journey through the bible part 11: the glory and tragedy of solomon

THE GLORY AND TRAGEDY OF SOLOMON

Readings:

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A single wrong decision can get you into a serious mess.

JOURNEY OF LIFE

The longer you keep walking before you discover your mistake, the harder it is to find the way to where you want to go.

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JOURNEY OF LIFE

“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:12–14, NIV84)

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FIRST BOOK OF KINGS• 2 Samuel - David united Israel

• “a man after God’s own heart.”

• David sought God’s guidance in everything except for his family.

• 1 Kings: Adonijah proclaims himself king.

• David declares Solomon is the king.

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GOD APPEARS TO SOLOMON

• At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want Me to give you.”(1 Kings 3:5, NIV84)

• “So give Your servant a discerning heart to governYour people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of Yours?” (1 Kings 3:9, NIV84)

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GOD APPEARS TO SOLOMON

• “I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for̶both riches and honour̶so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings. And if you walk in My ways and obey My statutes and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life.”(1 Kings 3:12–14, NIV84)

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GOD APPEARS TO SOLOMON

• “King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth.” (1 Kings 10:23, NIV84)

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SOLOMON’S WEALTH

• 4.5 tons of gold per year

• 6000 kilos of wheat per day.

• 12,000 kilos of beef per day.

• 4000 kilos of other meats per day.

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SOLOMON’S BUILDING PROGRAM

• 200,000 workers.

• Palaces and cities.

• The Temple:

• 7.5 years to build.

• Design from God given to David.

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DEDICATION OF THE TEMPLE

• “When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the Lord. And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled His temple.” (1 Kings 8:10–11, NIV84)

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DEDICATION OF THE TEMPLE

• “But if you or your sons turn away from me and do not observe the commands and decrees I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them, then I will cut off Israel from the land I have given them and will reject this temple I have consecrated for My Name. Israel will then become a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples.” (1 Kings 9:6–7, NIV84)

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THE FALL OF SOLOMON• “King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides

Pharaoh’s daughter̶Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray. As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.” (1 Kings 11:1–6, NIV84)

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THE DIVISION OF THE KINGDOM

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THE DIVISION OF THE KINGDOM

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THE DIVISION OF THE KINGDOM

• Jereboam the first king of the Northern Kingdom of Israel.

• Does not want his people to go to the temple in Jerusalem, so he sets up a new religion using the golden calf idol from the days of the Exodus.

• “The sin of Jereboam”.17

THE DIVISION OF THE KINGDOM

• God does not give up on the people of the Northern Kingdom.

• He sends prophets with great power to bring the people back to worshipping Him.

• Much of the second half of the book tells of the confrontation of these great prophets and the kings of Israel.

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THE DIVISION OF THE KINGDOM

• I Kings 13:1-6

• The unnamed prophet confronts king Jereboam with the power of the Lord.

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WHY DID SOLOMON FAIL?

• “Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt and married his daughter. He brought her to the City of David until he finished building his palace and the temple of the Lord, and the wall around Jerusalem.” (1 Kings 3:1, NIV84)

• Solomon broke the Law because he didn’t trust God’s promise of protection for his kingdom.

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WHY DID SOLOMON FAIL?

• “But Solomon took thirteen years to build his own house; so he finished all his house.” (1 Kings 7:1, NKJV)

• Solomon’s own palace was two times bigger than the Lord’s temple and took twice as long to build.

• Where was Solomon’s heart?21

WHY DID SOLOMON FAIL?

• “But he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, for the Lord has said to you, ‘You shall not return that way again.’” (Deuteronomy 17:16, NKJV)

• Solomon had 12,00022

WHY DID SOLOMON FAIL?

• “Neither shall he multiply wives for himself, lest his heart turn away; nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold for himself.” (Deuteronomy 17:17, NKJV)

• Solomon had 700 wives!

• Solomon accumulated much gold.

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SMALL SINS DANGEROUS ATTITUDES

• Jesus, “Love the Lord your God with ALL your heart . . . .”

• Small sins can add up little by little and lead you further and further away from God.

• The biggest danger of “small” sins is we are tempted to ignore them or excuse them.

• “These things don’t matter,” the first sign that our hearts are not 100% for God.

• If you know you “fall short” you must do something about it while you are still aware that it is a problem.

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