3rd- 5th Grade February 2, 2014 9:30am
Leader BIBLE STUDY God s people had a history of disobeying God. Sin separated them from God. But man was created to know and love God, and God was working out a plan to bring His children back to Himself. Like any good father, God knows that disobedience needs to be punished. For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, just as a father, the son he delights in (Prov. 3:12). God sent prophets to the people of Israel. He helped the prophets know what to say. The prophets warned the people to turn from their sins and obey God. Many times, the prophets told what God was going to do in the future. Sometimes God s people listened to the prophets. Some of the Israelites repented and followed God. But a lot of them did not. The Israelites and the kings who led them did not worship the one true God. Instead, they worshiped idols people and things that were not God. God had been very patient with the Israelites. He had helped them in times of trouble and had delayed their punishment because He is gracious and compassionate. (2 Kings 13:23) But many years passed, and God knew His people would not love Him with all their hearts. God had had enough of His people s sinning. They wouldn t listen to Him, so He allowed their enemies to send them into exile. The king of Assyria attacked Israel and laid siege to Samaria. Assyria captured Samaria and forced the people to leave the city. The Northern Kingdom of Israel was destroyed, just as God had said it would be, and the people were scattered. (1 Kings 14:15) Israel s exile was God s judgment on their sin. As you teach, point kids to Jesus, who took our punishment for sin as our substitute. Our sin warrants our separation from God, but Jesus died to bring us back to Him forever. 1 Older Kids Bible Study Leader Guide Unit 13 Session 5
Older Kids Bible study OVERVIEW Session Title: The Northern Kingdom Was Destroyed Bible Passage: 2 Kings 17:1-23 Big Picture Question: Why did God scatter His people? God s people sinned against Him. Key Passage: 2 Kings 17:13-14 Unit Christ Connection: The prophets called God s people to repentance as Christ calls people to repentance. Sin continued to divide and ultimately destroy the Northern Kingdom, but Christ s perfect kingdom is forever.
The BIBLE story The Northern Kingdom Was Destroyed 2 Kings 17:1-23 Hoshea (hoh SHEE uh) was the last king of Israel, the Northern Kingdom. King Hoshea did very evil things, but he still wasn t as evil as the kings who ruled Israel before him. One day, the king of Assyria and his army attacked Israel. Hoshea had kept peace with Assyria by paying the king to leave Israel alone. Hoshea had to do whatever the king of Assyria told him to do. Instead of asking God to help His people, Hoshea secretly talked to the king of Egypt. Hoshea asked the king of Egypt to protect Israel from Assyria. Now that Hoshea had a deal with Egypt, he stopped giving money to the king of Assyria. The king of Assyria arrested Hoshea and threw him into prison. Then Assyria s army invaded Israel. The army surrounded the city of Samaria, the capital of Israel. Samaria had a strong wall around the city. For three years, the Assyrians attacked the city. They did not let anyone bring supplies into the city. Finally, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and forced the people to leave their homes. He bound them together with ropes and hooks, and he made them walk hundreds of miles to Assyria. God allowed His people to be exiled because they had sinned against Him. Even though God had rescued the Israelites from slavery in Egypt and had taken care of them, they forgot about God. They acted in the same way as the nations who did not know and love God. They worshiped people and things that were not God, and they did exactly what God told them not to do. God warned His people through the prophets to stop doing evil things but they did not listen. The prophets said bad things would happen if they did not obey God. When the people heard this, they sinned even more! God had had enough. He was angry with His people because of their sin. God punished the people of Israel by letting their enemies take over and force them out of their homes. 3 Older Kids Bible Study Leader Guide Unit 13 Session 5
All of this happened after King Solomon had died and Israel split into two kingdoms. The people of Israel had made Jeroboam their king, and Jeroboam led them away from God. The people of Israel sinned all the time. They ignored God s warnings. Finally, God took action. God turned away from them and the people of Israel were exiled to Assyria. Christ Connection: When the Israelites disobeyed God, God judged their sin and punished them by removing them from His presence. Jesus took the punishment for our sin upon Himself. He unites and restores those who trust in Him. Jesus brings us into God s presence and keeps us there. 4
