1 Kings - Lesson 10

• In our last session we were able to look past the veil of Solomon’s glory and wisdom to witness the common struggle of humanity.

  • And what we discovered was, when we fail to entrust ourselves to the word of God and compromise, we give way to sin.

    • And this has become, slowly but surely, the reality of King Solomon.

  • That where he was to be faithful to Torah, his sin nature has continued to rule him in certain aspects of his growth as king.

    • Tonight, we will find a common thread in the narrative as Solomon’s wisdom and glory continues to spread throughout the ancient world.

  • As we continue through our study of the kings, I pray that we are able to see ourselves in the text.

    • That these stories are much more than actual history, but most specifically, the word is a mirror to our lives.

    • And as we examine these biblical characters, it is my prayer that we will submit ourselves daily to the control of the Spirit.

  • If I were to put an outline together for what we will cover, it would be the following:

    • 1. Queen of Sheba and the Wisdom of Solomon  (vv.1-13)

    • 2. The Wealth of Solomon (vv.14-29)

  • And if I were to put a tag on tonight’s text, it would simply be: Reward, Riddle, and Ruin.

    • With that being said, I invite you to meet me in 1 Kings 10 starting at verses 1-5 for the reading of the word of the Lord.

1 Kings 10:1 Now when the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to test him with difficult questions.
1 Kings 10:2 So she came to Jerusalem with a very large retinue, with camels carrying spices and very much gold and precious stones. When she came to Solomon, she spoke with him about all that was in her heart.
1 Kings 10:3 Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was hidden from the king which he did not explain to her.
1 Kings 10:4 When the queen of Sheba perceived all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built,
1 Kings 10:5 the food of his table, the seating of his servants, the attendance of his waiters and their attire, his cupbearers, and his stairway by which he went up to the house of the Lord, there was no more spirit in her.

• As mentioned before, the transition to this chapter although it may seem disconnected has a very similar theme.

  • And that theme that is connected from last week speaks to the greatness and glorious rule of Solomon.

    • Not only was Solomon’s rule made great within Israel, but he garnered much attention from surrounding nations.

    • And in this case, there is a queen from a region named Sheba who comes to inquire about Israel’s king.

    • But before we delve in too quickly, let’s begin with some historical-geographical information regarding Sheba.

  • Sheba was located about 1,200 miles southeast of Jerusalem in what is known as modern day Yemen.

• The text mentions that Sheba comes to “test” Solomon with “difficult questions”. And she does this as a means to see if what she has been hearing about Solomon is really true.

  • Her testing however was much more than merely putting his wisdom to the test.

    • Even more than that, we will see that there is intention behind her questions.

  • Sheba was known for their spices and incense which had become quite prominent in the spice market.

    • And as we will see, these gifts will become a part of a treaty deal later on.

    • Remember, at this point in Israel’s history they were well known and dominating in wealth, wisdom, and power.

• As we read prior, along with the queen’s inquiry regarding Solomon’s wisdom and wealth, came a series of questions, almost in a rolodex type fashion.

  • The text mentions that she spoke to him about all that was in her heart.

    • And what we find from her question goes back to the point we made earlier which speaks to the typical ancient near east practice of “testing with questions”.

    • This was something that rulers did with other neighboring nations both near and far as a way to discern intent and potential relationship.

  • We see a quick example of the exchange of riddles with Samson in Judges 14:12, and the thirty companions at his wedding feast.

    • The word for “riddle” in Judges 14:12 and “difficult question” in 1 Kings 10 is the same Hebrew word.

    • The range of these questions could be from difficult diplomatic questions to matters of ethics or even deep spiritual insights.

    • Again, all used to discern and even test the rumored wisdom of Solomon.

  • And what we see is that in all the questions that the Queen of Sheba asks, Solomon is not moved but rather responds to every inquiry.

    • In fact, the Queen is so taken back by the width and the depth of Solomon’s wisdom that the text mentions, “there was no more spirit in her.”

    • In other words, she was so overwhelmed by Solomon’s ability to answer her exhaustive list of questions that she was out of breath.

    • This reality now moves her to her conclusion. Check out verses 6-9.

