1 Kings 8:22-66

Memory Verse: 9:4-5

Questions

Introduction

Outline

I. The Lord Appears to Solomon (9:1-9)

>1. After Solomon finishing his construction projects what did the Lord do? (1-2)

* 1 Kings 9:1-2 "When Solomon had finished building the temple of the LORD and the royal palace, and had achieved all he had desired to do, the LORD appeared to him a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon."

* 2 Chronicles 7:11-22 also records the Lord appearing to Solomon after the temple was dedicated.

* The books of Chronicles and Kings records the history of Israel and Judah. They differ in some areas, not that they counterdict each other. Rather their emphasis is different. This is especially true with Solomon's reign. 2 Chronicles chapter 2 is about Solomon preporations for building the temple. 1 Chronicles 3 and 4 are about Solomon building the temple. 1 Chronicles 5 is about the ark being brought into the temple. 1 Chronicles 6 records the temple dedication and Solomon's prayer. 1 Chronicles 7 also records the Lord appearing to Solomon after the temple was dedicated. 1 Chronicles 8 records Solomon's achievments. Kings do not record much in these chapters.

Though it hurts to do so God the Father disciplines his people. We think bad things are happening. God knows that these things will end in good. God does send drought, locusts infestations, and plague among his people (13). But only as a last resort.

* "the temple of the Lord" -The temple took 7 years to built, this not including the preparation work of David.

* "the royal palace" -The royal palace took 13 years to build.

* "the LORD" -LORD in English is also known in modern times to be the Hebrew YHWH pronounced "Yahweh", the proper name of the God of Israel. The NIV uses all capitals for LORD when it's Yahweh.

* "appeared to him a second time" -A visible and/or auditory manifistation of God is rare in the Bible. Having the LORD God appear twice is exremely rare.

* "as he had appeared to him at Gibeon" -1 Kings 3:1-15 and 2 Chronicles 1:1-13 record the first appearance of the Lord to Solomon. That was at the beginning of his rule.

* "Gibeon" -The tent of meeting was located in Gibeon (a mountain) from the time of Joshua until the temple was built in Jerusalem. Gibeon was a city of that dates back to before the time of Abraham.

>What did he tell him about the temple? (3)

* 1 Kings 9:3 "The LORD said to him: "I have heard the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you have built, by putting my Name there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there."

* The Lord's opening words to Solomon (3) is much shorter in Chronicles.

* "by putting my Name there forever" -This promise came with exceptions based on the Israelites heart attitude and dedication towards the LORD. The Lord's name being associated with the temple in Jerusalem did not mean that the Lord was confined to the temple as if to imprison him. Rather, people could and would refer to it as the temple of the Lord much as temples were built for idols.

* "My eyes and my heart will always be there" -The Lord promised to pay close attention to everyone who came there to worship, pray, and offer sacrifices. This does not mean that the Lord would not watch anyone outside of the temple and it's courtyards. Rather it would be a place where people would go. The Lord had told Moses about a time coming when such a place would be needed and acceptable.

* 2 Chronicles 7 includes three more verses (13-15) not found in 1 Kings 9. They record the LORD reiterating how the Lord will hear the people's prays of repentance when he punishes them for sins.

* Some Christians will have problems in accepting the words the Lord God told Solomon after the dedication in 2 Chronicles 7:13-15. The Lord God told Solomon that he causes drought, locusts infestations, and plague among his people (13). Some believe that God does not bring nor cause bad things to happen. They are correct. The fact of the matter is these things are not bad from God's perspective. Many times they are the best means in helping his people from sinning. Often they are the last resort that will turn his people from sinful habits and impulses.

A good parent who loves their children wants the best for them. They do whatever is wise and best for their children. They sacrifice themselves for their children.

Children are born with human nature; the potential to do extraordinary good and bad. Doing good is righteousness. Doing bad is sin. The truth of human nature is that we tend to sin so easily and quickly.

A good parent recognizes the power of human nature in the children they hold so dear. They know the means to help their children succeed in life by showing and giving them life tools. The tools give their beloved ones the desire to do right and the longing to resist doing wrong. Tools include boundaries, rewards, and punishment (14).

The Lord God is an excellent parent. Therefore he is a great example. God does not remove the tool of punishment from his means to lovingly help his children. He is always looking to see if a wayward child has turned from their wicked way (14).

Though it hurts to do so God the Father disciplines his people. We think bad things are happening. God knows that these things will end in good. God does send drought, locusts infestations, and plague among his people (13). But only as a last resort.

