1 Kings 11:1

1 Kings 11:1 says, But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites:  Solomon may have been wise and rich, he may have built a Temple for God, but he did not follow God's law concerning marriage.  He loved and married many foreign women starting with the daughter of Pharoah.  We may be a follower of Christ and yet allow some sinful action into our life, but we can never be content to allow it to stay, much less grow.  Verse two adds, Of the nations concerning which the Lord said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.  Slomon loved these women in spite of God's warning to the people of Israel not to marry women of other nations, because these women would lead them away from God.  We have the same warning as Christians today.  Verse three continues, And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart.  Solomon not only disobeyed God's design for marriage and his warning about marrying women of other nations, but he also completely obliterated it, having seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines.  Once we allow a sin into our lives as Christians, we should not be surprised if it begins to multiply.  These women turned Solomon's heart away from God, just as any sinful desire will do to us today.  Verse four states, For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father.  When Solomon was old and had allowed his wives and concubines to turn his heart away from God and to other gods, his heart was no longer perfect with God as his father David's had been.  I believe the difference was that even though David sinned as well, he never followed after other gods.  I don't believe that we can really be a Christian and follow after other gods as well.  If we begin to do so, then I would have to question the reality of our faith in Jesus Christ to start with, since as Christians we should know that He is the only way to salvation, and we are to worship no one nor anything else.  Verse five adds, For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.  Two of the gods Solomon began to worship were Ashtoreth, the goddess of fertility, and Milcom, the chief god of the Ammonites who was called the abomination of the Ammonites.  We can be certain that any god we follow other than the one true and living God will be an abomination.  Verse six continues, And Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and went not fully after the Lord, as did David his father.  Solomon may have been given great wisdom by God, but he did not continue to use it throughout his life by being led to follow other gods and doing evil in God's sight.  We have been given enough wisdom to accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, and if we don't, then we are doing evil in God's sight.  Verse seven declares, Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.  Solomon may have built a beautiful Temple for God, but he was now building places of worship for other gods.  They were both called abominations.  We cannot worship God and any other god at the same time, and if we allow anything to become more important to us than God, then that is what we are doing.  Verse eight adds, And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.  Not only did Solomon worship these false gods, but his foreign wives did as well.  If a Christian marries a non-Christian, too often the Christian is led to follow the gods of the spouse, and this should never be.   

1 Kings 10:21

1 Kings 10:21 says, And all king Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; none were of silver: it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon.  Solomon's own drinking vessels were made of gold, which really had nothing to do with bringing glory to God in my opinion.  I believe that today too many Christians want only the best of everything for themselves instead of simply wanting what will serve the purpose effectively.  Verse twenty-two adds, For the king had at sea a navy of Tharshish with the navy of Hiram: once in three years came the navy of Tharshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.  Solomon partnered with Hiram and his navy to continue to bring gold, silver, ivory, apes and peacocks to himself.  Matthew Henry says in their prosperity that the people of Israel had begun to pursue opulence and childlike entertainment.  We today need to be more devoted to doing God's work than to simply looking to find pleasure for ourselves as Christians.  Verse twenty-three continues, So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom.  Solomon exceeded all other kings in both riches and wisdom.  I believe this still holds true, with the exception of Jesus Christ, Who is wiser even if He wasn't richer in His earthly life, because Solomon asked God for wisdom above all else and God blessed him with both wisdom and riches.  Of course, some rulers today do attempt to have more opulence in their lives than Solomon did.  Verse twenty-four states, And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.  People from everywhere came to hear Solomon, because God had given him wisdom.  We as Christians have this same wisdom available to us today, but even if we use it, we likely never have many people coming to us for us to share it with them.  Verse twenty-five adds, And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.  The people who sought Solomon's wisdom also brought him presents, and when we seek the wisdom of God today, we need to bring Him the present of ourselves and everything that we own.  I believe that all that God blesses us with should be used for His purpose.  Verse twenty-six continues, And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem.  Solomon also built up his army with fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen.  Too often today people look to military might to bring security to a country instead of looking to God for security.  Verse twenty-seven says, And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycamore trees that are in the vale, for abundance.  Silver was as abundant in Jerusalem as stones were and cedars were as prevalent as sycamore trees.  Israel was truly wealthy during Solomon's reign, but they shouldn't have been serving God just for material wealth, and neither should we.  Verse twenty-eight adds, And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and linen yarn: the king's merchants received the linen yarn at a price. Verse twenty-nine continues, And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and an horse for an hundred and fifty: and so for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, did they bring them out by their means.  Solomon was trading with Egypt at this time as well.  Though the people of Israel had once been slaves in Egypt, they were now in a position of superiority.  We were once enslaved to sin, but by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, we are set free.  Of course, once we are we don't need to continue to be friendly with sin, though we should with the sinner.