Small Group Opening Session Title: The Northern Kingdom Was Destroyed Bible Passage: 2 Kings 17:1-23 Big Picture Question: Why did God scatter His people? God s people sinned against Him. Key Passage: 2 Kings 17:13-14 Unit Christ Connection: The prophets called God s people to repentance as Christ calls people to repentance. Sin continued to divide and ultimately destroy the Northern Kingdom, but Christ s perfect kingdom is forever. Welcome time Greet each kid as he or she arrives. Use this time to collect the offering, fill out attendance sheets, and help new kids connect to your group. Say Have you ever been separated from a group you were with or from your parents in a store? Were you scared? What did you do? Where s the Israelite Family? activity page, 1 per kid pencils LOW PREP Activity page (5 minutes) Help kids find the members of the Israelite family on the activity page Where s the Israelite Family? Say Has anyone ever moved to a new town or school? What was it like? Was it easy? Hard? Scary? In today s Bible story, the Israelites became separated from each other. Families were split up and forced to move away from their homes. Listen to find out why all of that happened. Session starter (10 minutes) Option 1: Name a sin Instruct kids to stand in a circle. Create the following 5 Older Kids Bible Study Leader Guide Unit 13 Session 5
rhythm: stomp, stomp, clap, name a sin. Lead everyone to perform all the stomps and claps, but take turns naming a sin. See how many sins can be named before someone hesitates or names a sin already named. Play more than once. Say The Israelites struggled with sin again and again and again. Today we will learn about some of the consequences of their sin. 6
Large Group LEADER Session Title: The Northern Kingdom Was Destroyed Bible Passage: 2 Kings 17:1-23 Big Picture Question: Why did God scatter His people? God s people sinned against Him. Key Passage: 2 Kings 17:13-14 Unit Christ Connection: The prophets called God s people to repentance as Christ calls people to repentance. Sin continued to divide and ultimately destroy the Northern Kingdom, but Christ s perfect kingdom is forever. life vest helmet Introduce the session (2 minutes) [Large group leader enters disheveled. Life vest is hanging half off. Helmet is askew. Leader begins speaking as if out of breath.] Leader Hey, rafters! I need to catch my breath for a minute. Whew! OK, that is better. I just rode down the rapids. But it wasn t so much fun. See, I was with a group of people who refused to obey the river guide. If he said to row, they stopped rowing. If he said to turn the boat to the right, they turned the boat to the left. It was awful! At one point, the raft was spinning round and round and round. Our boat was out of control. The river guide finally paddled the boat over to the shore. By then, everyone was sick to their stomachs. It was a miserable trip. I can t believe those people wouldn t listen to the guide! He is the expert. He knows the best way to travel down the river. Instead of a fun trip down the river, enjoying 7 Older Kids Bible Study Leader Guide Unit 13 Session 5
the adventure of the rapids and seeing all the beautiful trees and animals God created, we missed all of that. The consequences of their actions were miserable. Timeline Map Timeline map (2 minutes) Point out the Bible story pictures as you review. Leader The Israelites in the Northern Kingdom were in a similar situation in today s Bible story, but it was much, much worse than my trip down the river. Who remembers what happened last week? Good. What about the week before? Yes! Jezebel threatened Elijah. And the week before that, what happened? Great! Elijah showed Ahab and the Israelites that God is the one true God. But what did the Israelites in the Northern Kingdom keep doing? Worshiping false idols, disobeying God s commands, creating idols. The list goes on and on. Again and again the Israelites of the Northern Kingdom worshiped things other than God. And today, we will learn about the consequences for those sins. Big picture question (1 minute) Leader God had sent many prophets to the Israelites to warn them to turn back and follow God. What did the people often do? They often ignored God and the prophets He sent. The Northern Kingdom had ignored God s laws and His instructions for a long time. Let s see what happened to the Northern Kingdom by studying our Bible story. Our big picture question is, Why did God scatter His people? Open your Bibles to 2 Kings 17 and let s discover what happened to God s people. 8
