware of.You would never begin any modern book with anything like what we find here, but for ancient readers/listeners, with an oral culture, this would have gotten listeners ready for what was to come. Chronicles is now about to recount the story from the first king through to exile, but now in the light of after it has happened.IN the same way that the law was given, and then forty years later a re-explanation in hindsight with lessons learned and hope for the future…. Here we have a retelling in hindsight, with hope for the future. The chapter ends with the genealogy of Saul - in the leadup to the next chapter which is about King Saul, the first king of israel.

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 8, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 8 is the eighth of 9 entire chapters of genealogies of the people of God and Israel right through to the exile.Weirdly this is the second time we have a genealogy of Benjamin - the one in 7:7-12 above is conjectured to be possibly Zebulun because it was a missing tribe an the genealogy for Benjamin here seems to match the names of people, which the previous one doesn’t. One thing all these lists reveal to us is that there is a genuine history going on here.Why would anyone make up 9 entire chapters of genealogies, including countless names and places that we know nothing of, for no reason. Simply that these represent many events and many dealings, and also how little we know about these times. It gives a very authentic feel to scripture and demonstrates why passages like this are essential.Azel is mentioned a few times here as a man with six sons…. It stands out because of the prophecy of Zechariah 14:5 You shall flee by the valley of my mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azel; yes, you shall flee, just like you fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Yahweh my God will come, and all the holy ones with you.

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 7, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 7 is the seventh of 9 entire chapters of genealogies of the people of God and Israel right through to the exile. We are now going through the remainder of the tribes, one by one. Sadly, poor Naphtali gets just one verse. More than one commentator thinks these genealogies are reflective of who was coming back from exile, and the bigger tribes who returned had bigger genealogies.The things written here must have had relevance to them even though so many names are not comparable to anything else. Interestingly Dan seems to be missing as a tribe - not getting any mention. And the other tribe with no mention is Zebulun. Why? Also there seem to be two lists for Benjamin - above in v 7-12 and below in chapter 8 which actually matches who Benjamins descendents were.It seems that the Benjamin above is probably Zebulun and Dan might be left out, as happens in Revelation 7 when the tribes are listed there. In Genesis 49 - Jacob says Dan is a “snake” and perhaps the snake is now left out. Or perhaps at this point there is none left of the tribe of Dan, so there is no point discussing the genealogy? These things are conjecture.

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 6, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 6 is the sixth of 9 entire chapters of genealogies of the people of God and Israel right through to the exile. This chapter has 81 verses, the chapter with the third most in the Bible, but not the third longest as some of the verses here are quite short. And we are now up to the 6th tribe to be considered - Levi, which gets the most attention in the lists, as compared to others like Naphtali which get just one verse. (1 Chron 7:13)A significant patch is devoted to the specific genealogy of Aaron. The time spent is not a waste. According to the rules as outlined in Leviticus 6:11 and in other places only a descendant of Aaron could be the High Priest, so without such a genealogy there is no priesthood. This genealogy was crucial because after the exile it enabled the continuation of the priestly service in the temple.Wikipedia has an article on the full list ofo serving High Priests at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of.... This list includes people whoo did the job who should not have done so, but is of interest.However during the days of Herod the Great, and Idumean - that is an Edomite - he deliberately destroyed the records of genealogy so that he could appoint whatever High Priest he wanted. He turned it into a political position, as bishop and pope have been at other times in history.This catastrophe, along with the destruction of Jerusalem, and the absence of an ark of the covenant mean the sacrificial system is irrecoverable. This is the purpose of God who replaced it all with Christ.

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 5, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 5 is the fifth of 9 entire chapters of genealogies of the people of God and Israel right through to the exile. Here the genealogy of Reuben is the third of the tribes to be listed, despite him being firstborn, Instead Joseph takes the double portion, and because he had two sons, both of his sons getting one portion each - the birthright of Joseph. This chapter mentions the Hagrites, who are the Arabians.This chapter now considers the three tribes east of the Jordan and how they ended up faithless and taken away by the Assyrians. In the process here we hear the names of many people we never heard of before. Apparently they were deported sometime during the reign of Tiglath Pileser III which was 745-727BC - 18 years, so this was before even the northern tribes were exiled in 722 BC.Different commentators gave differing dates, but either way there is something to be said for staying close to the right people. These three tribes were not close to Jerusalem in proximity or in their practices. So the enemy got to them. Stay close to Christ - and close to His people.

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 4, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 4 is the fourth of 9 entire chapters of genealogies of the people of God and Israel right through to the exile.The genealogies start going through the tribes one by one. They begin with Judah, and then next is Simeon, an interesting order, given that these were sons, number 4 and 2 in order. Reuben the first born comes in third in the next chapter.This chapter features Jabez, a man who despite having only one verse in the entire Bible, has had enumerable sermons preached about him, and the source of much Christian merchandise. The name Jabez means “he makes sorrowful.” His birth seems to have been so traumatic for his mother, that it caused his name to mean “pain.”Hence is prayer to not cause pain - he cried out to the Lord for a new identity, which the Lord graciously gave. Bithiah, an Egyptian princess is mentioned in this chapter too - a woman who left Egypt along with the Israelites. Bithiah means “daughter of God” and is a Hebrew name adopted, her prior Egyptian name is Tharmuth

