W. Cleon Skousen Insights

Text: 1 Kings chapters 20 - 22; 2 Kings chapters 1 - 2

Supplemental Text: The Fourth Thousand Years chapter 14

BYU Lecture 36:  Elijah returns to Trans-Jordan after meeting the Lord at Mt. Sinai. Here, he finds Elisha plowing his field. Elijah gives Elisha his mantel, demonstrating to Elisha his calling as the next prophet. Elisha accepts his calling and follows after Elijah in his final days.

Meanwhile, King Ahab had defied the Lord again. He had allowed the wicked king of Syria to live after being commanded by the prophet to slay him. In addition, murder was committed in order to obtain the coveted vineyard of his neighbor. Elijah finds King Ahab and tells him that both the king and the queen will die because of their wickedness, and dogs will lap up their blood; their posterity shall also be destroyed.

In the next war against Syria, King Ahab was killed in his chariot, and upon washing out the chariot his blood poured out upon the ground where the dogs licked it up.

The Lord reveals to Elijah that it’s time for him to come home (translated). He travels with Elisha to visit his brethren of the church before going. As they cross the Jordan River, Elijah strikes the water with his robe, and the waters divide and they cross on dry land. Fifty of the brethren watch from a distance. Elisha made one request of Elijah which was to have twice the spiritual power as Elijah. He gave Elisha his robe and said if God grants this request you will be able to divide the river as I did upon your return. When out of sight of the fifty brethren, Elisha watched in amazement as a chariot of fire appeared and took Elijah across the veil. On his return trip to the brethren, Elisha struck the water with Elijah's robe, and the waters did indeed divide. 

Over 800 years later, on the Mount of Transfiguration, this translated prophet Elijah will bestow the priesthood keys to Peter, James and John, and then as a resurrected being, the sealing keys bestowed to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in 1836.

Text: 1 Kings chapters 17 - 19

Supplemental Text: The Fourth Thousand Years chapter 13

BYU Lecture 35:  At the peak of the apostate administration of king Ahab of Israel and his gentile wife Jezebel, there suddenly appeared at the royal palace in Samaria a man who dared to risk his very life by coming to deliver a cursing message to the king. This man was the prophet Elijah.

Elijah comes suddenly on the pages of history but his background is obscure. We do know he had the keys of the Melchizedek Priesthood and the Sealing Powers. This included the power to seal the heavens against rain, which is what he did in the chambers of King Ahab.

The Lord warned Elijah to hide from Ahab and Jezabel who had soldiers scouring the land to find and kill him. He hid in a desolate place relying on a small brook for water and ravens who brought him bread and meat. As the drought worsened, the brook failed and the Lord sent him to a widow in Zarephath. Here, she was preparing a last meal for her and her son before she died, when Elijah asked her for food. Remarkably, this humble widow gave him the last of her morsels. As a result, Elijah blessed her that her barrel of meal and cruise of oil would never empty until the rains came again. But soon her son tragically died and Elijah was permitted by God to raise him back to life.

The Lord sends Elijah to meet with King Ahab and demand an assembly of 3 groups: 1) The leaders of Israel; 2) The priests of Baal; and 3) The priests of Ashtoreth (who ultimately never dared to show up). Here he held a contest at the alter to show whose God was truly God. The priests of Baal failed miserably, but the Lord brought fire from heaven and consumed the alter and destroyed all the priests of Baal. And the Lord sent rain.

Rather than rejoice and reform, Jezebel was outraged at the death of the priests and put a bounty on the head of Elijah. Discouraged at the wickedness of the stubborn leaders, Ezekial flees clear down to Mt. Sinai. Here he felt rejected and a failure and asked to die. But the Lord visited Elijah and told him to return to Israel, for there were 7,000 righteous that needed leadership. Rejoicing, Elijah returns to the mission field in Israel.  

Text: 1 Kings chapters 15-16; 2 Chronicles 14-17

Supplemental Text: The Fourth Thousand Years chapter 12

BYU Lecture 34: After 922 BC, Israel history becomes complicated to read and study without understanding the proper labels used in the Old Testament. The nation is now divided into 2 nations; the nation to the north, comprising 10 tribes is referred to as “Israel” while the nation to the south, comprising of Judah and Levi (assigned to serve in the temple at Jerusalem). The king of Judah is Rehoboam and the king of Israel is Jeroboam.

Judah: Rehoboam continues in wickedness and idolatry, as does his son Abijah. However, Abijah’s son Asa tries to reform Judah by removing the idols and groves of prostitution. As a result, those in the northern 10 tribes who were still faithful to God migrate from Israel to Jerusalem and Judah enjoys a period of unity and peace. His son Jehosophat follows in righteous kingship and Judah prospers.

Israel: Jeroboam is concerned over his people migrating back to his enemy Judah. So he builds counterfeit temples, sells the “priesthood rights” to whomever makes sufficient treasury contributions, fills the land with pagan idols and groves of prostitution and rules with horrid wickedness. Murders, assassinations and mutinies follow his reign until Omri comes to power. King Omri introduces more Phoenician paganism into Israel’s culture. The son of Omri and the daughter of the Phoenician king unite the nations in marriage, and King Ahab and Queen Jezebel now begin their wicked reign over Israel.

