1 Kings 11-12

1 Kings 11:1--"King Solomon, however . . . ." However is loaded with meaning here. We have just concluded reading about the splendor and wisdom of Solomon. Now this little word "however" introduces us to Solomon's other life, a life in stark contrast to the blameless life God had called him to live. Dear Jesus, I do not know if anyone will ever write my life story, but I pray there will not be any "howevers" included. Ladies, whenever it is in within our power to choose, let's lead a life without regrets. May our lives bring glory to God.



1 Kings 11:4--"As Solomon grew old . . . ." I'm sorry, but my expectation was that Solomon would grow even wiser with age. With age comes wisdom, right? As I lay in bed last night, I asked God, "Why? Why couldn't Solomon be the perfect king? Why couldn't he have learned from his father David's mistakes?" God's reply? "No man can be perfect."

I was so disappointed in Solomon. Guess what, people will always disappoint us. "No man can be perfect." We all need a Savior. Solomon needed a Savior.

1 Kings 11:9-10--"The LORD became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the LORD's command." God had appeared to Solomon TWICE. I want to put on my judge's robe and condemn Solomon for his disobedience, but I can't because I do the exact same thing. Sure, my sin may look different than Solomon's, but at the core it is the same. When things are rocking along smoothly in my life, I get my eyes off of God, and I start listening to the advice of other people. I get distracted from worshiping the One True God. All sin comes back to selfishness and pride. Although it shows up in our lives in different forms, all of it is a slap in the face for our Savior.

To sum up the remainder of Solomon's days, God raised up three enemies: Hadad, Rezon, and Jeroboam. Solomon's 40 year reign of peace ends in disappointment.

1 Kings 12--Solomon's son Rehoboam was doomed to failure from the beginning. In Chapter 11 Ahijah had already prophesied that Jeroboam would be king of Israel instead. I want to ask the "what if" questions. What if Rehoboam had listened to the advice of the elders? What if Rehoboam had studied the history of his nation and chosen to seek advice from God? But 1 Kings 12:15 says, "this turn of events was from the LORD." While David had handed his son a successful kingdom, Solomon did not continue the tradition. In one generation the dynasty had fallen apart. Ladies, we should pray for our children and our grandchildren and our great grands and so on. We must be intentional about training our families to be followers of Jesus.

1 Kings 12:25-33--Okay, I have real issues with God's choice of Jeroboam as the leader of Israel. Why would God appoint a man who was going to lead the people to worship golden calves? I don't get it. Does anyone have any insight here?

Let's end on a positive note. Will you write and tell me what your prayer is for your family today? You can post a comment on my blog or you can send me an email. I am praying God will surround my husband and children with godly people. I pray all of their friends will encourage them to fall more in love with Jesus.

1 Kings 9-10, 2 Chronicles 7-9

Again the 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles accounts of King Solomon run parallel. We will hit a few high points today.

When the Lord appeared to Solomon, he gave him some choices. Do it God's way, and be blessed, or do it your own way and be ridiculed. "Walk before me in integrity of heart and uprightness, and I will establish your royal throne forever." (1 Kings 9:4) "But if you turn away from me, then I will cut you off, and all who pass by will be appalled." (1 Kings 9:6 & 8) Verses 8 & 9 give the Why and Because. People would ask Why the LORD had done such a thing to Israel, and people would answer Because they have forsaken the LORD their God. 2 Chronicles 7:14 is a verse I hear quoted often, "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Okay, this next comment won't be very spiritual. Did you notice what Pharoah king of Egypt gave his daughter for a wedding gift in 1 Kings 9:16? Thanks a lot, daddy.

1 Kings 10 and 2 Chronicles 9 tells the story of the queen of Sheba's visit to King Solomon. Solomon answered all her questions, and she was overwhelmed by his hospitality. She said Solomon far exceeded her expectations. And I would think it would be difficult to impress a queen. The climax of the story is when the queen of Sheba says, "How happy your men must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! Praise be to the LORD you 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." Did you catch that? Because God loved Israel, he gave them a good and wise king. Dear Jesus, please give our nation good and wise leaders. Help us to pray and seek your face. Please forgive our sin and heal our land.

The queen brought gifts to Solomon, but then he gave her even more than she had brought to him. (2 Chron. 9:12) The remainder of the chapter describes the wealth of Solomon. He was greater in riches and wisdom than all other kings, and the whole world sought audience with him to hear God's wisdom. (1 Kings 10:23-24) Of all the kings in history, Israel's King Solomon is one of the most famous of all time.