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 3, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 3 is the third of 9 entire chapters of genealogies of the people of God and Israel right through to the exile. We find in Chronicles that while much is repeated - it is done in a different light, but in addition there is other material that wasn’t in Kings. The Chronicler has other sources to draw from. In this chapter we get a clue to the possible dating of the Chronicles.In the genealogy of Jeconiah/Jehoiachin, we have Shealtiel, (v17) is in the line of Christ before this list differs from Matthew 1’s list diverging down a different family line. From Jeconiah (aka Jehoiachin) to Christ is 14 generations including Christ. This spans a period of 586 years roughly speaking or about 41 years each. This gives us a rough sense of generational timing.In verses 17-24 above we have gone down the generational line here from Jeconiah (aka Jehoiachin) it seems about 5 generations, so this could represent 160-200 years. The Chronicler could have lived in the period abou 400 BC which was right at the end of the OT canon. This chapter also outlines David’s 19 sons, including that Bathsheba had four living sons, and it seems Solomon is the youngest.

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 2, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 2 is the second of 9 entire chapters of genealogies of the people of God and Israel right through to the exile. The book of Chronicles is going to cover a lot of material already covered in Genesis, the Judges, the Kings and more. Why is there a recovering? Because this is written about six generations after the children of Israel come back from Exile.It is a way of going over everything they know but in a new light and making sense of it all, and giving hope for the future. Who is the author? We don’t know, but we call this person the Chronicler - they lived at least six generations after the exile.So even though portions of Chronicles are taken from other biblical authors, such as Jeremiah and Moses, we don’t know who compiled it all together. Many think Ezra - who we will meet in 2 more books, but at least some of it was written later than him, because in the next chapter the generations go six past the exile’s return.Most of this chapter is found elsewhere in the Bible, but there are new sections, such as from verse 25-41 below we have new material. This tells us that the early part of scripture was not the only source the Chronicler used in putting together this material. The genealogy of this chapter mentions Rechab - a most interesting man, whose family appears in Jeremiah 35 when Jeremiah tries to get them drinking wine, and they refuse.

In this video listen to 1 Chronicles Chapter 1, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Chronicles 1 is the first of 9 entire chapters of genealogies of the people of God and Israel right through to the exile. So with the book, A new scroll is opened - the scroll of Chronicles, which at the time of the translation into Greek doubled in size because of the addition of vowels and turned into two books.If you thought the book of Numbers was dull - try the first 9 chapters of this book, which is entirely genealogies. In comparison Numbers didn’t have as many numbers as its title makes it sound. The genealogy starts with the very first man Adam. As boring as it seems, this is a very significant thing.We are dealing with something authentic, traceable right back to God himself. No modern nation, or any nation at all can do such a thing. Ultimately we will be provided with a complete Genealogy from God to Christ - which is incredible and unique.If God is remarkable, unique, sovereign, powerful and everything we ascribe him to be, would not a genealogy from the beginning of time to his arrival be precisely what we would expect. So why do people despise such a thing, or discount its wonder?

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 25, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 25 Nebuchadnezzar comes a third time to Jerusalem without patience and the city is utterly destroyed according to the words of Jeremiah and other prophets.Why did it take 20 years for Nebuchadnazzer to destroy Jerusalem - why didn't he do it properly ten years earlier? Could it have been that Daniel was highly influential in Babylon? Or Did Daniel influence a later King Evil-Merodach to care for Jehoiachin?This entire series of events is a clear fulfilment of Deuteronomy 28.Josephus reports an interesting conjunction of prophecy. Jeremiah had told King Zedekiah that Nebuchadnezzar would carry him off to Babylon. And Ezekiel had predicted that Zedekiah would not see Babylon. Zedekiah had taken these apparent conflicting prophecies as a reason to disregard them. But they were both literally fulfilled.Jerusalem’s fall occurred on Tish-B’av - the same day on the Jewish Calendar that Jerusalme was destroyed by the Roman Empire in AD70. This is known as the saddest day for Jews, and can hardly be a coincidence in the grand plan of God.This chapter and book ends with a strange mention that Jehoiachin is cared for well by Nebuchadnezzar’s successor, Evil-Merodach. The question as to what would happen to the line of David is answered here - against all odds, the life of Jehoiachin is not only spared but blessed. This fact seems so unlikely and yet, we have cuneiform tables to confirm it, housed in the Pergamon museum in Berlin.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 24, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 24 is the first time Nebuchadnazzer came against Judah was here in 605 BC and he took away key people. This was the beginning of the 70 years prophesied by Jeremiah, which Daniel who was in the first round of exiles counted from.Jeremiah 25:11 “This whole country will become a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years.”Nebuchadnazzer came three times - these dates are only approximately correct.605 BC during the reign of Jehoiakim - exile of Daniel597 BC during the reign of Jehoiachin - exile of Ezekiel & Jehoiachin586 BC during the reign of Zedekiah - exile of ZedekiahThere has been a giant long and very patient process by the Lord to redeem his people, but finally they are punished for their sins. And yet somehow through the process God still is at work in salvation history. Of the mystery of God!!

