1 Kings, Proverbs
Solomon was King David’s son, and after David’s death, Solomon became the king of Israel. Solomon is famous for being one of the wisest and most wealthy kings in world history. When Solomon took the throne after David’s death, God appeared to him in a dream and asked him what he wanted. Solomon told God that he wanted wisdom so he could govern Israel fairly.
God was very pleased with Solomon’s response, and he granted him this wisdom. And because he asked for wisdom instead of fame or riches, God also gave him these as well. Solomon was extremely blessed during his lifetime as king. Solomon became so famous that people from all around the world would come to his palace to sit under his teaching or to just see the man for themselves.
Solomon wrote much of the book of Proverbs from his God-given wisdom as well as the book Song of Songs. Solomon is also known for building the great Temple. The temple took seven years to build and was worth over half a billion dollars in today's money. This temple stood for around 500 years until it was eventually destroyed by the Babylonians.
Unlike his father David’s reign, Solomon’s reign was mostly peaceful. Israel was not involved in a lot of fighting during this time partly due to the peace treaties that Solomon would make with other nations. Many times to seal the treaties, Solomon would take a woman from the other nation and make her his wife. Solomon had about 700 wives.
This seems very strange today, but back in Solomon’s day, many other kings from other nations did similar things. While this helped to create peace for Solomon and the nation of Israel, it eventually led to his downfall. As Solomon got older, his wives influenced him, and he began to worship other gods. This would eventually lead Israel into a downward spiral toward false idol worship.
For centuries Israel would go back and forth between serving God and sinning against God. Eventually, their worship became so muddied that even the people who thought they were worshipping God were doing it in vain. That is until Jesus came on the scene. Jesus reshaped the way people thought about God. Jesus showed them that God wasn’t found through the law but through faith, and anyone who put their trust in Jesus, who is God, would have eternal life.
Key Takeaways:
Seek God
Wisdom > Money
Stay Faithful
Parents, 3treesKIDS will be learning more about Solomon, both in-person and online, this week. Be sure to check out their lesson at www.3trees.com/kids.
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