 I am going to pause in the study of 1 Kings today on Christmas and look again at that first Christmas day.  LUK2:08 says, And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.  That first Christmas night there was a group of lowly shepherds going about their normal night.  There was nothing that said it was anything special.  Verse nine adds, And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.  Suddenly, the night was no longer normal as an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and they were very afraid.  We may not have an angel appear to us on Christmas day, but as followers of Christ, Christmas should always be a day that reminds us of the good news that the angel was going to share with the shepherds, and we have no reason to be afraid.  Verse ten adds, And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.  The good tidings of great joy that the angel shared with the shepherds was for all people.  We may not have been there that night, but this good news was for us as well.  Verse eleven declares, For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.  This is the true and only meaning of Christmas.  A Savior was born that day Who is Christ the Lord.  He is the One and only Savior, so let's not forget the reason we celebrate Christmas.  Verse twelve adds, And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.  The angel said that the shepherds would find the Savior not as a king in power but as a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes.  Jesus was born as any other baby was born, but He was the only begotten Son of God.  Verse thirteen continues, And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,  Verse fourteen adds, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.  For the shepherds, this became anything but a normal night, and if we have met Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, this day should be a celebration of His birth, a Savior Who is Christ the Lord.  

1 Kings 10:14

1 Kings 10:14 says, Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold, Solomon had a large amount of gold coming to him in a year.  The kingdom was prospering under his rule.  Of course, we don't serve God for earthly riches, so we can never judge the faith of a person based on riches.  We will likely be more like Paul than Solomon, working and striving for a living, instead of living with riches.  Verse fifteen adds, Beside that he had of the merchantmen, and of the traffick of the spice merchants, and of all the kings of Arabia, and of the governors of the country.  Solomon also had ships that were trading with all the countries around him instead of being at war with them.  At times, we as Christians may live at peace with those who do not accept God as the only God, and we may even trade with them, but spiritually, we will always be at war with them.  Verse sixteen continues, And king Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten gold: six hundred shekels of gold went to one target.  Solomon used the gold to make ornamental armament according to Matthew Henry, but he didn't just hoard it.  We need to use the gifts that God blesses us with today, and not just for ornamental reasons.  Verse seventeen concludes, And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three pound of gold went to one shield: and the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.  He kept some of these shields in his house in Lebanon, which would imply that they were not in use every day but were readily available.  Some days, we may not use ever gift that God has given us, but they must be readily available even if we don't.  The spiritual gifts of God should never be hoarded unused.  Verse eighteen states, Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the best gold.  I believe that the throne was certainly more for show than for a functional purpose.  We as followers of Christ today can be guilty of doing things that are more for show than for functional purposes in church buildings and in our own homes.  I believe that we bring more glory to God by using the things that He blesses us with to reach out to the lost world than we do by building buildings that are ornate just for show.  Verse nineteen adds, The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round behind: and there were stays on either side on the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the stays.  Verse twenty continues, And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps: there was not the like made in any kingdom.  These two verses tell us more about the luxury of the throne of Solomon.  We need the world today to see our good works in helping others more than our ornate church building or lifestyle I believe.  

