The Empire of David and Solomon
CHAPTER XV

SOLOMON THE GREAT

THE truth expressed in the end of the previous chapter is emphasised in the account of the accession of the new king. “Then Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord as king instead of David his father, and prospered.” The fact that the throne was the Lord’s is inherent in the whole story.

One of Solomon’s first acts was to deal with the abortive attempt of Adonijah and Joab to interfere with the succession. It was hastened by Adonijah himself, who, working through Bathsheba, sought to marry Abishag the Shunamite, the young virgin who had ministered to David. When the request was made known to Solomon, he gave instructions for Adonijah and Joab to be put to death. Others who had been concerned with various risings of his father’s reign were also dealt with.

The wisdom of God

Early in his reign Solomon went to Gibeon where the tabernacle was pitched, though the ark was still in its tent in Jerusalem. While there God appeared to him in a vision, saying, “Ask what I shall give thee.” Solomon’s request was a wise one. “Give me now wisdom and knowledge that I may go out and come in before this people.” In reply, God said to Solomon, “Because this was in thine heart and thou hast not asked riches, wealth honour, nor the life of them that hate thee, neither yet hast asked long life . . . wisdom and knowledge is granted unto thee, and I will give thee riches and wealth and honour, such as none of the kings have had that have been before thee, neither shall there any after thee have the like.” This reply furnishes the key to Solomon’s position in the Bible; he was the wise man who wrote wise things, though he did not always practise them.

Solomon organised the kingdom on sound lines. Officers were appointed to look after various matters. He built largely, including fortresses and strong­holds in various parts of the country. His out­standing work was the construction of the temple which his father had designed. It was a wonderful building for the times, and seven years were occupied in its construction. It was built on the pattern of the tabernacle, but larger; the measurements being doubled. There was a court, a holy place, and a most holy place. There were the same kind of accessories, altars, lavers, lampstands, a mercy-seat and the ark, most of them on a larger scale, though the original ark was placed in the inmost sanctuary.

Dedication of the temple

A great dedication service was held in which the king occupied the foremost place. In his prayer he referred to the Lord God of heaven as one Who keepeth covenant and mercy, and asked for the Divine compassion to be shown to all who prayed to God in or toward the house he had built. He finished with the words, “That all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord, he is God; there is none else. Let your heart therefore be perfect with the Lord our God to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments as at this day.”

In addition to the temple Solomon built a palace for himself much more splendid than his father’s, store cities and fortified cities, and many fine build­ings. He was a great king, but during his magnificent reign the seeds were sown that resulted in the division of the kingdom.

One of the events of his reign was a visit from the Queen of Sheba, who sent to Jerusalem to see if all that was said of Solomon was true. She gave the king rich presents and asked him many questions. Before she returned to her own land she said, “It was a true report that I heard in mine own land . . . howbeit I believed not the words until I came, and behold, the half was not told me; thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard.”

Solomon was not only a ruler, he was also a great trader. With the help of the Phoenicians he fitted out a fleet to carry on trade with Tarshish and Ophir. It brought back gold and other eastern produce, such as silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks. Other trading activities also brought him much gain. Civilization and luxury made immense strides in the kingdom, but they brought disadvantages as well as advantages.

Solomon’s weakness

Solomon’s principal weakness was his desire for women. He had seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines, women of all peoples, and in the end they “turned away his heart.” He tried to mix the worship of the gods of his wives with that of the God of Israel. The two ideas would not mix, and the result was disastrous. Once more the Lord appeared to Solomon, not to bless but to threaten. Because he had not kept the covenant of his God, God said, “I will surely rend the kingdom from thee and will give it to thy servant.” Yet for David’s sake there was an exception, two tribes were to be made sure to the house of David.

Towards the end of Solomon’s reign adversaries began to arise. There was Hadad of Edom who had fled to Egypt during the reign of David, where he gained the favour of the Egyptian king. Later Hadad returned to his home where the people were ready to stir up trouble with Israel when opportunity offered.

There were other sources of trouble, the principal one being Jeroboam. He was an energetic young man, and Solomon had noted him for preferment. One day he was met by a prophet, who seizing his mantle, tore it into twelve pieces, and said, “Take thee ten pieces, for thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, Behold I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and will give ten tribes to thee.” Though the incident took place when Jeroboam and the prophet were alone, Solomon heard of it, and Jeroboam had to flee; he too went to Egypt to await the time for the fulfilment of the prophecy.
So the forty years of the reign of Solomon came to an end. The strength of the kingdom had been drained by the exactions of the king whose wisdom was mixed with much folly in his dealings with the people.

Solomon was a great writer. He wrote three thousand proverbs, and “his songs were a thousand and five. He spoke of trees, from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that springeth out of the wall; he spoke also of beasts and of fowls, of creeping things, and of fishes.” Much of his writing is found in our Bible, though much of it has perished. The Book of Proverbs is the outstanding example of his literary work.