1 Kings 10:6 Then she said to the king, “It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom.
1 Kings 10:7 “Nevertheless I did not believe the reports, until I came and my eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. You exceed in wisdom and prosperity the report which I heard.
1 Kings 10:8 “How blessed are your men, how blessed are these your servants who stand before you continually and hear your wisdom.
1 Kings 10:9 “Blessed be the Lord your God who delighted in you to set you on the throne of Israel; because the Lord loved Israel forever, therefore He made you king, to do justice and righteousness.”

• After catching her breath, the Queen of Sheba confesses that the report she read about his wisdom in Sheba was indeed true.

  • It is amazing to consider the fact that the works, organization, and wisdom of Solomon was known almost 1,500 miles away.

    • Apparently, the queen was so skeptical that she wanted to wait to see this truth for herself with her own eyes and ears.

    • What a powerful moment that must have been for a pagan queen to rise from her seat of power to inquire about a king who serves the Living God!

  • This is not to say that the queen became a follower of Yahweh, but it is safe to say that she acknowledged the very presence and power of Yahweh evident in His king.

    • What becomes an interesting detail in the text is the phrase, “until I came and my eyes had seen it”,

    • This statement should remind us of another character in the New Testament – doubting Thomas.

  • He had heard the reports of Jesus being raised from the dead and that he had returned to the disciples for a brief time, yet he refused to believe.

    • It wasn’t until Thomas, for himself, laid eyes on Jesus and placed his own hands in his wounds. Check out John 20:25-29.

John 20:25 So the other disciples were saying to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”
John 20:26 After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.”
John 20:27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.”
John 20:28 Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”
John 20:29 Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”

• Truth, at the end of the day will either be believed or rejected.

  • And the reality is sometimes truth can be staring you right in the face having made itself known but because of closed hearts, it is rejected.

  • Unfortunately for many people, they need “additional proof” or a sign that truth is truth.

    • This was the case for the religious leaders in Jesus’ day which is why in Matthew 12:43, Jesus made the following statement:

    • I will include verses 38 to 43 to establish context.

Matthew 12:38 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.”
Matthew 12:39 But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet;
Matthew 12:40 for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Matthew 12:41 “The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
Matthew 12:42 “The Queen of the South will rise up with this generation at the judgment and will condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.

• Ultimately, what this speaks to is how even when truth is presented in front of you – and truth has a name (Jesus Christ), that unbelieving people will still demand yet another dynamic sign of proof.

  • And Jesus’ point here in Matthew 12 is that you are my own people, and you know Torah and its signs pointing to Messiah.

  • Yet you ignore the very truth in front of you for the sake of being right.

  • Friends, wisdom can either be extremely beneficial or very costly.

    • Here is a pagan queen (non-Israelite) coming from a godless country to a country established by God and sees the powerful demonstration of God’s hand.

    • Yet those who claim to know God cannot even see for themselves that the God-man has come to bring the Kingdom to them!

  • Well, with seeing the wisdom and grandeur of Israel’s King, firmly established by Yahweh, the queen of Sheba blesses the name of the Lord.

    • And here becomes just one way in which the Lord is working out His word: By having Israel accomplish their purpose in bringing the Gentiles to Yahweh.

    • She first acknowledges how blessed the servants of Solomon and the people of Israel are for having such a wise king.

  • She then moves to bless the Lord and calls Him Yahweh. She acknowledges the attributes of God.

    • His steady love, his justice, his righteousness, but most importantly His delight in His chosen people.

    • Here is food for thought: Is the unbelieving world able to see the God of Israel’s hands upon you in a way that they praise Him?

    • Do the actions and attitudes of your heart burst forth as a demonstrative example of your worship and love for the Lord?

  • The queen of Sheba is able to acknowledge the very character and attributes of Yahweh through the righteous and just actions of His King.

    • And that, friends, is the role in which the King served as a custodial representative of their God and in this case the Living God.

    • From there, the queen of Sheba is pleased with what she sees and continues in her desire to enter into a trade agreement with Israel.

    • Check out verses 10-13.

