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The Kings and Their Gods: The Pathology of Power Paperback – April 14, 2008

by Daniel Berrigan (Author)

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The scenario that confronts us in the biblical text of 1 and 2 Kings is a turbulent one. Daniel Berrigan minces no words in his assessment of that biblical era. Prophets, kings, and the gods they worship -- all are found wanting.

Berrigan examines the complex terrain of these two biblical books, opening our eyes to the deep flaws of their oft-praised characters. He shows that this dark time in biblical history is in many ways repeating itself today. The wars of these kings, Berrigan says, are our wars now, and we are fashioning our own gods to approve our misdeeds. These two books of Scripture come to vivid -- and sometimes terrifying -- life when we recognize these undeniable similarities.

The Kings and Their Gods reveals Berrigan in stunning form. Here this modern-day prophet distills the wisdom gained from his long learning and his remarkable life experiences. The book is both a masterful biblical commentary and a clarion call to action. It balances polemics and poetry, despair and joy. It is truly a midrash for our troubled times -- both an indictment of the horror that is and an invitation to the great goodness that may be.

The Kings and Their Gods: The Pathology of Power

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Product Details

Paperback: 216 pages
Publisher: Eerdmans (April 14, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0802860435
ISBN-13: 978-0802860439
Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.5 x 9 inches
Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #910,263 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #464 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Bible Study & Reference > History & Culture
- #1239 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Bible Study & Reference > Criticism & Interpretation > Old Testament
- #1391 in Books > History > World > Religious > Religion, Politics & State

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Great Commentary on a Contemporary Subject

By Scandalous Sanity VINE VOICE on February 2, 2009

Format: Paperback

The Kings and Their Gods is Daniel Berrigan's poetic commentary on the First and Second Book of Kings. Berrigan diagrams each chapter, though not verse by verse. It is more like getting an overview of the stories that you are told during Sunday school, only with a different perspective and an edge that could rub some people the wrong way.

Berrigan confronts the characters in Kings that are usually the subject of glory and hero worship. He does not see David as a man after God's own heart. He views David as a warmonger and schemer. Solomon gets the same treatment. His exegesis is completely opposite of mainstream Christianity, which presents these two men as pillars of faith in God. Not Berrigan. He sees a David with bloody hands and vendettas, a Solomon that is a cruel taskmaster, and an Elijah that is arrogant. The surprising part is that it all sounds true. I was constantly grabbing my Bible and flipping through Kings I and II, reading the text in a different light. Berrigan then draws a comparison to our leaders today, who despite our advancement in technology, behave exactly the same as the kings of the Bible, calling upon deities to help them win wars.

The only problem with this book is that it is at times too poetic. I often lost track of what Berrigan was trying to get across. There are instances when the author seems to get lost inside his own mind. Add in the fact that I had to have a dictionary handy while reading(which may be a positive, since I expanded my vocabulary immensely), and it can be a tough read. But it is one of the most interesting books I have ever read.

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Using the biblical texts from the Kings, demonstrates the pathology of power

By Alan Mills VINE VOICE on November 27, 2011

Format: Paperback Verified Purchase

This is another entry in Father Daniel Berrigan's series of books analyzing various books of the Bible. Like the others, it takes as its theme the application of these texts to modern life--and in particular a critique of the contemporary American proclivity toward war and violence. Rather than the simplistic view of the texts presented in popular media (and simpler biblical commentary), Father Berrigan digs deep into the biblical stories and works to unearth the moral, the reason the story was included in the first place, and the application of the history for our own society.

To use one example, the story of Solomon's decsion between two women who both claimed an infant as theirs is well known--he ruled the baby should be cut in half, and then declared the woman who objected to be the mother. This is usually cited as an example of Solomonic justice--showing how wise King Solomon was. Father Berrigan agrees that this was an example of wisdom, but goes much further. First, the women were not royalty, high court officers, etc. Rather, they were two ordinary citizens. Thus, the story is a moral lesson that real justice is not only for the rich, but must also be available to ordinary citizens. Second, he notes that this is the ONLY time in the history of Solomon presented in the Bible that he is shown dealing with ordinary people, and that this episode occurred early in his rule. As time went on, he lost touch with ordinary people, and turned to making war. Father Berrigan thus uses this as an example of power corrupting even wise men.

Father Berrigan's underlying point is that we should not too readily consider the Old Testament days as especially violent, amoral, or cruel. After all, he points out, the U.S.Read more ›

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ancient texts, modern contexts

By Daniel B. Clendenin on June 10, 2008

Format: Paperback

In her memoir Things Seen and Unseen, Nora Gallagher recalls meeting Daniel Berrigan (b. 1921) in the spring of 1986. When she asked how many times he had been jailed, he responded, "Not enough." Poet, playwright, peace activist, and Jesuit priest, Daniel Berrigan has spent a long life obeying the good news of Jesus rather than the bad news of caesar. He and his brother Philip did time on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list. In 1968 he and eight other activists stole 378 draft files of young men who were about to be sent packing to Vietnam, dumped them into two garbage cans, poured homemade napalm on them, and burned them in the parking lot of the Catonsville, Maryland, draft board. In 1980, he trespassed into General Electric's nuclear missile plant in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, poured blood on some warhead nose cones, then hammered away to punctuate his prophetic point.

Now eighty-seven, age has not extinguished Berrigan's fire. Death row, smart bombs, Iraq, and what he calls "abortion mills" still provoke his ire. These meditations reflect on the books of 1-2 Kings and, as you would expect, draw parallels to our own pathologies of political power today. How should we read these ancient texts about a territorial god who slaughtered his pagan enemies? In what sense are these pages inspired?

Berrigan reads 1-2 Kings as self-serving imperial records that portray Israel's kings as they saw themselves and wanted others to see them -- God is with us and against our enemies. He blesses us with their booty. No war crime is too heinous as a means to these delusional ends. And so on page after page we see hell explode on earth. There is one political end: extra imperium nulla salus, "outside the empire there is no salvation.Read more ›

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

Riveting, Deep Read

A totally different way of looking at the Books of Kings; some of it was a little over my head, but eventually, it all fell into place and made sense. Read more

Published 1 month ago by LanaMarie

An excellent commentary

Daniel Berrigan offers an excellent commentary on these two books of Hebrew scripture. His exegesis is flawless as he invokes the biblical prophets, especially Isaiah, against the... Read more

Published 13 months ago by Ron

Incredible work

A modern prophet writes with devastating precision on how our rulers malign, deform and attempt to redefine God to fit their own base needs.

Published 13 months ago by Fr. Chad Lynch

Five Stars

Good

Published 17 months ago by Arelis Roman

difficult to read

This book is not for everyone. I couldnt follow the authors expressions and ideas. His vocabulary was way beyond me.

Published on September 13, 2008 by Herbert S. Johnson

Let's hear it for what is never read!

Daniel Berrigan's "The Kings and Their Gods" is a wonderfully prophetic and
poetic piece that deserves a spot among the other commentaries on one's
biblical bookshelf. Read more

Published on August 27, 2008 by Philip D. Reifenberg

MOST RECENT THUS MOST URGENT CRY FROM OUR MOST CATHOLIC PROPHET OF...

As this most recent installment of the Reverend Father Daniel Berrigan's exegetical Old Testament series falls upon this current year of presidential appointment (dare we yet nor... Read more

Published on May 6, 2008 by Love Thy Enemy

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