The Golden Age of Israel

Introduction

The binding force that had united the tribes of Israel into a nation was the Mosaic covenant and the theocratic reign of their God, Jehovah.  The nation’s apostasy had resulted in much disunity, and the nation suffered from a lack of leadership.  By the year 1080 BC, the house of Eli, the high priest and the judge at Shiloh, had become consumed with immorality.  God pronounced impending judgment upon the family of Eli because he allowed his two sons, who served as priests, to bring prostitution to the door of the Tabernacle.  They also disregarded God’s prescribed procedures for the offering of sacrifices.

The Ark of the Covenant symbolized the presence of God, and the priests took it into battle to ensure victory.  However, by 1100 BC, they placed their faith in the actual box containing the Ark of the Covenant rather than God’s divine guidance.  At about 1080 BC, in a battle with the Philistines of Aphek, which is located a short distance from the modern city of Tel Aviv, the sons of Eli were killed, and the Ark of the Covenant was captured.   When the news reached Eli, he fell over backward, broke his neck, and died.  Archaeology has confirmed that Shiloh was destroyed at about the same time.  Thus, God’s judgment came not only on the house of Eli but also upon the entire city of Shiloh.

During this dark period of history, God was preparing a young boy named Samuel, who was of the tribe of Levi, to become Israel’s new spiritual leader.  He would become the last judge for Israel, and God would use him to transform the reign of the nation from a theocracy to a monarchy.  

Under a strong monarchy, a small struggling nation soon became a world power.  The prophets’ influence and a central place of worship brought religious revival and renewed faithfulness.  During the reign of King David, Israel rose to a world power with much glory.  David ruled with justice and righteousness and became a symbol of the type of reign that David’s son, Jesus, the Messiah, would one day bring to the earth.

For a short time, God’s chosen people experienced many of the blessings which were promised to Abraham.  However, faithfulness to God was short-lived, and the kingdom was quickly divided.  Sin and rebellion eventually brought the nation into Gentile captivity.

A New Spiritual Leader

Samuel was trained to become a priest while living in the house of Eli. God’s spotlight was put upon Samuel when he was chosen to pronounce judgment upon the house of Eli.

“For I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knows, because his sons made themselves vile, and he did not restrain them. And therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Elis house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever” (1 Sam. 3:13-14).

“So Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel had been established as a prophet of the Lord” (1 Sam. 3:19-20).

After the death of Eli, Samuel moved his headquarters to Ramah, located about six miles north of Jerusalem, and served as acting priest, as the last judge, and as the first of a new order of prophets.

Samuel became the first of an order of prophets who would become the recognized spiritual leaders and spokesmen for God for the next 300 years. Whereas the priest represented the people before God, the prophet represented God before the people. It appears that Samuel may have been the founder of a school for prophets (1 Sam. 19:20), (2 Kings 3, 5) and (2 Kings 4:38). The first prophets were called “Oral” prophets and were distinguished from the “Literary” prophets who would later write the books of prophecy. Moses was the first prophet. However, the best-known “Oral” prophets were Samuel, Nathan, Ahijah, Elijah, and Elisha.

Motivated by a divine plague, the Philistines returned the Ark and took it to Kiriath-Jearim, about five miles northwest of Jerusalem. After several years, the spiritual leadership of Samuel brought true repentance and revival to the nation.

“So the children of Israel put away the Baals and the Ashtoreths, and served the Lord only. And Samuel said, Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray to the Lord for you. So they gathered together at Mizpah, drew water, and poured it out before the Lord. And they fasted that day, and said there, We have sinned against the Lord. And Samuel judged the children of Israel at Mizpah” (I Sam. 7:4-6).

“And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. He went from year to year on a circuit to Bethel, Gilgal, and Mizpah, and judged Israel in all those places. But he always returned to Ramah, for his home was there. There he judged Israel, and there he built an altar to the Lord” (I Sam. 7:15-17).

A Monarchy

When Samuel grew old, he turned the administrative duties of judgeship over to his two sons.  Like the sons of Eli, Samuel’s sons soon proved corrupt and unfaithful.  

“Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, and said to him, Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations” (I Sam 8:4-5).

The nation Israel suffered from a lack of a robust and unified government.

 The theocratic reign was unsuccessful because the people were not obedient.  We are reminded that the last verse of Judges states, “everyone did what was right in his own eyes.“

There was a pressing need for this nation to be unified.  The elders of Israel believed they suffered from weak leadership because they did not have a king like other nations.  Now, they have urgently requested Samuel to appoint one.