1 Kings 10:10 She gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and a very great amount of spices and precious stones. Never again did such abundance of spices come in as that which the queen of Sheba gave King Solomon.
1 Kings 10:11 Also the ships of Hiram, which brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir a very great number of almug trees and precious stones.
1 Kings 10:12 The king made of the almug trees supports for the house of the Lord and for the king’s house, also lyres and harps for the singers; such almug trees have not come in again nor have they been seen to this day.
1 Kings 10:13 King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire which she requested, besides what he gave her according to his royal bounty. Then she turned and went to her own land together with her servants.

• At this point in the narrative, things begin to sound a bit familiar to Solomon’s agreement and trade with King Hiram.

  • We find here that an agreement is made, and currency is exchanged and what becomes clear is that the queen of Sheba has some wealth of her own.

    • The text mentions she gave the king 120 talents of gold along with a great number of spices and precious stones.

    • To estimate that amount of wealth today, 120 talents of gold is about 9,ooo pounds which is equivalent to approximately $118,759,680 US dollars.

    • Needless to say, Israel’s treasury and economy had a great supply of wealth.

  • And apparently, the queen of Sheba’s inventory of spices was so great that Israel had never again seen an import of that magnitude.

    • Perhaps, this may be a reason why the writer of kings includes verses 11-12.

    • The point being that Israel had no lack of supply or trade agreements including that of King Hiram of Tyre.

  • At the conclusion of her trip and trade agreement, King Solomon gives to the queen all that she desired and requested.

    • This trip, as one could imagine, would be an encounter she would forever remember.

  • From this point, notice that the theme of the chapter is going to shift a bit.

    • It began with a pagan queen hearing of the wisdom and greatness of Israel’s king.

    • And now it moves to the wealth and wisdom of the king.

  • So, although the second half of this chapter is not dealing with any character interactions, we will see how the wisdom of the Lord aids in further expansion of the king’s wealth.

    • Yet at the same time, we will also see how the pursuit of this wealth becomes another problem the writer brings forth.

    • Check out verses 14-29.

1 Kings 10:14 Now the weight of gold which came in to Solomon in one year was 666 talents of gold,
1 Kings 10:15 besides that from the traders and the wares of the merchants and all the kings of the Arabs and the governors of the country.
1 Kings 10:16 King Solomon made 200 large shields of beaten gold, using 600 shekels of gold on each large shield.
1 Kings 10:17 He made 300 shields of beaten gold, using three minas of gold on each shield, and the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.
1 Kings 10:18 Moreover, the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with refined gold.
1 Kings 10:19 There were six steps to the throne and a round top to the throne at its rear, and arms on each side of the seat, and two lions standing beside the arms.
1 Kings 10:20 Twelve lions were standing there on the six steps on the one side and on the other; nothing like it was made for any other kingdom.
1 Kings 10:21 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 was of silver; it was not considered valuable in the days of Solomon.
1 Kings 10:22 For the king had at sea the ships of Tarshish with the ships of Hiram; once every three years the ships of Tarshish came bringing gold and silver, ivory and apes and peacocks.
1 Kings 10:23 So King Solomon became greater than all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom.
1 Kings 10:24 All the earth was seeking the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom which God had put in his heart.
1 Kings 10:25 They brought every man his gift, articles of silver and gold, garments, weapons, spices, horses, and mules, so much year by year.
1 Kings 10:26 Now Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen; and he had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen, and he stationed them in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem.
1 Kings 10:27 The king made silver as common as stones in Jerusalem, and he made cedars as plentiful as sycamore trees that are in the lowland.
1 Kings 10:28 Also Solomon’s import of horses was from Egypt and Kue, and the king’s merchants procured them from Kue for a price.
1 Kings 10:29 A chariot was imported from Egypt for 600 shekels of silver, and a horse for 150; and by the same means they exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and to the kings of the Arameans.

• As mentioned before, the following verses that we will examine are simply a summary of the great wealth that Solomon attained.

  • We are told in verses 14-15 that the amount of gold received on an annual basis was 666 talents of gold which is about 25 tons or 50,000 pounds.

    • Friends, this conversion to US dollars today is easily over 1 billion dollars.

    • On top of that this total does not include what was brought in by traders and merchants from their designated taxes.

  • What I find interesting in observation is the number of talents in gold, 666.