In these dark days of Israel, God calls a great prophet to intercede – Elijah.  

Text: 1 Kings 9-15; 2 Chronicles 7-11

Supplemental Text: The Fourth Thousand Years chapters 10-11

BYU Lecture 33: As the temple was being constructed, Solomon fortified his lands and conquered countries, expanding his kingdom into one of the great powers of the region, along with Egypt and Assyria. The tributes, tariffs and taxes brought tremendous wealth into his kingdom. Even Queen of Sheeba, from 1,400 miles to the south, made the long journey just to see if the news and rumors of Solomon’s greatness were exaggerated. By the time she left, she exclaimed “the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard!”

Solomon’s reign was 40 years, most of which was spent in peace and prosperity. At the age of 49, Solomon has a vision of the Lord and is commended for his righteousness. But he is also warned to endure to the end, for if he turns from God and forsakes his covenants, all these great accomplishments will be lost. Sadly, due to his political mass marriages, his challenges with old age and finally his introduction of idolatry into Israel, all would soon be taken.  

After Solomon’s death, his son Rehoboam succeeds him as King. However, the prophet Ahijah promises Jeroboam, another leader of Israel, future kingship of 10 of the tribes. After Rehoboam is anointed king, the leaders of the other tribes meet to sustain him, but first ask an important question. Will he reduce the tax burdens Solomon had enforced on them? Rehoboam seeks counsel from the elders, who suggest a reduction, and he then seeks counsel from his peers – probably other aristocratic friends who enjoyed the rich life – who convinces him to increase the taxes. When told this, Jeroboam rebels against Judah and leads the other 10 tribes into secession. Thus in 920 B.C. Israel is split into 2 nations, “Israel” to the north and Judah to the south.

Jeroboam is made king of Israel (northern 10 tribes) and he wickedly defies the Lord and leads the people into apostasy with false temples, golden calves and desecrated sacrifices.

Text: 1 Kings chapter 4-8

Supplemental Text: The Fourth Thousand Years chapter 9

BYU Lecture 32:  Solomon now wants to construct a temple as was instructed by his father David and from the Lord. He reaches out to Hiram, King of Lebanon, who built David’s palace and humbly asks for his help. Hiram responds marvelously and promises to gift Solomon all the lumber and craftsmen needed for the job. Solomon need only provide manpower and food. Solomon sends 30,000 to Lebanon to help with the cutting of lumber and 150,000 to haul and hew the massive stone material.

The location of the temple was on the peak of Mount Moriah and was therefore required to build huge walls on the 3 descending sides and cut out the mountain on the inclining side. Large rocks were used to fill the empty space until the 35 acre area, called Temple Square, could be leveled and smoothed for the temple building itself. This massive endeavor took 3 years to complete.

Also constructed were giant cisterns to hold millions of gallons of water required for use in the sacrifices. These cisterns were carved out of the mountain rock and were supplied with water from aqueducts constructed, beginning at Solomon’s Pools about 10 miles away.

The temple itself was now ready for construction. The general plan was identical to the ancient Tabernacle except that it was twice as long (90 feet), twice as wide (30 feet) and three times as high (45 feet). The entire construction was done by pre-fabrication and then quietly and reverently put into place so as to maintain the sacredness of the grounds.

The temple had 2 courtyards, an inner courtyard for the sacrifices and an outer courtyard for all to enter and worship. It took nearly 8 years to complete the temple construction, after which the Ark of the Covenant and Tabernacle of Moses were brought from their locations into the temple.

After 7 days of sanctification, King Solomon held a Solemn Assembly and dedicated this magnificent new temple to the Lord.  

Text: 2 Samuel chapters 15-24; 1 Kings chapters 1-3; 1 Chronicles chapters 28-29

Supplemental Text: The Fourth Thousand Years chapters 7-8

BYU Lecture 31:  As David declines in life, his son Absalom conspires to kill David and take the throne, assisted by David’s traitorous prime minister Ahithophel. The rebellion becomes so threatening that David abandons Jerusalem to save the city from the ravages of civil war. Eventually, David’s army confronts the army of Absalom in the woods of Ephraim. David’s battle-tested “600 mighty ones” took control of the fight and Absalom’s army was devastated with over 20,000 killed.

Absalom flees for his life through the forest and is caught by the gnarling branches of a tree, jerked from his racing mule and is left swinging helplessly in the air. David’s commanding officer, Joab, finds and kills Absalom. David mourns over the loss of this rebellious son.

David now prepares all things to strengthen Israel, fortifies the government, gathers material for the new temple, reorganizes the lessor Priesthood into quorums, and establishes temple choirs and orchestras.

As King David weakens from old age, another son named Adonijah seeks the throne. The prophet Nathan, with the understanding that God named Solomon as David's heir, hastens to Bathsheba in hopes of convincing the ailing David of the crisis. Between the two, David was provoked and arose from his deathbed, calling for the prophet to anoint Solomon king of Israel. Hearing the trumpets and commotion of this great anointing, Adonijah and his supporters abandon their own feast of celebration and flee for their lives. For now, Solomon spares their lives. The great King David dies at the age of 70.

