“So the Lord said to Solomon, “Because you have done this, and you have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you, and will give it to your servant.” 1 Kings 11:11
As a young boy, King David of Israel had so much faith in God that he bravely stood before the giant Goliath to protect his people. When David died, he was succeeded on the throne by his son Solomon. King David, despite his flaws and mistakes, never abandoned his love for the Lord, and desired for his son to have the same devotion to God.
In 1 Kings 2:3, David commands Solomon, “Walk in obedience to the Lord, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and regulations, as written in the Law of Moses. Do this so that you may prosper in all you do.”
In 1 Kings 3, the Lord appears to King Solomon and says, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” Solomon could have requested wealth and riches, more land and kingdoms under his leadership, or a long life. But King Solomon, recognizing the weight of the responsibilities before him, requested wisdom. “So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?” (vs. 9)
God was so moved by Solomon’s noble request that not only did He grant him wisdom, but also many things he did not ask for, including wealth and honor.
Subsequently, King Solomon had a prosperous reign. His wise counsel and his kingdoms were unmatched. Other nations stood in awe of his knowledge and leadership. Solomon wrote three books of the Bible: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. The Book of Proverbs contains verses about wisdom that are still extremely relevant today.
And yet…. “King Solomon loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter (his wife.)” 1 Kings 11:1
The Lord had commanded the Israelites not to marry foreign women because “they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” (v. 2)
Yet Solomon “held fast to his wives in love.” (v. 2) As King Solomon grew older, his wives led him astray. “His wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been.” (v. 4)
Despite all his insight, his wealth, his power, his influence, and his honor, Solomon was addicted to women. I am certain that Solomon, in his wisdom, knew that if he sincerely repented his addiction to the Lord, it would have been removed from him. But biblically speaking, “held fast” means “never let go.” Solomon did not desire to give up his wives.
Many of us – despite our talents, our abilities, our areas of gentleness and goodness and wisdom – remain separated from God because of one flaw, one worldly idol, one sinful longing.
We could be the greatest employee at our job, the greatest husband or wife, the greatest son or daughter, the greatest money manager, or the greatest orator who can influence people with our words. We could possess the capacity to lead nations or to save lives, and yet, there remains that one secret area we cling to and do not give over to God.
Surrendering worldly possessions to the Lord is not difficult when those possessions are not our strongholds. If God had asked Solomon to give up his wealth, his power, and his honor, I believe he would have done so. But Solomon was so addicted to women that he took seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines. And as a result, he began worshipping other gods.
Because one unconfessed and unrepented sin will always lead to another. “But each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” (James 1:14-15)
There was a consequence to Solomon’s sin: God divided the kingdom of Israel. (But not in Solomon’s lifetime, for the sake of his father, King David.)
We read in the Old Testament that for many years, the people of Israel begged for an earthly king to rule over them. They desired a tangible leader who could be physically seen and physically heard to govern their day to day lives.
Yet earthly king after earthly king failed them. Despite all the growth and prosperity Israel experienced under the reign of Solomon, ultimately, his sin was disastrous for the people.
Likewise, our own idols and longings will betray us. The peace, happiness, and pleasure they bring will be temporary.
But God ushered in a New King – our New Covenant.
Jesus succeeded where earthly kings had failed.
He walked perfectly and blamelessly, all the days of His life.
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:36-40)
God first. People second.
Although we cannot see Him, although we cannot touch Him, God wants us to trust in Him more than we trust in the earthly kings and earthly governments, which will forsake us time and again.
In Daniel 2:44, Daniel prophesizes of Christ’s eternal reign over His people, “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.”
It is tempting for us to look to earthly rulers and earthly obsessions to fulfill the yearnings inside of us. During times when we crave the seen more than the unseen, may our worldly idols pale in comparison to God’s eternal promise – that those who love Him with all of their hearts, souls, and minds are heirs to a kingdom which has no end.
