Thursday Evening Bible Study

October 4, 2012

Introduction

Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel preached? Does it speak to the broken hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk – Meat – Manna Preach for a decision Is the church loved?

The book of 1Kings takes up where 2Samuel left off.

We start with the reign of King Solomon and move down the line of the Kings of Israel.

3:1-15 Wisdom requested

:1 Now Solomon made a treaty with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and married Pharaoh’s daughter; then he brought her to the City of David until he had finished building his own house, and the house of the Lord, and the wall all around Jerusalem.

:1 married Pharaoh’s daughter

Solomon takes his first wife.

It’s a lot to do with politics.  One of the practices in those days was for kings to marry their neighbors’ daughters or sisters. You wouldn’t have to worry about the neighboring kingdom coming to kill you because you were family.

This is part of what would be behind Solomon’s 700 wives and 300 concubines. Much of it was political.

It’s possible that this was David’s reason for marrying some of his wives. One wife, Maacah, was the daughter of Talmai, the king of Geshur. She was the mother of Absalom and Tamar.

:1 he brought her to the City of David

David sets up his new bride in a temporary place in Jerusalem until he can get around to building a suitable palace for her. After he builds the Temple …

(2 Ch 8:11 NKJV) Now Solomon brought the daughter of Pharaoh up from the City of David to the house he had built for her, for he said, “My wife shall not dwell in the house of David king of Israel, because the places to which the ark of the Lord has come are holy.”

Lesson

Marry the right person

I have a hard time thinking that Solomon is married to a person that he can’t take to a place that is “holy”.

(2 Co 6:14–18 NKJV) —14 Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” 17 Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” 18 “I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the Lord Almighty.”

If Jesus is a part of your life, He needs to be a part of your marriage and your home life.

:2 Meanwhile the people sacrificed at the high places, because there was no house built for the name of the Lord until those days.

:2 sacrificed at the high places

You will see this term “high places” used a lot in the Old Testament. It seems that people had this concept that the higher in altitude your place of worship was, the closer it was to God.

Often the term “high places” is used in a negative sense and will in the future refer to places where idols were worshipped.

But here we see that sometimes the “high places” were places that Yahweh was worshipped.

God did command the people to eventually have a central place of worship. This was called the Law of the Central Sanctuary:

(Dt 12:11 NKJV) then there will be the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide. There you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, the heave offerings of your hand, and all your choice offerings which you vow to the Lord.

These were the days before printing presses and the world wide interweb. God wanted to make sure that Judaism stayed pure, and that was to be done by having a single place to come for worship.

Up until this time, that place had not yet been established, though we’ve seen some hints that it would be coming.

Solomon would eventually build that place, the temple, on the land that David bought from Ornan the Jebusite.

:3 And Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of his father David, except that he sacrificed and burned incense at the high places.

:3 Solomon loved the Lord

loved – ‘ahab – to love; human love for another; human love for or to God

:4 Now the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place: Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.

:4 Gibeon

Play Gibeon map clip. Gibeon is five miles north of Jerusalem.

:4 the great high place

This was one of the top rated “high places” of all time. Why? Because the Tabernacle of Moses was there.

(1 Ch 21:29 NKJV) For the tabernacle of the Lord and the altar of the burnt offering, which Moses had made in the wilderness, were at that time at the high place in Gibeon.

When Eli was the high priest, there was a war with the Philistines, and the Ark of the Covenant became separated from the Tabernacle that Moses had built in the wilderness.

Play Tracking the Ark and Tabernacle map clip

The Israelites had taken the Ark to Ebenezer, where they lost it in the battle.

The Philistines took the Ark and it visited several of their cities.

They eventually returned it, where it went first to Beth Shemesh, and then on to Kiriath Jearim. David would eventually moved it to Jerusalem.

The Tabernacle of Moses was moved from Shiloh after that battle in Eli’s day, and was at this time in Gibeon.