1 Kings 10 :1

1 Kings10:1 says, And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to prove him with hard questions.  When the queen of Sheba heard about Solomon's fame concerning the name of the Lord, she came to prove him asking him hard questions.   Matthew Henry says she mainly came to better understand the ways of God.  If people hear that we are Christians today, and come to us asking hard questions about God, will we prove to be wise in our understanding of salvation?  We need to always be ready to answer anyone who questions us about salvation.  Verse two adds, And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.  She didn't come empty-handed but came with many valuable gifts and communed with Solomon about all that was on her heart.  We can only come to God empty-handed when we come to seek salvation, but we also must share the concerns of our heart with Him.  We cannot just seek facts, but must seek faith.  Verse three continues, And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not any thing hid from the king, which he told her not.  Solomon answered all her questions under the leadership of the God, which is where his wisdom came from. If we are to answer all the questions people may ask us about becoming a Christian and living a Christian life today, we need to rely on the leadership of the Holy Spirit when we answer them.  Verse four states, And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the house that he had built,  Verse five adds, And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the Lord; there was no more spirit in her.  When she saw all of Solomon's wisdom and all that God had blessed him with, there was no more spirit in her.  Of course, of all the things mentioned, the wisdom of Solomon was the first, and if people are going to respond to God's call to salvation today, it is not going to be because of our material wealth but because of our knowledge of and faith in Him.  Verse six continues, And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom.  She told Solomon that she had heard of his acts and wisdom in her own land.  As followers of Christ, we need to pray that people will hear of our wisdom and of our good acts for God.  True wisdom can only come from God, and this is the wisdom that we need to share with people of the world.  The question is, are they hearing about our wisdom of God?  Verse seven says, Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard.  She told Solomon that she did not believe what she had heard until she came and saw it for herself, and it was even greater than she had heard.  People are not going to believe the gospel until they accept it for themselves, and then it will be even greater than what they had heard.  Verse eight adds, Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom.  Shen said that Solomon's men and his servants were happy serving him.  If someone were to observe us as Christians in where we work today, especially if we are in a position of authority, they should see that those that we have authority over are happy in their work situation.  People of the world are going to be observing us as followers of Christ, not just in how we live on Sunday but in how we live our everyday life as well.  Verse nine continues, Blessed be the Lord thy God, which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel: because the Lord loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgment and justice.  The queen of Sheba then gave praise to God as the One Who had made Solomon so wise and powerful.  We need people to praise God for whatever we accomplish as Christians today and not to praise us.  Just as she said God had loved Israel forever, so does He love us as Christians forever today.  Verse ten concludes, And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones: there came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon.  She then gave Solomon gold and more spices than had ever been given to anyone.  She acknowledged that God was to be praised, and then gave gifts to Solomon, I would assume thinking that he would use them for God's glory and not his own.  The blessings that God gives us today as followers of Christ should be used for God's glory and not our own.  Verse eleven says, And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees, and precious stones.  Hiram's navy also brought gifts, which included almug trees, which were highly praised for their beauty and fragrance.  Verse twelve adds, And the king made of the almug trees pillars for the house of the Lord, and for the king's house, harps also and psalteries for singers: there came no such almug trees, nor were seen unto this day.  Solomon used the almug trees in the Temple and his own house and to make instruments for the Temple.  We need to use the things God blesses us with today to do His work and not just use it for our own benefit.  Verse thirteen continues, And king Solomon gave unto the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants.  Solomon also gave the Queen of Sheba whatever she asked for.  We may not be able to give people a lot of material possessions today, but we can give them the greatest gift of all, and that is sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with them.