>How is Jesus' promise to us similar? (John 14:20-23)

* John 14:20-23 "On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him." Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, "But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?" Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.

* 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 "Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple."

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>2. What is integrity of heart and uprightness and what do they bring? (4-5)

* 1 Kings 9:4-5 "As for you, if you walk before me in integrity of heart and uprightness, as David your father did, and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws, I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised David your father when I said, 'You shall never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.'"

* After the Lord spoke to Solomon about choosing and consecrating the temple Solomon built so that the LORD's Name may be there forever he talked directly to Solomon. The Lord reminded Solomon about the covenant he had made with his father David (18). The Lord now made the same covenant with Solomon (17,18).

The covenant with David and Solomon was a two-sided covenant. Solomon was to walk before the Lord, do all the Lord commanded, and observe the Lord's decrees and laws (17). If Solomon did this the Lord would establish Solomon's throne.

Solomon had a choice. He could turn away and forsake the Lord's decrees and commands and serve other gods and worshiped them too (19). If he did then the Lord send the Israelites into exile and reject the temple Solomon made (20). The Lord's Name would not be diminished for everyone would know that the Israelite's disaster came because Solomon and the Lord's people failed to keep their end of the covenant (21,22).

Jesus established a new covenant with his people. The basis of the covenant of the blood of the lamb can be found in the gospels. I have accepted the covenant. The new covenant is similar to the covenant with Israel with important differences.

The new covenant is two-sided too. I am to have faith in the Lord as Abraham did. The Lord Jesus' side is to be my God through eternity. He would free me from sin, judgment, and death. He is my friend, lover, and master. When he speaks I trust and obey in faith.

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>What happens when people reject God and his promises? (6-7)

* 1 Kings 9:6-7 "But if you or your sons turn away from me and do not observe the commands and decrees I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them, then I will cut off Israel from the land I have given them and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. Israel will then become a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples."

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>What is the Lord sure to make known to the nations if his people reject him? (8-9)

* 1 Kings 9:8-9 "And though this temple is now imposing, all who pass by will be appalled and will scoff and say, 'Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?' People will answer, 'Because they have forsaken the LORD their God, who brought their fathers out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them--that is why the LORD brought all this disaster on them.'"

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>Is this true to this day? (Matt. 13:40-43, 47-50, 22:11-14, 24:48-51, 25:28-30)

* Matthew 13:40-43 "As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear."

* Matthew 13:47-50 "Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

* Matthew 22:11-14 "But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 'Friend,' he asked, 'how did you get in here without wedding clothes?' The man was speechless. Then the king told the attendants, 'Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' "For many are invited, but few are chosen."

* Matthew 24:48-51 "But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, 'My master is staying away a long time,' and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

* Matthew 25:28-30 "'Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'"

II. Solomon's Neighbors and Wife (9:10-28)

* See a wood engraving by unknown author to the right depicting Solomon leading his Egyptian wife to her newly constructed palace. Trumpets are sounding. The couple is lead by young madens carrying incense. Young madens are tending to her long gown. People are seen on roof tops in the far right as wells as the tops of soldier spears. The engraving appeared in Bibles.

>3. What did Hiram supply Solomon? (10-11)

* 1 Kings 9:10-11 "At the end of twenty years, during which Solomon built these two buildings--the temple of the LORD and the royal palace-- King Solomon gave twenty towns in Galilee to Hiram king of Tyre, because Hiram had supplied him with all the cedar and pine and gold he wanted."

* "twenty towns" -Comparisons with 1 Kings 9:10-14, 1 Kings 5:1-12 and these verses suggests that during Solomon's 20 years of building activity he became more indebted to Hiram that anticipated in their original agreement, which had provided for payment for labor and wood. From 1 Kings 9:11 and 14 it is evident that in addition to wood and labor Solomon had also acquired great quantities of gold from Hiram. It appears that Solomon gave Hiram the 20 towns in the Phoenician-Galilee border area as a surety for repayment of the gold. The Chronicler(s) indicate that at some later date when Solomon's gold reserves were increased, perhaps after the return of the expedition to Ophir (1 Kings 9:26-28, 10:11) or the visit of the queen of Sheba, he settled his debt with Hiram and recovered the 20 towns held as collateral. (NIV Study Bible)

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>What did Solomon give Hiram? (12-14)

* 1 Kings 9:12-14 "But when Hiram went from Tyre to see the towns that Solomon had given him, he was not pleased with them. "What kind of towns are these you have given me, my brother?" he asked. And he called them the Land of Cabul, a name they have to this day. Now Hiram had sent to the king 120 talents of gold."

