The Wealthy King

1 Ki 10:14-29

This morning, as we end our conference together in the SAGA of Solomon

we consider Solomon, the wealthy king.

Before we do,

What’s one takeaway you have from the story of Solomon? Something that has stood out to you.

If you would turn with me in your Bibles to 1 Ki 10 beg. in v.14 through v.29

If you would stand out of reverence for God’s Word:

Reading of Holy Scripture

Pray.

I remember as a middle schooler turning on the TV and seeing a show about the ultra rich.

seeing their mansions with enough rooms to house all of Waxahachi

their endless shoes, $1000 Jordans or $10000 heels that they only wear once

their “sweet 16” birthday parties, where they get their dream car, something like an Audi R8 or a Porsche convertible

Their lifestyles captivated me

I was blown away by the distance between my life and possessions

and their lived experience

Tonight we get a glimpse,

not through a screen

but through the Word of God

into one of the wealthiest men to ever walk planet earth

King Solomon

We will make two observations about the king,

followed by the application for our lives

Our first observation about King Solomon is this:

The King is Really Rich vv.14-23

v. 23

v.14,

1 Kings 10:14–15 “Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was 666 talents of gold, besides that which came from the explorers and from the business of the merchants, and from all the kings of the west and from the governors of the land.”

Solomon, literally, ushered Israel into A GOLDEN era.

Gold flooded his kingdom, like the Niagara Falls floods its water banks

In one year, Solomon raked in 666 talents of gold

— ONE talent is seventy five pounds

666 talents in today’s cash would be around 2.5 BILLION dollars

and that’s just in ONE year!

Solomon would be up there with the Warren Buffet’s

the Elon Musk’s

the Jeff Bezos’ of the world

Solomon would bring in gold from everywhere:

explorers coming back from exotic places

merchants doing business with foreign traders

the kings of the west—leaders coming from modern-day Turkey, Greece, broader Europe

rulers bringing tribute

and governors of the land,

leaders overseeing districts in Israel,

mining for gold as their monthly quota for the king

Solomon was a king with BLING

a multi-billionaire, whose connections brought him a FORTUNE

WHAT did Solomon do with all this money?

I don’t know if you ever have looked into the people who win the Lotto

they tend to spend most of their money pretty quickly

getting all the gadgets and toys

the mansion and car they always dreamed of

Say you won 2.5 billion dollars, I wonder what you would do with the money?

V. 16-21 tell us how Solomon used his treasure: upgrade his palace

In vv.16-17 Solomon makes golden shields

200 large ones made of 600 shekels of gold each

that’s roughly $700,000 in our money, each

and 300 shields made of 3 minas of gold

that’s roughly $62,000 a piece

But these were no battle shields for the fending off of enemies

these shields were ceremonial, for show

They lined his “House of the Forest of Lebanon” (v17)

like Van Goghs, Rembrandts, and Picasso’s line the halls of the elite

and sports cars fill their garages

500 golden shields hung as a BOAST of Solomon’s success

We then read in v.18

“The king also made a great ivory throne and overlaid it with the FINEST gold.”

I remember a dinner party with a family from our last church,

as we arrived to their home, they gave us a tour

in the living room was their son’s gaming station.

And let me tell you,

I used to game a decent bit back in the day, but not like this.

Triple ultra-wide screens

custom-built PC’s with high-end GPU’s

a high-backed leather gaming chair (ehm throne) with neck support and cozy armrests

I asked the boy if I could have a seat, and he let me,

and boy, was it nice

This gaming chair set up

might be the closest thing to Solomon’s throne

I’ll experience

Solomon’s royal seat,

the chair from which he would make policies and rulings

was made of ivory, the smooth white material

taken from the teeth and tusks of animals like elephants

this was a PRECIOUS, really hard to get material

This ivory throne was overlaid not with run-of-the-mill gold

but the finest, purest gold out there

this was ONE expensive chair

The throne was flanked by two lions

Raised 6 steps above ground level

with 2 lions resting on each step

That’s 14 life-sized lion statues.

Fearsome guardians to Solomon’s seat

declaring him to be force to be reckoned with

I got a little taste of what Solomon felt,

every time he sat down on his throne

Shields of gold,

A throne of ivory and gold,

and v.21 tells us that ALL of Solomon’s drinking vessels—his cups

were made of gold

Imagine getting a drink of fresh squeezed orange juice from your own garden

or brewing your morning coffee with organic Ethiopian coffee beans

You go to the cupboard,

and all you see are cups and chalices

mugs and goblets

of all shapes and sizes

of pure gold studded with diamonds

Not only that, but v.21 says, “All the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold”

The House of the Forest of Lebanon was an extension of Solomon’s palace

a building crafted from the finest cedar wood of Lebanon,

giving it the feel of an indoor forest

a life-sized Lincoln-Log mansion

All the vessels,

that is, all the utensils—the forks, spoons, knives, and dishes

weren’t silverware

they were goldware

Every bite of your filet mignon,

your mensaf spiced to perfection

came from a fork of sparkling gold

COME ON!

