Introduction

In this paper the researcher would like to divide in difference section such as
Meaning and definition of monarchy, the Foundation of Monarchy in Israel nation. Also the
division and Theological understanding of Monarchy.

1. Etymology of Monarchy
1.1. Meaning of Monarchy

Monarchy is a political system in which supreme authority is vested in the monarchy,

an individual ruler who function as head of state. It typically acts as a political-administrative
organization and as a social group of nobility known as “court society”.1

1.2. Definition of monarchy

It is generally believed that a monarchy is a political system in which a single person

holds the supreme authority in ruling a country, and there are different types of Monarchy. 2In
the book of Republic by Plato, the monarchy did not belong to the four Classical political
systems. In the book of Politics by Aristotle, the monarchy was Discussed in detail.
According to Aristotle, there were five types of political systems, and the monarchy was one
of them. The difference between monarchy and tyranny depended on whether the throne was
inherited or elected, whether the king ruled by law or not, whether the power of the king was
restricted or not. In Aristotle’s view, there was no essential difference between monarchy and
tyranny, and it only depended on how the King used his power.3

2. The Establishment of the Monarchy

2.1. The Reason for Establishment of the Monarchy

According to the biblical text, the main incentive for the establishment of the
monarchy was the desire of the Israelites to emulate the political system of their neighboring
countries; and from another perspective, it was hoped that the establishment of the monarchy
would end the chaos of the era of the (Judges.59: 1; Samuel 8:5) contains a documented
request of the people: “Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.” The Israelites
were eager to have a political system that was similar to the one their neighbors had;

1
Joseph Kostiner, Monarchy Government https://www.britannica.com/topic/monarchy (accessed on
29/1/23).
2
A S Hornby, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (New York:Oxford University Press,2010),989.
3
Tuo Wang, The significance of Hosea 13:11: A Study of the Monarchy in Ancient Israel (Berrien
Springs: Andrew’s University, 2022), 28.

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unfortunately, but they turned a blind eye to the defects and flaws of this political system.
Although Samuel attempted to persuade them and told explain to them the inherent problems
and deficiencies of the monarchy, the desire for a new political system surpassed everything.4

From a historical perspective, Israel had been repeatedly oppressed by pagan

nations during the era of the (Judges.6:1). In the opinion of Israelites, the theocracy was not
successful; otherwise, they would not deny God as their king. In the book of Judges, the most
classic evaluation of the era of the Judges is: “In those days there was no king in Israel;
everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25).5

2.2. Role, Function and Important of the Monarchy

In examining the broader biblical corpus three important observations regarding the
development of the monarchy in Israel may be recognized. The first being “the fundamental
tenant of Israelite faith that Yahweh himself is the Great King , second that “Israel’s
traditions are replete with anticipations of a time when Israel would have a (human) king”
and lastly instructions were given “about the form that kingship was to take”. Proceeding
from these observations, an equation can be identified as existing “between the kingdom of
God and the kinship of Israel.” This may be seen in that the “monarchy was meant to be
representative from the beginning” wherein “God would continue to function as the true
King” and the human king was to be an/His “agent of government.” 6

3. The Foundation of Monarchy in Israel

3.1. The Reigns Saul

The extent of Saul’s kingdom was greater than is generally realised: the campaigns
noted in (1 Sam. 14:47ff.; 15:1-9) indicate the reestablishment of the frontiers with the
nations mentioned; Samuel’s visit to Bethlehem (1Sam. 16:1-13) indicates Saul’s control of
the area south of Jerusalem, a fact confirmed by the ease with which Saul’s troops pursued
David throughout the territory of Judah (1 Sam. 23:14, 19-29; 24 etc.). Not until David
defected to Gath was lie safe from Saul’s reach (1 Sam. 27:1-4). The medium at Endor, north

4
Michael D. Coogan, The New Oxford Annotated Bible (Hongkong: Oxford University Press, 2010),
452.

5
Arthur E. Cundal and Leon Morris, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: Judges and Ruth (Taipei:
Campus Evangelical Fellowship Press, 2002), 202.
6
Bill T. Arnold, and Bryan E. Beyer, Encountering the Old Testament: A Christian Survey. 3rd. ed.,
(Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2015), 236.