    • As we know, the number 6 biblically is reflective of man and our human weakness most importantly the manifestation of sin.

    • I mention this because we are told throughout the narrative that the Lord would make Solomon rich.

    • So, in one sense, money is not the issue nor is being rich a problem.

  • We understand that money is a tool by which things are able to get done.

    • However, what begins to distort the purposes of the use and attainment of money are the matters of the heart.

    • And what begins to emerge, in a way, is Solomon’s desire to increase his wealth and fortune.

  • What we see in verses 14-17 is that Solomon is accumulating these riches as ornaments of security and independence.

    • In other words, like David with the census, what God has allowed him to attain is beginning to get to his head.

    • And that becomes a biblical principle within this narrative as it relates to sin.

    • Sin starts off in a very small way and is oftentimes masked by subtle pleasantries and at times false humility.

    • And if not addressed and submitted to the Lord, it can begin to fester in the heart and spread like gangrene.

  • What we have talked about, regarding Torah, is that the Lord forbade his kings to multiply their wealth.

    • Check out quickly, Deuteronomy 17:17.

Deut. 17:17 “He shall not multiply wives for himself, or else his heart will turn away; nor shall he greatly increase silver and gold for himself.

• Some commentators make it seem as if Solomon’s fall as king happened abruptly, however, I believe the writer has dropped subtle hints of violation throughout the narrative.

  • From Solomon marrying Pharoah’s daughter to even the multiplying of the wealth of the kingdom.

  • These become the small subtle instances by which sin begins to grow and grow.

  • In verses 16 and 17 we see that Solomon uses some of this gold as a means to create shields.

    • However, gold is a soft metal so its use on a shield made no sense. It was an ego gesture!

    • And if that wasn’t enough, he then put the shields on display in the house of the forest of Lebanon (display hall).

  • The use of gold continues as the king uses it as an overlay on his throne.

    • His throne was on an elevated platform and was nestled between two lions at his arms.

  • As the stairs ascended to the throne overlaid in gold, they were accompanied by 12 lions, 2 lions on each step leading to the king.

    • Perhaps the 12 lions were representative of the twelve tribes of Israel.

  • Clearly, there was nothing lacking for the king. He had everything at his fingertips and a treasury in the excess of over 1 billion dollars.

    • And if that wasn’t enough, ships from Tarshish came bringing gold, silver, and other minerals.

  • Solomon stood in a class all by himself and all desired to be near him and associated with him and to hear the wisdom in which the Lord had given him.

    • What becomes so profound beyond his great wealth is the wisdom writings.

    • It is as if, towards the end of his life that he realized everything he had chased was for nought.

    • Solomon comes to the conclusion that even in all his wealth , pursuit of pleasure and striving, it was all vanity! (Ecclesiastes 2:9-11)

Eccl. 2:9 Then I became great and increased more than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. My wisdom also stood by me.
Eccl. 2:10 All that my eyes desired I did not refuse them. I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart was pleased because of all my labor and this was my reward for all my labor.
Eccl. 2:11 Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun.

• This begins to beg the question: If Solomon was considered the wisest king of all kings, yet Solomon experienced some short comings, who would be Israel’s ultimate King?

  • The reality was, the Lord desired a king for Himself who would follow Torah to a “t” and would not be corrupted by sin.

  • Yet, at the same time, the Lord made a covenant with David that his descendant (a son of David) would be the one to rule forever.

    • So when you get to passages like Psalm 89:27, what does the writer mean when he speaks of “the highest of the kings of the earth”?

  • Friends, the writer is alluding to something that speaks to a “greater Solomon”.

    • It is often mentioned that the writer of the Psalm wrote it on behalf of either David or Solomon during a time of great trouble.

    • Here is what Psalm 89:27 says:

Psalm 89:27 “I also shall make him My firstborn, The highest of the kings of the earth.

• This psalm speaks of a future fulfilment by which David’s descendant, in whom will be the highest of the kings of the earth, will reign and rule.

  • The Messianic Psalm points to Jesus Christ, who at His Second Coming, will rule as the greater Solomon, something He alluded to in Matthew’s gospel, but the people missed it.

• There will come a future day where all the earth will come to both see and know of the greater Solomon, Jesus Christ.

