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CHART AND MAP
CHART AND MAP
If you are following the chronological chart, we are in the time of the kings of Israel, beginning around 1,000 B.C. Saul died; David died. Solomon is on the throne in Israel
This map shows the greatest extent of Israel’s empire, as well as the territory under the economic influence of King Solomon. Samuel had grown old, and Israel was ready to have a king replace him. Samuel explained how a king would treat them (1 Samuel 8:10-21, GNT):
- He will make soldiers of your sons
- some of them will serve in his war chariots
- others in his cavalry
- and others will run before his chariots
- He will make some of them officers in charge of a thousand men
- and others in charge of fifty men
- Your sons will have to plow his fields
- harvest his crops
- and make his weapons
- and the equipment for his chariots
- Your daughters will have to make perfumes for him
- and work as his cooks and his bakers
- He will take your best fields, vineyards, and olive groves, and give them to his officials
- He will take a tenth of your grain and of your grapes for his court officers and other officials
- He will take your servants and your best cattle and donkeys
- and make them work for him
- He will take a tenth of your flocks
- And you yourselves will become his slaves
- When that time comes, you will complain bitterly because of your king, whom you yourselves chose
- but the Lord will not listen to your complaints
How did the nation respond?
The people paid no attention to Samuel, but said, “No! We want a king, so that we will be like other nations, with our own king to rule us and to lead us out to war and to fight our battles.”
To fully appreciate Israel’s response, we should understand that a king ‘like other nations’ was viewed as deity. Israel was prepared to replace God’s rightful rule over them with another ‘god’.
Solomon represents the peak period of Israel’s prosperity as a kingdom, and the last king to reign over a united Hebrew nation. He reigned for forty years. His reign had a rocky start:
- His father, King David, was advanced in years, and had no wife to attend to his physical ailments, so a young woman was brought in to care for him. It looks like multiple wives are of little comfort at the end of life!
- Adonijah, an older brother attempted to seize the throne. By marrying David’s nurse, he could create a claim to the throne.
- Solomon was required to complete what his father failed to do: (1) End the corrupted priestly line of Eli. This allowed Zadok and his descendants to become the sole high priestly family in Israel. (2) Remove Joab as commander of the army and put him to death because he had shed innocent blood in peacetime.
- He made a treaty with King Pharaoh of Egypt, and married Pharaoh’s daughter.
- He loved the Lord and followed the instructions of his father David, but he did not follow his father’s example in worship: he slaughtered animals and offered them as sacrifices on various altars.
Sharing:
- David had eight wives, and this certainly had a bearing on his sons’ attitudes.
- Adonijah’s behavior sowed the seeds of splitting the kingdom of Israel.
- There was a question in the session about David’s instruction to Solomon about Shimei, recorded in 1 Kings 2:8-9. 2 Samuel 16:5-8 records that Shimei cursed and stoned David when David was running from his son Absalom. Shimei later begged for pardon and David promised Shimei would not die (2 Samuel 19:16-23). Bible scholars suggest that David personally forgave Shimei, but this did not excuse Shimei under the law Moses gave in Exodus 22:28 – cursing a ruler violated God’s law. As king and representative of the rights of God, he could not forgive Shimei. David’s instruction to Solomon did not come from personal revenge, but was the duty of the king as judge and administrator of God’s requirements.
- Solomon did not follow his father’s example in worship. Instead, he promoted idol worship through marriage of foreign women.
- People always struggled with giving their complete allegiance to God.
Solomon was under the age of twenty when he became king. His father had previously described his son as “young and inexperienced” (1 Chronicles 22:5). The Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream and asked (1 Kings 3:5-14, GNT):
- “What would you like me to give you?”
Solomon considered the question and replied:
- “…give me the wisdom I need to rule your people with justice and to know the difference between good and evil. Otherwise, how would I ever be able to rule this great people of yours?”
The Lord was pleased, so responded:
“Because you have asked for the wisdom to rule justly, instead of long life for yourself or riches or the death of your enemies, I will do what you have asked. I will give you more wisdom and understanding than anyone has ever had before or will ever have again. I will also give you what you have not asked for: all your life you will have wealth and honor, more than that of any other king.”
But this with a condition:
- “And if you obey me and keep my laws and commands, as your father David did, I will give you a long life.”
Sharing:
- Solomon asked God for an understanding heart to govern God’s people and to distinguish between good and evil (1 Kings 3:9). This was not a selfish request, but one for the benefit of his people.
- We should feel sorry for Solomon because he may have been blessed with worldly wisdom, but he was not godly.
- Think about what Solomon’s reign would have been like if he did live in obedience.
Solomon’s administration and economic control fulfills what was promised in Genesis 15:18 and 22:17:
- “To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates… I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore.”