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of the Esdraelon valley, accepted Saul’s authority over her area (1 Sam. 28), whilst the
subsequent importance of Mahanaim as the Centre of Ishbosheth’s kingdom (2 Sam. 2:8),
together with the action of the men of Jabed-gilead (1 Sam. 30:1) suggest firm control of
Trans-jordania. The Philistine menace on Saul’s entire western flank continued throughout
his reign, and the references to battles and troop movements at the end of his reign (1 Sam.
28:4; 29:1; 30) may indicate Philistine control of the vital Esdraelon valley itself, which
possibly Saul was challenging.7

3.2. The Reigns of David

He was accepted as the king of Judah and established his capital at Hebron (2 Sam.
2:1-4). When he had been a mercenary captain operating under Philistine control he used his
position to ingratiate himself with the rulers of Judah, both by harrying their southern
neighbours (1 Sam. 27:8-12) and by judicious gifts to potential supporters (1Sam. 30:26-
31).It is virtually certain that his rule over Judah was approved by his overlords the
Philistines, who had no reason to doubt his loyalty. They would also welcome the division of
Saul’s large and potentially dangerous kingdom. David seems to have made a tacit appeal to
Jabesh-gilead, in Trans-jordania, for its support (2 Sam. 2:5ff.), but to no avail, for Abner was
able to establish Ish-bosheth as king in this area (2 Sam. 2:8f.). The movement of the capital
of the northern kingdom to the eastern side of Jordan is probably indicative of increasing
Philistine pressure, if not actual occupation, west of the Jordan. There was, however, no
severance of the communication link between Judah and Ish-bosheth’s kingdom (2 Sam.
2:12, 29; 3:12).8

3.3. The Reigns of Solomon

Continuing the rule of the united monarchy upon David’s death, Solomon
successfully expands Israel’s borders, initiates international trade/contact, and engages in
multiple building projects, including the “privilege of building God’s temple in Jerusalem
“which originated from David. However, the reality of a “united monarchy was short lived
“as Solomon “after many years of relative faithfulness to Yahweh ... turned away to worship
other gods, under the influence of his foreign wives”. As a result, the division of the kingdom

7
Lemche, N P. Ancient Israel: a New History of Israelite Society (Sheffield:Sheffield Academic
Press,1998), 235.

8
Lemche, N P. Ancient Israel: a New History of Israelite Society (Sheffield:Sheffield Academic
Press,1998), 235.

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originally threatened in (1 Kings 11:11-13), comes to fruition at “the beginning of the reign
of Solomon’s son, Rehoboam.9

4. The Division of Monarchy

4.1. Reign of Jeroboam

Jeroboam, the first king of the ten-tribe kingdom of Israel, Was the son of a widow
and a promising young man. From the Human standpoint he had everything going for him.
When Solomon was busy fortifying Jerusalem he noticed Jeroboam’s Industrious ways and
promoted him to be in charge of the work Crews from Ephraim and Manasseh. But we see
that the king Was not alone in taking note of this young man. God also took Note of his
industry and ambition. God’s eye is upon the ways of Man and, more than that, He knows the
thoughts and desires of Every man’s heart. The Northern Kingdom quickly fell into religious
Apostasy under the reign of Jeroboam I and the nineteen Preceding kings due to their desire
to utilizes religion for Political gain/control.10

4.2. Reign of Rehoboam

Rehoboam was the son of Solomon. While Jeroboam in the North (Israel) created a
new cultic religion to replace the worship of the true God, we see something a little different
happening in Judah. In Judah the worship of the true God at the temple in Jerusalem was still
happening. In fact, because the worship at the temple was still happening we are told that the
Levites and the descendants of Aaron that lived in the North under Jeroboam left their homes
and land and moved to Judah where they continued to serve in the temple, Jerusalem and the
surrounding southern towns. However, along with the worship of the true God Rehoboam
also allowed the worship of false God’s, that Solomon had instituted to continue. This
worship of false God’s continued to grow stronger in Judah for the first four years of
Rehoboams reign. In vs. 17 of the passage above, it says that the Levites and the Priests
supported and strengthened Rehoboam for the first 3 years of his reign but as the influence of
the false worship strengthened, Rehoboam lost the support of the Levites and the Priests who
served the true God. God allows Shishak the king of Egypt to attack Rehoboam.11
9
Bill T. Arnold and Beyer E. Bryan, Encountering the Old Testament: A Christian Survey. 3rd. ed.,
( Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2015), 29.

