1 Chronicles 22:13
“Then you will prosper, if you take care to fulfill the statutes and judgments with which the Lord charged Moses concerning Israel. Be strong and of good courage; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
As the time of David’s departure drew near he took the time to commission his son to follow and serve the Lord. Solomon would be surrounded by things that would make his task easier but it would ultimately be his own responsibility to choose to live according to the precepts laid down in the word of God. Solomon had the gifts he received from God, the pattern and the resources his father had left behind and he was surrounded by the men who had assisted David in his walk with the Lord. Sadly, the one thing that was missing was a personal desire in Solomon to live a life that pleased the Lord. Instead his life was marked by constant and continual compromise.
There are many pitfalls that make it difficult to follow Christ. We are all constantly bombarded with temptations designed to lead us down roads that take us farther and farther from the paths of God. What we often forget is that we have also been given a roadmap in the scriptures that is designed to guide us through these difficult seasons. When we choose to take the counsel laid forth by David and give care to keep the statutes found in the pages of our Bibles we will find great success.
At the end of the day Solomon had no excuse for his constant compromise. For while the temptations may be great the word of God is greater.
Jim
When Solomon first stepped onto the throne of his father, David, he was overwhelmed by the task before him. He realized he was weak and inexperienced, and the responsibility of ruling the nation was too much for him to handle. He knew that the Lord was his only hope, and cried out to God for wisdom. This psalm is a poetic expression of an event recorded in 1Kings 3. There, we find Solomon encountering God in his dreams. Faced with the overwhelming task of leadership, God allows Solomon to request anything he wants. Solomon’s reply is essentially the same as is recorded here. He asks for wisdom to know how to lead the nation.
Most of us have heard the description of optimism verses pessimism, where we look at the glass as either half full or half empty. Reading the words of Solomon, he seems to have become a guy who believes the glass is not only empty, but is broken and shards of glass are protruding into his skin. His assessment of life is that it is empty and nothing can make it better. He has come to this conclusion by observing nature and his own personal experiences. Looking at nature, he found, no matter what happens, the sun still rises, and though the rivers run into the sea, it never overflows. His personal experience showed him that no matter how much he looks, his eyes still desire to see more. I can’t really fault Solomon. I think, looking at what is happening in the world today would bum most people out, and even create in us a rather cynical view of life.
Solomon’s expansive building projects did not come cheaply, and had a devastating effect upon the nation of Israel. The people sat under a heavy yoke of taxation. After Solomon’s death, the people had enough. They sought relief from the tax burden the government had imposed on the nation. Young King Rehoboam, in his arrogance, believed the government knew better than the people, and rather than relief, he promised an increase in the tax burden, and workload of the people. His words drove the citizens to rebel against his leadership, and resulted in ten of the twelve “states” separating from the union. The northern tribes formed a new nation, and this became their independence day. Having experienced a heavy yoke, they broke away in order to have freedom. Sadly, the northern tribes never experienced true freedom. Soon after the nation was formed, they set up a system of idolatry, leading the people into a bondage that was much worse than the taxation they had experienced. Their example speaks volumes to us about bondage and true freedom.
Solomon faced a great predicament, he desired to build a temple where God and man could meet, but he realized that all the heavens were too small to contain Him. He knew the dwelling place for God must be grand, but he also knew that no earthly building could ever truly reflect the glory of God. The temple he would build would be a mere shadow of the real glory of God, and was designed to point Israel to the Lord. For generations to come, this building would serve as a place where man worshipped God, and was the focal point of many revivals within the nation. It interests me that this glorious building was the byproduct of a multitude of people investing their many different gifts. In fact, we find thousands of men were hired for the work of quarrying stones alone. Seemingly, innumerable man hours were spent doing nothing more than working with rocks.
It is almost eerie to compare the similarities between Solomon and Saul, and Jeroboam and David. As a result of personal sin, Solomon, like Saul, had the kingdom taken from him. While Jeroboam, like David, was chosen by God, to rise to the challenge and lead a new nation. Sadly, both men failed miserably. The root cause of Solomon’s sin is explained earlier.
Building the Temple was a massive undertaking. It was to be a structure like no other. Unlike the pagan temples that were built in an attempt to reach up to the gods, this temple was built so God could reach down to man. The entirety of this structure pointed to the fact that God made a way for sinful man to have relationship with a holy God. As soon as a person approached the temple, they would smell the sacrifices, and be reminded of their need for a substitute to die in their place; removing the guilt and penalty of sin. These sacrifices provided a temporary covering, and pointed forward to Christ, who would die once, for the sins of all. Without question, this was the most important building of the ancient world.
Jim Gallagher 