Now in Solomon’s day – the Ark is in Jerusalem, while the Tabernacle and the bronze altar are in Gibeon.

Lesson

Redeeming our mistakes

Joshua and the Gibeonites (Josh. 9) – it seems that the treaty that Israel made with the Gibeonites was seen as a mistake of Joshua’s. They didn’t bother to consult with the Lord.

They had sworn not to destroy the Gibeonites, and they made them to be servants. (Josh 9:27)

(Jos 9:27 NKJV) And that day Joshua made them woodcutters and water carriers for the congregation and for the altar of the Lord, in the place which He would choose, even to this day.

The Gibeonite cities included Gibeon and Kirjathjearim (Josh. 9:17), both were places where the Tabernacle or the Ark would spend time.

(Jos 9:17 NKJV) Then the children of Israel journeyed and came to their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kirjath Jearim.

We saw the mess that Saul caused when he tried to obliterate the Gibeonites and David had to clean up that mess (2Sam. 21)

I find it interesting that they are still around, and have continued their role as serving at the “altar”, even being the hosts of the Tabernacle.

God can take our mistakes and make them into something good.

:4 a thousand burnt offerings

That’s a lot of barbeque.

Lesson

Extravagant Worship

Though some people do things thinking they are going to impress God, that doesn’t seem to be the case here. Solomon’s offering to the Lord seems genuine.

Sometimes our worship ought to be a bit on the “extravagant” side.

After Jesus had raised her brother Lazarus from the dead, Mary was a bit “extravagant” in expressing her love for the Lord:

Play Jesus and Mary clip (John 12:1-8)

(Jn 12:1–8 NKJV) —1 Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead. 2 There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him. 3 Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. 4 But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, who would betray Him, said, 5 “Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” 6 This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it. 7 But Jesus said, “Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial. 8 For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always.”

Be careful when you get to thinking that a person’s acts of love for the Lord are too extravagant. It was Judas who thought that Mary’s worship was a waste.

Mary got quite extravagant in her devotion the Lord. She wasted a whole year’s wages by pouring this costly perfume on Jesus.

I wonder how long Mary’s act of devotion lasted. In a time when people didn’t bathe every day, it might have lasted the entire week, until Jesus’ death. Jesus seems to indicate this.

That would mean that even at the Last Supper, the fragrance of Mary’s perfume might have lingered in the air. I wonder if the Sanhedrin, Herod, and Pilate caught a whiff of Mary’s perfume as they condemned Jesus to death. I wonder if Jesus’ mother and John were able to smell Mary’s perfume as Jesus hung on the cross. I wonder.

A heart of love for God can become quite “extravagant” in worship. And that act of worship can have an effect on the people around you.

:5 At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?”

:5 in a dream

What is about to happen is happening in a dream.

This doesn’t make it any less real. God is going to speak to Solomon in this dream.

:5 Ask! What shall I give you?

Almost sounds as if Solomon picked up a magic lamp and rubbed it.

Illustration

There once was this guy that got a dirty old lamp for his birthday. He cleaned it up and POOF!--out popped a genie! “I shall give you three wishes. You may have anything you like.” So the guys thinks for a minute and says, “I would like a billion dollars.” “You shall have it,” and the genie grants him the wish. “Anything else?” The guy thinks for a while. “I would like a VW Bug with A/C, power locks, power windows, you know the works.” “Your wish is my command. What is your last wish?” “Hmmm. I think I’ll save it for a rainy day.” “OK, suit yourself,” says the genie. So the guy gets in his new VW and goes for a drive to show all his friends. He turns on the radio. They are playing old commercials for laughts. The guy starts singing along … “I wish I was an Oscar Meyer Wiener.”

Lesson

God is not your genie

I do not believe that God would have given Solomon anything he asked for. I do believe that God was testing Solomon. God was looking to see what Solomon’s heart was like.

Maturity in the Christian life is all about learning to live according to God’s will, not about getting God to do things your way.

Some of us came to the Lord when we had gone through very difficult times.