10
Thompson, John Arthur, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: Deuteronomy (Taipei:Campus
Evangelical Fellowship Press, 2010). 243

11
Thompson, John Arthur, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: Deuteronomy (Taipei:

4
 5. Theological understanding of Monarchy
5.1. The True Eternal King

The monarchy established by David collapsed, and the United Kingdom was divided.
From the perspective of the covenant, the Northern Kingdom of Israel completely broke the
Sinaitic covenant, while the Southern Kingdom of Judah was much better. Although there
were some evil kings, the Southern Kingdom of Judah had a significant advantage in the
legitimacy of the kingship. First, from a particular certain perspective, the monarchy of the
United Kingdom was established in the name of David, so the kings of Judah, who were
descendants of David, had the irreplaceable legitimacy. Second, although some kings were
not loyal to God, Judah still held the covenant with God.12

The glory of David and Solomon did not last too long. The Kingdom of Judah had to
face a dilemma from the very beginning of the division of the United Kingdom, namely, the
narrow territory, the small population, Jerusalem, an essential fortress which was too close to
the borderline. Judah, with the declining national power, had to deal carefully with the
superpowers and struggle to survive in a complex international situation. The temple in
Jerusalem was still there, but things had changed totally. Because of the anarchy in religious
life, the ups and downs in the political sphere, and unceasing military endeavors, the people
of Judah gradually lost their hope. However, that was not the destiny God wanted to see.13

“In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne” (Isa 6:1). The
death of Uzziah played a vital role in this vision. Death was a symbol of the end. When the
human king died, the eternal King appeared on the throne. This contrast between mortal and
immortal presented a special significance in the theme of death (Isa 6:5). Isaiah was unclean,
and the whole nation was unclean, not only Uzziah but the whole nation died because it was
contaminated by sin. 14There was hope in despair, God’s people were destroyed because of
uncleanness, but they would reborn in ruin. 15When we put everything in a larger picture, the
answer becomes clear that Jesus is the king symbolized by David and returning to the House

Campus Evangelical Fellowship Press, 2010). 243

12
Paul Li, Tien Dao Bible Commentary (Hongkong: Tien Dao Publishing House, 2003), 314-315.

13
Guang Pan and Shaonan Chen and Jianhua Yu, The Jewish Civilization (Beijing: China Social
Sciences Press, 2000), 23.

14
John N. Oswalt, The Book of Isaiah 1-39 (The Expositor’s Bible Commentary; South Pasadena,
Kearnel of Wheat Christian Ministries, 2015), 365

5
of David means returning to God, thus the issue of the reunification of Israel as a nation is not
merely about politics but also an issue about salvation.16

5.2. Jesus and the Monarchy

In the Bible, Jesus was exposed to only two incidents that were related to the
monarchy: one was paying taxes to Caesar, the other was that people wanted to make Him
king by force. When Jesus was asked if it was lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, he replied, “Give
back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s” (Matt 22:21). Evidently, Jesus
paid the taxes. Except for taxation, there was no connection between Jesus and Caesar
Augustus. After feeding the five thousand, Jesus perceived that people were about to make
him king by force. The very fact that after feeding thousands of people. He withdrew to a
mountain by himself shows that the monarchy was not an option for Jesus.17

After the fall, the concept of salvation is mentioned in Genesis 3. Thus the choice of
the Israelites to be or not to be God’s people was closely related to the repeatedly given
promises, as for example, “Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all
nations on earth will be blessed through him” (Gen 18:18). Obviously, God’s choice of
Abraham’s descendants was to be not only a blessing to one nation, but to all humankind.
“You will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exod 19:6). Israel was
supposed to play an important role in the context of salvation. The national glory of Israel
was not the main focus of God, as there was no plan to make Israel this world’s superpower.18

There was a clear misunderstanding among people about the role of Israel in God’s
strategy and about the mission of Jesus. When Jesus was about to ascend to heaven, the
disciples asked, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel” (Acts 1:6). “You
shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to
Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8). When

15
Erics Voegelin, Israel and Revelation: Order and History, vol. 1., (Nanjing: Yinlin Press, 2010),
365.

16
Colin G. Kruse, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: The Gospel According to John (Taipei:
Campus Evangelical Fellowship Press, 2005), 371-373.

17
D. A. Carson, Matthew (The Expositor’s Bible Commentary; South Pasadena, : A Kearnel of Wheat
Christian Ministries, 2013), 601-603.
18
Andrew P. C. Kwong, Genesis, vol. 1., Tien Dao Bible Commentary (Hongkong: Tien Dao
Publishing House, 2010), 369.

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the Holy Spirit descended, the restoration of Israel started, but that was a completely different
Israel from the Old Israel.19

“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them….. just as the Son of Man
did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matt 20:25-
28). Obviously in the kingdom of God, there will be no positions characteristic to the
monarchy. “And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be
in it, and His servants shall serve Him...they shall reign forever and ever” (Rev 22:3-5).

