Solomon lusted after beautiful women , worshipped idols and became lost in his success. Solomon had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines. As Solomon grew old, 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. He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites.
In his middle and old age, he lusted after beautiful women and they turned his heart after other gods, which led to a decline in his spiritual life, internal and external trouble, and a loss in success. Solomon was the strongest king in the history of Israel, but sin split his kingdom in two. It is terrible that the devil uses the cravings and lust of our eyes to destroy our spiritual life.
When we are successful, we are more likely to turn away from God, sin and fall down than when we have not been successful. So we should be more careful if we are successful. Here is an example to follow: After Jesus had performed the miracles of the five loaves and two fishes, others wanted to make him king by force, but he withdrew to the mountain and desert to pray. The more you succeed, the more you should pray and be careful to avoid stealing the glory of God and be proud to be far away from God.
In his old age, he came to his senses and reflected on his life. In his later years, Solomon repented from his sins and wrote the book of Ecclesiastes as a warning to succeeding generations to avoid becoming lost. An ot is an act that symbolizes a future event. What is the action and what is the symbolic meaning of the act?
Notice that the "newness" of the garment is stresses twice in verses 29 and Answer: Jeroboam is wearing a new coat. The prophet tears the new cloak into 12 pieces, symbolizing the division of the United Kingdom into a new kingdom.
The new cloak represents a new regime and a new kingdom of Israel that will be founded by Jeroboam. The twelve pieces represent the 12 tribes of Israel.
The prophet offers 10 pieces to Jeroboam, representing 10 tribes that will compose his Northern Kingdom of Israel. The identify of Jeroboam as a servant of Solomon and the tearing of the cloak and its symbolic meaning fulfills the prophecy in verse Yahweh therefore said to Solomon, "Since you have behaved like this and have not kept my covenant or the laws which I laid down for you, I shall tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your servants.
On Yahweh's behalf, the prophet offers Jeroboam kingship over Israel. Question: What reason does the prophet give Jeroboam for God making him the offer that punishes Solomon? See verse Answer: Solomon has turned to worshipping foreign gods. The LXX reads in verse 36 "two tribes"; these two tribes will be David's tribe of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin immediately to the north of the tribal lands of Judah that includes the city of Jerusalem.
The tribe of Benjamin will remain loyal to the Davadic kings. Question: What unique connection was there between Judah and Benjamin, sons of Jacob-Israel from two different mothers, and how did a certain action by Judah son of Jacob-Israel set him apart from his brothers?
Judah was the fourth son of Leah and Benjamin was the twelfth and youngest son of Jacob and Rachel. The event took place when the 12 sons of Jacob were confronted by the Pharaoh's Vizier, who they did not recognize as their brother Joseph. See Gen ; Num ; Answer: When Joseph, in disguise as the Pharaoh's Vizier, used deception of trap Benjamin and accuse him of stealing a sliver cup so he would keep his youngest brother with him in Egypt as the Vizier's "slave", Judah unselfishly offered his own life in exchange for his brother Benjamin.
From then onward, the tribe of Judah is singled out from the other tribes: Jacob-Israel prophesies kingship for the tribe of Judah on his deathbed; the tribe of Judah will be chosen by Yahweh to camp at the entrance to the desert Sanctuary, and the tribe of Judah will lead the march of the tribes of Israel.
The tribe of Judah will lead the march for the 38 years in the years of desert wandering from Sinai to the banks of the Jordan River Dt David will be Judah's first king and the kings of Judah will reach their climax in Jesus of Nazareth, the King of kings and fulfillment of the Davidic covenant.
Question: Jeroboam is also offered a dynasty like the dynasty God offered David, but what is different in this offer of covenant as opposed to the Davidic covenant in 2 Samuel ; ?
Answer: Jeroboam's offer of a covenant is not unconditional and is based entirely on his obedience to God's commandments verse He and his descendants will not be identified as "sons" of Yahweh. When Solomon realized Jeroboam was fermenting a revolt, he tried to have him killed. Sarira is the name in LXX for his hometown of Zeredah and an unknown location it also appears as Zarethan in 2 Chr Question: Why did he flee to Egypt like Hadad?