Many of us have experienced what David wrote about when he said,

(Ps 34:4 NKJV) I sought the Lord, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears.

It can be pretty thrilling when God answers some of those prayers from an impossible situation.

But we make a mistake when we start thinking that we’ve found that magic rabbit’s foot that will always get us out of every tight circumstance.

You’re going to be extremely disappointed when God doesn’t give you every “wish” you make.

He is God. He is Lord. He is the Creator. You are not.

God’s purpose for your life is to get you to conform your life towards His ways.

God’s desire is that we ALWAYS learn to pray as Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane,

(Lk 22:42 NKJV) saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.”

:6 And Solomon said: “You have shown great mercy to Your servant David my father, because he walked before You in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.

For the first time, the entire kingdom of Israel has passed peaceably from one king to the next.

:7 Now, O Lord my God, You have made Your servant king instead of my father David, but I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in.

:7 I am a little child

Jewish tradition was that Solomon became king at the age of twelve (Gill).

Others say Solomon might be as old as twenty years old (Keil & Delitzsch).

The point is not about his actual age, but his sense of inadequacy.

:7 how to go out or come in

This is a Hebrew expression used to describe a leader of the people. It seems to come from the picture of a shepherd who leads his flocks in and out of the sheepfold. Moses uses it to describe what a leader ought to do when he asks God for someone to replace him (which would be Joshua). (Num. 27:15-17)

(Nu 27:15–17 NKJV) —15 Then Moses spoke to the Lord, saying: 16 “Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation, 17 who may go out before them and go in before them, who may lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the Lord may not be like sheep which have no shepherd.”

This phrase was used to describe David a number of times:

(1 Sa 18:13 NKJV) Therefore Saul removed him from his presence, and made him his captain over a thousand; and he went out and came in before the people.

Solomon is saying that he doesn’t feel like he knows how to lead this nation.

Lesson

Inadequate and Useful

Quite a few of the people God has used the most have all suffered from feelings of inadequacy (or, “low self esteem”)

When God called Moses, he responded by saying,

(Ex 3:11 NKJV) But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”

Moses and God went back and forth to the point where God even got a little upset with Moses because he was so reluctant.

When God called Isaiah, he said,

(Is 6:5 NKJV) So I said: “Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The Lord of hosts.”

When God called Jeremiah, he said,

(Je 1:6 NKJV) Then said I: “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.”

If God has called you to do something, don’t be afraid of those times when you feel utterly useless and inadequate.

That may make you the most useful to God because you will learn to trust Him the most.

:8 And Your servant is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too numerous to be numbered or counted.

:9 Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?”

:9 an understanding heart

This is Solomon’s request.

Lesson

Wisdom sees its lack

We’ve already been told that Solomon has wisdom.

When David gave Solomon counsel about dealing with certain people, like Joab, David said,

(1 Ki 2:6 NKJV) Therefore do according to your wisdom, and do not let his gray hair go down to the grave in peace.

When David told Solomon how to deal with Shimei, he said,

(1 Ki 2:9 NKJV) Now therefore, do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man and know what you ought to do to him; but bring his gray hair down to the grave with blood.”

And yet Solomon reveals here that he thinks he needs help.

A truly wise person never gets to the point there they think that they’ve “arrived”.

A truly wise person is NOT the one who thinks he/she has all the answers to the world’s problems.

A truly wise person continues to see their need for God’s help.

:10 The speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.

:11 Then God said to him: “Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked long life for yourself, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have asked the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern justice,

:12 behold, I have done according to your words; see, I have given you a wise and understanding heart, so that there has not been anyone like you before you, nor shall any like you arise after you.

:13 And I have also given you what you have not asked: both riches and honor, so that there shall not be anyone like you among the kings all your days.

:10 The speech pleased the Lord

It almost seems as if God was testing Solomon, and he passed the test.

Lesson

Passing the test

Sometimes I think God allows things into our lives as a test to see where our heart is at.