“But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, Give us a king to judge us. So Samuel prayed to the Lord.  And the Lord said to Samuel, Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them” (I Sam. 8:6-7).

According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt, even to this day with which they have forsaken Me and served other gods so they are doing to you also. Now therefore, heed their voice. However, you shall solemnly forewarn them, and show them the behavior of the king who will reign over them” (I Sam. 8:8-9).

Then Samuel explained to the people the nature of a king. A king may exercise control by forcing military service and labor, levying heavy taxes, and restricting personal liberties.

“And you will cry out in that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, and the Lord will not hear you in that day” (I Sam. 8:18).

“Nevertheless, the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel, and they said, No, but we will have a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles. And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he repeated them in the hearing of the Lord. So the Lord said to Samuel, Heed their voice, and make them a king”‘ (I Sam. 8:19-22b).

In God’s foreknowledge, He knew that the day would come when Israel would demand a king like those who ruled the Gentile nations.  Although this was not His directive will, it did become His permissive will.  God, in his infinite wisdom, knowing that they would ask for a king, gave these instructions to Moses there on the Plain of Moab. This was a part of the unfolding of God’s plan for Israel.”  

In the seventeenth chapter of Deuteronomy, we read those instructions. “When you come to the land which the Lord your God is giving you, and possess it and dwell in it, and say, I will set a king over me like all the nations that are around me, you shall surely set a king over you whom the Lord your God chooses; one from among your brethren you shall set as king over you; you may not set a foreigner over you, who is not your brother”‘ (Deut. 17:14-15).

“But he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, for the Lord has said to you, ‘You shall not return that way again.’ Neither shall he multiply wives for himself, lest his heart turn away; nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold for himself” (Deut. 17:16-17).

“Also it shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book, from the one before the priests, the Levites.  And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes, that his heart may not be lifted above his brethren, that he may not turn aside from the commandment to the right hand or to the left, and that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his children in the midst of Israel” (Deut.17:18-20).

Since God retained the right to appoint a king of His own choice, it was very clear that the king’s new office did not preempt God’s sovereign reign and absolute authority.  He also has the authority to remove a king from office when he proves unfaithful.  Primarily, the king’s responsibilities were related to administration and military activities; however, he was also held responsible for the spiritual health of his people.  For the most part, God would speak to the kings through His prophets, who served as advisors and moral consciousness.  It is evident from the verses in Deuteronomy that the king was not to use his office for great personal material gains.

Acting upon divine instructions, Samuel anointed a young man named Saul of the tribe of Benjamin as the first king of Israel.  Saul was a great military leader, and the nation united and rallied behind him.

“So Saul established his sovereignty over Israel, and fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, against the people of Ammon, against Edom, against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines. Wherever he turned, he harassed them.  And he gathered an army and attacked the Amalekites, and delivered Israel from the hands of those who plundered them” (I Sam. 14:47-48).

Because of Saul’s military success and fame, he became proud and began to preempt the authority of God.  After Saul refused to obey a direct order to destroy the Amalekites, God rejected him as king and sent Samuel to inform him.  Thus, Samuel rebuked Saul and told him of God’s decision.  

“The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you” (I Sam. 15:28b).

A chosen Family

“Now the Lord said to Samuel, ‘How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I am sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemite. For I have provided Myself a king among his sons'” (1 Sam. 16:1).

The sixteenth chapter of First Samuel is one of the great landmark chapters of the Bible. With these instructions to Samuel, God has moved to a new phase in his plan to redeem mankind. Now out of his chosen nation, God chooses a family who will become the channel through whom the promised “Seed of Woman” and “Lamb of God” will come.

In the city of Bethlehem, in the house of Jesse, a young shepherd boy named David was chosen by God to be the next king of Israel.

“Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward. And Samuel arose and went to Ramah. Now the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord terrorized him” (1 Sam. 16:13-14).

Let us note how the Holy Spirit only indwelled Israel’s prophets and national leaders, entering when anointed for service and departing when rejected by God.

We should not miss another interesting point. David, of the tribe of Judah, has been anointed and recognized as king of Israel by God, yet the nation of Israel continued to recognize Saul as their king. What a parallel we can draw with Jesus, the son of David, who came as the king of Israel, yet His people did not recognize him. We will see as we go along that David is a type of Christ.

God has a marvelous way of moving His chosen people to places they need to be. David had a great talent for playing the harp and was known for his gift among Saul’s servants. Shortly after David’s anointing, he found himself in Saul’s palace, playing his harp to soothe Saul’s troubled, evil spirit. Saul’s mental condition continued to deteriorate as the years passed.

