In the book of Deuteronomy, Moses is summarizing the covenant God made to the nation of Israel and providing final instructions about how they should administer this nation once they crossed into the Promised Land. During his second address to the people, Moses provides stipulations from the Lord on how a king, once requested, should guard his heart. Deuteronomy 17:20 summarizes the goal of the preceding instructions beautifully, “that his heart may not be lifted above his brethren, that he may not turn aside from the commandment to the right hand or to the left, and that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his children in the midst of Israel.”[1] This verse powerfully describes the impacts of pride in the heart of the child of God. Each of the first three kings of Israel were guilty of the sin of pride to varying degrees within their respective reigns because they neglected the stipulations laid out by God to guard their hearts.
Saul was the first king chosen to rule over God’s people, following their plea to Samuel to “make us a king to judge us like all the nations.” (1 Sam 8:5b). Initially Saul met all of the qualifications for being a king. He was chosen by God from among his brethren (1 Sam 9:17), and there is no indication that he accumulated horses, wives, or gold during his reign. However, Saul did not exhibit a heart of obedience to the commandments of the Lord and his reign was ultimately rejected by God (1 Sam 9:13; 15:9, 28). Following Saul, David was anointed king over Israel and was attested to by God as a man after his own heart (1 Sam 13:14). David ruled Israel well and ushered in the golden age of the kingdom, but he fell prey to his lusts and accumulated wives and concubine. The most glaring episode in David’s life was his affair with Bathsheba that resulted in the death of her husband, Uriah, and the child that was born from this unlawful union (2 Sam 11:2-4, 17, 12:18). Additionally, “the sword” never departed from David’s household afterwards, as he witnessed rape, murder, and rebellion from his children following this sin (2 Sam 13-15). Finally, Solomon reigned after his father David and appeared to be the quintessential king. The kingdom flourished in a time of peace under Solomon and ushered in the glorious temple. Solomon excelled in wisdom and riches and ultimately fell prey to his passions. The substantial amount of wives and concubine he accumulated ultimately turned his heart away from the Lord and led to the schism of the ten northern tribes following his death.
The author of First Kings appears to have the stipulations of Deuteronomy 17 in mind as he writes about the life and reign of Solomon. After a somewhat contentious beginning, Solomon established his reign over his brother Adonijah (1 Kings 1:43) and began to clean out the cobwebs left over from his father’s reign (1 Kings 2:13-46). He demonstrated humility early on by requesting wisdom from God to rule his people (1 Kings 3:9). In chapters four and five the accumulation of wealth begins, which is originally viewed as a blessing of prosperity. Chapter 10 portrays the full display of Solomon’s wealth in the ivory and gold-laden objects that he made for himself and his army, in a bit of foreshadowing of impending apostasy brought on by excessive wealth.[2] His other sins against the stipulations of Deuteronomy 17 come to bear in chapters ten and eleven as it is revealed he accumulated thousands of horses (1 Sam 10:26-29). The acquisition and trade of horses by Solomon is most interesting in that he rarely, if ever, utilized his army.[3] “Nevertheless, he accumulated chariots and horses, building special chariot cities and stationing some chariots in the capitol city.”[4] In addition to acquiring them from Egypt and Kue, he also exported them to the kings of the Hittites and Arameans, showing it to become a booming business venture for Israel but also a defiance of God’s standards for a king.[5] Additionally, Solomon acquired seven hundred wives and three hundred concubine (1 Sam 11:3). The result of the influence of these women was that his heart eventually turned away from the Lord as predicted in Deuteronomy 17. “For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David.” (1 Sam 11:4).
The narrative of the life of Solomon is a mixed bag of rejoicing and sadness. The author has gone to great depths in 1 Kings to highlight all of the positive contributions from this great man of wisdom. Solomon exhibits great faith and love for the Lord in his diligent dedication to the building of the temple, and there are several narratives of the Lord’s presence to both himself and the congregation during its dedication. It appears that the author intended to portray Solomon in the most positive light possible, as the immediate heir to the promises of God to his servant David. The unfortunate events of chapters ten and eleven were necessary to cover because they directly influence the events of his son Rehoboam, the tearing apart of the Kingdom after his death, and the disastrous example of “public ceremonies and sacrifices of idolatry”[6] that he introduced to subsequent kings.
It is difficult to see many early indicators of Solomon’s ultimate demise. Much of the narrative surrounds the building and dedication of the temple. 1 Kings 3 begins with a comment about Solomon making a treaty with Pharaoh King of Egypt, marrying his daughter, and bringing her to Jerusalem that hints at possible foreign influence. He also has no problem spending money through much of the narrative on the temple and several other buildings, showing that he has an extravagant side to him because of the gold he has accumulated.
The obvious question that is left to the reader at the conclusion of Solomon’s life is how could he who had been so blessed and endowed with such wisdom go astray from following the Lord? Many scholars see in Solomon traits of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, made famous by author Robert Louis Stevensen, with elements of both his good character and bad character showing up at various places within the narrative of his life.[7] The most obvious answer is seen in Deuteronomy 17:14-20. The heart was corrupted through the influence of wealth, possessions, and women to the point where there was no place for God left in his heart. He would have been wise to follow the counsel of his fellow Proverb author, Agur, who said “Give me neither poverty nor riches – feed me with the food allotted to me; lest I be full and deny you, and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’” (Prov 30:8b-9a).
[1] Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the New King James Version (Nashville, TN: Nelson, 1982).
[2] Iain W Provan, 1 And 2 Kings (Grand Rapids: Baker Publishing Group, 2012), 72.
[3] Gary Inrig and Max Anders, 1 & 2 Kings (Nashville, Tenn: Broadman & Holman, 2003), 83.
[4] Ibid.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Thomas C Oden and Marco Conti, 1-2 Kings, 1-2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP Academic, 2008), 126.
[7] Victor P Hamilton, Handbook On The Historical Books (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2001), 380.
The Ancient Walk 