Illustration

The Job Applicant

Back when the telegraph was the was the fastest method of long-distance communication, a young man applied for a job as a Morse Code operator. Answering an ad in the newspaper, he went to the office address that was listed. When he arrived, he entered a large, busy office filled with noise and clatter, including the sound of the telegraph in the background. A sign on the receptionist’s counter instructed job applicants to fill out a form and wait until they were summoned to enter the inner office. The young man filled out his form and sat down with the seven other applicants in the waiting area. After a few minutes, the young man stood up, crossed the room to the door of the inner office, and walked right in.

Naturally the other applicants perked up, wondering what was going on. They muttered among themselves that they hadn’t heard any summons yet. They assumed that the young man who went into the office made a mistake and would be disqualified.

Within a few minutes, however, the employer escorted the young man out of the office and said to the other applicants, “Gentlemen, thank you very much for coming, but the job has just been filled.”

The other applicants began grumbling to each other, and one spoke up saying, “Wait a minute, I don’t understand. He was the last to come in, and we never even got a chance to be interviewed. Yet he got the job. That’s not fair!” The employer said, “I’m sorry, but all the time you’ve been sitting here, the telegraph has been ticking out the following message in Morse Code: ‘If you understand this message, then come right in. The job is yours.’ None of you heard it or understood it. This young man did. The job is his.”

For this man, the test was, “are you listening”?

How are you responding to the situations you are living in?  Are you passing the test?  Are you responding to the situations like God would love for you to respond?

:13 riches and honor

Solomon didn’t ask for these things, but God would be giving them to him.

Lesson

Right priorities

The lesson here is not about how to become rich and powerful.

The lesson is about priorities.

Get your priorities right, and it doesn’t matter whether you have riches or power.  All that counts is that you have God.

(Mt 6:33 NKJV) But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

The “all things” that God adds are whatever He wants to add.  This is not a promise for wealth, but a promise for God to take care of you.

:14 So if you walk in My ways, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.”

:15 Then Solomon awoke; and indeed it had been a dream. And he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, offered up burnt offerings, offered peace offerings, and made a feast for all his servants.

:15 stood before the ark

Lesson

Up close

Why does Solomon go to the Ark in Jerusalem? God told Moses:

(Ex 25:22 NKJV) And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the Testimony, about everything which I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel.

God hangs out at the Ark.

I think that Solomon’s dreams was one of those “God Moments”.  But he didn’t want to just settle for a dream.  He knows how to draw close to God, and it’s at the Ark.  He doesn’t want to settle for just a dream.

I think it’s interesting that another result of this “God Moment” was that Solomon shared with his servants.  He had to tell somebody.

Don’t worship from afar.

Solomon could no longer settle for the Tabernacle at Gibeon, he now needed to be in God’s presence.

God has told us how to come near to Him. And it’s clearer now than it’s ever been. It’s through Jesus.

(Jn 14:6 NKJV) Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Don’t just settle for a dream. Open your heart to the Savior.

3:16-28 Wisdom Displayed

:16 Now two women who were harlots came to the king, and stood before him.

:17 And one woman said, “O my lord, this woman and I dwell in the same house; and I gave birth while she was in the house.

:18 Then it happened, the third day after I had given birth, that this woman also gave birth. And we were together; no one was with us in the house, except the two of us in the house.

Both women give birth, and the babies are born three days apart.

:19 And this woman’s son died in the night, because she lay on him.

The gal had her baby in bed with her, and she rolled over and killed her baby.

:20 So she arose in the middle of the night and took my son from my side, while your maidservant slept, and laid him in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom.

:21 And when I rose in the morning to nurse my son, there he was, dead. But when I had examined him in the morning, indeed, he was not my son whom I had borne.”

:22 Then the other woman said, “No! But the living one is my son, and the dead one is your son.” And the first woman said, “No! But the dead one is your son, and the living one is my son.” Thus they spoke before the king.