* 2 Chronicles 8:1-6 records Solomon giving these towns to Hiram. Perhaps as part of his effort to idealize Solomon, the Chronicler does not record the fact that Hiram found these cities unacceptable payments. He mentions only that sequel to the story, the retun of the cities to Solomon and their subsequent improvement. They may also have served as a kind of collateral against the monies owed Hiram, who returned them when the debt was satisfied. The Chronicler also says nothing aout Pharoah's gift of Gezer to Solomon (1 Kings 9:16). (NIV Study Bible)

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>Was this a good thing? (Luke 6:38; Matt. 6:3-4)

* Luke 6:38 "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."

* Matthew 6:3-4 "But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."

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>4. What is slavery (conscripted) labor? (15)

* 1 Kings 9:15 "Here is the account of the forced labor King Solomon conscripted to build the LORD's temple, his own palace, the supporting terraces, the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, Megiddo and Gezer."

* "conscripted" -forced into servitude.

* 1 Chronicles 8:7-8 also records Solomon's actions to the remaining Canaanites.

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>Who were Solomon's forced labor? (20-21)

* 1 Kings 9:20-21 "All the people left from the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites (these peoples were not Israelites), that is, their descendants remaining in the land, whom the Israelites could not exterminate--these Solomon conscripted for his slave labor force, as it is to this day."

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>What did he make them do? (16-19, 24, 26-28)

* 1 Kings 9:16-19 "(Pharaoh king of Egypt had attacked and captured Gezer. He had set it on fire. He killed its Canaanite inhabitants and then gave it as a wedding gift to his daughter, Solomon's wife. And Solomon rebuilt Gezer.) He built up Lower Beth Horon, Baalath, and Tadmor in the desert, within his land, as well as all his store cities and the towns for his chariots and for his horses--whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon and throughout all the territory he ruled."

* 1 Kings 9:24 "After Pharaoh's daughter had come up from the City of David to the palace Solomon had built for her, he constructed the supporting terraces."

* 1 Kings 9:26-28 "King Solomon also built ships at Ezion Geber, which is near Elath in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea. And Hiram sent his men--sailors who knew the sea--to serve in the fleet with Solomon's men. They sailed to Ophir and brought back 420 talents of gold, which they delivered to King Solomon."

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>5. Who were the Israelites? (22-23)

* 1 Kings 9:22-23 "But Solomon did not make slaves of any of the Israelites; they were his fighting men, his government officials, his officers, his captains, and the commanders of his chariots and charioteers. They were also the chief officials in charge of Solomon's projects--550 officials supervising the men who did the work. "

* 1 Chronicles 8:9-10 also records Solomon not making slaves of the Israelites.

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>What would this eventually lead to? (1 Kings 12:12-15)

* 1 Kings 12:12-15 "Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, as the king had said, "Come back to me in three days." The king answered the people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by the elders, he followed the advice of the young men and said, "My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions." So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from the LORD, to fulfill the word the LORD had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite."

* 1 Samuel 8:11-18 "He said, "This is what the king who will reign over you will do: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. Your menservants and maidservants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, and the LORD will not answer you in that day."

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>Who was Solomon's wife? (24)

* 1 Kings 9:24 "After Pharaoh's daughter had come up from the City of David to the palace Solomon had built for her, he constructed the supporting terraces."

* 2 Chronicles 8:11-18 also mentions that Pharoah's daughter was his wife.

* Song of Songs (Solomon) and Psalm 45 were written for the engagement and marriage of Solomon and Pharoah's daughter.

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* See a wood engraving by unknown author to the right depicting the Queen of Sheba. The engraving appeared in Bibles.

>What was he sure to do? (25)

* 1 Kings 9:25 "Three times a year Solomon sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings on the altar he had built for the LORD, burning incense before the LORD along with them, and so fulfilled the temple obligations."

* 1 Kings 9:26-28 "King Solomon also built ships at Ezion Geber, which is near Elath in Edom, on the shore of the Red Sea. 27 And Hiram sent his men--sailors who knew the sea--to serve in the fleet with Solomon's men. 28 They sailed to Ophir and brought back 420 talents of gold, which they delivered to King Solomon."