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 23, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 21, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 21 Manasseh is the 14th monarch and the 13th king of Judah. Despite having a wonderful name - one of the twelve tribes of Israel - he is a terrible king. Manasseh was worse than the Amorites… worse than “all the nations’ before.He filled Jerusalem with blood… one phrase that speaks volumes. Jewish tradition tells us that he sawed the prophet Isaiah in half. This is something alluded to in Hebrews 11:37 - they were stoned, they were sawed in two….The Chronicler (book of Chronicles) says that Manasseh repented in his last days. It mentions his punishment, his repentance and his restoration by the Lord in 2 Chronicles 33:11-13. Elsewhere we have the prayer of Manasseh included in some old versions of the Bible, but not believed by most scholars to be a true part of the Bible.It this video we read and comment on a section of the repentance prayer of Manasseh which used to be considered a part of scripture but was removed in the reformation.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 20, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 20 Hezekiah knows he is dying and goes to prayer. As we have learned from other places in the Bible, you can challenge the Lord, and he even likes it. Not challenged by disobedience as some do, but a challenge by taking him on with fasting and prayer and surrender - the things he loves. It's a wrestling with God as Jacob did. So Hezekiah goes to wrestle with God.This is what is called supplication - a deep and earnest petition of God. How few people knew the length of their days - Hezekiah did, and the Lord did. Does it make a difference as to how you spend them? Not necessarily as all people know their days are numbered but many are not wise in accounting for them.In this chapter we also have the combination of medicine and healing working together. The Lord uses both… as is evidenced here, and in Acts and in the presence of the church on earth who started hospitals. Both are great miracles. Finally we cover the amazing miracle of time going backwards in this chapter. How does that work? How can God do such a thing?

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 19, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 19 Hezekiah goes to the Lord concerned about the Assyrian siege. His father Ahaz, and later his son Manasseh go toward the Assyrian gods. It was a common misconception that the gods of the strongest nations were the strongest gods, but there was plenty of Israelite history to demonstrate that the Lord was the strongest God (and only God) and he didn’t exercise his strength when he wasn’t followed.Isaiah the prophet receives and incredible prophecy which comes to pass, and the Assyrians are vanquished miraculously. This miracle is hard to explain by historians who don’t want to trust what the Bible records. Even ancient Egyptian traditions explain this as a miracle.This video goes over the prophecy of Isaiah, the incredible miracle and the great engineering feat that was Hezekiah’s tunnel.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 18, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 18 we meet Hezekiah, the 13th monarch and 12th king of Judah. He doesn’t just follow the Lord, he trusts the Lord. This is why he breaks with paying tribute to Assyria. The Assyrians seem to have been forcing Ahaz (his Dad) to pay tribute and along with that worship their gods. So to break with one thing (the idolatry) for the sake of God, he breaks with the tribute too, and his trust is entirely in the Lord.This results in an incredible deliverance for Jerusalem, although not for all the cities of Judah. We discuss some of the politics of the time, and the incredibly risky, and yet profoundly safe move Hezekiah takes for the Lord.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 17, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 17 we meet Hoshea, the 19th and the last king of Israel. He is also from a new dynasty or family line, representing a ninth “dynasty.” Technically these “one king lines” are not dynasties, but what else can you call them?The “promises” of Deuteronomy 28 are now in full swing. The Lord is taking the Israelites away, and they are being scattered throughout the world. This is called the dispersion, and Israel is exiled all over the place.In the place of the Isrelites, the Assyrians put people from other nations who have been conquered, and they bring their own religions with them. THey make an attempt to worship Yahweh who they see as the god of the area, but its a syncretistic attempt. This is the historic background to the Samaritans of Jesus’ day.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 16, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 16 we have the chapter about King Ahaz. Ahaz was the 12th monarch and 11th king of Judah. Ahaz is also the king that Isaiah gives his famous sign to in Isaiah 7:1-10. Ahaz refuses to believe that God wants to deliver Judah, and he instead turns to other gods to trust them.The sign is the “Emmanuel sign” which we hear of each Christmas, but it’s local application was that Isaiah’s wife would have a child as a sign that his words were correct. Listen as the local and the far explanation for prophecy is explained, and the emmanuel sign groiunded in its historical context.This video also explains the pressure that Ahaz was under to conform to Assyria, and he even worships their gods and shuts the temple. He sacrifices one of his children to a false god. Contrastingly, God gives his son for us.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 15, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 15 we have the chapter of seven kings. Here they are:Uzziah, also known as Azariah, 10th Monarch of JudahZechariah, 14th king of IsraelShallum, 15th king of IsraelMenahem, 16th king of IsraelPekahiah, 17th king of IsraelPekah, 18th king of IsraelJothan, 11th monarch of JudahIn this chapter we discuss not only these kings, but the growing Assyrian force in the north, and mention the ministry of Jonah which occurred at the beginning of this period, plus the meaning of some of the names of these men.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 14, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 14 Amaziah becomes the ninth monarch, and the eighth king of Judah, and weirdly becomeos antagonistic towards the northern nation of Israel. The two nations have gotten along for so long, all through the reigns of the last 5 or 6 kings from the time of Jehosaphat, so why this sudden antagonism?This video will consider the name for Jerusalem - the city of Peace, which has been a long one troubled with war. Here is one of the many sackings of Jerusalem. How does this city have such a name?After this, we cover King Jeroboam II, the thirteenth king of Israel and the fourth king of the fifth dynasty. The first Jeroboam was probably considered a hero of some type and maybe a national figure. We see the name Jeroboam as a bad name, but the Bible we have wasn’t written yet or seen that way at the time. And finally, Jonah here gets a mention outside of the book of Jonah.There were many prophets in Israel, we have written prophets like Ezekiel and Isaiah and we know little about their lives. We have narrative prophets like Elijah and we know about what they did, but have no written prophecies like we do for Jeremiah. Jonah is a major figure in Israel, but his life and writings only take a small place in the Bible.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 13, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 13 we discuss Jehoahaz, and Jehoash and the first of the Assyrian incursions into Israel - the nations are beginning to invade as prophesied.We discuss what Asaph wrote in Psalm 79….And the post death resurrection miracle of Elisha… his second resurrection.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 12, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 12 this video considers the boy king Joash and his idea for a money box to repair God’s temple… except he is about 30 when he has that idea, he is no longer a child.The high priest JEhoida is kind to Joash, but Joash pays him back by murdering his son Zechariah… why? Joash is a good king when he has good friends, but is easily influenced by those around him. What can we learn from this?