A few years later, God put the spotlight on David. Saul’s army was fighting the Philistines in the Valley of Elah, a short distance west of Bethlehem, when they encountered a giant named Goliath. After each soldier refused to fight him, David took a sling and some stones and slew the giant.

Almost immediately, David became a national hero. As David’s fame increased, Saul became jealous and turned against him.

Fleeing for his life, David moved into the Judean wilderness, where he organized an army of about four hundred guerrillas. Saul declared David and his band of rebels and outlaws. He spent the remainder of his life trying to capture them. Details are provided to us in chapters twenty-one through twenty-seven of First Samuel. A careful study of these verses provides much insight into the character of David and the mental condition of Saul.

While fighting the Philistines (1 Sam. Chap. 28-31), Saul was killed at Mount Gilboa at the junction of the Jezreel and Jordan Valleys. After Saul’s death, the kingdom was divided. David was made king of Judah and ruled from his capital, Hebron.

“Saul’s army rallied around Saul’s son, Ishbosheth, and anointed him king of Israel. There was a civil war between the army of David and the army of Saul; the house of David grew steadily stronger, while the house of Saul grew continually weaker” (2 Sam. 3:1).

David ruled over the tribe of Judah from Hebron for seven years and six months.

“Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and spoke, saying, ‘Indeed we are your bone and your flesh. Also, in time past, when Saul was king over us, you were the one who led Israel out and brought them in; and the LORD said to you, ‘You shall shepherd My people Israel, and be ruler over Israel.’’ Therefore all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the LORD. And they anointed David king over Israel.” (2 Sam. 5:1-3).

“David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned forty years. At Hebron, he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah” (2 Sam. 5:4-5).

Under the reign of David, from about 1020 BC to 980 BC, the nation was united spiritually, conquered the remaining enemies, expanded its borders, and reaped the blessings their Lord had promised. The time of David’s reign is recognized as Israel’s golden age. David is considered Israel’s greatest king, and Scripture recognizes him as a prophet (2 Sam. 23:2), a psalmist (2 Sam. 23:1), a military hero (1 Sam. 18:6-7), and a man after God’s own heart 1 Sam. 13.14).

Perhaps it is in the Psalms where we see the real character of David portrayed along with his love for his God. Throughout the Psalms, of which he was the principal writer, we can see directly into his heart. He is recognized in the New Testament as a man of faith on the level of Abraham. Historical details of David’s reign are given in Second Samuel, chapters five through twenty-four, and First Chronicles, chapters ten through twenty-nine.

After becoming king of both Judah and Israel, David’s first business order was to move his headquarters from Hebron to Jerusalem. At that time, the Jebusites controlled the fortified city. David and his army entered through a water shaft and maneuvered behind the walls. Within a short time, the Jebusites were defeated. Thus, Jerusalem became God’s religious capital of the world. After nearly 3,000 years, it is considered a most Holy City.

David built his palace between two valleys on an eleven-acre site on the lower slopes of Mount Moriah. Years later, his son, Solomon, built the temple on a hill above the palace on the grounds where Abraham had brought his son, Isaac, to be sacrificed to God.

David’s desire and hope was to build a permanent house for God. He brought the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem and placed it in a tent.

“The king said to Nathan the Prophet, ‘See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells within tent curtains. Nathan said to the king, ‘Go do all that is in your mind, for the Lord is with you. But it came about in the same night that the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying” (2 Sam. 7:2-4b).

What the Lord said to Nathan, who had replaced Samuel, is one of the most striking revelations in all Scripture. The seventh chapter of Second Samuel reveals this revelation and has become another landmark chapter in the Bible.

Let us continue. “I will give you rest from all your enemies. The Lord also declares to you that the Lord will make a house for you. When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he commits iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men, but My loving kindness shall not depart from him, as I took it away from Saul whom I removed from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever” (2 Sam. 7:11b-16).

David has requested permission to build a house for his Lord, and God responds by entering into an unconditional covenant with David. God will give David an eternal lineage, a dynasty that will reign forever. The unconditional covenant God made will be fulfilled through this lineage of David.

There are two time periods and two visions with these words of promise. Without a doubt, the promises pertain to Solomon and his sons, who will succeed him.

