Some years back, I was flying to South Africa to visit friends and family. Approaching Johannesburg’s O.R Tambo airport, as my plane was on its holding pattern, I took a look outside, and my mind was not prepared for what I saw. It suddenly dawned to me that of all the time I have spent in Johannesburg, I had never paid attention to how the townships and all other locations in the city join together.
While most things looked the same from the sky, you could still see the urban planning results with all its sociopolitical ramifications. One could argue that a bird’s eye view of Johannesburg or any other city or idea can potentially elucidate one’s understanding of the subject matter in question.
Just like my great bird’s eye view epiphany while waiting to land in Johannesburg, one can also see and understand things more fully when viewing the scriptures from a bird’s eye view. It’s one thing to read through the story of Israel from the separation to the Assyrian Exile, and quite another to see the story from a bird’s eye view. A bird’s eye view of Israel has a way of simplifying the story, magnifying the state of the nation, and clarifying the reason they ended up in captivity.
Click here to download a chart of the Kings of Israel. When you consider its contents, here are two things that will stand out to you.
- When you compare the chart of Israel with that of Judah, you will realize that both nations had 20 kings before they went into captivity. But Unlike Judah, Israel had a series of bad kings, and they went through their kings quicker than their neighbours.
- There was a lot of murder and palace conspiracy in Israel than there was in Judah.
There is undoubtedly much to learn and understand as one takes a bird’s eye on Israel. But one thing that the bird’s eye view has magnified and engraved into my understanding is that active rebellion against God corrupts and deteriorates a nation. This idea was true of Israel of old as it is true of us today. We might come up with words, phrases, and ideas to cast our rebellion in a positive light, but we will quickly come face to face with the gradual deterioration of the nation’s moral fibre. It comes with no great surprise that the words of Isaiah the prophet continue to echo true throughout time; “For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish; it will be utterly ruined” (Isaiah 60:12).
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