This king is RICH beyond our wildest dreams!

In Solomon’s kingdom,

silver

often mentioned SECOND in the Bible among precious metals

“Gold, silver, and precious stones”

was not considered as anything

That’s the end of v.21

Some of our finest jewelry,

would be like plastic to king Solomon

“the king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stone” v.27

as commonplace as the rocks we walked on to get to this building

To top ALL of this GOLD, silver, ivory…

the king’s ships would import animals

like apes and peacocks v.22

This king’s estate was an exotic ZOO too,

an Edenic garden for the king’s interest in zoology and botany

1 Kings 4:33 says that in his poetry he spoke of trees, beasts, birds, reptiles, and fish

At last the text sums up all of Solomon’s splendor:

1 Kings 10:23 “Thus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom.”

Solomon was one of a kind,

the greatest, bar none,

unmatched in glory

The King is Really Rich

Our second observation about this wealthy king,

is this:

The King is Really Powerful

In the ancient world,

if you were a king or a queen

you would make covenants

pacts or agreements

with kings greater than yourself

You would give the greater leader

regular tribute or payment

in exchange for certain protections

and peace between your kingdoms

In vv.24-25, we read “the WHOLE earth sought the presence of Solomon”, bringing him presents of silver and gold, clothing, spices, and more—

(as though he needed it!)

Envoys from kingdoms far and near,

CAME to render submission to the kingdom of Israel

Solomon’s greatness didn’t stop with his bank account

it extended to his military might too

v.26 “And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen. He had 1400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen”

In our day, this would be an army loaded with tactical drones and special forces able to eliminate any foe

Solomon knew where to get the war horses for his chariots and horsemen

v.28 “his import of horses was from Egypt and from Kue (region N of Israel)”

these were the strongest, fastest, fiercest of steeds

Solomon didn’t have outdated weaponry from decades past

He had state of the art war transportation

These were no prancing ponies you ride at a farm

they were “swift steeds” in the language of 1 Ki 4:28

40,000 of them!!!

Not only did Solomon import horses,

he exported them too (v.29)

Solomon became an international arms dealer in the Middle East

This guy was no joke.

And it wasn’t just his army that was strong,

his navy was too

he had a fleet of ships we read of in v.22

Solomon would have stood alongside

the Putins and the Trumps

the most mighty men in the world

who govern the most mighty of nations

The King is Really Rich

2. The King is Really Powerful

Solomon’s divine wisdom,

Solomon’s extraordinary wealth and power

made him a global spectacle

“The WHOLE earth sought his presence”

He was a worldwide celebrity

He’d have hundreds of millions of followers on TikTok and Instagram

Put on the cover of Times Magazine

And a regular guest on the news and talk shows

Reality TV shows would be made of his life and property

And there would be no shortage of YouTube shorts,

with Solomon the sage’s tips for living the good life

Solomon had it all.

There was only one MAJOR problem.

Solomon’s HEART.

We read in 1 Ki 3, that Solomon LOVED the LORD

But 1 Ki 11 tells us Solomon LOVED many foreign women

Solomon collected foreign brides,

like people collect plush toys

He had 700 wives who were princesses

and 300 concubines—second-class wives for his enjoyment

When you read God’s guidelines for kings in Deuteronomy,

you find this,

Let’s see how he does:

Deuteronomy 17:16 “He must not acquire many horses for himself” — ?

or cause the people to return to Egypt in order to acquire many horses — ?

Deuteronomy 17:17 “He shall not acquire many wives for himself, lest his heart turn away — ?

nor shall he acquire for himself excessive silver and gold. — ?

On EVERY count, SOLOMON FAILS.

Yes, God had promised Solomon his great wealth

but Solomon made his great wealth GOD

As his wealth and fame grew,

his devotion to the Word of God dwindled.

As his power expanded,

his heart wandered.

The THREE major causes of great scandal:

MONEY, SEX, and POWER

were this worshiping king’s downfall

bringing him under God’s judgment

1 Ki 11:9 “and the LORD was ANGRY with Solomon, because his HEART had turned away from the LORD”

Solomon began well, loving the LORD, walking in wisdom

but ended tragically

pursuing sin and provoking God’s anger

His life is a warning to us all—

that you can have a passionate relationship with God now

but end your life indulging in sin and serving idols

So how can we ensure that we don’t end up like Solomon?

But start AND finish well?

Turn with me to Philippians 2.

one reader vv5-11

What does the apostle tell us about King Jesus?

emptied, humbled, became obedient to the point of death, was exalted

What can we do to imitate Jesus in his self-emptying and humble obedience? (You can look before and after these verses for some ideas)

having the same mind, agreeing with one another, not quarreling or arguing over preferences

avoiding selfish ambition

counting others more significant than yourself

looking not only to my interests but others