However, there is a prophetic vision of God’s plan not only for the redemption of mankind but for the reign of heaven over all the earth. The lineage of David will culminate in the reign of One Eternal King, who will be called the Messiah, the Anointed One. Since space does not allow us to examine this aspect of the promise in this chapter, we will fully develop the subject in our study of prophecy.

How much did David understand at this time? We don’t know, but the Psalms make it very clear to us that during his lifetime, he came to a complete understanding of God’s plan for His Son, the redemption of mankind, and the eternal reign of a king on the throne of David.

Many of the Psalms, such as (Psalms 2, 97, and 8), (Psalms 45 and 110), (Psalms 118, 41, and 69) and (Psalms 22 and 16) clearly express a veiled foreshadowing of the Messiah.

David wrote several of these in the first person, and Peter, in his sermon at Pentecost, confirmed that David was speaking of the Messiah to come (Acts 2:25-36). Also, in (Matthew 22:43-44), Jesus told the Pharisees that David called Him Lord, thus confirming that David knew Him.

Building the temple would have to wait until the monarchy was secure and stable. David was directed to complete the job that Joshua had failed to finish by driving the pagan Gentile nations out of the Promised Land.

Fighting a Holy War led by divine guidance and power, David first conquered the enemy west of the Jordan. Crossing the Jordan, he quickly conquered his hostile neighbors from the Tigris/Euphrates Valley to the southern border of Edom. Within a few years, he had transformed this little, insignificant nation into perhaps the most potent single kingdom on earth. He then controlled or influenced all the territory in Syria, Palestine, Israel, and Jordan.

It would be nice to say that David was perfect and never sinned, but this was not the case. He was weak in the flesh, just as you and I.

One day, David was on the flat roof of his house when he saw a beautiful woman bathing nearby on a rooftop. He had his servants bring her to his quarters, and there he committed adultery with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah.

Soon thereafter, she was found with a child, and to cover up his sins, David brought Uriah home from the battlefield for a visit with his wife. However, Uriah refused to go home to his wife because his fellow fighting men did not have that privilege. Because of David’s outrage, upon Uriah’s return to the battlefield, he gave instructions for him to be placed in a position where he would be killed.

God quickly confronted David with his sins, and the full impact of his sinful deeds broke his heart. He became remorseful and cried out to God for forgiveness, and God forgave him. David’s prayer of penitence, as recorded in the fifty-first chapter of Psalm, reflects David’s deep sorrow for having committed these sins of passion. God forgave David, but he also chastised him.

“Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife” (2 Sam. 12:10).

David suffered strife and trouble within his household for the rest of his life. His eldest son, Absalom, rebelled against his father, tried to seize the throne, and brought the nation to the brink of civil war. In the struggle that followed, Absalom was killed, and David’s heart was again broken. We are given details of David’s troubles in Second Samuel, Chapters eleven through twenty-one.

Late in his reign, David makes another mistake. In the Twenty-first chapter of I Chronicles, we read these words: “Then Satan stood up against Israel and moved David to number Israel” (1 Chr. 21:1).

David preempted the authority of God by taking a national census, which God had not ordered. The census symbolizes David’s pride regarding the greatness and strength of his kingdom.

David took his eyes off of God and put them on the strength of men.

“God was displeased with this thing, so He struck Israel. And David said to God, ‘I have sinned greatly, in that I have done this thing. But now, please take away the iniquity of Thy servant, for I have done very foolishly ” (1 Chr. 21:7-8).

God gave David three choices for his punishment: “Take for yourself either three years of famine, or three months to be swept away before your foes, while the sword of your enemies overtakes you, or else three days of the sword of the Lord” (1 Chr. 21:12b).

Hoping for a lighter sentence, David placed himself at the mercy of God.

“So the Lord sent a pestilence on Israel; 70,000 men of Israel fell. And God sent an angel to Jerusalem to destroy it; but as he was about to destroy it, the Lord saw and was sorry over the calamity, and said to the destroying angel, ‘It is enough; now relax your hand.’ And the angel of the Lord was standing by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. Then David lifted up his eyes and saw the angel of the Lord standing between earth and heaven, with his drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem” (1 Chr. 21:14-15).

“Then David and the elders, covered with sackcloth, fell on their faces. And David said to God, ‘Is it not I who commanded to count the people? Indeed, I am the one who has sinned and done very wickedly, but these sheep, what have they done? 0 Lord my God, please let Thy hand be against me and my father’s household, but not against Thy people that they should be plagued”‘ (1 Chr. 21:16-17).

“Therefore, the angel of the LORD commanded Gad [the prophet] to say to David that David should go and erect an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.” (1 Chr. 21:18).

