Have you ever looked at how stories of Israel’s and Judah’s kings parallel the history of this world in its closing moments of time? There is an uncanny resemblance when we compare the sequence of each event. The common belief has been, Israel and Judah didn’t have the separation of church and state we take for granted today. But is there really a separation today, and was there really a distinct separation in the time of the kings? The logical answer could only be, yes, to a degree. But no matter which way a king lead the nation, there was always a small group who opposed either the good or evil the king introduced. To get to the core of the spiritual lessons involved, we have to look at the personalities involved in the stories. How did they interact with the temple, its services, the people responsible for conducting those services, and the people God was using to draw those people closer to Himself? What did those kings do to prepare this world for the King known as God’s Son.