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by James Thomas Jr. Lee (Author)
This text was not written to show how much better the godly kings were than the ungodly kings. It was not written to try to show that God had loved the children of Israel more than the people of all of the other nations. To the contrary, this text was written to show that, in some instances, the godly kings did some things that were just as bad as any of the ungodly kings of Israel. It was written to show that the Lord loved the people who opposed the children of Israel just like He loved the children of Israel. The notion that He had showed special favor to one type of people over another is not scriptural. God has always loved all of the people of His Creation even if He has not always loved everything that they have done. He has also always loved all of the people of His Creation even when they have not loved Him back. So it is hoped that those truths will be evident to those who reads this book.
In the pages that follow, four truths will be emphasized. The first is that the Old Testament saints were not continually indwelled by the Holy Spirit in the same way as the New Testament saints. That means that they did not have the same advantages in trying to live for the Lord. The second is that the scriptures do not and were not intended to share exhaustive details about everything and everyone within their historical presentations. That means that they might share a very negative event about a godly king, without trying to offset it with a positive event. The scriptures were written to show the Lord's involvement with humanity and to show people how to find Him. They were not written to say that the godly kings really were godly. The third truth, that will be shared is that all people are sinners. So one should not expect too much from the godly kings of Israel. The fourth truth is that they did not lose their salvation even though some of them did some pretty bad things. So with those few thoughts, it is hoped that the readers of this text will find it instructive and educational. It is important for the saints of God to study the scriptures so that they can grow in the Lord. But in addition to that, it is also a lot of fun to study history. It is fascinating to see, who had lived, when, and what they were doing. So this text was written for some of those purposes, too. But ultimately, everything in this book is to bring praise, honor, and glory to the Lord because He is worthy of all praise. There is one note, however, to be made with respect to the organization of this text before concluding this Introduction. Something that the reader might find useful is boxes throughout that show the different passages that are being referenced at the times and in the places where they are being referenced. That way, he or she will not have to jump all over the place or get into or out of the scriptures to locate a particular reference. Hopefully that inclusion will help the reader in trying to understand the various events and to also quickly put them into their right context. So it is hoped that that addition will make this text easier to read and that the Lord will receive the praise, honor, and glory that He rightfully deserves.