Was there an Egyptian connection in his background from the time of his ancestor Joseph? See Gen Answer: Egypt was probably the only nation in the region that was powerful enough to protect an enemy of Israel and with whom Israel did not have an extradition treaty.
Jeroboam could also claim he had a blood connection to Egypt through his ancestor Joseph's wife and Ephraim's mother, an Egyptian woman named Asenath who was the daughter of the chief priest of On. He was not Solomon's father-in-law; he was the founder of the new Twenty-second dynasty of Egypt.
Question: How is God's judgment against Solomon and the events that will follow Solomon's judgment after his death part of what God told David concerning His covenant with David's heirs? See 2 Sam and quote the passage. Answer: God told David through the prophet Nathan: "I shall be a father to him and he a son to me; if he does wrong, I shall punish him with a rod such as men use, with blows such as mankind gives.
But my faithful love will never be withdrawn from him as I withdrew it from Saul, whom I removed from before you. Your dynasty and your sovereignty will ever stand firm before me and your throne be forever secure. The "Annals of Solomon" is probably the record of Solomon's reign written by Nathan the prophet and possibly completed by his son or successor 2 Chr The book is lost to history.
Rehoboam was Solomon's son by an Ammonite princess named Naamah 1 Kng What became of Solomon's great wisdom? How could he be so unwise as to risk everything by offending God and violating the first of the Ten Commandments and the laws of the king which he was supposed to read every day of his life?
He had the gift of wisdom but he also had the gift of free-will. Wisdom is only valuable if it is acted upon and not ignored. How many times do we think an action or a comment is unwise, and yet we bow to the temptation and go ahead and commit what we know is not the best course of action? Solomon had the worldly wisdom but he failed the greatest test of wisdom "spiritual wisdom that comes from fear of offending God.
And what became of the promise of the everlasting king of the Davidic covenant? Most Jewish scholars see Solomon as the promised Davidic king of the everlasting kingdom. However, St.
Augustine wrote that Solomon was not the Messiah promised by God: "God promised that something everlasting would spring from David's seed. Then Solomon was born, and he became a man of such profound wisdom that everyone supposed God's promise concerning David's offspring had been fulfilled in him.
But no, Solomon fell and so made room for people to stretch their hope toward Christ. God can neither be deceived nor deceive us, so we can be certain that he did not ground his promise in Solomon, for he knew Solomon would fall. The divine purpose was that after Solomon's fall you would look to God and earnestly press him for what he had promised" Augustine, Exposition 2 of Psalm The rest of the history of Solomon, from first to last, is this not all written down in the records of Nathan the prophet, in the Prophecy of Ahijah of Shiloh, and in the Vision of Iddo the seer concerning Jeroboam son of Nebat?
Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel for forty years. When Solomon fell asleep with his ancestors, he was buried in the city of his father David; Rehoboam his son succeeded him. Questions for discussion or reflection: All the violations of the Laws of Kings set down in Deuteronomy were the normal actions and prerogatives of the kings of Israel's neighboring nations: acquiring a vast treasury, marrying the members of the royal families of ally nations, building a formidable military force, and securing the most technologically advanced weapons of the times.
Solomon's neighbors expected him to ratify covenant treaties with them by marrying a royal woman of the ruling family as proof of his sincerity, and his military build-up and accumulation of wealth can be seen as securing the future of his people. But God did not view the reasons for His actions in the same way. The Israelites were commanded not to be like their pagan neighbors any more than Christians are to behave like the secular world.
Both the people of the Old and New Covenants are a people called apart from the world. Question: Could the argument be made that the old Law of Kings written several centuries earlier was not valid in what was for Solomon "modern society" in a new age? Question: Is there a lesson for the members of the modern Church concerning the judgment against Solomon and the commands and prohibitions of the New Covenant in Christ and the teachings of Mother Church in the modern age?
Question: Is God moved by human traditions or acceptable cultural views of what is morally acceptable and what is forbidden? What about the Church's teaching on celibacy before marriage, the necessity of marital fidelity, the prohibition against divorce, and the evil practice of abortion—all of which are acceptable by modern society?