:22 the living one is my son

Solomon’s job is to find out who is telling the truth.

Sometimes it’s hard to tell.

I have to admit that a long time ago I used to believe just about anything anybody would tell me.  The older I get, and the more people I find have lied to me, the less I believe.

There are no DNA tests. This certainly will require wisdom and discernment.

:23 And the king said, “The one says, ‘This is my son, who lives, and your son is the dead one’; and the other says, ‘No! But your son is the dead one, and my son is the living one.’ ”

Solomon wisely repeats what he understands about the situation before he makes a decision.  It’s a great way to be sure that you heard things correctly.

Lesson

Feedback

It’s not hard to misunderstand another person.

Solomon would write,

(Pr 18:13 NKJV) He who answers a matter before he hears it, It is folly and shame to him.

I think that sometimes we assume we’ve heard everything we need to hear, and we draw conclusions and even act on things when perhaps we’ve misunderstood.

It wouldn’t be a bad thing to learn to do what Solomon did, repeat the thing you think you’ve heard before coming out with your decision or answer.

Before you step out and make a decision, make sure you’ve correctly heard what’s been spoken.

:24 Then the king said, “Bring me a sword.” So they brought a sword before the king.

:25 And the king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to one, and half to the other.”

:26 Then the woman whose son was living spoke to the king, for she yearned with compassion for her son; and she said, “O my lord, give her the living child, and by no means kill him!” But the other said, “Let him be neither mine nor yours, but divide him.”

I think it’s important to note that the two women answered differently here.  It wasn’t just the real mom’s compassion that stood out, but the other mom’s bitterness that helped Solomon tell who was who.

:27 So the king answered and said, “Give the first woman the living child, and by no means kill him; she is his mother.”

:28 And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had rendered; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to administer justice.

:28 the wisdom of God was in him

Lesson

Supernatural wisdom

Solomon wasn’t just intelligent.

He had God’s wisdom, a supernatural wisdom.

Did you know that Solomon also faced another, similar, case? J

Illustration

The Wisdom of Solomon

Two women came before wise King Solomon, dragging between them a young man in a three-piece suit. “This young CPA agreed to marry my daughter,” said one. “No! He agreed to marry MY daughter,” said the other. And so they haggled before the King, until he called for silence. “Bring me my biggest sword,” said Solomon,” and I shall hew the young accountant in half. Each of you shall receive a half.” “Sounds good to me,” said the first lady. But the other woman said, “Oh Sire, do not spill innocent blood. Let the other woman’s daughter marry him.” The wise king did not hesitate a moment. “The accountant must marry the first lady’s daughter,” he proclaimed. “But she was willing to hew him in two!” exclaimed the king’s court. “Indeed,” said wise King Solomon. “That shows she is the TRUE mother-in-law.”

Be careful that you don’t take Solomon’s response as a response we all need to give in life.

It’s not always a good thing to suggest to “divide the baby”.

But it was the right response for that moment in that situation.

Lesson

Thinking outside the box

I don’t know about you, but if I had been in Solomon’s shoes, his suggestion would have been the last thing I would have ever thought of.

Sometimes God has answers that are outside your “box”.

His ways are not our ways.

Sometimes there are answers beyond what you can think or comprehend right now.

That’s why we need to be looking to God for answers.

(Jas 1:5 NKJV) If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

God gives wisdom if we will ask.

And then be sure to wait.  Sometimes the wisdom and the answer don’t come immediately.

How can I tell if I have God’s wisdom?

(Jas 3:17 NKJV) But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.

It sounds a lot like the fruit of the Spirit.

4:1-19 Solomon’s Government

:1 So King Solomon was king over all Israel.

:2 And these were his officials: …

We get a long list of names of the various men who ran the government of Solomon.  Including … skip to …

Azariah the son of Zadok, the priest;

:3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, the recorder;

:4 Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, over the army; Zadok and Abiathar, the priests;

:4 Benaiah

Benaiah was the head of David’s bodyguard.  When Adonijah tried to make himself king, Benaiah stayed faithful to David and Solomon, while David’s head general, Joab, sided with Adonijah.  As a reward for his faithfulness, Benaiah was promoted to head of the army.

