1Kings
11:1 ¶ But king Solomon loved many
strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites,
Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites; 2 Of the nations concerning which the
LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither
shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart
after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love. 3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and
his wives turned away his heart. 4 For
it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his
heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David
his father. 5 For Solomon went after
Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the
Ammonites. 6 And Solomon did evil in the
sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his
father. 7 Then did Solomon build an high
place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before
Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. 8 And likewise did he for all his strange
wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.
Solomon
had many foreign wives. As I have explained before a stranger was someone alien
to Israel. Notice what Nehemiah said;
Nehemiah
13:25 And I contended with them, and
cursed them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made
them swear by God, saying, Ye shall not give your daughters unto their sons,
nor take their daughters unto your sons, or for yourselves. 26 Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these
things? yet among many nations was there no king like him, who was beloved of
his God, and God made him king over all Israel: nevertheless even him did
outlandish women cause to sin.
Here
it is clear that Solomon disobeyed God’s admonitions with regard to foreign
women.
Exodus 34:14
For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is
Jealous, is a jealous God: 15 Lest thou
make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after
their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat
of his sacrifice; 16 And thou take of
their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a whoring after their
gods, and make thy sons go a whoring after their gods.
Deuteronomy
7:3 Neither shalt thou make marriages
with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter
shalt thou take unto thy son. 4 For they
will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so
will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly.
And
so, like with many of us, at the height of his own success the seeds of
Solomon’s greatest failure were sown. We often do that, expressing a weakness
when we are strong that eventually undoes us. This will set the pattern for
Israel’s future downfall.
One
can only wonder how he had the time and energy to reign over Israel.
1Kings
11:9 ¶ And the LORD was angry with
Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had
appeared unto him twice, 10 And had
commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods:
but he kept not that which the LORD commanded. 11 Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon,
Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my
statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from
thee, and will give it to thy servant. 12
Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father’s
sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. 13 Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom;
but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant’s sake, and for
Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.
Surely
this great king’s reckless behavior and sin against God does not go unnoticed.
God will remove the kingdom from Solomon’s dynasty but only by God’s grace in
His favor for Solomon will He not take it in Solomon’s day on earth. In
addition, God will leave Solomon’s son one tribe in honor of David’s
faithfulness. So, as God does in the affairs of mankind He begins to set the
pieces on the board for His coming judgment on Israel.
1Kings
11:14 ¶ And the LORD stirred up an
adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite: he was of the king’s seed in
Edom. 15 For it came to pass, when David
was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain,
after he had smitten every male in Edom; 16
(For six months did Joab remain there with all Israel, until he had cut
off every male in Edom:) 17 That Hadad
fled, he and certain Edomites of his father’s servants with him, to go into
Egypt; Hadad being yet a little child. 18 And they arose out of Midian, and came to
Paran: and they took men with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt, unto
Pharaoh king of Egypt; which gave him an house, and appointed him victuals, and
gave him land. 19 And Hadad found great
favour in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his
own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen. 20
And the sister of Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes
weaned in Pharaoh’s house: and Genubath was in Pharaoh’s household among the sons
of Pharaoh. 21 And when Hadad heard in
Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the host
was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart, that I may go to mine own
country. 22 Then Pharaoh said unto him,
But what hast thou lacked with me, that, behold, thou seekest to go to thine
own country? And he answered, Nothing: howbeit let me go in any wise. 23 And God stirred him up another
adversary, Rezon the son of Eliadah, which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of
Zobah: 24 And he gathered men unto him,
and became captain over a band, when David slew them of Zobah: and they
went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus. 25 And he was an adversary to Israel all the
days of Solomon, beside the mischief that Hadad did: and he abhorred
Israel, and reigned over Syria.
In
this passage God has set up two adversaries to the kingdom of Israel and to
Solomon’s dynasty. Hadad the Edomite survived the massacre of the males of Edom
enacted by David.
This
is a reference to the events of 2Samuel, chapter 8, which told of the slaughter
of 18,000 men of military age.
Rezon,
who becomes king of Syria, is not mentioned elsewhere but is another thorn in
Solomon’s side.
Next,
though, comes someone a more significant threat to Solomon and David’s dynasty.
1Kings
11:26 ¶ And Jeroboam the son of Nebat,
an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon’s servant, whose mother’s name was
Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king.
27 And this was the cause that he
lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and
repaired the breaches of the city of David his father. 28 And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man
of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made
him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph. 29 And it came to pass at that time when
Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him
in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were
alone in the field: 30 And Ahijah caught
the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces:
31 And he said to Jeroboam, 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: 32 (But he shall have one tribe for my servant
David’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all
the tribes of Israel:) 33 Because that
they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians,
Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon,
and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes,
and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his
father. 34 Howbeit I will not take the
whole kingdom out of his hand: but I will make him prince all the days of his
life for David my servant’s sake, whom I chose, because he kept my commandments
and my statutes: 35 But I will take the
kingdom out of his son’s hand, and will give it unto thee, even ten
tribes. 36 And unto his son will I give
one tribe, that David my servant may have a light alway before me in Jerusalem,
the city which I have chosen me to put my name there. 37 And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign
according to all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel. 38 And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto
all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that is right
in my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did;
that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David,
and will give Israel unto thee. 39 And I
will for this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever. 40 Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam.
And Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and was in
Egypt until the death of Solomon.
Jeroboam
is a significant threat to Solomon’s dynasty. He was a trusted servant of
Solomon’s. But Ahijah the Shilonite, a prophet, delivered God’s message that
Jeroboam, a mighty warrior, would take ten of the twelve tribes’ territory away
from Solomon’s dynasty. Ahijah lists the gods that the Israelites have
worshipped underscoring their idolatry, and Solomon’s of course. Ahijah, will
later deliver bad news to Jeroboam’s wife.
God
makes a promise to Jeroboam that, like Solomon, God would bless his kingdom and
give him a dynasty although both God and we know Jeroboam would fail in his end
of that bargain.
Rehoboam
goes into exile in Egypt until Solomon’s death under a Pharaoh who will also come
up against him as an enemy later, as we will see.
1Kings
11:41 ¶ And the rest of the acts of
Solomon, and all that he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in
the book of the acts of Solomon? 42 And
the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty
years. 43 And Solomon slept with his
fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son
reigned in his stead.
The
Book of the Acts of Solomon was not preserved for us as the other books of
history were so while that seems unfortunate the Holy Spirit did not deem it
necessary for our edification. Like the Book of Jasher it is gone. Solomon had
a good long reign and died. Now, Israel will decline from the heights of its
golden age to utter ruin.
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