The King: The Rise & Fall of Solomon

Good morning, today we are starting a new series titled: The King: the rise and fall of Solomon. It’s been a while since we’ve dug into an individual, rather than focusing on a book or topic.: This four-week series covers the life of Solomon, including his rise to kingship over Israel and his horrible demise. His story reminds us of God’s requirement of loyalty in heart. While Solomon began his kingship full of God’s great blessings, the king’s disobedient choices eventually revealed just how easy it is and how dangerous it is to take our eyes off of God and place them on something else, which in turn can give rise to idolatry.

Week 1: 1 Kings 2-3:15

Week 2: 1 Kings 4:20–34

Week 3: 1 Kings 9:1–15

Week 4: :1 Kings 11:1–13, Deuteronomy 17:16–17

This series has been exciting for me, as I’d never studied the life of Solomon in too much depth. Of course, I was aware of the basics, but as you all know, the more we dig into God’s word, the more God opens our eyes to things we’ve not noticed before.

LET’S PRAY

To me, Solomon is one of the most interesting characters in all of scripture. Solomon’s life stands as a example to be both, admired and avoided. On one hand, he was wise beyond measure and richly blessed of the Lord, yet on the other hand, he had out of control lust, which led him into a life of terrible idolatry. Solomon was both wise and foolish at the same time. During the next few weeks, we are going to be looking at that strange duality, as it is a portrait of each of our hearts.

I do not want to dig into 1st Kings without covering some of the context surrounding our topic of King Solomon. I’m sure most of you know these things, but I do not want to assume that everyone is aware, as understanding who Solomon was is an important part of learning from him.

Solomon was the third king of Israel behind David (his father) and Saul. It is believed that his reign began somewhere around 960 BC. As I mentioned a moment ago, David was Solomon’s dad and Bathsheba was his mother. Although Solomon’s dad, David was a mighty man of God, described as a man after God’s own heart, David was not a good father. As David was nearing the end of his reign, David named Solomon to be his kingly heir. That didn’t set well with one of David’s other sons, Absolom. Eventually, Solomon did take the throne though, and Absolom ended up dying by getting his hair caught in a tree while on horseback.

2nd Samuel 18:9

“Now Absalom happened to meet the servants of David. For Absalom was riding on his mule, and the mule went under the thick branches of a great oak. And his head caught fast in the oak, so he was left hanging between heaven and earth, while the mule that was under him kept going.”

So, once Absolom was out of the picture, David could make sure that Solomon would succeed him as King.

1 Kings 2: 1-4

“As David’s time to die drew near, he charged Solomon his son, saying, “I am going the way of all the earth. Be strong, therefore, and show yourself a man. Keep the charge of the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to what is written in the Law of Moses, that you may succeed in all that you do and wherever you turn, so that the Lord may carry out His promise which He spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons are careful of their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’”

Try and put yourself in David’s shoes at this moment, as his life is nearly over. David wants to make sure that his son, Solomon is going to follow the Lord and not be drawn away from God by self-ambition or greed. Perhaps David had shared God’s promise to Solomon before, but maybe he hadn’t. God promised David that his family will always have a place on the throne, provided his family line follow God.

In 1 Kings 2:10, King David passed away, handing the nation of Israel over to Solomon. The site that I will often use to give me ideas for sermon topics skips over what happens between David’s death and the moment that the Lord approaches Solomon in 1 Kings 3. I think it’s a mistake to skip over these things, as it gives us some insight into who Solomon was and what the overall culture was like back then.

Starting in the latter half of 1 Kings ch. 2, after King David passed away, we begin to read about the very first things that Solomon does, when he takes the reigns of leadership. It’s important to understand that the culture was much different back then. When a new king takes the throne, that is when their reign is the most vulnerable.

Also, before David died, some of David’s other sons were vying for the throne. We often talk only about Absolom, but there was another. His name was Adonijah. Both Adonijah and Absolom tried to usurp the throne and neither were alone in their pursuit. They had gathered leaders and followers that were loyal to them, even though David had made it clear that Solomon was next in line.

