How Soon We Forget
- Justin Ray
- Apr 16, 2020
- 5 min read
I Kings 9-11
Solomon's reign is described in great detail at the beginning and then all of a sudden the writer cuts it off. The story just cuts off shortly after the building of the temple. Solomon reigned for 40 years. The first 13 or so years, when he was building, are described in great detail. Then, as we move into our text today, the blessing of God is described, Solomon walks away from God, and the description of his reign cuts off very abruptly.
In Chapter 9, God answers Solomon's prayer. He tells Solomon that he has heard his prayer and he will honor the Temple and Solomon's reign. He also states that he will keep his promise to David as long as Solomon and his descendants serve Him (God). Solomon is warned that if they turn and serve other gods, the people will be exiled from the land and the Temple will be destroyed. If you know the history of Israel, that is exactly what happened.
We do have a little anecdote about Solomon and the king of Tyre that I found amusing. As a gift of appreciation for all the building materials, Solomon gave Hiram (the king of Tyre) 6 cities in Galilee. Hiram went to see the cities and was not pleased with his gift. He asked, "What am I supposed to do with these." He named the cities "Cabul" which means "useless". As I was reading this, I had to wonder if Nazareth was one of the cities. I also thought of Nathaniel's comment to Phillip when Phillip told him that he had found the Messiah in Nazareth. Nathaniel said "Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?" (John 1:46). I am not saying that Nazareth was one of the cities, but it is interesting to think about.
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We do have a little anecdote about Solomon and the king of Tyre that I found amusing. As a gift of appreciation for all the building materials, Solomon gave Hiram (the king of Tyre) 6 cities in Galilee. Hiram went to see the cities and was not pleased with his gift. He asked, "What am I supposed to do with these." He named the cities "Cabul" which means "useless". As I was reading this, I had to wonder if Nazareth was one of the cities. I also thought of Nathaniel's comment to Phillip when Phillip told him that he had found the Messiah in Nazareth. Nathaniel said "Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?" (John 1:46). I am not saying that Nazareth was one of the cities, but it is interesting to think about.
We also learn that the kingdom continued to prosper. The non-Jewish residents of Israel were the ones who were conscripted into continuous labor. The text tells us that Jews were free. Solomon continued to have good relations with the kingdoms around him and they gave his gifts. He also build a navy.
In chapter 10, Solomon gets a visitor. He is visited by the Queen of Sheba. While the exact region she came from is unknown, most scholars agree that Sheba stretched from the Horn of Africa to modern day Saudi Arabia. She had heard rumors of Solomon's wisdom and came to pick his brain. Solomon answered all of her questions and gives her a tour of all his riches.
The chapter ends with another description of Solomon's wealth. Ivory, gold, silver, and spices were among his wealth. The text tells us that there was so much wealth in Israel that silver was like rocks in value. Solomon's kingdom must have been something to see!
Chapter 11 is where things spiral. Solomon REALLY liked women. Also, royalty had a tendency to ratify treaties with marriages. Since Solomon was more of a negotiator than David, he worked out a lot of treaties and had a lot of wives. As a matter of fact, he had 700 wives and 300 concubines. Just as God had warned in Deuteronomy 7:1-4.
Deuteronomy 7:1-4
1 When the LORD thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou;
2 And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them:
3 Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.
4 For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly.
Solomon directly disobeyed this commandment by marrying a Hittite woman (at least one). He also married Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, and Zidonians. Moab and Ammon were nations from the incestuous sons of Lot. Edom was the people who descended from Esau. All of these worshiped idols and when Solomon married these women, they brought their idols with them. Solomon began worshiping the idols as well. This would cost him dearly.
The scripture tells us that God was angry with Solomon because he had appeared to him twice and and answered his prayers and yet Solomon turned away from him. Because of this, the text says that God told Solomon that he would divide the Kingdom of Israel and 10 of the tribes would be ruled by a king who was not a descendant of David. This would take place during the reign of Solomon's son. The rest of the chapter describes how God because stirring the hearts Israel's enemies. One of those was Jeroboam who would be the future king of the 10 tribes who seceded from the unified kingdom.
I Kings 11:41-43 41 And the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon? 42 And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years. 43 And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.
This is a sad ending. The life of Solomon is summed up like this. He served God in his youth. God blessed him and did great things through him. When God blessed him, he forgot God and began doing his own thing. He married women who led his heart astray to worship false gods. The rest of his life is summed up in those 3 verses.
* He did more that was written down somewhere else
* He reigned 40 years
* He died and was buried.
Solomon's life mirrored the history of Israel. It also has a tendency to mirror our lives. We follow God when we feel inadequate or scared. However, as soon as we begin feeling comfortable, we start trusting in ourselves. Then we fall!
Romans 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
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