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- What attributes of God’s character does this passage reveal?
- How does the passage point to Jesus?
- How should the truth of this passage change me?
- How do the events of today’s reading help you better understand the grand narrative of Scripture?
1 Kings 10, 2 Chron. 9
The queen of Sheba heard of Solomon’s fame. Evidently, what she heard seemed too good to be true. Thus, she had to go and see for herself. The 1 Kings version of this story adds one extra little detail that is, for some reason, absent in the 2 Chronicles version. To Solomon’s fame it adds, “connected with the name of the LORD” (from 1 Kings 10:1). The NIV reads, “and his relationship to the LORD”. Interesting. In addition to that, though she was in awe at Solomon’s wealth, it was his words and wisdom that she truly marveled at. And she praised God for all that she saw and heard. It makes me wonder what she spoke with him about. Perhaps she came as much to learn about Solomon’s God as Solomon himself.
This makes me think of Jesus’ exhortation for us to, “let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.” (Matt. 5:16). For such a dignitary to travel likely over 1,000 miles to see with her own eyes, I’d say that Solomon was doing something right at this point in his life. He was clearly using the wisdom he requested and received directly from God to return glory to Him. Though I don’t have the wisdom of Solomon nor the scope to draw people in from hundreds of miles away, I still pray that I would use what God has so graciously given me to shine His light and give glory to His name.
1 Kings 11
Solomon had wisdom beyond anything anyone has ever known. And it was wisdom directly from God. Still, it was not enough to keep his heart pure. That’s the thing about being human. We can absolutely, 100% know the right thing to do and still do the wrong thing. I see it in myself all the time. Even Paul, in Romans 7, told us the struggle is real! “For the desire to do what is good is with me, but there is no ability to do it. For I do not do the good that I want to do, but I practice the evil that I do not want to do….What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?” (Rom. 7:18b-19, 24). This is why we need God every single day.
In Solomon’s case, his poor decisions led to more than just doing the wrong thing. They led to a divided heart. That’s what really sealed his fate. How did he get that divided heart? He chose to fellowship, enter into close, intimate relationship, with those who did not love and serve God. I’ve talked about this kind of fellowship before. It’s a bond that is akin to yoking yourself up with another. When two are yoked together, they cannot go different directions. Thus, it is impossible for us to follow God when we yoke up with someone who does not. Solomon was “deeply attached” to his women. Thus, despite all his words of wisdom, he allowed those women to turn his way to the path to death.