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 11, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 11 we meet Athaliah becomes the first and only queen, and the seventh monarch of Judah. She is actually from the north, of the house of Ahab. She destroys even her own grandchildren in an attempt to consolidate the throne. This was an attempt by the devil to remove the line of David. What of the promise to David that he would “never fail” to have a man sit on the throne.How is that true, now that there is a woman, not of Judah, on the throne. This video answers the question. David wrote Psalm 146:10 which says “​​The Lord reigns forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Praise the Lord.” So what of God’s promises. We learn that they never fail, but also that God often thinks of them in a quite different, and much greater way than we do.This video also covers the reverse-coup - to put the right king back on the throne, and the removal and death of Athaliah. The name of Athaliah means “the Lord’s time” and it was now the Lord’s time to remove her. Joash becomes the 8th monarch and the 7th king of Judah…. At seven years old… think of a seven year old…. My son Silas just turned 7.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 10, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 10 we discuss... Ahab’s Seventy sons. Gideon also had seventy sons, which were all killed except one by Abimelech, another son of a concubine of Gideon’s. The only son who escaped was Jotham. Now the seventy sons of Ahab will all be killed. None will escape. Ahab’s daughter Athaliah. Was she also Jezebel’s daughter?Did Jesus descend from Jezebel? What did Josephus say? Jehu’s pretence ot be a Baal enthusiast and how he turned the altar of Baal into a toilet. Archaeology has found similar altar latrines at Laschich. Jehu is an improvement on Ahab, but he takes the nation back to the palace it was with Jeroboam, which is still not good.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 9, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 9 Elisha sends a man to anoint Jehu - the third of the tasks given to Elijah before his death is now completed. We see the generational nature of God’s commands at work here. At Peace the Lord gave John Alley a promise and a command. He was to “take an aposotolic message to the nations” and along with that the promise, that “this message will change the nations.”Now we find that a second generation of people at Peace have committed themselves to this command and promise. God’s work often isn’t just for one person, and in the same way that Christ redeems the nations through his people, so our tasks is often for us and those after us together.Jehu is the tenth king of Israel, and the first king of the fifth dynasty. When David was anointed King - he dared not touch the previous King. Now Jehu is about to kill that previous king, but in this instance it's ok because the Lord commanded it. However, Jehu ends up going way beyond his commission and takes it to horrific levels.The prophet Hosea wrote in 1:4-5 “Then the Lord said to Hosea, “Call him Jezreel, because I will soon punish the house of Jehu for the massacre at Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of Israel. 5 In that day I will break Israel’s bow in the Valley of Jezreel.”The house of Jehu was to last 5 kings and this prophecy of Hosea was during the reign of Jeroboam II, the fourth of the five kings. And in this chapter Jezebel is thrown out a window, but not before putting on her mascara.This is one of only a few places in the Bible that mentions mascara - another translation says she “painted her eyes.” Elsewhere in Jeremiah 4:30 (TLB) it talks about Jerusalem saying “Why do you put on your most beautiful clothing and jewelry and brighten your eyes with mascara? It will do you no good! Your allies despise you and will kill you.”

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 8, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 8 there was a seven year famine which Elisha predicted - and sent away the Shunamite woman. This chapter covers her return, and the mysterious appearance of Gehazi who is supposed to be leprous.Elisha also goes to Syria - to Damascus - but why?We meet Hazael the terrible king of AramAnd we meet Jehoram the 5th king of Judah.And, Athaliah, Ahab’s nasty daughter from up north marries into the southern royal family bringin all sorts of complications… and future problems.And Ahaziah is the sixth king of Judah, and is the grandson of Ahab, believe it or not. Did you know that Christ is descended not only from David, but from Ahab, and quite possibly from Jezebel too?At this point the kings of north and south are relatives, and both families are Baal worshippers.This chapter covers a lot, and the politics of the two nations get much more interesting.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 7, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 7 Elisha’s prediction about the siege of Samaria comes true.An official challenges God not believing he can solve this problem and his challenge is answered.It doesn’t seem smart to challenge God. The story of the Titanic comes to mind in this type of thing. Saying “even if God was involved, could he ever do anything,” is the same as saying “God couldn’t do that.” For some reason God has at times responded to these challenges.Even God could not sink the Titanic…. right? Mussolini’s Challenge that God should kill him. The Italian newspaper who dared God to bring an earthquake, which came three days later and destroyed the city. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1908_Messina_earthquake