Of course, Solomon was aware that his brothers had tried to take the throne. Solomon was also aware of who their followers were. To be quite frank, it was dangerous for a new king to be surrounded by people who were openly disloyal, so, the latter half of 1 Kings 2 details what Solomon did to help secure his authority. In total, the Bible records 3 executions: The first two were pretty standard for that day: His brother, Adonijah, a loyal follower of Adonijah by the name of Joab.

The third one is a bit more complicated and has been the source of much hand-wringing by critics of the Bible and even liberal scholars. Some view it as simple revenge, while others (including myself) view it as standard actions for that day and age. I won’t spend much time on it, but I do want to highlight it for you.

While David’s son Absolom was trying to usurp the throne, there was a certain time when David had to flee the city. David refused to raise an army against his own son. David figured that if God wanted Absolom on the throne, then God would make it happen, on the other hand, if God did not want Absolom on the throne, He would intervene…which is exactly what happened. Well, while David was fleeing from Absolom he came across a guy named Shimei. We can read about their encounter in

2 Samuel 16:5–13

When King David came to Bahurim, behold, there came out from there a man of the family of the house of Saul whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera; he came out cursing continually as he came. He threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David; and all the people and all the mighty men were at his right hand and at his left. Thus Shimei said when he cursed, “Get out, get out, you man of bloodshed, and worthless fellow! The Lord has returned upon you all the bloodshed of the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned; and the Lord has given the kingdom into the hand of your son Absalom. And behold, you are taken in your own evil, for you are a man of bloodshed!” Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over now and cut off his head.” But the king said, “What have I to do with you, O sons of Zeruiah? If he curses, and if the Lord has told him, ‘Curse David,’ then who shall say, ‘Why have you done so?’ ” Then David said to Abishai and to all his servants, “Behold, my son who came out from me seeks my life; how much more now this Benjamite? Let him alone and let him curse, for the Lord has told him. Perhaps the Lord will look on my affliction and return good to me instead of his cursing this day.” So David and his men went on the way; and Shimei went along on the hillside parallel with him and as he went he cursed and cast stones and threw dust at him.

Once Solomon took the throne, he had obviously learned about his interaction, so he sent for Shimei and offered him a deal in exchange for his life.

1 Kings 2: 36-37

“Now the king sent and called for Shimei and said to him, “Build for yourself a house in Jerusalem and live there, and do not go out from there to any place. For on the day you go out and cross over the brook Kidron, you will know for certain that you shall surely die; your blood shall be on your own head.””

You might be able to surmise as to what happens, as I wouldn’t be telling you this story if Shimei lived happily ever after. 1 Kings 2 goes on to explain that about 3 years after Solomon made this deal, Shimei left his property to follow after a couple of servants ran away. Probably w/out thinking, Shimei took off after them. Perhaps he was thinking that it’s been 3 years, surely Solomon doesn’t have people watching him…but he would be wrong about that.

So, Shimei was the 3rd recorded execution in ch. 2 of 1 kings. The chapter ends by saying:

1 Kings 2: 46 b

... Thus the kingdom was established in the hands of Solomon.”

The first couple verses of Chapter 3 talk about Solomon marrying the daughter of the Egyptian pharoah. Let’s pick up in vs. 3

1 Kings 3: 3-5

“Now Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of his father David, except he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place; Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream at night; and God said, “Ask what you wish me to give you.””

If you’ve ever went through the books of Kings and Chronicles, you may have noticed that when the authors talk about a king, they will make a comment, such as: So and So did right in the sight of the Lord, or, so and so did evil in the sight of the Lord. Here is 1st Kings 1, the author starts talking about the reign of Solomon by saying: Now Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of his father, David. To be honest, this is one of the best compliments a person can receive from a biblical author.

It goes on to say: “Except he sacrificed on the high places.” This doesn’t mean much to us, but it was considered a sin to sacrifice in the “high places,” as these were the sites of pagan worship and pagan sacrifice. Even though Solomon performed sacrifices at these places, his heart was in the right place. That said, and I want to be careful to not jump ahead, but these high places end up being one of the main downfalls for Solomon.

But now, in the beginning of His reign, Solomon pleased the Lord, so God appeared to him at night and asked Solomon what he desired to have.