The Northern Kingdom Was Destroyed video Bibles, 1 per kid Bible Story Picture Slide or Poster Big Picture Question Slide or Poster Tell the Bible story (9 minutes) Open your Bible to 2 Kings 17 and tell the Bible story in your own words, or show the Bible story video The Northern Kingdom Was Destroyed. Leader The Israelites were supposed to be different from other nations. God had saved them from Egypt and told them how to be holy like He is holy. The Israelites were supposed to love and follow God. They weren t supposed to worship idols. But that is exactly what the Northern Kingdom did. The people made idols to worship, they worshiped idols of all kinds, and they followed the customs of the nations around them. God sent prophets to warn the people, but they only refused to follow God even more. This pattern happened over and over again. Finally the Northern Kingdom faced the price of their sin. God allowed them to be defeated by another nation. The Assyrians were known for being very mean. To keep the people they defeated from trying to fight again, they divided them up and sent them to live in new places far away from their homes. The people were scattered. Remember our big picture question, Why did God scatter His people? God s people sinned against Him. God had spoken to the Israelites again and again, but they chose to ignore Him. As a consequence, the people had to leave the land God promised Abraham. They weren t as close to God as they once were. Jesus came to earth to pay the price for sin so God s people could be in His presence again. Jesus brings God s people together and restores our relationship with God. Because of Jesus, we can be in God s presence. We can be close to God. We can know and love Him. 9 Older Kids Bible Study Leader Guide Unit 13 Session 5
The Gospel: God s Plan for Me (optional) Using Scripture and the guide provided, explain to boys and girls how to become a Christian. Tell kids how they can respond, and provide counselors to speak with each kid individually. Guide counselors to use open-ended questions to allow kids to determine the direction of the conversation. If you cannot provide a response time, encourage boys and girls to ask their parents, small group leaders, or other adults any questions they may have about becoming a Christian. Key Passage Slide or Poster Keep My Commands song Key passage (5 minutes) Leader Our key passage is found in the Scripture from today s Bible story. Do I have any volunteers who want to say our key passage from memory? Select a few kids to share. Help them as needed. Lead the group to read the key passage together. Leader Stand with me and we ll sing our key passage song one more time. Lead kids to sing Keep My Commands. Prayer (2 minutes) Leader Sin always has consequences. If you don t follow the directions of your river guide, it can be an awful trip down the river. If you don t follow God s commands, it can separate you from God. Why did God scatter His people? God s people sinned against Him. After I pray, watch your small group leader for your signal to row your way to your small group. Close in prayer, thanking God for sending His Son to bring us into God s presence. 10
The Gospel: God s Plan for Me Ask kids if they have ever heard the word gospel. Clarify that the word gospel means good news. It is the message about Christ, the kingdom of God, and salvation. Use the following guide to share the gospel with kids. God rules. Explain to kids that the Bible tells us God created everything, and He is in charge of everything. Invite a volunteer to read Genesis 1:1 from the Bible. Read Revelation 4:11 or Colossians 1:16-17 aloud and explain what these verses mean. We sinned. Tell kids that since the time of Adam and Eve, everyone has chosen to disobey God. (Romans 3:23) The Bible calls this sin. Because God is holy, God cannot be around sin. Sin separates us from God and deserves God s punishment of death. (Romans 6:23) God provided. Choose a child to read John 3:16 aloud. Say that God sent His Son, Jesus, the perfect solution to our sin problem, to rescue us from the punishment we deserve. It s something we, as sinners, could never earn on our own. Jesus alone saves us. Read and explain Ephesians 2:8-9. Jesus gives. Share with kids that Jesus lived a perfect life, died on the cross for our sins, and rose again. Because Jesus gave up His life for us, we can be welcomed into God s family for eternity. This is the best gift ever! Read Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21; or 1 Peter 3:18. We respond. Tell kids that they can respond to Jesus. Read Romans 10:9-10,13. Review these aspects of our response: Believe in your heart that Jesus alone saves you through what He s already done on the cross. Repent, turning from self and sin to Jesus. Tell God and others that your faith is in Jesus. Offer to talk with any child who is interested in responding to Jesus. 12
Small Group LEADER Session Title: The Northern Kingdom Was Destroyed Bible Passage: 2 Kings 17:1-23 Big Picture Question: Why did God scatter His people? God s people sinned against Him. Key Passage: 2 Kings 17:13-14 Unit Christ Connection: The prophets called God s people to repentance as Christ calls people to repentance. Sin continued to divide and ultimately destroy the Northern Kingdom, but Christ s perfect kingdom is forever. Key Passage Poster Bibles, 1 per kid Small Group Visual Pack Map of Deportation Key passage activity (5 minutes) Guide kids to form a circle. Select one kid to start the key passage by turning to his left and saying the first word. The second kid will turn to the left and say the second word. Continue until the group has said the key passage twice. Say To say our key passage, we turned to our neighbor to say our part. God gave the Israelites many chances to turn from their sin, but they refused. Bible story review & Bible skills (10 minutes) Review the timeline in the small group visual pack. Trace Israel s history from their departure from Egypt to today s Bible story. Lead boys and girls to locate 2 Kings 17 in the Bible. Ask for some volunteers to read 2 Kings 17:7,21-23. Say Why did God scatter His people? God s people sinned against Him. Show kids the Map of Deportation. Explain how the Assyrians moved the Israelites to different places in their nation. 13 Older Kids Bible Study Leader Guide Unit 13 Session 5
