We think of Solomon as the wisest king that ever lived. He was the son of David and Bathsheba, a man who loved the Lord and obeyed God (Second Kings 3:3).

When the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream, He said to Solomon, “Ask what I shall give you” (Second Kings 3:5 ESV). Solomon’s answer was not what one would typically expect from a new king. Solomon did not ask for fame and fortune; instead he asked for an understanding heart so he could determine what was good and evil. He wanted to govern the people of Israel the way God wanted them to be governed (First Kings 3:9).

God was pleased with Solomon’s request, and He promised Solomon not only a wise mind, but fame and fortune as well. He would be like no other king.

This promise from God came with a condition. “And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days” (First Kings 3:14). So, all Solomon had to do was obey God, and he would have a long life.

His fame went out to all Israel and to all the nations around Israel. There was no war because God had given him peace as part of His promise to Him. This sounds like a perfect man, one that needed nothing because he had everything anyone could want.

After Solomon had completed the temple and his own house, the Lord appeared to him again. He renewed his promise to be with him, but He gave Solomon a warning. He said, “But if you turn aside from following me, you or your children, and do not keep my commandments and my statutes that I have set before you, but go and serve other gods and worship them, then I will cut off Israel from the land that I have given them, and the house that I have consecrated for my name I will cast out of my sight, and Israel will become a proverb and a byword among all peoples” (First Kings 9:6-7).

It seemed as though everything was going according to the plan. So, where did Solomon go wrong? It began with Solomon taking Pharaoh’s daughter as his wife. She was probably given to him as a gift, maybe an alliance with Pharaoh. She is mentioned several times and was obviously favored.

Why was this a problem? She was just the beginning of Solomon’s harem, his collection of 700 wives and 300 concubines, from the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites. “…And his wives turned away his heart. For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites” (First Kings 11:3-5). 

He did evil, not following God’s instructions. He built alters for Chemosh, the god of Moab, Molech, the god of the Ammonites, and he made offerings and sacrificed to the gods of his wives. This was a direct violation of God’s commandments to not intermarry with the nations the Israelites defeated (Deuteronomy 7:1-3) and not to worship strange gods.

First Kings 9 is a “red flag” chapter. This is where God warned Solomon about what would happen if he failed to obey. The warning was a promise to cut off Israel from the land God had given them, and to cast them out of His sight if Solomon did not obey Him (First Kings 9:7).

There were other things that Solomon did that caused the failure of his kingdom. His relationship with King Hiram put him in a vulnerable position. In that relationship with King Hiram, he disobeyed two other of God’s commandments. God told the people that they could have a king, but “He must not acquire many horses for himself” (Deuteronomy 17:16). In this same passage, the kings were told not to acquire for themselves excessive silver and gold.

Solomon “collected” horses, gold, and silver. It seems the more he had, the more he wanted.

How is all of this relevant to us today? We are told, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21). 

Paul explained what it means to lay up treasures in heaven. He said of the rich, “They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life” (First Timothy 6:18-19). 

The writer of Hebrews says, “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you not forsake you’” (Hebrews 13:5-6). 

The same warnings are there for us as those given to King Solomon. Solomon had Moses and the prophets; we have the writings of the apostles and other inspired writings.

May God help us to obey Him better than Solomon did.

Sandra Oliver