1 Kings 3: 6-9

“Then Solomon said, “You have shown great lovingkindness to Your servant David my father, according as he walked before You in truth and righteousness and uprightness of heart toward You; and You have reserved for him this great lovingkindness, that You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. Now, O Lord my God, You have made Your servant king in place of my father David, yet I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. Your servant is in the midst of Your people which You have chosen, a great people who are too many to be numbered or counted. So give Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?””

In the NASB, this section is titled as “Solomon’s Prayer;” which I suppose is a good descriptor of what Solomon is doing. After the Lord asks Solomon what he wants, Solomon begins to recount the Lord’s faithfulness to his father, David. Not only that, but Solomon humbly admits that he is not prepared for such a huge responsibility. Solomon is able to see his own lack of life experiences as a detriment to ruling over the people of Israel. In fact, after Solomon recounts God’s faithfulness to his dad, his entire point to God is that he lacks the wisdom needed to be a good king.

There have been hundreds of books and academic papers written on these few passages of scripture. Over the years, people have marveled at the notion that the young Solomon, despite being raised by a warrior king, didn’t ask for military might or the strength of Samson, so he could be a great warrior…instead, Samson asked for wisdom. It is clear that Solomon wanted to be a different kind of King than his father. That doesn’t mean that he didn’t have the utmost respect for his dad, he did, but Solomon envisioned a different way forward for the nation of Israel.

Naturally, God was pleased with this request. We can read the Lord’s reaction in the last few passages we are looking at this week:

1 Kings 3: 11-15

“God said to him, “Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself discernment to understand justice, behold, I have done according to your words. Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you. I have also given you what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there will not be any among the kings like you all your days. If you walk in My ways, keeping My statutes and commandments, as your father David walked, then I will prolong your days.” Then Solomon awoke, and behold, it was a dream. And he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and made peace offerings, and made a feast for all his servants.”

In God’s response to Solomon, He lists 3 things that Solomon could have asked for:

Long life

Riches

Victory over his or Israel’s enemies: Military might

Instead, Solomon wanted the ability to understand and carry out justice. So, God gave Solomon a “Wise and Discerning heart”

It’s important to notice, in the very beginning of God’s response, God said the word “because.” In other words, as a result of. Because Solomon asked for wisdom, instead of the 3 things God mentioned, not only was Solomon going to be granted wisdom, but he would also be granted the things he didn’t ask for. God said that Solomon would have riches and honor, and we know that God also brought peace to the land of Israel during Solomon’s reign, which I will talk more about in a moment. But God did issue a condition for one of the things…a long life. In the closing couple of verses this week, God told the King:

If you walk in My ways, keeping My statutes and commandments, as your father David walked, then I will prolong your days.”

All through scripture we see if/then type of language, not only in the O.T., but also in the N.T. God says: If you do this, then, I will do this! It is a pattern in scripture, going all the way back to the creation of man. If we obey, if we walk the narrow path, if we are faithful…the Lord will recompense our faithfulness.

Genesis 2: 16-17

“The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.””

God tells Adam that he can enjoy the bounty of the garden as much as he wants, however, there was an important condition-if he disobeys and eats of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, there will be consequences. Of course, we know what happened.

Then, as the nation of Israel formed, God issued a ton of conditional promises, each of which charged the people or leaders of Israel with obey the commands of God. Our passage in 1st Kings is but one example of that. In the book of Jonah, God told the people of Nineveh that they would be destroyed, unless they repent…thankfully they did.

Then, in the New Testament, Jesus himself issues a number of if/then sentiments, most of them having to do with our relationship to God.

John 15: 9-11

“Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.”

Mark 11: 25-26

“Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your transgressions.””

Later on in the N.T., we see the same if/then pattern. For the sake of time, I’ll just give you one example:

1 John 5: 13-15

“These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.”

John says, IF we ask for things, according to God’s will, then God hears our petition.