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 6, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 6 is the miracle of the floating axe head and the incredible lifting of the siege of Samaria. Elisha is prominent in both.In the siege a donkey's head became expensive - food was rare, and people were eating bird droppings.King Joram of Israel does not follow God, but has a connection with Elisha which is seen at times, including in this chapter. This chapter is only half the story which is setup for and completed in the next.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 5, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 5 we have a strange miracle of Elisha…. For a Gentile, Naaman. A number of miracles of Elisha are in the Galilee/Samaria part of the world, despised by Jews in the time of Jesus, but this next miracle is a full blown act of mercy offered to an idolatrous gentile.Jesus referred to it in Luke 4:27, during his sermon at Capernaum, for which he was almost killed. Why did the Lord extend grace to foreigners back then and not to “locals?” It often had less to do with how much someone knows, and more to do with the state of the heart.This video discusses the military victory of Naaman - which was given by God. And the slave girl he had who is not bitter at her slavery. And what about how clean the rivers are in Syria… we will consider that too? And why did Naaman have to dip… a symbol of baptism…. in the Jordan…. The same place that Jesus was baptised.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 4, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.2 Kings Chapter 4 contains 5 ‘mercy’ miracles of Elisha. This is a foreshadowing of Christ. Later Christ would do these things and do them even more profoundly. People who knew the stories of Elijah and Elisha who had the spirit of Elijah in him, saw that same Holy Spirit at work in Christ, but in much greater ways.Multiplying of oilThe pregnancy of the barren womenThe raising of the woman’s dead son - the second resurrection in scripture.The curing of the poison stewThe multiplying of the food to feed 100 people.The same spirit that raised Christ from the dead is in us… miracles are possible through us too by the power of Christ.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 3, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 3 we have King Jehoram and the battle with Moab and the account confirmed remarkably by the Mesha Stele discovery in the 1800’s. Moab rebels against Judah - who fights to retain it - with initial success but then the king of Moab resorts to spiritual tactics - sacrificing his son on the wall of the city.The Mesha stele and the Bible both agree that the Israel-Edom alliance was winning the battle until the king of Moab sacrificed his son. In our modern times, spiritual power derived from sacrifice seems mythical, and yet both nations who won and lost this battle agreed with the reality of this.Most commentators don’t understand the spiritual power of blood and sacrifice properly.Christ sacrificed himself and gave a greater better blood. Christ’s sacrifice was also voluntary and not forced. Christ’s sacrifice was able to turn the tables on Satan and redeem the world back to him, and also redeem its people.We also observe that the Mesha stele is in a type of phonecian script very similar to paleo-hebrew, showing that many of the people in the Levant area wrote a similar style.

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 2, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 2 Elijah leaves to go to Heaven in a spectacular heavenly chariot. What is more remarkable is that this is an event in the even more spiritual reality - and Elisha sees it. In the process Elisha picks up double the anointing/power that Elijah had.Only three people go to heaven in miraculous circumstances… one here.In this video we will talk about what qualified Elisha to get the double anointing.We will talk about why Elisha left teh JOrdan and then doubled back to the same place before leaving.We will mention the Essenes, and Qumran and the School of the Prophets.And why does Elisha go to Mt Carmel afterwards?And finally what about obtaining a double portion for yourself?