* 2 Chronicles 8:12-16 also briefly mentions Solomon's offerings. The Chronicler(s) goes into greater detail.

* 2 Chronicles 8:17-18 and 9:9-12 also records the ships from Hiram. The two accounts have slight differences.

* Three subject matters are addressed; Solomon's Egyptian wife, sacrificed burnt offerings, and entrepreneurial entourage.

Men and women have many issues and matters that we believe and feel are important and so implore our attention. Some have to do with honor and pride, while others have to do with interdependence and society. While these need to be incorporated into my life the three universal human subjects that Solomon centered his attention to at the beginning of his reign are spouse and family (11), God and spiritual life (12-16), and self-sustained finance (17-18).

Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt and married his daughter shortly after he became king before he started to build the temple (1 Kings 3:1). Although the Bible does not record their son, Rehoboam succeeded Solomon as king it is understood he was. Twenty years after they married Solomon was still concerned about the well-being of his wife. However, Solomon considered one thing more important than his spouse at this time in his life, the holiness of the Lord his God (11). The solution was to build her a new palace, one adjacent to his and the temple.

Solomon's relationship to the Lord God, the spiritual well-being of his nation, and religious ceremony were also important to Solomon. Solomon followed the laws and decrees the Lord established through Moses and David (12-16).

Solomon supported himself and his family through trade with other nations. He formed a political and financial relationship with Hiram (Huram), the king of Tyre on the Phoenician coast who were maritime experts. Solomon took a risk. Yet the Lord granted him success as he had promised.

Solomon kept his priorities right during the first twenty years of his reign. Life was good and all were happy. When Solomon ignored all three of these in the second half of his reign his life, his family, and the nation slid into meaningless anxiety and anguish. He records this in his book, "Ecclesiastes" shortly before his death. His conclusion is, "Fear God and keep his commandment, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil." (Eccl. 12:13-14) Judgment is not only afterlife but during life as well. My decisions have consequences for me, my family, and my society. I need to keep my priorities wise and clear.

III. The Queen of Sheba (10:1-13)

>6. Who was the queen of Sheba and what compelled her to visit Solomon? (1-2)

* 1 Kings 10:1-2 "When the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon and his relation to the name of the LORD, she came to test him with hard questions. Arriving at Jerusalem with a very great caravan--with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones--she came to Solomon and talked with him about all that she had on her mind."

* 2 Chronicles 9 also records the queen of Sheba visiting Solomon. There is some slight differences in the two accounts.

* "the queen of Sheba"

* "the fame of Solomon"

* "his relation to the name of the LORD"

* "she came to test him with hard questions"

* "talked with him about all that she had on her mind"

* See a wood engraving by Gustave Dore (1832-1883) to the right depicting the Queen of Sheba visiting Solomon in his throne room. Dore's drawings were in Bibles that are now in public domain. This one was scanned in by creationism.org.

>How did Solomon receive her? (3)

* 1 Kings 10:3 "Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her."

* "Solomon answered all her questions"

* "nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her."

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>What did she discover? (4-5)

* 1 Kings 10:4-5 "When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the palace he had built, the food on his table, the seating of his officials, the attending servants in their robes, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he made at the temple of the LORD, she was overwhelmed."

* "saw all the wisdom of Solomon"

* "the palace he had built"

* "the food on his table"

* "the seating of his officials"

* "the attending servants in their robes"

* "the burnt offerings he made at the temple of the LORD"

* "she was overwhelmed"

* The Queen of Sheba had tough questions for Solomon to answer. She had a lot on her mind. Being queen she must have been tempted by shyness, pride, and fear to try to solve problems on her own. Yet she overcame these and set out to get answers.

The location of Sheba has several competing possibilities. Some believe it was in either south-west Arabia or modern-day Sudan on the north-east coast of Africa. Either place made the trip hard and dangerous. The Queen of Sheba exhibited grandeur by risking the trip to improve her life and country.

Seeking out advice and advancing education is good and wise. I need not shy away from asking questions. With the worse answers only being either wrong, a "NO", or an "I DON'T KNOW" and the best only being a wealth of information to improve my existence only a fool would succumb to shiness, fear, and pride. Of course some sources of information will be lies, propaganda, or misinformation.

Solomon supplied the Queen of Sheba with all the answers and information she needed (3). She was exuberant and overwhelmed (4-5). Both she and Solomon was blessed by the occasion. Jesus said of her, "The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon's wisdom, and now one greater than Solomon is here." (Matt. 12:42; Luke 11:31) Seeking out advice from a man of God could lead to eternal life.

