1 Kings 9-11

Passage

Revisiting King Solomon’s life we tend to look at him through our worldly eyes as a great king over Israel. He was wiser and richer than anyone, accumulated great power and nothing was kept from him.

However, we tend to overlook what he did with all he built up. Bible history indicates his gains were mainly to please himself, not affect those around him. He even built up cities, just to store his stuff. All this focus on self led God to remind Solomon of the promise with a restriction.

In chapter 3 of 1 Kings when Solomon asked for wisdom, God also promised a long life, if he folowed God’s commandments and statutes, walking in the way of David his father. Solomon reigned for 40 years and died around 60 years old, not considered long life, even in those days.

God had blessed Solomon is many ways, and provided the means where he could have been a major conduit for distributing the knowledge and Spirit of God to the world. Instead he focused on himself and what he could do to make himself bigger in the world. God sent a prophet to let him know what He thought about that.

Back in Genesis God told Abraham that God was blessing him to be a blessing to others. We need to remember that this life is less about what we have been given and more about what we give.