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The Fall of Solomon… (3 things)
- 1st – Paying for the Temple / Palace… vs. 1-18 Read: II Chronicles 8:1-18
- 1st – After 20 years of building – Solomon had a lot of bills to pay… vs. 1-2
- King Hiram had given Solomon Cyprus trees and 9000lbs of Gold ($450 million)…
- So in return Solomon gave him 20 cities near the Sea of Galilee…
- But when King Hiram went to look at the cities – he was not happy at all – I Kings 9:1
- They were worthless in comparison to what he had given – so he gave them back…
- In the end Solomon had to heavily tax the people to pay back the loan!
- The problem with loaning money – is we never have enough to pay it back…
- Have you ever noticed how easily it is to get people to loan you money…
- Because the moment you take their money – they own you!
- Proverbs 22:7 – “The rich rules over the poor, the borrower a slave to the lender.”
- It does not help to borrow money – especially with interest – it sinks us!
- If we borrow money today – we will have even less tomorrow…
- We still have no money – and now we are in debt – we dig a ditch we cannot get out of!
- Romans 13:8 – “Owe no one anything except to love one another…”
- King Hiram had given Solomon Cyprus trees and 9000lbs of Gold ($450 million)…
- 2nd – It was not just the Temple and the Palace Solomon built… vs. 3-11 / 17-18
- He built cities all over Israel – anywhere he wanted – because Solomon loved to build…
- But the problem with all his building projects – they were EXPENSIVE!
- There were still some nations in the Land unconquered from the time of Joshua…
- Solomon forced them to be slave laborers to help cut the cost of building…
- He even built a fleet of ships in the Red Sea – to go out in search of more riches…
- Every 3 years they brought 16T gold / rare wood / and monkeys from Africa and India…
- Even though Solomon had A LOT of money – it was not enough – he spent more…
- I have listened to people complain they have no money…
- Then they getter a ‘better job’ – earning a LOT MORE money…
- But it seems that the more we earn – the more we spend…
- Haggai 1:6 – “Wages disappear as though putting them in pockets filled with holes.”
- The funny thing about money – is no matter how much we have – it is not enough…
- The greater blessing is to learn to live off our income / live within our means!
- Hebrews 13:5 – “Do not covet – be content with such things as you have.”
- He built cities all over Israel – anywhere he wanted – because Solomon loved to build…
- 3rd – Solomon made an alliance with Egypt…vs. 11-16
- As part of the treaty he married the daughter of Pharaoh…
- It has long been a common practice to marry – as part of a making a peace treaty…
- Then the other nation is far less likely to attack you – you are family…
- Solomon brought her to live in the City of David – but she did not stay…
- The daughter of Pharaoh was not a believer – and did not want to follow God…
- Solomon would not let her live in the House of David – because it was Holy!
- Solomon did have the priests offer the required sacrifices to the Lord…
- Yet Solomon would go to the Temple to offer sacrifices 3 times a year – I Kings 9:25
- The three required feasts of Israel – Passover / Pentecost / Tabernacles…
- Meaning Solomon only did what was required – there was very little time for God…
- Solomon was more concerned about money / politics than spending time with the Lord!
- As part of the treaty he married the daughter of Pharaoh…
- 1st – After 20 years of building – Solomon had a lot of bills to pay… vs. 1-2
- There are so many distractions in this life that seem to always vie for attention…
- Some of those things can even be good – politics – providing for our family…
- But we need to be careful not to miss the ONLY thing that is necessary…
- To take the time to sit at the feet of Jesus – He is the most important thing!
- Luke 10:41– “You are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed…”
Spend time with Jesus and you will have no question we are going to heaven!
2nd – The queen of Sheba heard of the wisdom of Solomon… vs. 1-28 Read: II Chronicles 9:1-31
1st – She came to Jerusalem to test him with hard questions… vs. 1-12
She arrived from the South (perhaps Ethiopia or Arabia) with a large group…
She came with a caravan of camels carrying a LOT spices / a LOT of gold / and gems…
Solomon was able to answer ALL of her questions – on any subject…
And when she saw the amount of food on his table / the beauty of his palace…
She was breathless – she had not believed what she had heard about Solomon…
But it turned out it was all true – in fact she had only heard the half of it!