Remember that “The Angel of the Lord” has probably been identified as the pre-incarnated Christ. If so, David is standing face to face with the one who will later become his flesh and blood. The same Jesus would later weep over the pending destruction of Jerusalem. Now, “The Angel of the Lord” instructs David to go up to the next level of Mount Moriah, and there, on the threshing floor, he is to build an altar and offer sacrifices.

David purchased the land from Ornan, the Jebusite, and there, on the site where Abraham brought Isaac, David prepared the altar and offering.

“And he called to the Lord and He answered him with fire from heaven on the altar of burnt offering. And the Lord commanded the angel, and he put his sword back in its sheath” (1 Chr. 21:26b-27).

“The Angel of the Lord” marked the place in Jerusalem where sacrifices were to be made, and God confirmed it with fire from heaven. The House of God will be built on this site.

House of Cedar

“Then David said, ‘This is the house of the Lord God, and this is the altar of burnt offering for Israel.’ So David commanded to gather the aliens who were in the land of Israel; and he appointed masons to cut hewn stones to build the house of God. And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails of the doors of the gates and for the joints, and bronze in abundance beyond measure, and cedar trees in abundance; for the Sidonians and those from Tyre brought much cedar wood to David” (1 Chr. 22:1-4).

“Now David said, ‘Solomon my son is young and inexperienced, and the house to be built for the Lord must be exceedingly magnificent, famous and glorious throughout all countries. I will now make preparation for it.” So David made abundant preparations before his death” (1 Chr. 22:1-5).

God did not permit David to build the temple, but He did allow David to do the planning. It appears that David had most of the materials assembled before his death. In (First Chronicles 22:6-19), David shows Solomon the plan and materials and charges him with the responsibility of assembling God’s house of Cedar.

Next, David organized the Levites and priests for service in the new temple. Of the 38,000 Levites, 24,000 were to oversee the work of the temple, 4000 were to be gatekeepers, 4000 were to be members of a large choir singing praises to God, and the remaining 6000 would serve as officers and judges (1 Chr. Chap. 23).

The priests were divided into twenty-four groups for service in the sanctuary and for the offering of sacrifices. Each group served two weeks per year they were divided by lot to determine the order of service(1 Chr. Chap. 24).

David called the leaders of Israel together and assigned them their religious responsibilities. He presented Solomon, the son of Bathsheba, as God’s choice for his successor, the next king of Israel.

After that, we are told: “so he died in a good old age, full of days and riches and honor; and Solomon his son reigned in his place” (1 Chr. 29:28).

So Solomon built a magnificent temple of God using slave labor and patterning it after the wilderness tabernacle. Constructed of stone, cedar, gold, silver, and other precious materials. According to today’s currency value, the worth of the completed building was in the billions of dollars.

The Ark of the Covenant, the holy utensils from the Tabernacle, and some new furniture were moved into the new building, and then the people prepared for a dedication service (2 Chr. Chaps. 2-6).

The priest prepared an offering on the great altar, just as had been done when the wilderness tabernacle had been completed, and prayed the prayer of dedication.

“When Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord had filled the Lord’s house. When all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of the Lord on the temple, they bowed their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and praised the Lord, saying: “for He is good, for His mercy endures forever” (2 Chr. 7:1-3).

“Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord and the kings house; and Solomon successfully accomplished all that came into his heart to make in the house of the Lord and in his own house” (2 Chr. 7:11).

“Then the Lord appeared to Solomon by night, and said to him: I have heard your prayer, and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice. When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, 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 I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chr. 7:12-14).

“Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to prayer made in this place. For now I have chosen and sanctified this house, that My name may be there forever; and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually” (2 Chr. 7:15-16).

“As for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, and do according to all that I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and My judgments, then I will establish the throne of your kingdom, as I covenanted with David your father, saying, You shall not fail to have a man as ruler in Israel 2 Chr. 7:17-18).

“But if you turn away and forsake My statutes and My commandments which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods, and worship them, then I will uproot them from My land which I have given them; and this house which I have sanctified for My name I will cast out of My sight, and will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples” (2 Chr. 7:19-20).

Wisdom of Solomon

The phrase “Solomon in all his glory” has rung from generation to generation through the ages. He is considered the most splendid prince to ever rule over Israel. In a short time, Solomon built Israel’s small, poor, yet politically powerful state into the most advanced culture of its age and an international center of great wealth. The small nation held the respect and envy of world leaders. Why was Solomon so great in the eyes of men? To answer this question, I must back up to the events shortly after Solomon was anointed king.

