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II Kings: In a Whirlwind Hardcover – May 29, 2019

by Alex Israel (Author)
4.9 4.9 out of 5 stars 21 ratings
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The Book of Kings narrates the turbulent history of Israel from the Temple's construction until its destruction and the national exile. In II Kings: In a Whirlwind, Bible educator Alex Israel brings the personalities, events, and messages of the Second Book of Kings to life. The reader will encounter Elisha, the extraordinary prophet and miracle maker, the bloody mutiny of Jehu, the terrible fall of Samaria and the exile of the Ten Tribes, the nail-biting tension faced by King Hezekiah as he withstands the great Assyrian siege of Jerusalem, the devastating idolatry of Manasseh, and the religious revolution of King Josiah. Using traditional and modern commentary, literary analysis, archaeology, and Near-Eastern history, this insightful volume leads the reader through the complex lines of the biblical narrative in an enthralling and readable commentary.
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  1. Part of series
    Maggid Studies in Tanakh
  2. Print length
    387 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Koren Pub
  5. Publication date
    May 29, 2019
  6. Dimensions
    6 x 1.5 x 8.5 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    1592644945
  8. ISBN-13
    978-1592644940
  9. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Koren Pub (May 29, 2019)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 387 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1592644945
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1592644940
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.2 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.5 x 8.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.9 4.9 out of 5 stars 21 ratings

About the author

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Alex Israel

Alex Israel

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Rabbi Alex Israel is an educator whose teaching over the past two decades has inspired thousands of students in the US, Israel and the UK to engage deeply

with Biblical texts. He teaches at Yeshivat Eretz Hatzvi and at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies where he is Director of Community Education and the Summer Program. An active writer, he also contributes regularly to Yeshivat Har Etzion's Virtual Beit Midrash.

Born and raised in London, Rabbi Israel moved to Israel in 1991 and gained rabbinic ordination from the Israeli Chief Rabbinate following several years of study at Yeshivat Har Etzion. Rabbi Israel holds degrees from London School of Economics, the Institute of Education, London, and Bar Ilan University. He has lectured widely at campuses and communities on three continents.

See www.alexisrael.org.

Author Q and A at Beliefnet.com

http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Judaism/I-Kings-Torn-in-Two.aspx

Customer reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars
4.9 out of 5
21 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Charlottekrn Bookfair
5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating!
Reviewed in the United States on July 26, 2019
Verified Purchase
Scholarly yet engaging, this informative work completes the II Book of Kings in the Jewish Bible. Elijah, Elisha, Jeremiah and other prophets of the ages determined to guide the kings of the Jewish nations. Kings who build, and kings who destroy, kings who are reverent and kings who are irreverent and in the midst of the often, opposing forces lay the Jewish people.
The author delivers an amazing, detailed and colorful work of the kings ranging from the mid 800s BCE to the destruction of Israel in the 700s BCE and to the Destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem in 580s BCE.
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Boston, MA
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent follow-up to the author's first commentary on Kings
Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2023
Alex Israel's commentaries on Kings (2 vol) are excellent. Both commentaries combine traditional and modern scholarship, and provide the reader with a fascinating view of the historical context in which the events in these books take place. These books set up the context in which Israel's prophets (E.g. Jeremiah and Isaiah) lived as well. So, you can go from reading the author's commentaries on Kings (both are highly recommended), to other splendid works (by the same publisher, Koren Pub) such as Binyamin Lau's Jeremiah: The fate of a prophet, having an understanding the overall historical context.
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Ben Rothke
5.0 out of 5 stars Superb commentary to better understand & appreciate Sefer Melachim
Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2020
Tanach is many things, but it certainly is not a history book. However, if it were a historical narrative, Sefer Melachim would be that book, as it provides a narrative to the bygone times of the Jewish people. In his remarkable two-volume set, I Kings: Torn in Two and II Kings: In a Whirlwind, Rabbi Alex Israel provides the reader with a dazzling opus that makes the many stories come alive.