She told Solomon – how happy Israel must be to have a wise King ruling over them…
The Lord must love Israel – to make a just King like Solomon lead His people!
The people of Israel did love the prosperity they had under Solomon…
But that prosperity masked an underlying problem – moral bankruptcy!
Solomon gave the Queen anything she desired before she left…
There is an Ethiopian legend suggesting Solomon and the queen were more than friends…
And when she left she also took with her the gift of a son!
When we are lacking – we often pray for God to provide for our needs…
But if there is not a need – we rarely take the time to seek the Lord…
The easier life becomes – the harder it is for us to depend on the Jesus!
In our prosperity we spend less time with God – and forget all He did for us…
And when we forget God – it is easy to fall into the many temptation of life!
2nd – The great wealth of Solomon… vs. 13-28
Solomon received about 25 tons (666 talents) of Gold every year…
The King used it to make 200 large shields – each weighing 14lbs ($250k each)…
He also made 300 smaller shields – each weighing 2kg (($160k each)…
He hung them up as DECORATION in his palace – the ‘Forest of Lebanon’
King Solomon also made a great ivory throne – overlaid in pure gold…
All of the drinking cups Solomon used were made out of pure gold…
Nothing was made from silver – because it was considered as worthless as rocks!
Solomon became richer and wiser than any other King on earth…
But for all of his wisdom – he did not follow the commands of God…
Solomon added horses – from Egypt – buying them by the thousands…
But the King was not to add horses – especially from Egypt – Deuteronomy 17:16
Solomon had it all in this life – all the riches / prosperity he could want…
If we are honest – we are jealous – we would love to have the riches of Solomon…
Who would not choose to have fabulous wealth if given the choice…
IF – this life was all there was – IF we did not have to think about eternity…
But life is not about how much money we have – or how much stuff we can buy…
Life is a gift – with only one purpose – it gives us the opportunity to make a choice…
Where will we go when our time here on earth is up – where will we spend eternity!
Sadly many choose to ‘enjoy’ the couple years of riches this life offers to us…
Rather than invest in the eternity of riches God has prepared for us in heaven…
But nothing this world can offer is worth an eternity separated from God!
Matthew 16:26 – “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”
3rd – The rest of the acts of Solomon… vs. 29-31
1st – There is quite a bit not mentioned about Solomon in II Chronicles…
But we are told they are recorded in Book of Nathan / Prophecy of Ahijah / visions of Iddo…
We do not have any of these books – but we do have the record of I Kings 11…
We read about Jeroboam – a hard working / smart servant of Solomon…
He was hired by Solomon to oversee some of the building projects in Jerusalem…
Solomon had incurred a lot of debt – so the people paid high taxes / overworked…
The people grew bitter towards the government / and towards Solomon…
So Jeroboam became the head of the Liberals – the revolution to overthrow the king!
The Prophet Ahijah came secretly to Jeroboam…
He took his new cloak and tore it into 12 parts – told Jeroboam to take 10 pieces…
Because God was going to take the Kingdom from Solomon and give it to him…
But not all of Israel – only 10 of the tribes would follow Jeroboam…
Jerusalem would continue to be ruled by the dynasty of King David…
Solomon had sinned – but God still had a plan for the line of David – Jesus!
Solomon found out and tried to kill Jeroboam – but he fled to Egypt!
Yet God would divide the nation in two – tearing 10 tribes away from the son of Solomon!
2nd – God divided the nation because Solomon married foreign wives – I Kings 11:1-2
Solomon married women from nations God had forbidden Israel to intermingle with…
From the daughter of Pharaoh (Egypt) – to women from Moab / Edom / Ammon…
Joshua 23:12-13 – “If you turn away from him and intermarry with… these nations… then know for certain that… they will be a snare and a trap to you…”
When choosing a spouse – take the time to think about the future…
Too often couples are so convinced they are ‘in love’ – they do not stop to think…
What happens if you marry someone with a different values / faith – II Corinthians 6:14
You might be convinced you can change them – but that is a HUGE gamble…
More likely you end up in a bad marriage – so find a man or woman who loves the Lord!