Now read 1 Kings 4:20-21:
- Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking and rejoicing. So Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the River to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt.
It became a costly affair to support the government. For taxation purposes, the nation was divided into twelve districts. In rotation, each district supplied provisions for the central government during one month of each year. One day’s supply for the king and his court, army, and building personnel consisted of:
- Over 195 bushels of fine flour.
- Almost 390 bushels of meal flour.
- Ten pen-fattened cattle.
- Twenty pasture fed cattle.
- One hundred sheep.
- Other animals and fowl.
- In addition, barley and hay were required on a regular basis for his livestock.
The temple site takes us back to Genesis 22:2:
- “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”
This connects us with the place of David’s repentance after the census, described in 1 Chronicles 22:1:
- “This is the house of the Lord God, and this is the altar of burnt offering for Israel.”
Solomon’s prayer for the dedication of the temple embraces the awareness of God’s presence in the neighborhood. Think back to:
- Exodus 29:45, when Aaron and his sons were consecrated: “I will dwell among the children of Israel.”
- Leviticus 26:11, when Moses gave the promises of blessing: “I will set My dwelling place [tabernacle] among you.”
- Deuteronomy 4:7, during Moses’ command to obey: “For what great nation is there that has God so near to it?”
God’s presence among His people sets Him apart from all the gods of other nations, who are distant.
An outstanding feature of Solomon’s temple is that it had no carved image present. It was not erected because God needed it, but in order to accommodate the limitations and needs of His people. Solomon affirms this in his prayer of dedication in 1 Kings 8:27:
“But will God indeed dwell in the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You. How much less this temple, which I have built!”
Sharing:
- God lowers Himself so that we “feel” Him through His presence.
- God does not need a temple. He had it built for Israel’s sake, as a symbol of His presence among His people.
When you think about Solomon’s downfall, put it in the context of the name the Lord gave him. David and Bathsheba called his name Solomon, but 2 Samuel 12:24-25 (GNT) says: The Lord loved the boy and commanded the prophet Nathan to name the boy Jedidiah, because the Lord loved him.
This is the only place this name is used for Solomon. This young man understood a condition attached to God’s promises. He states in his prayer of dedication in 1 Kings 8:25 (GNT):
“And now, Lord God of Israel, I pray that you will also keep the other promise you made to my father when you told him that there would always be one of his descendants ruling as king of Israel, provided they obeyed you as carefully as he did.”
Somehow, he did not heed his own prayer when he transferred his love for the Lord. 1 Kings 11:1 gives us a most tragic statement: But King Solomon loved many foreign wives. His 700 wives and 300 concubines turned his heart after their gods (1 Kings 11:2).
The most tragic description of Solomon’s life is given in 1 Kings 11:6:
Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David.
But a just and merciful God preserves Solomon (1 Kings 11:9-13, MSG):
God was furious with Solomon for abandoning the God of Israel, the God who had twice appeared to him and had so clearly commanded him not to fool around with other gods. Solomon faithlessly disobeyed God's orders.
God said to Solomon, "Since this is the way it is with you, that you have no intention of keeping faith with me and doing what I have commanded, I'm going to rip the kingdom from you and hand it over to someone else. But out of respect for your father David I won't do it in your lifetime. It's your son who will pay — I'll rip it right out of his grasp. Even then I won't take it all; I'll leave him one tribe in honor of my servant David and out of respect for my chosen city Jerusalem."
Sharing:
- We are not given a reason why it is ever recorded that Solomon was ever referred to by the name God told the prophet Nathan to give him. 2 Samuel 12:25 is the only place in the Bible where he is called Jedidiah.
- Our prayers reveal much about ourselves. Solomon’s prayer of dedication at the temple shows that he knew what was required of him. Yet, he chose to love many foreign wives.
- Solomon abused his privileges from God. The answer Solomon would give for why he did what he did is, “Because I can!”
- Solomon was wise in his kingship, but he made bad personal choices.
- Solomon’s partial obedience was the brother of disobedience.
- As Solomon grew wealthier, his desire for more also grew.
Solomon died after a reign of forty years, which closed in a cloud of God’s displeasure. The most highly gifted man of Old Testament Israel
Sharing:
- God promised long life for obedience, which Solomon failed to heed. He probably died around the age of 60.
- Solomon tried everything, but was never satisfied.
- When everything is going good in life, watch out!
- Whatever it takes to divert you is the measure of your conviction. Solomon was diverted by his disobedience.
- The true character of a person is not tested in adversity as much as it is in prosperity.
Our next two sessions cover the remainder of 1 Kings, plus 2 Kings and 1 & 2 Chronicles. You will have an opportunity in our sessions to share your insights about any of the kings of the divided kingdom of Israel.
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