Faith Works Summer Devotions

Introduction: · God’s People are now divided: The Northern Kingdom is usually called “Israel” (also Samaria or Ephraim) and the Southern Kingdom “Judah” (also Jerusalem). Israel has no “good” kings. Judah has only a few. · God raises up prophets to indict and convict the people for breaking both the covenant as well as His commands. The Ten Commandments are organized into two “tables.” The first table deals with right relationship with God. Sadly, the Israelites often falter here and worship many idols. The second table emphasizes right relationships with others, because justice, integrity, and truth matter to God. The people typically fail at these too. God appoints prophets to challenge the religious and political leaders. This makes them unpopular figures in their own day and age. · These prophets are usually categorized into “major” and “minor.” This does not have to do with their importance or reliability, but rather their length. · The prophets are some of the of the most misunderstood and overlooked bo