One of the mysteries of God’s word is that, on one hand, God’s promises are without revocation, yet, on the other hand, all throughout scripture we are given these IF/Then statements, which command us to obey. People get caught up in trying to discount both sides of God’s promises, some saying that God has no conditions, when it comes to living for him, while others say that everything is conditional. I disagree with both extremes. I think we have a tendency to want to explain and reconcile every conceivable situation, according to our understanding of God. I will tell you why this is an exercise in futility, as we are finite beings, totally incapable of thinking like God. I see people speaking about these deep mysteries as though they have the ability to comprehend the mind of God. The life of Solomon is a great example of what I’m talking about; despite the fact the God foreknew everything that would happen with Solomon, God still warned him, that in order to be blessed with a long life, Solomon would need to follow God’s statutes. It’s the same thing for you and I, God knows our choices, yet, we are still given the opportunity to either, obey or disobey God’s word.

Notice, also, what Solomon did as soon as he woke up from this dream.

1 Kings 3: 15

“Then Solomon awoke, and behold, it was a dream. And he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and made peace offerings, and made a feast for all his servants.”

Solomon woke up and went to honor God by making sacrifices…but notice where Solomon went to do this. At the beginning of Ch. 3, it says that Solomon was making sacrifices at the “high places.” After this encounter with the Lord, Solomon decided to make his sacrifices before the ark…which is where they were supposed to be done. After his encounter with the Lord, already, Solomon was making better choices.

I wonder, when Solomon woke up, did he feel any different. Did God bestow him with wisdom all at once, or was it a gradual process. I tend to think it was a gradual process. It’s clear that Solomon had the faith to believe that God was going to keep His word, because as soon as he was awake, Solomon made sacrifices to the Lord. Not only that, but he threw a party for his servants. Early on in Solomon’s reign, we see a picture of a great man of God. Certainly he was a different type of king, compared to king Saul or his own dad, king David.

James 1:5

“But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”

Solomon prayed for the right thing, that is for sure. God was pleased with Solomon’s request. And in these beginning years, Solomon used that wisdom to be a great leader and king.

There is a very unique aspect to Solomon’s prayer that I think is important for us today. If you are a follower of Christ, James’s instructions are for you. We should all want to be wise, that is for sure; but, Solomon asked for wisdom for a specific purpose, and that is what I feel is what makes Solomon such an interesting figure. You see, Solomon did not want wisdom so he could make a lot of money, he didn’t want wisdom so he could be a great military leader. The purpose behind his request was for those he led. Solomon understood his limited capacity to understand human nature. Solomon wanted to rule the people in a wise manner…not according to his own limited ideas and presuppositions. Solomon’s number one priority was to be a just ruler; to be wise, not for his own sake, but for the people he was leading.

1 Kings 3:8-9

“Your servant is in the midst of Your people which You have chosen, a great people who are too many to be numbered or counted. So give Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?””

To me, this is exactly what “The fear of the Lord” is all about. It’s not about us being afraid of God, it is all about having a holy reverence for our limited capacity, compared to God’s capacity. This young man had the best interest of God’s people in mind when we asked for wisdom. Solomon had such respect for the position of king and such respect for God’s people, that he wanted to make sure to carry out proper justice.

If we read a passage like James 1:5, but have in our heart a motivation similar to that of Solomon, the meaning and purpose behind the verse should change for use.

James say:

James 1:5

“But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

Like every part of our relationship with the Lord, it’s all about our motivation; it’s all about asking ourselves the question:

WHY?

Why did Solomon seek wisdom? To be the best Solomon he could be? Or, so he could be famous? No, he asked for wisdom, so others could benefit. Why does James tell us to seek wisdom? So we can use that wisdom for self-serving purposes? No, God gives us gifts to be used for the benefit of others, not to be self-serving This is what makes Solomon so special, sure, he could have asked for a ton of things for his own gain, including wisdom. Instead, he desired for others to benefit.

The prayer of Solomon ushered in a radical change for the people of Israel. As I mentioned earlier, the nation of Israel now had peace. Instead of being on a constant war footing, now they had an opportunity to prosper…which they did. It’s clear that Solomon wanted the best for his people, but in order for Solomon to utter such a prayer, Solomon must have first been aware of his own limitations and his reliance on God to be a good King.

Looking back at Solomon’s prayer, he says:

1 Kings 3: 7

“Now, O Lord my God, You have made Your servant king in place of my father David, yet I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in.”

Being self-aware of our own limitations and our own faults is key to having the type of humility we see in Solomon at the beginning of his reign.