  • The difference between the former Solomon and the greater Solomon, Jesus Christ, is that the spoils of life, ultimately sin, has no hold on Him.

    • This is what makes Jesus’ reign in the Millennial Kingdom so great because He, being both just and the justifier, will uphold the government in peace.

    • His righteousness will reign throughout the world and His power and rule will be known by all, both near and far.

    • Isaiah 9:6-7 tells us this:

Isaiah 9:6 For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
Isaiah 9:7 There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this.

• In the meantime, I want to briefly go back to the point made earlier regarding these subtle hints of Solomon’s growing upholding of the Law.

  • Notice verses 26-29. The text mentions that Solomon has now begun to gather for himself chariots and horsemen in great number.

  • And Solomon gathered these horses and recruitment of horsemen from around the surrounding nations.

  • He received imported horses from Egypt and Kue (Q-e) which was a kingdom northeast of the Mediterranean. It is what’s considered today as modern Turkey.

    • Now as you consider the gathering of horses and warrior men, what comes to mind? Battle, war, and the like.

    • This begs the question: What could Solomon potentially be preparing for?

  • The Lord had promised peace in his reign, so where does the need to gather these weapons and men for war come from?

    • Herein lies yet another indicator of the temptations of the things of this world.

• When we consider wealth or the attainment of wealth in this life, what automatically comes along with it? The need to protect your assets.

  • If your possessions are not properly protected, it leaves one vulnerable and susceptible to attacks from those around.

    • The reality is, the attainment of wealth that Solomon had gained began with the Lord providing for Him by way of His grace.

    • But somewhere along the way, like David, Solomon began to think that he had something to do with the growth of Israel’s wealth.

    • Here we see the sinful nature of man in full display.

    • Ultimately, Solomon disobeyed yet another command of the Lord. This one we find in Deuteronomy 17:16. Check out the text:

Deut. 17:16 “Moreover, he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor shall he cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, since the Lord has said to you, ‘You shall never again return that way.’

• God told Israel and their king to not multiply their horses which was in turn the military might of forces in that day.

  • God’s immense blessing upon His people was for them to see that He was their refuge and strength.

    • That He was the one who provided for their every need.

    • But before we catch spiritual amnesia, lest we forget that we too are prone to the same fall.

  • As believers, we get so comfortable in our walk with the Lord or our commitment to missions and ministries that we don’t feel the need to personally submit ourselves to the Lord.

    • We become so spiritually savvy in our positions and titles or knowledge of God that we feel entitled to certain things and privileges.

    • Therefore, we end up exempting ourselves from the very standards of the word of the Lord.

  • Our dependency upon the Lord must always be primary, because the moment that the word of the Lord is not priority, we leave room for our sin nature to lead us astray.

    • And in this life, wealth is one of the many ways in which our flesh can get the best of us, because wealth in this life provides many things.

  • However, wealth cannot provide eternal security.

    • Wealth cannot provide peace which surpasses understanding.

    • Wealth cannot provide comfort that is eternal.

    • Wealth cannot bring about joy unexplainable.

    • Wealth cannot bring hope where there seems to be hopelessness.

    • Wealth cannot bring contentment and satisfaction.

    • Wealth cannot lead one into divine wisdom that leads to spiritual life.

  • Solomon, towards the end of his life came to that realization that all is vanity.

    • That you can have the entire world, the fame, the notoriety, the fortune, the likes on social media, etc.

    • But what can’t be bought is eternal life.

  • This type of life can only come about when one has come into full contact with Divine truth and wrestles with the truth itself.

    • This is why the queen of Sheba came to inquire from over 1,200 miles away. Is this King Solomon all that he purports to be?

    • To which, in her seeking and inquiring, came to the realization that he is who she has heard him to be.

  • So how much more, through one earnestly seeking the Lord and who is far from the Lord, will come to be drawn by the Lord to know How great He is!

    • This reality is made known through Jesus Christ who is full of grace and truth.

    • Only through Christ, who fulfilled the Law, can one be made righteous and move from death to life.

  • And in Christ, it is there that we find the fulness of wisdom, power, might, and strength.

    • Let’s Pray.