6. Implication

The Israel people were not satisfied by what God is doing for them. Therefore they
were asking God to give them human ruler as other nation does. However human ruler are
not doing what God is willing. They searched popularity and name instead of God’s name.
Therefore God rejected the king and replace with another one. God also send the people
under other nation for their king are not obeying God. However, even though the king are not
obeying God’s will. The writer see that God’s send his only begotten son to rule. As a people
of God, should be satisfied for what God has blessed us and thankful for instead of asking
him more. God may bring some other nation to rule as like Israelites. It is to understand
God’s desire and His will. God may bring many troubles in life. So that his people come and
ask help form him. And even though, the people of Israel were not faithful God is always
faithful to Israel. He is only the King for them He never rejected them He always restore His
Kingdom.

Conclusion

In this research paper, the researchers has tries to understand the system of Monarchy,
especially to the nation of Israel. Monarchy is a political system that rule by one person. It is
established because Israel people were asking to God human ruler instead of Understanding
God himself is the ruler for them. The ruler should rule according to God's will and purpose.
However, the king were not ruling the nation as God’s will. Therefore many king were fall
from the position and God replaced another one. So that the Israel people will see the
greatness of God. However, as for us the Lord Jesus Christ has come and established His
kingdom in the heart of people and He is the true king who overcome the death. Therefore,
19
George Campbell Morgan, The Acts of the Apostles (Morgan’s Expository Series; Monterey Park:
Living Spring Publications, 2000), 45.

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the researchers will hope that after doing research this paper will give better understanding of
what is real monarchy.

Bibliography

Arnold, Bill T and Beyer E. Bryan. Encountering the Old Testament: A Christian Survey. 3rd.

ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2015.

Carson,D.A. Matthew. The Expositor’s Bible Commentary; South Pasadena, : A Kearnel of

Wheat Christian Ministries, 2013

Coogan, Michael D. New Oxford Annotated Bible. Hongkong: Oxford University Press,
2010.

Cundal, Arthur E and Leon Morris, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: Judges and Rut.
Taipei: Campus Evangelical Fellowship Press, 2002.
Hornby, A S .Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. New York: Oxford University
Press,2010.
Kruse, Colin G. Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: The Gospel According to John.
Taipei:

Campus Evangelical Fellowship Press, 2005.

Kwong, Andrew P. C. Genesis, vol. 1., Tien Dao Bible Commentary. Hong Kong: Tien Dao
Publishing House, 2010
Morgan, George Campbell. The Acts of the Apostles. Morgan’s Expository Series; Monterey

Park: Living Spring Publications, 2000.

Lemche, N P.Ancient Israel: a New History of Israelite Society. Sheffield: Sheffield

Academic

Press,1998.

Li, Paul. Tien Dao Bible Commentary. Hong Kong: Tien Dao Publishing House, 2003.

Oswalt, John N. The Book of Isaiah 1-39. The Expositor’s Bible Commentary; South
Pasadena,

8
 Kearnel of Wheat Christian Ministries, 2015

Pan, Guang and Shaonan Chen and Jianhua Yu, The Jewish Civilization. Beijing: China
Social

Sciences Press, 2000.

Thompson, John Arthur, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: Deuteronomy. Taipei:

Campus Evangelical Fellowship Press, 2010.

Voegelin, Erics. Israel and Revelation: Order and History, vol. 1. Nanjing: Yinlin Press,
2010.

Wang, Tuo. The significance of Hosea 13:11: A Study of the Monarchy in Ancient Israel.

Berrien Springs: Andrew’s University, 2022.

Net- Source

Kostiner, Joseph Monarchy Government https://www.britannica.com/topic/monarchy .

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 Table of Contents

Introduction

1. Etymology of Monarchy
1.1. Meaning of Monarchy
1.2. Definition of Monarchy
2. The Establishment of the Monarchy
2.1. The Reason for Establishment of the Monarchy
2.2. Role, Function and Important of Monarchy
3. The Foundation of Monarchy in Israel
3.1. The Reign of Soul
3.2. The Reign of David
3.3. The Reigns of Solomon
4. The Division of Monarchy
4.1. Reign of Jeroboam
4.2. Reign of Rehoboam
5. Theological Understanding of Monarchy
5.1. The True Eternal King
5.2. Jesus and Monarchy
6. Implication

Conclusion

Bibliography

Net- source

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 Kor-in Theological College & Seminary
Vadagur: Kembodi Post
Kolar, South India

Research Paper
On
“ Theology of Monarchical Era”

Submitted to;
Prof, Zachamo T Ovung

In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the course of ;

“Biblical Theology”

Date Submitted: /2/23

11
 Actual Page : 8 Page

Submitted by
Naw Lizar Htun
B. Th -3rd year

12