1 Kings 8, 2 Chronicles 5-7:10

This reading is quite extensive, but these two passages are almost identical. There are a number of places in these Scriptures that should cause you to break out in praise and thanksgiving to the God of Israel, who is also the God of the foreigner (you and me)!

Can you just imagine the enormous celebration Solomon and his people held? Can you hear the people shouting and the instruments playing? Can you see the children running about giggling and playing, their mothers standing in huddles smiling with pride? Can you see each father bringing the sacrificial animal for his family, so many cattle, sheep and goats that no one could count them? Can you sense the excitement? The Israelites had not participated in central, corporate worship for quite some time. Now they had a temple for Name of the One True God, Yahweh! The Israelites knew how to celebrate! Girls, we should throw a party when we worship Christ!

And then the priests carried the ark of the covenant on its poles and placed the throne of the Living God in the sanctuary. Can you imagine the awestruck faces of the people who may not have seen the ark since David had moved it? How nervous would you be if you had been assigned the task of opening the ark to verify that its contents were still there? Then what if you had to be the one to report that only the stone tablets remained? Where were the manna and Aaron's staff? (Heb. 9:4)


1 Kings 8:10-11 "When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the LORD. And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled his temple." Girls, I am on my face before God, and I hope you are too! I wanna see God's glory fill my church, my house, and my life. I want people to know I have been with God! We should not be able to go on about our routine business because God's presence is so overwhelming in our daily lives. Whew!


I hope you will allow me a little side trip to take a look at the word "glory." I am fascinated by this little word, and I have been for the past ten years or so, ever since Beth Moore touched on it in one of her Bible studies. The glory of God is the presence of God, and when you and I glorify God, we are making His presence evident to the people around us. I used to get so worried about whether or not I was bringing glory to God because I thought I had to perform perfectly for Him to receive glory in my life. That is too much pressure! Through that Bible study, I came to understand that just by being real, I could show God to others. I didn't have to put on a show; I just had to be transparent, and God would shine through me. I tell you, it was a freeing thought! Now my entire goal in life is to invite others to "Come glorify the Lord with me, let us exalt His Name together!" (Psalm 34:3) I'm so glad you accepted the invitation!

1 Kings 8:17-19--I am so thankful that God planted it in David's heart to build the temple. And I am very grateful that David's dream did not die with him. God allowed his son Solomon to bring it to fruition. Praise the LORD! Are you leaving a godly legacy for your children to pick up when you are gone? What work for God are you doing that your kids will want to take up in your absence? Please do not make the mistake of simply willing your material possessions to your descendants. Pass on your love for Jesus to those who will follow you.

1 Kings 8:27 "But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!" Amen!!

I love Solomon's boldness as he makes requests of God. Solomon knew he and the people would sin (v. 46), and he knew they would need God's mercy and grace; so he boldly asked for it. He asked God to judge between right and wrong, to hear and forgive sin, to teach them the right way to live, to forgive and act, and to deal with them as individuals. Solomon begged God to hear their plea and to uphold their cause, to forgive all their offenses, and to cause their conquerors to show them mercy. He asked God to listen to them because God had singled them out as his chosen people. Solomon also asked God to make allowances for any foreigners because he knew God's fame would spread to other lands and that people would come seeking to worship the One True God. Wow! I think he covered all the bases, don't you? Solomon ended his prayer with praise and a final request that all people may know that the LORD is God and that there is no other. (v. 60)

1 Kings 8:63--After he dedicated the temple, Solomon sacrificed 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep and goats. If they could count that many animals, then I cannot even fathom how many animals were sacrificed in verse 5!!!!!! Verse 64 says the bronze altar was too small to hold it all. I'm pretty sure our offering plates are rarely overflowing like that.

1 Kings 8:65--Fourteen days. When was the last time you went to church for a 14-day celebration? I remember when I was little Vacation Bible School lasted two weeks, and I have heard people talk about revivals lasting that long. Our attention spans fizzle out too soon in our day and time. Actually, I think that's a cop-out. Do you agree?

I will end today's post by quoting the end of Solomon's prayer that is recorded in 2 Chronicles 6:40-42. "Now, my God, may your eyes be open and your ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. Now arise, O LORD God, and come to your resting place, you and the ark of your might. May your priests, O LORD God, be clothed with salvation, may your saints rejoice in your goodness. O LORD God, do not reject your anointed one. Remember the great love promised to David your servant."