:4 Zadok and Abiathar

Zadok and Abiathar were the two high priests under David.  Abiathar was exiled to his home town of Anathoth for his part in Adonijah’s rebellion, but he was apparently still considered one of the high priests.

:5 Azariah the son of Nathan, over the officers; Zabud the son of Nathan, a priest and the king’s friend;

:6 Ahishar, over the household; and Adoniram the son of Abda, over the labor force.

:7 And Solomon had twelve governors over all Israel, who provided food for the king and his household; each one made provision for one month of the year.

:7 twelve governors

Solomon had a fairly large government and in order to pay for things, these twelve men would take turns having their region pay the government bills.

:8 These are their names: Ben-Hur, in the mountains of Ephraim;

:8  Ben-Hur

He was not only a governor, but he raced chariots on the side …

Play “Ben Hur Chariot Race” clip

Note:  You are going to see names that might sound familiar, but it may not be the people you think they are.  It’s always good to know your history and the context.

After this, there are more names of all the people who helped Solomon run the country.

:9 Ben-Deker, in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh, and Elon Beth Hanan;

:10 Ben-Hesed, in Arubboth; to him belonged Sochoh and all the land of Hepher;

:11 Ben-Abinadab, in all the regions of Dor; he had Taphath the daughter of Solomon as wife;

:11 the daughter of Solomon as wife

Ben-Abinadab married one of Solomon’s daughters, named Taphath.

:12 Baana the son of Ahilud, in Taanach, Megiddo, and all Beth Shean, which is beside Zaretan below Jezreel, from Beth Shean to Abel Meholah, as far as the other side of Jokneam;

:13 Ben-Geber, in Ramoth Gilead; to him belonged the towns of Jair the son of Manasseh, in Gilead; to him also belonged the region of Argob in Bashan—sixty large cities with walls and bronze gate-bars;

:14 Ahinadab the son of Iddo, in Mahanaim;

:15 Ahimaaz, in Naphtali; he also took Basemath the daughter of Solomon as wife;

Another son-in-law of Solomon

:16 Baanah the son of Hushai, in Asher and Aloth;

:17 Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar;

:18 Shimei the son of Elah, in Benjamin;

:19 Geber the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, in the country of Sihon king of the Amorites, and of Og king of Bashan. He was the only governor who was in the land.

4:20-34 Solomon’s Prosperity

:20 Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking and rejoicing.

:20 numerous as the sand by the sea

This doesn’t mean literally that there were 10²⁵ people in Israel.  It means that there was a HUGE number of people.

This becomes a fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham:

(Ge 22:17 NKJV) blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.

:20 eating and drinking and rejoicing

These were good times.  This was the high point for the kingdom of Israel.

:21 So Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the River to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. They brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life.

Play “Euphrates to Egypt” map clip

The “River” refers to the Euphrates River.  Solomon ruled a huge area.

Solomon ruled over kingdoms from the Euphrates River down to Egypt.

:21 the River … as far as the border of Egypt

This was also a fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham (Gen. 15:18)

(Ge 15:18 NKJV) On the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying: “To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates—

:22 Now Solomon’s provision for one day was thirty kors of fine flour, sixty kors of meal,

:23 ten fatted oxen, twenty oxen from the pastures, and one hundred sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fatted fowl.

:24 For he had dominion over all the region on this side of the River from Tiphsah even to Gaza, namely over all the kings on this side of the River; and he had peace on every side all around him.

:25 And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, each man under his vine and his fig tree, from Dan as far as Beersheba, all the days of Solomon.

:25 each man under his vine and his fig tree

This is a picture of peace and prosperity.  Every person has enough.  Every person is satisfied.