3rd – God divided the nation because Solomon had too many wives – I Kings 11:3
Solomon had 700 wives – and 300 concubines (mistresses)…
The wives would have been from royal or noble families…
He likely married many of them as part of policies alliances with other nations…
The concubines would have been common women – of a ‘lower class’…
I cannot image that his wives were happy with the arrangement…
Why would you want to share your husband with 999 other women!
Apparently every time Solomon saw a new beauty – he would fall ‘in love’ again…
I imagine the ‘royal weddings’ had to have been an almost monthly event!
I find it hard to believe Solomon even remembered the names of all 1000 wives…
Much less actually be able to ‘love’ that many women…
The problem comes with our description of the word ‘love’ – what do we mean…
Some young girl might say that she is ‘in love’ with some young guy…
So you ask her about the young man – and find out they have never talked…
She is in love with her imagination and his cute face – that is a fairy tail not real!
Or a young man falls in love with a young woman – she is all he can think about…
But in truth he is thinking all about the wedding night – that is not love it is lust!
I Corinthians 13:4-8 – “Love is patient and kind…”
Love – true love – is a choice to dedicate yourself to another person…
When they are young and cute – and when they are old and wrinkly…
When the sparks fly – and when we have to change poopy diapers at 2am…
Love means we are willing to sacrifice – putting our spouse first in our life!
God’s plan for marriage is for ONE man and ONE woman – Genesis 1:27/ 2:24
A relationship that is meant to last for a lifetime – ‘let no man separate’…
Because marriage is meant to be a picture to help us understand the love of God…
God defines His love for us by called us His kids / He calls us His bride!
After many years – a lot of marriage can seem to loose their spark / joy…
Many men make the mistake of thinking a ‘new woman’ will make them happy…
At first it might seem to work – people put on their best faces at first…
But over time they find they left one sinner – only to end up with another sinner…
The key to a happy marriage – is not to change spouses…
The key is to keep Jesus at the center of the marriage – so it lasts a lifetime!
4th – God divided the nation because Solomon turned his heart from God – I Kings 11:4-8
When Solomon was old – he began to worship the gods of his foreign wives…
He even set up an altar on the Mt. of Olives to the god Chemosh / Molech…
Molech – God of pleasure and promiscuity – often leading to unwanted children…
So Molech was worshiped by sacrificing a child in his red-hot bronze arms…
We are not told if Solomon actually took part in these practices…
But at the very least he offered incense to these abominations!
Deuteronomy 17:17 – “The king must not take many wives for himself, because they will lead him away from the LORD.”
It did not happen in a day – the wives slowly tore Solomon down…
Perhaps at first they just did not want to go to the Temple with Solomon…
Once that was acceptable – they asked if they could instead worship their own god…
Eventually they asked if Solomon would just ‘go along’ with them / not join in…
But in the end – with his will worn down – Solomon was asked to take part!
We need to be careful whom we marry / spend our time with…
A powerful picture – you cannot have a friendship with an unbeliever…
They are not the same as you are – they are going to pull you down!
Do not spend all your time with ‘friends’ and family who do not follow Jesus…
Do not seek their counsel or advice – they are not going to point you to the Word…
People will either draw you closer to – or father away from Jesus…
Surround yourself with godly people – those who encourage your walk in the Lord…
I Corinthians 15:33 – “…bad company corrupts good character.”
5th – Since Solomon did not keep the commands of God – I Kings 11:9-13
God kept His promise to Solomon – to take away the Kingdom…
Now was Solomon saved / did he go to heaven – a difficult question to answer…
We never read of Solomon repenting – and turning back to the Lord…
His name is not mentioned in the ‘Hall of Faith’ in Hebrews 11…
But there is a glimmer of hope – perhaps Solomon cried out to God in the end…
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 – “Here is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands for… God will judge us for everything we do…”
The grace of God is an amazing thing…
Samson is included on the list in Hebrews 11:32 – and he was no saint!
So I would not be surprised to see Solomon in heaven – because of Grace!
But why take the risk – why wait till the very last minute to cry out for repentance…
Today is the day to repent – II Corinthians 6:2 – come back to the God of Grace!
Do not be like Solomon – make sure you stay close to the Lord…
When we stop spending time with a friend – we lose our relationship with them…
Our heart can grow distant from the Lord when we do not spend time with Him…
As we abide in Jesus – John 15:4-5 – there is no concern about a hard heart…
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