Should Christians adjust their moral beliefs according to acceptable practices of the times? Hint: The people of God are not meant to be changed by the world; they are meant to change the world.
See Dt ; 1 Kng , 33 , and Endnotes: 1. The Akkadians united all the indigenous Akkadian speaking Semites and the Sumerian speakers under one rule within a multilingual empire. What Solomon lost in the dividing of the kingdom, Jesus repaired, not only in the restoring of the breach between Israel and Judah , but in restoring the breach between men and God, thus tearing down the dividing wall between all men. God sends a prophet to Jeroboam with a message. This message is conveyed with a graphic picture.
The prophet is wearing a new cloak. He takes the cloak and begins to rip it apart. He continues to rip until there are 12 pieces. The clothing is ruined. He then gives to Jeroboam 10 of these pieces. It is a picture of what God is going to do to the nation of Israel.
Ten tribes will be ripped from the house of David and given to Jeroboam because of the idolatry which Solomon has brought into the land. This is meant as a punishment against Solomon for his idolatry. He will have the privilege of being king over the northern tribes. He will also have the responsibility of following the Lord.
The Promise. Jeroboam is given essentially the same promises and the same responsibilities which had first been given to Solomon. There is a lesson which the writer of Kings is seeking to impart to his readers - those who are facing the prospect of a Babylonian Captivity. It is that God is able to take cursing and to turn it into blessing. Historical Lesson. Immediate Lesson. Jesus came to His own and His own did not receive Him John Jeroboam was given 10 tribes and the promise of an enduring house.
Judah was given the opportunity to return and rebuild. As many as did receive Him have been given the right to become sons of God John Jeroboam would continue to be blessed as long as he obeyed. The restoration of worship and of relationship would only take place through obedience. If we continue to walk in the light, we have fellowship with one another and cleansing from sin 1 John Romans 11 tells us that the unbelief in Israel has made it possible for the gospel to go to the Gentiles.
This does not mean that we should take up an attitude of anti-Semitism or of smug self-righteousness. The church only continues to enjoy the benefits of blessing as she is obedient to the same terms of the covenant - believing and obeying the commands and the promises of God. Solomon sought therefore to put Jeroboam to death; but Jeroboam arose and fled to Egypt to Shishak king of Egypt, and he was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.
This is certainly possible. It seems more likely that Jeroboam used this prophecy as an excuse to attempt to incite a revolution.
Verse 27 specifically states that Jeroboam rebelled against the king. The account which follows relates how it came about that this rebellion took place. Verse Verses Jeroboam rebelled against the king. Now this was the reason why he rebelled against the king Solomon sought to put Jeroboam to death.
In this regard, Jeroboam stands in marked contrast to David who also had received a prophecy that he would be king. Told by Samuel that he would replace Saul as king. He was content to wait for the Lord to bring this about. He determined to fulfill the prophecy by inciting a revolt. But slowly, as he went through life, his heart became insensitive. As a result, his great wisdom that once represented a divine gift became an instrument for self-service and exaltation. Self-deception is by definition impossible to spot on your own.
The stories of Solomon stand as yet another warning that we should take our own dark side seriously. It also serves as a sign of hope that God will not let the failures of his people get the final word.
His promise to David still stands remember 2 Samuel 7. In this way, the bad news about Solomon points forward to the good news of the future that will arrive with King Jesus. Tim Mackie is a writer and creative director for BibleProject.
He wrote his dissertation on the manuscript history of the book of Ezekiel, with a focus on the Septuagint and Dead Sea Scrolls. What a total nerd!
He is a professor at Western Seminary and served as a teaching pastor for many years. How to Read the Bible. Word Studies. Old Testament Overviews. New Testament Overviews.
Book Collections. Visual Commentaries. All Podcasts. Bible Reader. Croatian Hrvatski. Dutch Nederlands. Finnish Suomi. German Deutsch. Hungarian Magyar. Indonesian Bahasa Indonesia.
0コメント