To quickly finish up, I want to tell you about 2 types of self-awareness and how scripture plays into it, because it very much does.

Public Self-Awareness:

This type of self-awareness often compels people to adhere to social norms. When we are aware that we are being watched and evaluated, we often try to behave in ways that are socially acceptable and desirable. We saw this in full force during the pandemic, for example, I was asked to speak at a christian elementary school a few times. I was forced to wear a mask up on the stage…which was elevated about 5 feet, plus, I was about 25 feet from any of the kids. In other words, the stage was really far away from anyone else, yet, I was forced to wear a mask. Why? Because it was all about optics; it was all about looking like we are being safe, but in reality, it had nothing to do with safety at all.

A certain degree of public self-awareness is healthy, that is for sure. God designed us to take others into account when we make our decisions. This can be taken to an unhealthy level though, on both extremes, either not caring what people think, or caring too much of what people think.

The second type of self-awareness is the one we are talking about today:

2. Private Self-Awareness

I’ll give you the definition I read in a secular article:

This type happens when people become aware of some aspects of themselves, but only in a private way. For example, seeing your face in the mirror is a type of private self-awareness.

Does this secular definition ring any bells, as it relates to scripture?

James 1: 19-25

“This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls. But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.”

When I read that secular definition, my mind immediately went to this passage. Now, the article is talking about the ability to recognise ourselves in a mirror, but the same principle applies in a spiritual sense. James 1 is talking about a person who hears God’s word, but does not follow the principles of God’s word.

Being spiritually self-aware means that we are able to look at ourselves and see our own strengths, but we can also see our own weaknesses. This is exactly what Solomon was doing in his prayer to the Lord. The concept of spiritual self-awareness is very much a theme in the N.T. Think about how many times Paul tells us to “Think on these things?” Or to avoid certain types of thinking. All of that has to do with how our minds operate. To end today, I want to read an excerpt out of a commentary I use. It is in relation to James 1:19-25 This guy is using a different example than I, but it is so spot on.

Jon Courson’s Application Commentary (Chapter 1)

Referring to the Word of God, “Let every man be swift to hear,” James instructed us in verse nineteen.“But I can’t hear God’s Word to me,” we say.Perhaps you can’t hear the Word of God for you because your ears are clogged up with —plain old sin. If I’m filling my ears with the music and the scenes, gossip, and junk of the world, I can’t hear properly. I need to get rid of that stuff before I can really be tuned in to God’s frequency.

Perhaps I can’t hear the Word of the Lord because my mind is made up. James tells us we are to receive the Word with meekness, the implication being, “Lord, I’m in this trial or temptation or difficulty, and I need direction from You. I need Your Word to direct me, or I’m not going to do well. Therefore, I come to You not with my own agenda or plan, but meekly. Whatever You say, that’s what I’ll do.” Many people don’t hear from the Lord when they read the Word of God because they lack a spirit of meekness before Him.

Third, perhaps we can’t hear from the Lord because we are mixed up. You see, so many times our tendency is to think that just because we’re reading the Word, we’re obeying it—at least that’s the way it is with me. A lot of times I’ll hear a sermon or read a book and I’ll say, “Right on. I agree with that.” But I deceive myself if, having seen what needs to be taken care of in the mirror of the Word, I then don’t do it.

One of the great dangers for us who love the Word is to falsely assume that simply agreeing that we should pray means we’re praying; or knowing we should worship makes us worshipers.

James clearly warns us not to think that seeing our reflection properly means we’re doers of the Word automatically. If the Lord shows you in the Word that you need to praise Him, don’t say, “Good point”—but start praising Him right then! If the Lord shows you in the Word that you need to get right with a brother, don’t say, “Someday”—do it right then. Be a doer of the Word.

With ears clogged up, mind made up, or all mixed up, we won’t hear from the Lord. But reading the Word with meekness and then obeying it is the best hearing aid there is.

We must strive to be like Solomon, we must be aware of our own limitations and pray that God gives us the grace to grow, which He will if we approach Him with a humble heart and a willingness to obey.

2 Corinthians 13: 5-6

“Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test? But I trust that you will realize that we ourselves do not fail the test.”