King Solomon left a large mark in Scripture because he was a type of the Messiah, the true son of David. God used him to give us inspired words of wisdom in the Books of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon. These 3 books in Scripture have inspired men and women of God down through the ages.<\/p>\n
Sadly, however, Solomon left us a mixed message, something like Samson. He was a man with great potential, who sought the Lord, found Him, and came to know something of Him; but in spite of all his talents and a great beginning, his later years were a spiritual disaster. But we hope that the last chapter of Ecclesiastes is a commentary on Solomon’s heart before he died:<\/p>\n
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether it is good or whether it is evil. (Ecc. 12:12\u201314)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Solomon concluded his life of searching by saying, \u201cHere is the summation of all my searching: reverence God, hold Him in the highest regard and keep His commandments.\u201d What are His commandments? Jesus summed them up this way, \u201cYou shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind . . . You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt. 22:37,39).<\/p>\n
\u201cLORD, help us to live the truth and reject the lie today.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n
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1 Kings 11 KJV<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1<\/sup>\u00a0But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians,\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>Hittites;\u00a0\u00a02<\/sup>\u00a0Of the nations\u00a0concerning\u00a0<\/em>which the\u00a0LORD\u00a0said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you:\u00a0for\u00a0<\/em>surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.\u00a03<\/sup>\u00a0And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart.\u00a04<\/sup>\u00a0For it came to pass, when Solomon was old,\u00a0that\u00a0<\/em>his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the\u00a0LORD\u00a0his God, as\u00a0was\u00a0<\/em>the heart of David his father.\u00a05<\/sup>\u00a0For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.\u00a0\u00a06<\/sup>\u00a0And Solomon did evil in the sight of the\u00a0LORD, and went not fully after the\u00a0LORD, as\u00a0did\u00a0<\/em>David his father.\u00a0 7<\/sup>\u00a0Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that\u00a0is\u00a0<\/em>before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.\u00a08<\/sup>\u00a0And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods. 9<\/sup>\u00a0And the\u00a0LORD\u00a0was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the\u00a0LORD\u00a0God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice,\u00a010<\/sup>\u00a0And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the\u00a0LORD\u00a0commanded.\u00a011<\/sup>Wherefore the\u00a0LORD\u00a0said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.\u00a0\u00a012<\/sup> Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father\u2019s sake:\u00a0but\u00a0<\/em>I will rend it out of the hand of thy son.\u00a013<\/sup> Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom;\u00a0but\u00a0<\/em>will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant\u2019s sake, and for Jerusalem\u2019s sake which I have chosen. 14<\/sup> And the\u00a0LORD\u00a0stirred up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite: he\u00a0was\u00a0<\/em>of the king\u2019s seed in Edom.\u00a015<\/sup>\u00a0For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain, after he had smitten every male in Edom;\u00a016<\/sup>\u00a0(For six months did Joab remain there with all Israel, until he had cut off every male in Edom:)\u00a017<\/sup>\u00a0That Hadad fled, he and certain Edomites of his father\u2019s servants with him, to go into Egypt; Hadad\u00a0being\u00a0<\/em>yet a little child.\u00a018<\/sup>\u00a0And they arose out of Midian, and came to Paran: and they took men with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt, unto Pharaoh king of Egypt; which gave him an house, and appointed him victuals, and gave him land.\u00a019<\/sup>And Hadad found great favour in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen.\u00a020<\/sup>\u00a0And the sister of Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh\u2019s house: and Genubath was in Pharaoh\u2019s household among the sons of Pharaoh.\u00a021<\/sup>\u00a0And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the host was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart, that I may go to mine own country.\u00a0\u00a022<\/sup>\u00a0Then Pharaoh said unto him, But what hast thou lacked with me, that, behold, thou seekest to go to thine own country? And he answered, Nothing: howbeit let me go in any wise.\u00a023<\/sup>\u00a0And God stirred him up\u00a0another\u00a0<\/em>adversary, Rezon the son of Eliadah, which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah:\u00a024<\/sup>\u00a0And he gathered men unto him, and became captain over a band, when David slew them\u00a0of Zobah:\u00a0<\/em>and they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus.\u00a025<\/sup>\u00a0And he was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, beside the mischief that Hadad\u00a0did:\u00a0<\/em>and he abhorred Israel, and reigned over Syria. 26<\/sup>\u00a0And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon\u2019s servant, whose mother\u2019s name\u00a0was<\/em>Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up\u00a0his\u00a0<\/em>hand against the king.\u00a027<\/sup>\u00a0And this\u00a0was\u00a0<\/em>the cause that he lifted up\u00a0his\u00a0<\/em>hand against the king: Solomon built Millo,\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>repaired the breaches of the city of David his father.\u00a0\u00a028<\/sup>\u00a0And the man Jeroboam\u00a0was\u00a0<\/em>a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a029<\/sup>\u00a0And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two\u00a0were\u00a0<\/em>alone in the field:\u00a030<\/sup>\u00a0And Ahijah caught the new garment that\u00a0was\u00a0<\/em>on him, and rent it\u00a0in\u00a0<\/em>twelve pieces:\u00a031<\/sup>\u00a0And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the\u00a0LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee:\u00a032<\/sup>\u00a0(But he shall have one tribe for my servant David\u2019s sake, and for Jerusalem\u2019s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:)\u00a033<\/sup>\u00a0Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do\u00a0that which is\u00a0<\/em>right in mine eyes, and\u00a0to keep\u00a0<\/em>my statutes and my judgments, as\u00a0did\u00a0<\/em>David his father. 34<\/sup>\u00a0Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand: but I will make him prince all the days of his life for David my servant\u2019s sake, whom I chose, because he kept my commandments and my statutes:\u00a035<\/sup>\u00a0But I will take the kingdom out of his son\u2019s hand, and will give it unto thee,\u00a0even\u00a0<\/em>ten tribes.\u00a036<\/sup>\u00a0And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may have a light alway before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen me to put my name there.\u00a0\u00a037<\/sup>\u00a0And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel.\u00a038<\/sup>\u00a0And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do\u00a0that is\u00a0<\/em>right in my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee.\u00a039<\/sup>\u00a0And I will for this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever.\u00a040<\/sup>\u00a0Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. And Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon. 41<\/sup>\u00a0And the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he did, and his wisdom,\u00a0are\u00a0<\/em>they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon?\u00a0\u00a042<\/sup>\u00a0And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel\u00a0was\u00a0<\/em>forty years.\u00a043<\/sup>\u00a0And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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