Structure of Kings

Peter J. Leithart, April 05, 2005

In his fascinating, if sometimes eccentric book, The Unity of the Bible: Exploring the Beauty and Structure of the Bible, Duane Christensen suggests that 1-2 Kings (like much of the Bible) is structured by a series of embedded heptamerous chiasms ("wheels within wheels" he calls them; also "menorah" structures). Here's his analysis:

A. United monarchy, 1 K 1:1-11:43
B. Divided monarchy from Solomon to Elijah, 1 K 12:1-16:34
C. Elijah, 1 K 17:1-21:29
X. True and false prophets and death of Ahab, 1 K 22:1-53
C'. Elijah, Elisha to death of Jehu, 2 K 1:1-10:36
B'. Judah and end of N Kingdom, 2 K 11:1-20:21
A'. Josiah's reformation; apostasy and end of Judah, 2 K 21:1-25:30

The central section, 1 K 22, is itself chiastic:

A. Jehoshaphat and Ahab: joint venture 22:1-4
B. Inquiry of prophets, 22:5-6
C. Micaiah, 22:7-9
X. Prophetic conflict: Micaiah v. Zedekiah, 22:10-28
C'. Micaiah's prophecy fulfilled, 22:29-36
B'. Elijah's prophecy fulfilled, 22:37-38
A'. Ahab and Jehoshaphat: summary of reigns, 22:39-50

Again, the central section is chiastic:

A. Prophecy of Zedekiah: Go and prosper, 22:10-12
B. Micaiah repeats Zedekiah sarcastically, 22:13-15
C. Ahab demands truth, 22:16-18
X. Micaiah's vision of heavenly court, 22:19-22
C'. Yahweh puts lying spirit in Ahab's prophets, 22:23
B'. Zedekiah strikes Micaiah, 22:24-27
A'. Micaiah's prophecy: Ahab will not return, 22:28

By this account, a conflict of true and false prophecy is smack in the center of Kings, and the smack center of the smack center is the heavenly court to which the true prophet has access. This nicely matches Christensen's analysis of 1 Kings, again a series of embedded chiasms. The overall structure of 1 Kings is:

A. Death of David; Nathan aids succession, 1:1-2:46
B. Kingdom of Solomon, 3:1-11:40
C. Death of Solomon; Rehoboam, 11:41-43
X. Rehoboam and Jeroboam in conflict, 12:1-14:31
C'. Jeroboam I to Ahab, 15:1-16:34
B'. Ahab and Elijah, 17:1-21:29
A'. Prophetic conflict and death of Ahab, 22:1-53

This centers on chapters 12-14, which have chapter 13 at the center, the story of the old prophet and the man of god:

A. Rehoboam goes to Shechem, 12:1-19
B. Shemaiah confronts Rehoboam, 12:20-25
C. Sin of Jeroboam, 12:26-33
X. Old Prophet and Man of God, 13:1-32
C'. Jeroboam's sin becomes sin of house, 13:33-34
B'. Jeroboam inquires of prophet Ahijah, 14:1-20
A'. Rehoboam reigns over Judah, 14:21-31

At the center of the story of the old prophet and man of God is the lion's attack on the man of God from Judah. His less convincing analysis of 2 Kings centers on 14:23-29, which refers to Jonah's work during the reign of Jeroboam II.