King Solomon rules the kingdom in righteousness and humility. The Lord appears to him in a dream and grants him wisdom, riches, honor and long life – as long as Solomon remains faithful to the Lord. In great appreciation, Solomon offers sacrifice and begins the task of building a magnificent temple to the Lord.

Text: 2 Samuel chapters 10-14

Supplemental Text: The Fourth Thousand Years chapter 6

BYU Lecture 30 -  Now that Israel is united and has conquered the lands as prophesied, spread from the Euphrates River to the Egyptian border, King David spends his time putting down skirmishes from the neighboring Ammonites and Syrians.

While resting in Jerusalem, King David takes a stroll and looks upon Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah, one of his royal guard. David is struck by her beauty and invites her to the palace while her husband was away on the battlefield. They become romantically involved and commit adultery, in which Bathsheba becomes pregnant.

To cover his sin, David concocts a plan to send Uriah to the battlefront in hopes he is killed, which he was. David and Bathsheba are quickly married, but the Lord wasn’t going to let this behavior stay a secret. The prophet Nathan was sent to David and revealed Davd’s secret to him and prophecies that David’s house will be afflicted by the sword, that evil will dwell within his household and he will lose his wives to others.

Bathsheba has her baby and it dies. From this time forward, David writes his mournful psalms.

Evil prevails within David’s household, as his son Amnon rapes his own sister Tamar. Amnon’s brother Absalom is so enraged he murders Amnon and prepares to take the throne of his father David.

Text: 2 Samuel chapters 6-9

Supplemental Text: The Fourth Thousand Years chapter 5

BYU Lecture 29: After battling Abner and the northern 10 tribes, King David unites all of Israel and moves the capital city from Hebron to Jerusalem. Peace in Israel, however, is short lived. The Philistines (Canaanites) rally their forces against Israel to attack King David – their Goliath killer. David inquires of the Lord what to do and is promised that the Philistines will be delivered into his hands. Sure enough, David’s army soundly conquers the invading armies.

Meanwhile, King Hiram of Lebanon (Phoenicians) sought a friendly alliance with Israel. He offers to build a fine palace for David, made from the famous cedars of Lebanon. He even provided the masons and carpenters to complete this beautiful, massive project.

With his palace completed, David desires to build a beautiful house of the Lord. In anticipation of this, he sends for the Ark of the Covenant to be delivered to Jerusalem. Unfortunately, the holy process of moving the Ark was neglected and David was careless. Rather than instructing the Priests of Aaron to carry the Ark on their shoulders, as commanded by God several hundred years earlier, it was placed on a cart pulled by oxen. Enroute, the cart faltered and the Ark itself appeared to be in jeopardy of falling. Uzzah, sensing a tragedy, reached up to steady the Ark. This was in violation with God’s command that no one but the Priests of Aaron may touch the sacred Ark. Immediately, Uzzah was struck dead.

Realizing his carelessness, David called and authorized Priests of Aaron to carry the Ark on their shoulders the remainder of the way to Jerusalem. An important lesson was learned that day; God will not be mocked.

In humility, David wanted to build a holy temple to house the Ark, but through the prophet Nathan, the Lord forbad him. He did, however, give David the pattern for the temple when it would be built by his son Solomon. The Lord also promised David that he would be the ancestor of the great Messiah.

David expands the might and strength of Israel until it borders the very lands as promised specifically by God to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Moses.    

Join W. Cleon Skousen as he walks the room from history to the present, weaving dramatic Founding-era stories with a lawyer’s sober account of how the Constitution’s 248 principles were meant to protect liberty — and how many have been unraveled. Through vivid anecdotes about Jefferson, Adams, and Washington, he reveals the quiet, deliberate choices that created America and the slow shifts that have taken it off course.

Skousen’s talk becomes part memoir, part warning, and part blueprint: he explains the consequences of monetary change, federal overreach, and lost states’ rights, then sketches an unexpected hope — a restored system of law and community built on reparative justice and timeless principles called God’s law. It’s a passionate call to study, stand, and prepare, told with courtroom clarity, pioneer grit, and the conviction that a nation can be remade if enough people learn what the founders intended.

Text: 2 Samuel chapters 1-4

Supplemental Text: The Fourth Thousand Years chapter 4

BYU Lecture 28: David learns of the death of King Saul and his son Jonathan. Rather than rejoicing from the news that his tormentor Saul was dead, he went into fasting and mourning. David writes a sad song lamenting the passing of Saul, the Lord’s anointed, and of Jonathan, his dear friend. But even with the death of King Saul, it wouldn’t be for nearly 8 years before David was recognized as the anointed King of all twelve tribes of Israel.

Once recognized as King, David moves the capital of Israel from Hebron to Mount Moriah, known later as Jerusalem. Now that Israel was united with their new king, Israel begins preparations to arise to her greatness. However, their dreaded enemy, the Philistines, were preparing to destroy this new threat.