14 LOW PREP tape straws table tennis balls or cotton balls Say The Assyrians were known for being very cruel and mean to the people they conquered. They did not want the people to have any way of trying to go home or fight again. That is why they sent the Israelites far from their homes. They also sent other people they had conquered and other foreigners to live in the land of the Northern Kingdom. Because of Jesus death and resurrection, we don t have to be separated from God. We can know and love Him. We can stay in God s presence. Who brings us into God s presence? (Jesus brings us into God s presence and keeps us there.) If you choose to review with boys and girls how to become a Christian, explain that kids are welcome to speak with you or another teacher if they have questions. God rules. God created and is in charge of everything. (Gen. 1:1; Rev. 4:11; Col. 1:16-17) We sinned. Since Adam and Eve, everyone has chosen to disobey God. (Rom. 3:23; 6:23) God provided. God sent His Son, Jesus, to rescue us from the punishment we deserve. (John 3:16; Eph. 2:8-9) Jesus gives. Jesus lived a perfect life, died on the cross for our sins, and rose again so we can be welcomed into God s family. (Rom. 5:8; 2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Pet. 3:18) We respond. Believe that Jesus alone saves you. Repent. Tell God that your faith is in Jesus. (Rom. 10:9-10,13) Activity choice (10 minutes) Option 1: Scatter ball Tape a square on the floor. Position the table tennis balls
inside the box. Provide each kid with a straw. Challenge kids to scatter the table tennis balls as far as they can by blowing air through the straws to move the balls. Invite kids to see how far they can scatter the balls in 30 seconds. Reset and give the kids a minute to play. Reset and play for two minutes. Say Why did God scatter His people? God s people sinned against Him. God had sent many prophets to warn the people, but they refused to listen. God had to remove His presence from His people. How can we be in God s presence? (Jesus brings us into God s presence and keeps us there.) What should God s people do when they sin? Repent and seek God s forgiveness. 15 Older Kids Bible Study Leader Guide Unit 13 Session 5
The LORD warned Israel and Judah by every prophet and every seer, saying, Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the Law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets. But they would not listen. 2 Kings 17:13-14 Unit 13 Key Passage Poster (ESV) OK to print
Why did God scatter His people? God s people sinned against Him. Unit 13 Session 5 Big Picture Question OK to print
Sais THE FALL OF SAMARIA AND DEPORTATION OF ISRAELITES MEDITERRANEAN Hoshea sends messenger to Egypt 2 Kings KGS. 17:1 6,24 34 11 Chron. CHR. 5:26 HOS. Hos. 7:11; 12:1 City City (uncertain location) Capital city Siege Deported Israelites Foreigners imported to Samaria Syrian captives brought to Samaria Shalmaneser V and Sargon II campaign Hoshea s messenger Resettled Israelites People imported from Babylon Syrian captives Nile River T a u r u s Cyprus SEA Tanis M o u n t a i n s Avva Sepharvaim Riblah Byblos Sidon Tyre Samaria JUDAH River Orontes Hazor Carchemish Arpad Aleppo HADRACH Hamath DEAD SEA Damascus Sea of Galilee ISRAEL BLACK SEA Qatna Haran Balikh River Tadmor Gozan BETH-EDEN iver H abor R A r a b i a n D e s e r t 0 75 150 225 300 Miles 0 75 150 225 300 Kilometers NAIRI Lake Van Dur-sharrukin Halah Nineveh Calah Euphrates Asshur ASSYRIA River Upper T igris Zab River River Arbela L ower Zab Babylon r R ive Diyala Sippar Lake Urmia River Eshnunna Cuthah BABYLONIA Uruk Der Uzun River Z a g r o s K erkha River Persian Gulf MEDIA CASPIAN M o u n t SEA Achmetha (Ecbatana) Susa ELAM a i n s UNIT 13 Session 5 Older Kids OK to print
Instructions: Search the puzzle to locate the three members of an Israelite family. Also find the following: a sad woman wearing a dark cloak; a rooster; two scrolls; two instruments; a man with a bucket; a kid climbing; a man with a hammer; a ball; a ladder; a lady on a balcony. Unit 13 Session 5 Older Kids Activity Pages
1. Instructions: Complete the crossword puzzle with the missing words from the big picture answers. 2. 3. 4. 1. How does God help in times of trouble? God never to leave or forsake us. 2. W hat kind of king did God s people need? God s people needed a king. 5. 3. Who heals us from our sin? heals us from our sin. 4. Who is the one true God? is the one true God. 5. Why did God scatter His people? God s people against Him. Unit 13 Session 5 Older Kids Activity Pages
Unit 13 Session 5 The Northern Kingdom Was Destroyed OK to print