1 Kings 9:25

1 Kings 9:25 says, And three times in a year did Solomon offer burnt offerings and peace offerings upon the altar which he built unto the Lord, and he burnt incense upon the altar that was before the Lord. So he finished the house.  Solomon offered burnt offerings and peace offerings to God on the altar he built three times a year.  Matthew Henry points out that this was in addition to the normal times of worship.  We need to offer ourselves as a living sacrifice to God daily, but we also need gather together and offer our tithes and offerings to God regularly and this should be more than three times a year, yet many professed Christians only come to church on Christmas, Easter, and maybe for a funeral.  Then, Solomon had completed the building of the Temple.  Though the physical temple was done away with when Jesus Christ came and died for our sins, if we are Christians, our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit, and we should always be working to improve our obedience to Him, so in that respect, this temple will never be complete until He calls us home to Heaven.  Verse twenty-six adds, And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Eziongeber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red sea, in the land of Edom.  Solomon then began to make ships for a navy.  He had completed the work on God's house and on his palaces, so now he turned to building for the defense of Israel.  We should be more concerned about building our relationship with God than we are about the things of this earth.  No army or navy is ever going to bring us everlasting salvation.  Only a personal relationship with Jesus Christ can do that, so we need to establish that relationship first.  Verse twenty-seven continues, And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon.  Once again, Hiram sent help to Solomon, sending men from his navy to help those of Solomon's navy learn about the sea and sailing.   When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, we may need the help of fellow Christians to show us how to live a successful Christian life.  I know we have the Holy Spirit indwelling us, but it is still helpful to have other Christians showing us the way.  God does work through other people to grow His kingdom.  Verse twenty-eight concludes, And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.  The ships were also used in trade, and the first trading venture brought Solomon a profit of four hundred and twenty talents of gold.  Of course, we as Christians should not work just for material rewards, but using our God given talents under the leadership of the Holy Spirit may lead to material success.  Still, I believe that if it does, we need to use what God blesses us with for His glory and not just for personal enrichment. 

1 Kings 9:15

1 Kings 9:15 says, And this is the reason of the levy which king Solomon raised; for to build the house of the Lord, and his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer.  We are told that Solomon had raised a levy, or tax, for the purpose of paying for all the building he did.  Taxes are still raised to pay for government work today, but not for church work, so if God's work is to be done, we as Christians must give to support it.  Verse sixteen adds, For Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the city, and given it for a present unto his daughter, Solomon's wife.  Pharoah, king of Egypt, had taken Gezer and burned it and had given it to his daughter, Solomon's wife.  Of course, it really wasn't his to give, but we do see that the Egyptians were still a threat to the people around them, but he caused Solomon to build a city there.  Sometimes, our one-time enemies may be become our friends, but if they do not become followers of Christ as well, we should not put a lot of faith in their goodness toward us.  Verse seventeen continues, And Solomon built Gezer, and Bethhoron the nether, Verse eighteen states, And Baalath, and Tadmor in the wilderness, in the land,  Verse nineteen adds, And all the cities of store that Solomon had, and cities for his chariots, and cities for his horsemen, and that which Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion. As already stated, Solomon built a city at Gezer, but he also built many others to support his army.  We today may not like taxes, but if we are going to have police forces, fire departments, and armies, as well as all the things needed to live our everyday life functioning with ease, they are necessary.  Of course, they can also be abused.  Verse twenty says, And all the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which were not of the children of Israel,  Verse twenty-one adds, Their children that were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel also were not able utterly to destroy, upon those did Solomon levy a tribute of bondservice unto this day.  We are told that not all of those who had lived in the Promised Land before God gave it to Israel had been destroyed, but their children lived as bondservants to the people of Israel.  Matthew Henry says this fulfilled God's law that these people would be the bondservants of Israel found in Leviticus 25:44 and Noah's curse on the Canaanites found in Genesis 9:25.  Some people today attempt to use the Bible to justify being morally superior to other groups of people, but we are all but sinners saved by grace.  Verse twenty-two continues, But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no bondmen: but they were men of war, and his servants, and his princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots, and his horsemen.  None of the people of Israel were made bondservants, but they were men of war and Solomon's servants, princes, captains, and rulers of his horsemen and chariots.  They weren't freed just for a life of leisure, but still had a very important role in Israel.  We are God's servants as followers of Christ today, and we all have our individual calling, but we are all called to be a part of the army of God.  Verse twenty-three states, These were the chief of the officers that were over Solomon's work, five hundred and fifty, which bare rule over the people that wrought in the work.  Solomon had five-hundred and fifty chief officers over the work of Israel.  We have many preachers who are in charge of insuring that the gospel is preached, and God's word is taught today, but they are not solely responsible.  We as Christians all have an equal responsibility to ensure that God's work is done today, and we each have our own responsibility to ensure that it is done.  Verse twenty-four adds, But Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the city of David unto her house which Solomon had built for her: then did he build Millo.  Solomon's wife, the Pharoah's daughter, did not live in Jerusalem but in Millo.  We aren't told why he built her a separate house, but we do know that Solomon had multiple wives and concubines, so maybe this was just a logical decision.