The 47 chapters of Sefer Melachim provides a retrospective of the 400 hundred years of history from Shlomo to the Babylonian exile. Not a line by line commentary in the classic sense, the books focus on the main themes and ideas found in Sefer Melachim.

While the stories here occurred about 3,000 years ago, many of the issues and struggles are still quite relevant. In the narrative of King David and his General Yoav, Israel quotes that Talmud notes that if not for King David’s Torah study, Yoav would not have been successful in war. However, if not for Yoav’s efforts in battle, King David would not have been able to learn Torah. Quite relevant to the current environment in Israel.

Israel deals with all of the key themes in the entire narrative. He quotes both from traditional sources and also makes significant use of current sources, science, archeology, and more.

Occasionally, he offers some of his own insights that seem to push the envelope a bit. As my scholarly friend Meyer Mandel has imbued upon me, always check the original sources. When the author quotes from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer in reference to Eliyahu, I looked inside and indeed saw that he seemingly took a bit of license with the Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer.

Eliyahu and his student Elisha play prominent roles in Sefer Melachim. Israel does a superb job of explaining their personalities and perspectives and how they accomplished their tasks, in especially turbulent times.

The Land of Israel is central to the very core of Judaism. Furthermore, the author does an excellent job of showing the connection of the land to the history of Israel.

Sefer Melachim is one of the key books in Tanach. The stories detailed there play an essential role in the national collective of the Jewish people. Alex Israel has done a remarkable job, and these two volumes provide an invaluable reference to anyone who wants to understand Sefer Melachim better.
One person found this helpful
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Israel Drazin
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent history of ancient Israel
Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2019
Alex Israel’s new book on II Kings follows his book on the first half of the book of Kings, called I Kings. Both are excellent, easy to read, very thorough, very informative. The Book of Kings was broken into two parts because the Greek translation of the book around 200 BCE divided the book in two because it was too long for a single book, a convention that was accepted by Jews in 1517. II Kings is comprised of twenty-five chapters which follow the twenty-two chapters in I Kings.

I Kings covered the history of ancient Judah and Israel from the coronation of King Solomon in 967 BCE through the split of ancient Israel into two nations, Judah and Israel, because King Solomon’s son overtaxed the people as his father did, though the reign of King Jehoshaphat who died in 846 BCE. II Kings resumes the story and tells readers about the twelve kings of the northern kingdom of Israel from 846 BCE, ending in 721/722 BCE when the kingdom was destroyed, and the sixteen kings of the southern kingdom of Judah from 846 BCE until it was destroyed in 587/6 BCE. It describes the kings of the two nations, Judah and Israel, the politics, wars, and a significant problem of the era in both kingdoms, idolatry.

Alex Israel offers readers an explanation of each of the twenty-five chapters in II Kings, discussing each in turn, in an easy to read, comprehensive, and insightful manner. For example, while all the kings of Judah were descendants of David, the kings of the northern kingdom came from various tribes and repeatedly suffered untimely ends through bloody assassinations. Jeroboam’s son succeeded him but was assassinated by Baasha after ruling only two years. Baasha’s son followed him as king but was assassinated by Zimri after two years, and Zimri lasted only seven days.

Quite a few chapters in I Kings as well as II Kings deal with the famed prophet Elijah, the only prophet who resigned his prophetic position, an overly-zealous man, who begged God to kill him, who is described with great insight by Alex Israel. The biblical Elijah is radically different than the kind and helpful Elijah known through post-biblical legends. II Kings describes the death of Elijah, when he was taken to heaven in a whirlwind, generally understood as a metaphor for his death. He was followed as a lead prophet by Elisha.

Chapters 1-2 completes the stories about Elijah. Chapters 2-8 relate the tales of Elisha. Chapters 8-17 has the history of the kings of the two nations, with 17 telling about the fall of the northern kingdom and 18-25 about the last kings of Judah, the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem, and the fall of the kingdom, and exile to Babylon.

The history of these kings of Israel as well as the kings of Judah is a fascinating tale, especially with Alex Israel’s explanations of the events. Readers will enjoy and learn much from this book.
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