Since the death of King Shlomo (Solomon), two Jewish kingdoms had lived side by side: Yisrael (Israel) (in the north) and Yehuda (Judah) (in the south). They were a divided people, There were lots of ups and downs in this period. And, although the Jewish people had some good times — economically, spiritually, militarily — they were often unfaithful to their God and they lived in a tough neighborhood. Here, we’ll be focusing on a period of about 150 years, beginning in the late 8th century BCE. It was the beginning of the end for the Jews’ first experience in living as an independent nation.
