In my last article I wrote about the rather unusual life of Solomon, who succeeded his father David and became the third king of Israel.
The biographies in the Bible are amazing. Unlike others, who would only record their rulers’ successes and virtues, erasing their failures and defeats, the Bible gives a true picture of people. It has been said that under Solomon’s rule Israel reached its peak. God’s promise to give Solomon wisdom, and bless his reign with success and prosperity, depended on Solomon’s moral and ethical integrity, and his faithfulness to God.
Success, popularity, and prosperity, however, seem too much for most people to attain. There are only a few in the Bible – including Abraham, Joseph, and Job – who remained humble while prosperous. Riches, position, and success were the downfall of many others.
We see this demonstrated in people’s lives, in the history of nations and empires, and can observe the effects of prosperity in some nations today.
One thing that always puzzled me is why Solomon failed so badly in his relationships.
The Bible gives a beautiful picture of his first love in the poetic book Song of Solomon. When the beautiful queen of Sheba of Ethiopia heard of Solomon’s wisdom, righteous rule, and fame she decided to visit. She lavished Solomon with admiration, and the spent much “quality time” together. Men seem to give in to flattery, especially when it comes from an attractive source. Ethiopian historical sources claim that the Queen became pregnant with Solomon’s child, but returned to her home country and brought Hebrew faith to her people.
If this historical interpretation is true, it seems that David’s weakness for beautiful women got passed to his son. The Bible gives an unflattering picture of Solomon, who gave in to the temptation of polygamy, which was the custom in neighbouring nations. He eventually had 700 wives and 300 concubines from nations whose moral and religious customs ran contrary to those given by God to the Hebrews! We find this sad record in 1 Kings 11:1–9.
With his affections spread so widely, Solomon’s principles weakened, and compromise and decadence followed. His spiritual falling away included tolerating, and then participating in, the worship of pagan gods; worship which included orgies of the most degrading nature combined with alcohol and the offering of human sacrifices. One wonders if some of these sacrifices might have been some of the children Solomon’s wives bore him.
I often hear people critical of the Bible directing their ire at its “religion” as outdated, irrelevant, superstitious, and offensive. “We are educated and enlightened people, aren’t we? We do not need God, we don’t need anyone telling us how to live, and we don’t worship pagan gods.”
No, we don’t. Yet as we look at the moral fibre of our prosperous society gradually disintegrating, we wonder “Where are we going?” Some Christians can be very critical of some Bible characters, or of some of their neighbours’ lifestyles. The fact is that none of us are safe from falling into the same traps as David or Solomon.
Paul the apostle warned of this self-assured attitude in 1 Corinthians 10:11.12: “These things happened to them as a warning to us. All this was written in the Scriptures to teach us who live in these last days. Even if you think you can stand up to temptation, be careful not to fall.”
Karel Samek is pastor of the Ashcroft 7th Day Adventist Church