Lesson

The Messiah’s reign

There is a sense in which Solomon becomes a picture…

(Mic 4:1–4 NKJV) —1 Now it shall come to pass in the latter days That the mountain of the Lord’s house Shall be established on the top of the mountains, And shall be exalted above the hills; And peoples shall flow to it. 2 Many nations shall come and say, “Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths.” For out of Zion the law shall go forth, And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 3 He shall judge between many peoples, And rebuke strong nations afar off; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore. 4 But everyone shall sit under his vine and under his fig tree, And no one shall make them afraid; For the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken.

Solomon will be a picture of another “son of David” who will reign forever – Jesus.

:26 Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen.

:26 forty thousand stalls of horses

I wouldn’t like to have the job of sweeping the stables.

Though this gives us a picture of Solomon’s great military strength, it is starting to set off little warning bells.

This was one of God’s laws for kings:

(Dt 17:16 NKJV) 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.’

Solomon even got his horses from Egypt (1Ki. 10:28)

(1 Ki 10:28 NKJV) Also Solomon had horses imported from Egypt …

:27 And these governors, each man in his month, provided food for King Solomon and for all who came to King Solomon’s table. There was no lack in their supply.

Some have suggested that as many as 4,000-5,000 people ate at Solomon’s table.

:28 They also brought barley and straw to the proper place, for the horses and steeds, each man according to his charge.

:29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and exceedingly great understanding, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore.

:29 exceedingly great understanding

The Jews are a pretty smart people!

Illustration

There was a story that took place during the time of the British occupation of Israel, The British soldiers often marveled at the wisdom of these people, their intelligence. They would talk among themselves, of the secret of these people’s intelligence. They were just such brilliant people. So they were standing in the railway station, there in Jerusalem, and they saw this old Jewish man eating fish heads. Having heard somewhere that fish was brain food. The one British soldier, thought to himself, “I’ll bet that’s the secret. You know, we don’t eat the heads of the fish, but look at that guy eating the fish heads. That’s probably the thing that makes them so smart!”. So he came to the Jewish man, and he said, “I’ll tell you, I’ll give you a schilling, for one of your fish heads”. He says, “Oh, no, no, no”. He said, “I’ll give you five schillings for one of the fish heads”. He says, “No”. He said, “I’ll give you a pound for the fish head”. So the old man gave him a fish head, took the pound. The British soldier began to eat it, and it was horrible. He began to spit it out. He said, “You cheated me! That fish head isn’t worth a pound!”. He says, “Ei, yi, yi! Already it’s working!”.

:30 Thus Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the men of the East and all the wisdom of Egypt.

:31 For he was wiser than all men— than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all the surrounding nations.

We don’t know who all these guys were, though there is a parallel list of similar names being men from the tribe of Judah (1Chr. 2:6)

(1 Ch 2:6 NKJV) The sons of Zerah were Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Dara—five of them in all.

Ethan was a musician (Psalm 89)

(Ps 89:title NKJV) — A Contemplation of Ethan the Ezrahite.

Heman may have been one of the worship leaders under David (1Chr. 25:1) and he was the grandson of Samuel the prophet.

(1 Ch 25:1 NKJV) —1 Moreover David and the captains of the army separated for the service some of the sons of Asaph, of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who should prophesy with harps, stringed instruments, and cymbals. And the number of the skilled men performing their service was:

Apparently they were well known in their day for their wisdom.

:32 He spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs were one thousand and five.

He was an author and composer.  We have some of his proverbs in the Book of Proverbs.  We have a couple of his songs in the Song of Solomon and perhaps Psalms 72, 127.

:33 Also he spoke of trees, from the cedar tree of Lebanon even to the hyssop that springs out of the wall; he spoke also of animals, of birds, of creeping things, and of fish.

He was a scientist.

:34 And men of all nations, from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom, came to hear the wisdom of Solomon.

People would make their summer vacation plans around travelling to Jerusalem to listen to Solomon.