In this video listen to 2 Kings Chapter 1, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 2 Kings Chapter 1 King Ahaziah of Israel is sick and sends a messenger to Ekron, one of the cities of the Philistines to enquire of their god. Why is he going down to a PHilistine city, there to enquire of a false god? The result of this is that the Lord sends Elijah as a messenger to meet him on the way with a word of judgement. Ahaziah is only king for 2 years until he dies.Ahaziah is furious and wants to capture Elijah and sends a group of 50 men, who are very disrespectful to Elijah, and he calls down fire on them. This happens twice, but a third time the leader of the fifty men is humble and contrite and his life is spared. In the NT when James and John were annoyed with some of the people in Samaria, they wanted to call down fire on the village, but Jesus stopped them, and told them they were of another spirit.Their nickname “sons of thunder” comes from that moment. So why the difference? Why could Eliah call down fire, but Jesus didn’t allow it? There are differences which may explain. Firstly the Samaria in Elijah’s time was not indifferent, but antagonistic towards the Lord. They were intent on rescuing and destroying the Lord’s messenger. God had plans, and demonstrated his power through Elijah. But when Christ came, he came to demonstrate mercy.Christ wasn’t under threat, and the people of Samaria at that time were clueless about Jesus. Being antagonistic would have undermined their openness, which was considerable as demonstrated in John 4. The two circumstances were very different. Wisdom knows how to act in its time.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 22, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 22 The year before this it seems - Ahab an an alliance of about ten other kings battled against Shalmaneser III at Qarqar in Syria. The Assyrians were endeavoring to build an empire, but the alliance of kings defeated him for the moment or at least held it at bay. Now Ahab wants to attack a previous ally, and use the southern nation for help.They consult 400 prophets. But, these are not prophets of God/Yahweh, but prophets of other gods. One prophet Micaiah is a prophet of the Lord. According to the Jewish Midrash, Micaiah is one of four student prophets trained by Elijah the prophet. So this is a part of the Elijah story and not a rabbit trail. The discussion between the true and false prophets has caused all sorts of academic chaos. Does God lie to his prophets?Does God endorse lying? Does God cooperate with false prophets? This video explains no to all these questions. In the leadup to Donal Trump (US Presidents) reelection bid in 2020, about 70 current prophets on youtube predicted his return to power. In the days after the election when it was clear he had lost, many of the same prophets predicted the result would be overthrown. How can so many be so confident and so wrong?This isn’t to say that prophecy is wrong or that God doesn’t use prophets, but it seems that the same type of situation in Ahab’s time is at work now. This video talks about “yes men” prophets, and the importance of being open to the Lord’s voice, even if hard to hear. We talk about the approach to prophecy at Peace. Finally this video discusses Ahab’s death and the 55 kilometre ride with his dead body in teh chariot to the pool of Samaria, which can be seen today.This video also mentions Ahab’s ivory palace and his successor Ahaziah.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 21, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 21 despite following the baals, the northern nation, still acknowledges and has knowledge of the laws of God. This chapter outlines the story of Naboth’s vineyard in which the law of LEviticues 25:23 is broken by Ahab and Jezebel. Leviticus 25:23 says “the land must not be sold permanently.” Despite this, Jezebel forcibly takes this land of Naboth and gives it to her husband. Ahab’s great sin was in allowing Jezebel to do this.He “tolerated Jezebel” which the church in the city of Thyatira also did, in Revelations chapter 2. While he could not actually be responsible for her choices, because he could have resisted, he allowed it instead. He might have felt it was ok to do this by justifying that he hadn’t done anything wrong. Many people justify their actions. We saw earlier with King David, that he refused to participate in anything that even hinted of wrongdoing.Even cutting the corner off Saul’s robe grieved him. Imagine a church split where someone doesn't actively cause the split, but they celebrate it’s happening. Their love for the results indicate their heart was a participant and they approved of what happened. No amount of justification can make it ok. Repentance, humility and amends are required.Weirdly, he actually humbled himself and the Lord noticed. Ahab had the potential to be Israel’s only good king, but his humility didn’t seem to last.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 20, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 20 we have a funny chapter where God is working with Ahab out of patience for him, to show him who the true God is. He is however married to Jezebel which puts him in a tricky position. If Ahab wasn’t committed to Jezebel he may very well have become Israel’s only good king. Ahab is inside a besieged Samaria, but the Lord directs him to attack the sieging Syrians. It turns out they were drunk, so the Israelites win.After this the Lord continues to help Ahab. This isn’t only to demonstrate that he is God, but as Coffman suggests, because he is protecting Judah too, by retaining a buffer between them and the enemies of Israel. Many are not aware that God is the Lord of the nations. He is the Lord of all, and not only concerned with Israel only. Many Jews failed to realise this, but these chapters show that God was always wanting to teach the nations about himself, and provided many opportunities to do that.These nations and kings should have realised that there was something more to Yahweh than they thought, but at the same time Israel and Judah didn’t help the Lord out much by not following him wholeheartedly and thereby weakening the example. After the Lord gives Ahab a second great victory, he spares the life of King Ben-Hadad and makes a very generous treaty with him.Ahab is a strange king. It's hard to explain a number of his choices.... This video suggests that the key to his weird behaviour is could be Jezebel.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 19, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 19 we properly meet the fiery Jezebel who wants to kill Elijah. Often in the NT we hear people refer to a Jezebel spirit and they think of this as some type of controlling influence, which Jezebel was. She however was determined and devoted to her false gods, just as Elijah was devoted to the Lord.Even after the sign of fire from the mountain she didn’t change her mind. Jezebel is the type of person who will fight the Lord regardless of what signs there are. In the NT in Revelation 2:20 in the letter to Thyatira, the Lord said “you tolerate Jezebel,” who leads people into sexual immorality. Sexual immorality was a part of the worship of those false gods.So Jezebel as a symbol is much more than control, but a devotion to immorality and idolatry, a devotion to false gods and serving them. What might JEzebel look like in the Body of Christ today? Elijah feels for his life, struggles with motivation, and wants God to kill him, just like Jonah, Jeremiah and Job.This video covers that, plus the five biblical suicides. Elijah handles his depression differently to many people as this video explains. We also discuss a conundrum. Why did it take Elijah 40 days to travel a distance of 400ish kilometres to get to Mt Sinai, normally a 12 day walk.We also discuss the voice of God and the three tasks Elijah was given, only one of which he completed, giving his successor the task of completing the other two.