“At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, ‘Ask! What shall I give you.’ And Solomon said: ‘You have shown great mercy to Your servant David my father, because he walked before You in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. Now, O Lord my God, You have made Your servant king instead of my father David, but I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. And Your servant is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too numerous to be numbered or counted. Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours’” (1 Kings 3:5-9)?

“The speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing. Then God said to him: ‘Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked long life for yourself, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have asked the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern justice, behold, I have done according to your words; see, I have given you a wise and understanding heart, so that there has not been anyone like you before you, nor shall any like you arise after you. And I have also given you what you have not asked: both riches and honor, so that there shall not be anyone like you among the kings all your days. So if you walk in My ways, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days’” (1 Kings 3:10-14).

So, the key to Solomon’s success and greatness was his humility and unselfishness, as reflected in his youth. God honored his promise, and soon, the fame of Solomon’s wisdom spread throughout the land of Israel and the world.

“And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had rendered; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to administer justice” (1 Kings 3:28).

“And God gave Solomon wisdom and exceedingly great understanding, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore. Thus Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the men of the East and all the wisdom of Egypt” (1 Kings 4:29-30).

“And men of all nations, from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom, came to hear the wisdom of Solomon” (1 Kings 4:34).

Perhaps a few verses from the book of Proverbs, which, according to tradition, Solomon wrote in his youth, would enlighten us on Solomon’s wisdom.

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction.” “For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding.” “Happy is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding.” “The way of the wicked is like darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble.” “The wise shall inherit glory, but shame shall be the legacy of fools.” “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths” (Prov. 1:7, 2:6, 3:13, 4:19, 3:35, 3:5-6, NASB 1995).
Perhaps the golden text of wisdom is Proverbs 23:7a: “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.”

Herein is the driving force that selects our paths and determines the quality of life we experience. Modern writers have developed the philosophy of “The Power of Positive Thinking” on this basic principle of life.
Negative thinking also has power, and when we reach the twilight of our lives, we find we have become the product of our thought processes. The quality of our lives in the sunset years is determined by how we have let God direct our thought processes both in the present and in years gone by.

After we review Solomon’s reign, we will examine the quality of life he experienced in his senior years.
Whereas David was a great military and political leader, his son Solomon was a great builder and administrator. Early in his reign, Solomon entered into a trade alliance with Hiram, the Phoenician King of Tyre, who was a friend of David’s. Hiram agreed to furnish Solomon with architects, masons, carpenters, and building materials of cedar, cypress wood, and gold. In exchange, Solomon agreed to provide Hiram with an annual supply of wheat, barley, wine, and olive oil (1 Kings 5:1-12, 2 Chr 2:1-18).

Within twenty years, using forced labor and with the help of Hiram’s skilled craftsman, Solomon enlarged the city of Jerusalem from about eleven to thirty-two acres. He transformed it into one of the most magnificent cities on earth.

The expansion of Mount Moriah took place on the second level, on the land purchased by David from Ornan, the Jebusite. There, he built the temple, palace, and other official buildings on a plot of land covering about 750 feet by 1500 feet.

These buildings became the most splendid buildings on earth using stone, cedar, and gold. The city was ablaze with glory as the sun rose from the east, and the early morning rays reflected off the golden buildings.

Building upon the bases of destroyed cities, Solomon used forced labor to build fortified military bases to guard the heartland of his kingdom.

The most famous of these cities have been excavated at Hazor in the Hula Valley, Megiddo in the Jezreel Valley, and Gezer on the coastal plain near the modern city of Tel Aviv. Using horses and chariots, the same weapons of warfare used against Israel by the Philistines and Canaanites during the days of the judges, Solomon and his army controlled the valleys and trade routes throughout the land.
At the height of his reign, he had a war machine with a striking force of 1400 chariots and 12000 horsemen.

His close alliance with Hiram, King of Tyre, led to a joint commercial venture in the maritime trade. Soon, Solomon controlled a fleet of merchant ships based at Ezion Geber in the Gulf of Aqaba. From Ezion Geber, he sent his ships down the Red Sea between Arabia and Egypt to the eastern coast of Africa.
Almost overnight, he controlled not only trade within Palestine but also the spice trade between Arabia and Africa. Tribute and trade greatly added to Israel’s wealth, and many of the Israelites became rich.
We cannot comprehend and appreciate Solomon’s tremendous wealth accumulated during these golden years. Not only did he receive much from his lucrative trade arrangements, but many who came to hear and marvel at his great wisdom brought gifts of great value.

