The Books of Samuel/Kings
Sep. 4th, 2006 11:15 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
pasitheaOn Saturday, I read through both books of Samuel and the first book of Kings, or the first 3 books of Kings, depending on what you label them. (I'm sure they have a different name in the Torah just to add more confusion)
God becomes smaller, sulkier, grumpier. He lives in his box and makes vague predictions about what will happen to people if they don't obey him and often doesn't follow through on these threats.
One thing I find really interesting about these books is that God is no more brutal to people that go off and worship 'pagan gods' than he is to people who stay and worship him. The faithful Samuel and David really fair a bit worse than Saul and Solomon who go off and worship other gods. Solomon in particular has a huge kingdom with lots of money and luxury, 700 wives, and he outright builds temples to other gods and worships them pretty openly. God makes some vague threat that he'll punish Solomon's childen but doesn't specify which ones and says they'll still have a kingdom. Oh... No... I mean so far in the book, no one family has really had their power last beyond one generation.
So yesterday, taking a cue from Solomon and most of the rest of the hebrew in the book of kings, I cast the bible aside and went and hung out with Ashtoreth instead and it was way more fun. She didn't even ask me to set any goats on fire. We bought some 'strong drink' and watched The Aviator and V for Vendetta. Quite a fair bit more fun than this book. Though I suppose, I'll get back to it now and see what other tediums it has in store for me.
God becomes smaller, sulkier, grumpier. He lives in his box and makes vague predictions about what will happen to people if they don't obey him and often doesn't follow through on these threats.
One thing I find really interesting about these books is that God is no more brutal to people that go off and worship 'pagan gods' than he is to people who stay and worship him. The faithful Samuel and David really fair a bit worse than Saul and Solomon who go off and worship other gods. Solomon in particular has a huge kingdom with lots of money and luxury, 700 wives, and he outright builds temples to other gods and worships them pretty openly. God makes some vague threat that he'll punish Solomon's childen but doesn't specify which ones and says they'll still have a kingdom. Oh... No... I mean so far in the book, no one family has really had their power last beyond one generation.
So yesterday, taking a cue from Solomon and most of the rest of the hebrew in the book of kings, I cast the bible aside and went and hung out with Ashtoreth instead and it was way more fun. She didn't even ask me to set any goats on fire. We bought some 'strong drink' and watched The Aviator and V for Vendetta. Quite a fair bit more fun than this book. Though I suppose, I'll get back to it now and see what other tediums it has in store for me.
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Date: 2006-09-04 09:00 pm (UTC)As for the word that thou has spoken unto us in the
name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee.
But we will certainly perform every word that is gone
forth out of our mouth, to offer unto the Queen of Heaven,
and to pour out drink-offerings unto Her, as we have done,
we and our fathers, our kings and our princes, in the cities
of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem; for then had we
plenty of food, and were well, and saw no evil.
But since we let off to offer to the Queen of Heaven,
and to pour out drink-offerings unto Her, we have wanted
all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by
the famine.
-- Jeremiah 44:16-18
She MAY be looking out for her own...