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 18, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 18 is the confrontation between Elijah and the prophets of Baal. Actually it is really the confrontation between Yahweh and Baal and it is no contest. Elijah is one of the key characters in the entire Bible. Even though he doesn’t write scripture like Moses, he is up there with Moses because he is responsible for a key turning point in spiritual thinking.At this point the worship of Baal - that is canaanite idolatry - is a fully sanctioned state religion, with 850 prophets. The previous terrible sin of Jeroboam was to mix worshipping the Lord with local practices, but technically it was still ‘kind of’ worshipping the Lord. Now with Jezebel’s encouragement, they have endorsed the complete turning away from the Lord.Thus the famine is in full swing to show Baal and Asherah powerless. The nation gathers at the base of Carmel, not the top as is popularly assumed. Afterwards, Elijah climbs Carmel, at elevation 546m to pray. The question before the people is not “Is Baal a God.” But “If Baal is God,” worship him. Yahweh is proved to be God. So here is a moment where Elijah demonstrates true monotheism to Israel.There IS no other God except Yahweh, whereas up to this point they have believed in multiple Gods and accepted Yahweh as one of them. Elijah isn’t just extolling that God is better than the other gods, but that He IS God. The other gods are not gods. This is a key moment in the Bible where the Lord is introducing a new idea collectively, which may have been known to individuals before. With Elijah is introduced, a whole new way of seeing God.The book of James says “Elijah was a man like us.” (James 5:17) We are able to walk with Christ and obtain answers to prayer in just the same way. Moses and Elijah are the clear two examples of God’s power at work in the Old Testament.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 17, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 17 against the backdrop of state sponsored canaanite idolatry, the Lord raises up Elijah. Baal worship was a worship of the “so called” god of storms. So the Lord sends a drought by Elijah’s word. The drought is severe so much so that God has to supernatural provide for Elijah. At first he goes to the brook Cherith, commonly believed to be Wadi Al Yabis in Jordan.Then he goes to Zarepheth in Sidon where he is cared for by a woman whose flour and oil miraculously fail to run out. Elijah foreshadows many of the incredible miracles that CHrist supercedes, such as the feeding of the 5000. While in Sidon, Elijah raises the woman’s boy back from death, the first resurrection in scripture. There are 8 normal resurrections in scripture, where people will die again, plus the resurrection of Christ which is a different type of resurrection.Christ never dies again. The number 8 represents new life, and is a fitting number to symbolised by how many resurrections there are. NOTE: According to some verbal traditions, the boy who was raised back to life, was the prophet Jonah who was to go to Nineveh, and the son of Amittai.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 16, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 16 more crazy transitions of kingship happen in Israel. Elah is the fourth king of divided Israel, and the second king of the second dynasty. He is assassinated while drunk by Zimri, who becomes the fifth king of divided Israel, and the first king of the third dynasty. He only reigned a week, but in that time he completely killed the whole house of Elah of Bashan.His was the shortest reign, and the shortest dynasty. Omri beseiges Tirzah, and Zimri commits suicide, so Omri is the sixth king, and the first king of the fourth dynasty. By this point in Israel we have had 6 kings and 4 dynasties. Crazy!!! Because the old palace at Tirzah was burned in fire by Zimri in his suicide. Omri now moves the capital to a new place, rather than rebuilding the old palace.Samaria is where we get the name Samaritans from. After Omri, Ahab his son becomes the 7th king of Israel and the second king of the fourth dynasty. Ahab married Jezebel who pushes pure Canaanite idolatry and it becomes state sponsored religion.At this point we now have all types of religion at work - True monotheism following the Lord - Syncretistic worship of the golden calves which “kind of” follows the Lord - Canaanite idolatry - A Samaritan religion also emerges which only holds to the Pentateuch.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 15, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 15 the Bible really starts moving through the kings. We have Abijam (sometimes called Abijah), King number 2 of Judah after the division, who was evil. Then we have Asa, king 3 of Judah. In the north we have Nadab, king 2 of Israel after the division, and then a new dynasty with Baasha. Baasha is king 3 of Israel, and king 1 of the second dynasty.Baasah assassinated Nadab and every man in his family just as the prophet Ahijah said in the previous chapter. These family assassinations become very common in Israel, the northern nation as time progresses. In this chapter, weirdly, both Asa here and Abijam above seem to have the same mother but they are actually father and son.This is because often words explaining fathers or mothers etc can mean direct or more distant ancestors. Josephus clears this up by explaining that Maacah was the granddaughter of Absalom, via Tamar, not the daughter, and in like manner, She was the mother of Abijam, and the grandmother of Asa.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 14, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 14 King Jeroboam the first sends his wife in disguise to the prophet Ahijah to find out what will happen to their sick son. This is a bit like a child who covers their eyes and thinks that the other person cannot see them. The result is that a word of judgement comes from the prophet declaring the entire family of Jeroboam will be cut off.The little boy dies, and incredibly according to the mercy of God, we will meet him in Heaven one day. Or at least those who love Christ will meet him. A shift is taking place now of emphasis in the Bible. The first few kings were described in great detail, and the prophets were briefly mentioned. Now the kings will be less mentioned and the role of the prophets amplified.Here the entire reign of Jeroboam, twenty-two years in total is less than one chapter, and apart from a few notable kings after this, such is the manner of it now. This chapter also discussed Rehoboam who paid off Shoshenq I Pharaoh of Egypt with tribute to stop him attacking Jerusalem. Shoshenq (or Shishak) was the first Pharaoh of the 22nd dynasty. After the nation split into two nations, they never regained strength after the division.Jesus said in Matt 12:25 that every nation divided against itself cannot stand. So we see here that they became weaker, and it was now a process of decline until both nations were conquered by others. In families, when there is divorce or disagreement the family becomes weak in many ways, resulting in poor finances, poor harmony, poor life for children, worse education and much more.The same is true of churches. Such is why God gives good leaders, and we must give our heart to them, so with one heart we will be strong and find grace.