READ THE BIBLE IN 2022: This past week, April 10 through April 16, we read 2 Samuel 19 - 1 Kings 11. Like last week, the consequences of sin are a main theme in this week’s readings. Indeed, David’s sins affected him, his family and the people he ruled. At the start Joab rebukes King David for his devotion to Absalom, now dead, since David is unmindful of the men that fought to restore him to the thrown after Absalom’s rebellion. Almost immediately, Sheba leads a rebellion against David. It was quickly brought to an end, but then a war with the Philistines broke out. Then more sin, this time an unauthorized census, and more consequences—a  plague on Israel that took the lives of 70,000 men. A harsh penalty, but even in this David saw that God’s “mercy is great” (2Sam 24:14). Later, when David’s son Adonijah tried to size the thrown, the shrewd thinking on the part of the prophet Nathan helped to stop the mutiny and place Solomon on the throne of Israel. Solomon is known for his God-given wisdom and  building the first Temple, but in his old age “his heart had turned away from the LORD” (1Kg 11:9), and the consequences follow . . . This week (April 17 - 23) read 1 Kings 12 - 2 Kings 8.