“So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. Now all the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. Each man brought his present: articles of silver and gold, garments, armor, spices, horses, and mules, at a set rate year by year” (1 Kings 10:23-25).

The tenth chapter of First Kings and the ninth chapter of Second Chronicles summarize Solomon’s great splendor and wealth. Here are a few selected verses which shed light on his wealth. “Now the weight of gold which came in to Solomon in one year was 666 talents of gold” (1 Kings 10:14).

Translated into pounds, 666 talents were about 50,000 pounds. The weight of gold that came to Solomon yearly was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold and was worth about 26 million dollars in Solomon’s time.

“All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Not one was silver, for this was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon” (I Kings 10:21).

“The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and he made cedar trees as abundant as the sycamores which are in the lowland” (1 Kings 10:27).

Solomon’s Sins

But in all of Solomon’s fame, luxury, and material comfort, there is a dark cloud on the horizon.

As the years went by, Solomon’s youth humility turned to self-sufficiency, and he forgot the source of his wisdom. After he turned his eyes off God, he preempted God’s absolute authority. Solomon’s problems were caused by the peace agreements he entered into with neighboring Gentile kings.

As a token of good faith, Solomon brought foreign women into the palace as wives, and they, therefore, directly influenced the rule of Israel. This was the very influence God had said from the beginning that must be removed from the land. Otherwise, Israel would not remain pure and faithful. Solomon’s bad judgment would soon destroy his kingdom.

“But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites— from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, ‘You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.’ Solomon clung to these in love. And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart” (1 Kings 11:1-3).

Let us not forget that there is a spiritual war going on between God and Satan. The enemy has placed his warriors in key positions of influence within Solomon’s household. A primary function of these wives was to bear children for Solomon – one destined to sit on the throne.

“For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God, as was the heart of his father David. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and did not fully follow the LORD, as did his father David. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon. And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods” (1 Kings 11:4-8).

Let us make sure we have the complete picture. Sitting on the Mount of Moriah is the beautiful temple of God, and across the valley, on the Mount of Olives, Solomon builds idols of pagan gods.

Simultaneously, the priests are offering animal sacrifices to God on the temple altar, and Solomon’s wives are on the Mount of Olives burning their own children as sacrifices to Molech, the god of Ammon. In Leviticus 20:1-8, God specifically warned the children of Israel not to have anything to do with Molech and human sacrifices. Now, the wives of the king of Israel are offering sacrifices to this false god.
What a manifestation of the depraved nature of man!

“So the LORD became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the LORD God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not keep what the LORD had commanded. Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, ‘Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant. Nevertheless I will not do it in your days, for the sake of your father David; I will tear it out of the hand of your son. However I will not tear away the whole kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen” (1 Kings 11:9-13).

God began to raise adversaries against Solomon. He relaxed the yokes that David had placed around the necks of the neighboring Gentile kings, and by the end of Solomon’s reign, the yokes were broken. His people began to turn against him because of his apostasy and the heavy tax burden that he placed on them.

The later years of Solomon’s reign were not happy days, and as the years went by, they became increasingly depressed. Solomon lived on the mountaintop of glory for many years, but after turning from God, he fell into the dark valley of despair.

In the Book of Ecclesiastes, which tradition says Solomon wrote in his old age, he states that all of life is vanity.

Why would the man with riches, honor, splendor, and power, as no other man, make the statement, “life is all vanity”? Solomon had everything except peace with God, and he found in his old age that this is the most important asset because life without God is futile, meaningless, purposeless, and empty.
In the closing chapter of Ecclesiastes, Solomon said that an empty, futile existence is not inevitable. Man has a choice. He said to remember God, your Creator, when you are young, to fear Him, and to keep His commandments all the days of your life.

Compromise was the root of Solomon’s problem. To ensure peace within his kingdom, he violated God’s commandments by signing peace treaties with the neighboring Gentile kings. As a token of good faith, Solomon took Gentile princesses as brides. Then, for the sake of peace within his household, Solomon again compromised and allowed his wives to offer sacrifices to pagan gods.

Ironically, in his struggle to have peace with the world, he lost his peace with his God. It is also ironic that his compromise for peace with the world led to the destruction of his kingdom. There is no compromise with God’s laws, for He is the one who holds the absolute authority and the ultimate power. God’s ways are not man’s, and man’s ways are not God’s. God’s ways are higher than man’s ways.