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 13, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 13 an unnamed man of God confronts Jeroboam at Bethel. HIs name was Jadon according to Josephus. He rebukes Jeroboam for starting a new religion and predicts a coming King Josiah who will take action against the northern nation. Josiah wasn’t going to reign for almost three hundred years, so this is a true prophecy. The distance from Bethel to Jerusalem on Google maps is just 19.6 kilometres, so the man of God only had a short distance to travel.The Lord told him to return home immediately, not to eat or drink, and to return a different way. Yet another “old prophet” says the Lord commanded him to stop for a meal. He assumes the other man has a true prophecy, stops for a meal and then is killed by a lion on the way home.This must be one of the strangest stories in the Bible. A lion and the donkey are standing over the dead body of an unnamed prophet who said what God said to say, but didn’t do what God said to do. The lion is a symbol of God’s strength and the donkey a symbol of service and submission, plus peace. Is this an enacted prophecy? 1 Thess 5:20-21 it says to “test every prophecy”.Once you know that you have a true word from God, you can cling to it. People are wrong sometimes, so testing is important, and not trusting any word that comes along, but waiting for it to be confirmed by Christ. In any case the word of God is trustworthy and not to be overruled by online words, facebook words, or other words.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 12, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 12 the kingdom of Israel divides into two kingdoms called Israel and Judah. This is historically important to understand because when speaking of Israel, we must know which Israel we speak of as there are many, none of which are to be confused with the modern nation of Israel.The son of Solomon, King Rehoboam faces a revolt from day one The forced labor of his father Solomon wasn’t in God’s plan for the nation, and the tribes want it to stop. Repealing it would have been a good thing as it was never commanded by God. Rehoboam wants to prove he is more of a man than his father and says, “My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins.” He says he will increase their suffering. In this decision he loses ten of the tribes and the nation splits.Commentator Coffman said that growing up as a spoiled and pampered palace brat might not have helped Rehoboam. Children who grow up accustomed to privilege find it hard to appreciate what life is really like. This is why some wealthy men do not leave an inheritance for their children, but make them work for it.This is also why God, who calls us his sons and daughters, doesn’t just give us anything we want, but we have to grow into it through faith, prayer and learning to walk with him. The King of the northern nation of Israel is Jeroboam I. He said “it is too much for you to go to Jerusalem.” He wanted them to stay away to strengthen his political hold. So he instituted a new religion, with new priests, two new golden calves and a new festival.This was a terrible wickedness. Jerusalem is a picture of the church, which is even called “the new Jerusalem” in Revelation 21. We must make the effort to go to Jerusalem. When we opt for the easy out because it is “too much” we soon fall away. Some people say they can have church on their own, but the church IS the people. How can anyone have church without being with the people.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 11, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 11 we see that all that glitters isn’t necessarily gold. Solomon doesn’t follow the example of his father David, and like a mouse goes after the baited mousetrap, disobeying the law against accumulating wealth and women. He ends up with 300 wives and 700 concubines who lead him astray.There are somewhat modern equivalents to Solomon: - King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia had 30 wives and 35 children - Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia had 22 wives and 115 children. - Genghis Khan had more than 500 concubines - Moroccan King, Ismail Sharif in the 1700’s had over 2000 concubines and 1042 children... a world record according to Guinness. One of his concubines was Lalla Balqis a Englishwoman kidnapped by pirates while enroute to Barbados. Solomon built places of worship for his wives gods including the terrible Molech and Chemosh.This angered the Lord. Why does Solomon do these things? After the Lord gave him everything, why did he go after other gods? It's hard to understand. It seems that unlike other pagan kings who worshipped gods from more powerful nations, he has turned to gods from nations less powerful, and nations that were conquered by his father David. This is best understood in my opinion by taking the bible literally... Solomon “loved” many foreign women.The influenced him because his heart went after them, and he worshipped their gods because they wanted him to. A clear example of this would be Pharaoh’s daughter. Solomon seems to be trying to copy his empire on what Egypt was. He is trying to be like the other nations, rather than trying to be like what the Lord commanded in the law. Thus Solomon was not a monotheist, or even a henotheist like Abraham and Jacob, but a polytheist.He worshipped God as the god of Israel, but also worshipped other gods. Wealth is an x-ray which shows the heart. Give any person a billion dollars and what will come out is what they love. A heart test can be done by saying to someone (even yourself), what would you do if I gave you a billion dollars right now? Once they start talking about all the fabulous things they would, buy and do, you see what they love. A giant ship cruising across the ocean cannot be turned quickly.So as the heart of the king changes, the nation seems to keep on going “fine”, but all is not fine. The turning of the king will be seen in the generations to come. And so is cultural change in our day and nations too. We need to push into prayer to bring a turning back to Christ, which is something that often works itself out over time, even with revivalism at work it still is a time consuming process that takes generations. Solomon ruled for 40 years. Forty is a symbol of testing.Perhaps this time they failed the test.

In this video listen to 1 Kings Chapter 10, read by David Alley, followed by comments and prayer.In 1 Kings Chapter 10 a very great caravan which according to Ethiopian legend had 797 camels, came from Sheba to visit Solomon. When we do things God’s way, it leads to a place where it gets the world’s attention. A society run the way the Lord intends is very transforming and wonderful. According to Ethiopian legend - The queen stayed with Solomon six months, and the Queen had a son called Menilek to Solomon after returning home.Jewish legends also has a similar story saying Solomon and The Queen had a child. This child became the king of Ethiopia. Many modern scholars think the Queen came from Sheba and connect that with modern Yemen, and yet Josephus the historian said she came from Ethiopia. Jesus called her the Queen of the South, which could refer to either place, but Ethiopia is more south, than Yemen. Just as David had a good part of his life and a bad part, so Solomon.The difference was that David’s bad part was the consequences which followed one terrible choice, whereas Solomon’s terrible part had no consequences in his lifetime and consisted of many terrible choices. So what is better, consequences now that we notice, or no consequences now? Solomon’s life ended full of disappointment despite having had everything he wished.Both the Song of Solomon and the book of Ecclesiasters demonstrate that he didn’t not follow his own wisdom as recorded in the book of Proverbs.