1 Kings 9:1 – 8 “Now when Solomon had finished building the house of the LORD and the royal palace, and had achieved all that he had desired to do, the LORD appeared to him a second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon. And the LORD said to him: “I have heard your prayer and petition before Me. I have consecrated this temple you have built by putting My Name there forever; My eyes and My heart will be there for all time. And as for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, with a heart of integrity and uprightness, doing all I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and ordinances, then I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised your father David when I said, ‘You will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.’
But if indeed you or your sons turn away from following Me and do not keep the commandments and statutes I have set before you, and if you go off to serve and worship other gods, then I will cut off Israel from the land that I have given them, and I will banish from My presence this temple I have sanctified for My Name. Then Israel will become an object of scorn and ridicule among all peoples.
And when this temple has become a heap of rubble, all who pass by it will be appalled and will hiss and say, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’ And others will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the LORD their God who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—because of this, the LORD has brought all this disaster upon them.’”
Most people would be thrilled if they heard from God directly once in a lifetime, but Solomon hears God speak to him twice. The first time, God made extravagant promises to Solomon, most of which are already coming true. But now God is issuing a stern warning, one to which Solomon will eventually pay no attention.
““I have heard your prayer and petition before Me. I have consecrated this temple you have built by putting My Name there forever; My eyes and My heart will be there for all time.” What an amazing promise! God pledges that no matter what may happen, His Name will remain on the temple forever, and His eyes and His heart will be there forever.
“And as for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, with a heart of integrity and uprightness, doing all I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and ordinances, then I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised your father David when I said, ‘You will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.’” Even though David was not a perfect man, his heart attitude toward the Lord remained that of integrity and uprightness. David did keep God’s statutes and ordinances, and God established his throne. But that throne is Solomon’s to keep or to throw away.
God will definitely keep his side of the bargain; however, now He sternly warns Solomon. “But if indeed you or your sons turn away from following Me and do not keep the commandments and statutes I have set before you, and if you go off to serve and worship other gods, then I will cut off Israel from the land that I have given them, and I will banish from My presence this temple I have sanctified for My Name. Then Israel will become an object of scorn and ridicule among all peoples.”
Solomon has already taken a wife from Egypt, and God knows that in the future, Solomon will ally himself with surrounding nations by marrying extensively. Eventually, Solomon will have a harem that includes 700 wives and 300 concubines. In addition to Pharaoh’s daughter, these women will be of Moabite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite origins. (https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/women-of-solomon-bible#:~:text=Solomon%2C%20third%20king%20of%20Israel,8%3B%2011%3A1).
Solomon does this, even though Deuteronomy 7:3 prohibits kings from marrying foreign wives and Deuteronomy 23:4 – 9 excludes Moab and Edom from the congregation of the Lord. This means that none of these wives can ever enter this gorgeous temple that Solomon has just dedicated! Now imagine what each of those women is saying to Solomon when she has the chance. “Solomon, honey, your religion doesn’t allow me to worship with you, but you refuse to worship MY religion with me! Why can’t you just bend a little and create a place where I can worship my gods?” Presumably, the lady in question is alluring (Solomon definitely had an eye for beauty!) and will then does everything she can to entice Solomon. What is notable is that the Bible mentions foreign wives but fails to mention any Israelite wives. Driven by sexual urges, it is little wonder that Solomon winds up creating altars to all kinds of pagan gods and burning sacrifices on them!
With this many wives, Solomon can’t possibly keep track of his children, nor can he raise them in the ways of the Lord. Deuteronomy 6:4 – 9 says, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”
Children generally receive much of their spiritual teaching from their mothers, and Solomon has married women who worship demons. Little wonder then, if his kids grow up serving their mothers’ gods. It is not a stretch to affirm that the same individual who has created such a magnificent place of worship for Israel is already laying the groundwork for its destruction by his refusal to obey God completely.
APPLICATION: God does not joke about spiritual things! The structure known as the Wailing Wall is the only part of Solomon’s temple that is left intact. Even today, if you go to the Temple Mount and visit the Wailing Wall, you can feel the holy atmosphere. Each year, millions of people pray at the Wailing Wall, leaving petitions written on small pieces of paper in hopes that God will honor these petitions. But, this wall with its enormous stones is the only remnant of Solomon’s temple. Why is this?
“And when this temple has become a heap of rubble, all who pass by it will be appalled and will hiss and say, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’ And others will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the LORD their God who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—because of this, the LORD has brought all this disaster upon them.’”
Solomon’s temple was magnificent and God put His Name and His Presence there. But one of the many lessons we must learn from Solomon is that works without faith are worthless. God has no step children. The fact that our parents have served God faithfully can only serve as a guide. Each of us must choose to serve God for ourselves. Solomon began well; however, he was actually coasting on the coattails of his father’s faith. Rather than copying David’s devotion to God, Solomon copied the weakest parts of David’s character. Having created an incredible place of worship, Solomon may have thought that was enough and that now he was spiritually set for the rest of his life, but he was wrong.
The walk of faith is a daily one in which we repeatedly choose to serve the Lord. One of our close friends used to pray, “Lord, help me to love You more today than I did yesterday. Help my love and service for You continue to increase each day.” To the end of our dear friend’s life, this was her constant prayer. Those who knew her could testify that indeed, her prayer was answered. May this simple prayer be ours as well!
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, please help us to love You more each day than we did the day before. And may our love for You be evident in every part of our lives. In the matchless Name of King Jesus. Amen.
Hundreds of years ago, St. Richard of Chichester wrote this prayer that was later turned into a worship song.
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