What was the promise of a King and a Kingdom that Israel was looking for?
The promise was a glorious Kingdom ruled by the coming Son of God as King, with Israel exalted as the top nation. Israel desired this King and Kingdom, along with peace, prosperity, and removal of Roman rule, but rejected the suffering Savior because receiving Him meant dealing with their sin.
Les explains that Old Testament prophecy ran on two parallel lines, like railroad tracks. One line promised a suffering Savior who would suffer and die for Israel's sins; the other promised a King and a glorious Kingdom over which the Son of God Himself would rule and reign, with Israel as the top dog of the nation. At Christ's first coming, Israel wanted the King and Kingdom, not the suffering Savior, because that would force them to deal with their sin. They wanted the Romans out of Jerusalem and the peace and prosperity Messiah would bring. Les notes Israel should have known these things from the Old Testament, but they were unbelieving and refused to search the Scriptures, as seen when the king's priests had to dig into the prophets and found Bethlehem in Micah.