Solomon's is the ultimate story of corruption. His wealth was
staggering. The scriptures suggest that Solomon received annually 666 talents
of gold (1 Kings 10:14; 2 Chronicles 9:13). At today's prices that is $3,051,800,000
USD (over $3.05 billion). And herein begins Solomon's downfall. The riches turned
him into a man of excess. The description of his wealth and extravagances is
astonishing (1 Kings 10:14-23).
Solomon's reign enforced great economic changes in the kingdom and
his massive building projects created serious problems: “He taxed the people
heavily and used forced labour to complete his projects. The people began to
complain and a deep resentment, especially in the northern tribes, began to
fester......For the first time in Israel's history, there began to be a
distinct difference between 'rich' and 'poor'. The king and his household were
rich; the common people were poor. In between were the salaried civil servants
and the merchants and artisans, many of whom had organised craft guilds by that
time. Such class separations had not been known in the Israel where a shepherd
boy like David could be anointed king - only 50 years earlier" (Great
People of the Bible, pp 192-93, Old
Testament Student Manual Vol 2., p 8).
Solomon’s riches were just the beginning. Where
is the end for a man who has everything? Is everything ever enough? Such riches
would turn you into believing you are limitless and invincible. In the end you
would believe there is nothing that should be denied you and Solomon proved
this to be true For all his wisdom,
Solomon became incredibly unwise for 'one was not wise, regardless of his vast
learning, if his actions did not comply with his righteous beliefs' (Old
Testament Student Manual, Vol. 2, p. 13).
Following the dedication of Solomon's
temple, the Lord appeared to Solomon for the second time and acknowledging the
dedicatory prayer, accepted the temple which Solomon dedicated to Him. At the
same time, however, he issued a grave and serious warning to the king of
Israel. He warned Solomon that if he and his children do not keep his
commandments and if they go and serve other gods and worship them, that He will
cut off Israel out of the land which He had given them, that He will destroy
the temple which was built, and 'Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among
all people' (1 Kings 9:1-9).
Imagine the Lord himself appearing to you
and warning you about a calamity that will befall you if you stray, and you go
and do exactly that. The beginning of the end came for Solomon when he made a
marriage alliance with Pharoah and took his daughter for his wife. This marriage alliance was the greatest act of
Solomon's foolishness. It was the beginning of him marrying many idolatrous
women out of the covenant and his many political alliances which signalled that
he had more faith in them than in God who was willing to fight and win Israel's
battles. You might say he was beginning to lose the plot.
Marrying foreign women who led him and all
Israel into idolatry aborted Solomon’s ability to endure to the end and changed
the course of Israel's history. This is the damage that one king can do to a
whole nation. By introducing idolatry to the children of Israel, the history of
Israel became a losing battle fought by prophets against the forces of
disloyalty to God.
The greatest mistake Solomon made was that he went to his grave
unrepentant, unlike his father David. He who loved the Lord, and even saw Him
twice (1 Kings 3:5; 9:2), forsook the integrity of his heart and came to
worship false gods who had no power to give him any of the blessings he
received from the God of Israel. He who had the greatest wisdom ended up
being the most foolish.
So it is sometimes with us. We overlook what the Lord has done for
us and what He is capable of giving us if we stay the course so we become
foolish and dabble in sin. And this is the outcome of sin:
“…..sin makes you stupid, stupid because when we sin we become
'deaf, dumb and blind to the ways of the Lord. Stupid because habitual sin
drives the Spirit away, leaving us outside the protective influence of the Holy
Ghost. Stupid because it makes us incapable of drawing upon the powers of
heaven. Being stupid costs a lot. Sin costs a lot too. It can cost time, money,
peace of mind, progress, self-respect, your integrity and virtue, your family,
the trust of those you love, and even your Church membership. Sin is just plain
stupid. And the cost is off the charts. So repent now. Repent daily. If you
want to be sanctified, repentance is not optional'. (Sheri L. Dew, You Were Born to Lead, You Were
Born for Glory, BYU Speeches, Dec. 2003)
- CATHRYNE ALLEN
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