Solomon’s Glory
—And the land promise fulfilled

In this lesson we come to the point where the kingdom of Israel, in its earthly form, reaches its peak of glory. Solomon takes the throne of David whose time on earth has drawn to its close. Under Solomon's reign the kingdom is united, and very extensive —reaching "from Daniel to Beersheba".

1 The Land Promise

You will recall that God's promise to Abraham contained two elements: the SEED PROMISE and the LAND PROMISE. Solomon, the son of David, was not the one to fulfill the SEED PROMISE. That would be the right of another son of David who would be born many years later —namely Jesus Christ. However Solomon was the one who fulfilled the LAND PROMISE (or rather, God fulfilled it in Solomon).

Some teach that the land promise was never fulfilled. It is true that Israel's sin delayed the fulfilling of the promise. It is also true that after the land was gained at last, it was lost again because of sin. However, 1Kings 4:20-25 and 1Kings 8:56 show that the LAND PROMISE was completely fulfilled in Solomon's day.
 

 

2 The Main Point

Behind this story is the extent to which God was willing to bless Solomon. Jesus spoke of "Solomon in all his glory" (Matthew 6:28-30). Solomon was blessed beyond what he asked.(1Kings 3:1-15).

We, too, are blessed "exceeding abundantly" (Ephesians 1:3-5 Ephesians 3:14-21). Solomon's glory may be properly regarded as symbolic of the glory of Christ in the church, and of the spiritual blessings enjoyed in Christ by the church, which is the KINGDOM of Heaven, the spiritual Israel.

3 Bible Summary (1Kings 1-10)

• A virgin to keep old David warm (1)
• Adonijah usurps the throne (1)
• David commands that Solomon be king. Adonijah afraid (1)
• David's charge to Solomon (2)
• David dies, Solomon sits on the throne (2)
• Solomon has Adonijah, Joab, and Shimei killed (3)
• Solomon marries the Pharaoh's daughter (3)
• Solomon builds the temple (3)
• Solomon's dream in Gibeon (3)
• Whose child?  Solomon demonstrates his wisdom (3)
• Solomon's officials (4)
• Solomon rules over a vast territory (4)
• Solomon's wisdom and scientific knowledge (4)
• Cedar and stones for the temple (5)
• The temple described (6)
• Solomon's palace (7)
• Hiram's the craftman's work in bronze (7)
• Dedicated treasure placed in the temple (7)
• The ark, tabernacle, and furnishings brought to the temple (8)
• Blessing and dedication by Solomon (8)
• A vast assembly, innumerable sacrifices (8)
• The LORD appears to Solomon a second time (9)
• Solomon's activities and building programs (9)
• The queen of Sheba visits Solomon (10)
• Solomon's splendour and riches (10)
• Identical or similar accounts are given in 1Chronicles 21-29 and 2Chronicles 1-9.

4 A Few Facts About Solomon

• The third king of Israel (after Saul and David)
• Son of David, and ancestor of Christ (Matthew 1:1,6-7)
• Father of Rehoboam
• A scholar and scientist of great wisdom
• Author and collector of proverbs and wise sayings
• Brought Israel to its peak of power
• Possessed the entire promised land in peace
• Married Pharaoh's daughter
• Had 700 wives and 300 concubines
• The LORD appeared to him twice
• Built and dedicated the temple of God
• In later life he turned to idolatry

5 Memory Aid

It's a headache trying to remember whether it was Jeroboam or Rehoboam who was Solomon's son and the next king in Jerusalem. Everyone has a favourite memory aid for getting it right. The one I'll give you is this... The letters R and S go next to each other in the alphabet. So Rehoboam goes with Solomon.

In our next lesson we look more closely at Solomon's sin and sorrow.

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Webservant Ron Graham

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