>7. How did she describe a country lead by wisdom given by the Lord? (6-8)

* 1 Kings 10:6-8 "She said to the king, "The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard. How happy your men must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom!"

* "The report I heard in my own country"

* "I did not believe what these things"

* "How happy your..."

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>Who did she praise? (9)

* 1 Kings 10:9 "Praise be to the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the LORD's eternal love for Israel, he has made you king, to maintain justice and righteousness."

* "Praise be to the LORD your God"

* "to rule for the LORD your God"

* "the LORD's eternal love for Israel"

* "to maintain justice and righteousness"

>Why might she give a gift to Solomon? (10-12)

* 1 Kings 10:10-12 "And she gave the king 120 talents of gold, large quantities of spices, and precious stones. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon. (Hiram's ships brought gold from Ophir; and from there they brought great cargoes of almugwood and precious stones. The king used the almugwood to make supports for the temple of the LORD and for the royal palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. So much almugwood has never been imported or seen since that day.)"

* 2 Chronicles 8:17-18 and 9:9-12 also records the ships from Hiram. The two accounts have slight differences.

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* The engraving to the right is depicting the Queen of Sheba visiting Solomon.

>How did he respond in kind? (13)

* 1 Kings 10:13 "King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for, besides what he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she left and returned with her retinue to her own country."

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IV. Solomon's Riches and Wisdom (10:14-29)

>8. How did the Lord bless Solomon when he sought to obey the Lord and worship him? (14-15)

* 1 Kings 10:14-15 "The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents, not including the revenues from merchants and traders and from all the Arabian kings and the governors of the land."

* 2 Chronicles 9:13-28 is a similar passage.

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>What did Jesus have to say about this? (Matt. 6:25-34)

* Matthew 6:25-34 ""Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and a these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

* Solomon was given by the Lord great riches and splendor beyond what his father had even dreamed of when he wandered in the desert trying to keep one step ahead of Saul's spear. David longed for a glass of water from Bethlehem while his son's annual intake of gold was man's number, 666 talents (that's about 25 tons). What makes one person wealthy and another with few possessions or even no possessions and hungry?

Could it merely be a person that works hard, saves, and invests will be wealthy, healthy, and wise? This may have been true for some as it was for Solomon, but it is not a universal truth. What about children who are born in privilege, do little, and remain wealthy because their ancestors became so wealthy? This may have been true for some as it was for Solomon, but it is not a universal truth.

The truth is each person's life is different. We cannot predict what will happen next; pandemics, war, natural disasters, and health problems have depleted many a fortune in hours and minutes. While others suddenly find themselves is comfort and easy with little work of their own.

"Everyone wants more" is a universal truth. The person who says they do not want more stays that way until they desire and then acquire something new.

Two more universal truths are common to all societies in history. An abundance of opulence does not guarantee happiness and contentment. Just as counter-culture is that poverty is not merely made of those in misery and depression.

Another truth is that wealth is usually defined as someone having more than peers in their family, friends, and neighbors.

One final thought, just because I want someone else's wealth does not justify me taking from them, lusting after their possessions, and institutionalizing a distribution of others' hard-earned and/or God-given gifts to myself and others. The opposite is true. Just because I have wealth does not justify me keeping it to myself, lusting after more, and institutionalizing keeping others from earning properly in proportion to what they work for.

Jesus and the apostles did not even have a place to sleep and ate poverty grain from the fields. Solomon made silver common to the point of being worthless (20). Be grateful for either.

* The painting to the right is depicting the Queen of Sheba visiting Solomon.

>9. Review all that Solomon had and did as recorded in verses 16-19. What stands out?

* 1 Kings 10:16-29 "King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred bekas of gold went into each shield. 17 He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold, with three minas of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. 18 Then the king made a great throne inlaid with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and its back had a rounded top. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them. 20 Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom. 21 All King Solomon's goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon's days. 22 The king had a fleet of trading ships at sea along with the ships of Hiram. Once every three years it returned, carrying gold, silver and ivory, and apes and baboons. 23 King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth. 24 The whole world sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart. 25 Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift--articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules. 26 Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses, which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. 27 The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig trees in the foothills. 28 Solomon's horses were imported from Egypt and from Kue--the royal merchants purchased them from Kue. 29 They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty. They also exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and of the Arameans."

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