We see that the application of the wisdom of the wisest man who ever lived proved to be futile in the end.

Division of the Kingdom
A few years before 930 BC, the prophet Ahijah appeared to Jeroboam, who was in charge of forced labor in the house of Joseph (Ephraim and Manasseh).

“Then Ahijah took hold of the new garment that was on him, and tore it into twelve pieces. And he said to Jeroboam, ‘Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and will give ten tribes to you (but he shall have one tribe for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel), because they have forsaken Me, and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the people of Ammon, and have not walked in My ways to do what is right in My eyes and keep My statutes and My judgments, as did his father David’” (1 Kings 11:30-33).

“However I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, because I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of My servant David, whom I chose because he kept My commandments and My statutes. But I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand and give it to you—ten tribes. And to his son I will give one tribe, that My servant David may always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen for Myself, to put My name there. So I will take you, and you shall reign over all your heart desires, and you shall be king over Israel” (1 Kings 11:34-37).

There are some questions regarding what happened to the tribe of Benjamin. Were they included in the ten tribes given to Jeroboam, or were they to remain and be included in the tribe of Judah?

The city of Jerusalem lies within the territory of Benjamin, and God makes it clear that Jerusalem shall remain forever His capital and be an eternal lamp for David. Most scholars believe that the tribe of Benjamin became part of the tribe of Judah and remained loyal to the sons of Solomon.

Although Scripture is silent on this matter, the tribe may have been split. The fate of the tribe of Simeon, which was given territory within the southern territory of Judah, is also a question.

Some scholars believe that the tribe of Simeon moved north before this time and was included in the ten tribes given to Jeroboam (the northern king).

God now instructs Jeroboam through Ahijah. “Then it shall be, if you heed all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build for you an enduring house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you. And I will afflict the descendants of David because of this, but not forever. (1 Kings 11:38-39).

Note: God’s final word is “But not always.” He plans to reunite the kingdom sometime in the future, and His Son, the “Kings of Kings,” will sit upon the throne of David and reign forever.

When Solomon heard what had transpired, he sought to put Jeroboam to death. But Jeroboam arose and fled to Egypt and stayed there until Solomon’s death (1 Kings 11:40).

After Solomon’s death, Jeroboam returned home, and the kingdom was divided between Jeroboam and Rehoboam, the son of Solomon. The Northern Kingdom, under Jeroboam, was called Israel, and the Southern Kingdom, under Rehoboam, was called Judah.

The Kingdom of Israel

The binding forces that united the twelve tribes were the Mosaic covenant and its associated religious ceremonies. Under the reign of David and Solomon, Jerusalem was the center of religious ceremonies. Therefore, one of Jeroboam’s first jobs was to move the ceremonies from Jerusalem to another location. Otherwise, the tribes would remain united.

During his days in Egypt, Jeroboam became involved in the worship of the golden calf, and when he opened the new religious centers, he organized the worship services around the golden calf.

“Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the mountains of Ephraim, and dwelt there. Also he went out from there and built Penuel. And Jeroboam said in his heart, ‘Now the kingdom may return to the house of David: If these people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will turn back to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me and go back to Rehoboam king of Judah.’ Therefore the king asked advice, made two calves of gold, and said to the people, ‘It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land of Egypt!’ And he set up one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. Now this thing became a sin, for the people went to worship before the one as far as Dan” (1 Kings 12:25-30).

Dan was located about twenty-five miles north of the Sea of Galilee in the upper end of the Hula Valley, at the foot of Mount Hermon. The tribe of Dan had already begun worshiping Canaanite gods. Later, during Jesus’s time, the place was called Caesarea Philippi.

The city of Bethel was located about twelve miles north of Jerusalem, on the southern border of Ephraim. Thus, the two towns marked the northern and southern borders of the Kingdom of Israel. For the next 200 years, the ten tribes worshiped the golden calf at these two locations.

“He made shrines on the high places, and made priests from every class of people, who were not of the sons of Levi” (1 Kings 12:31).

“For the Levites left their common-lands and their possessions and came to Judah and Jerusalem, for Jeroboam and his sons had rejected them from serving as priests to the Lord” (2 Chr. 11:14).

“Jeroboam ordained a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the feast that was in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did at Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he had made. And at Bethel he installed the priests of the high places which he had made. So he made offerings on the altar which he had made at Bethel on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in the month which he had devised in his own heart. And he ordained a feast for the children of Israel, and offered sacrifices on the altar and burned incense” (1 Kings 12:32-33).

Satan changed God’s worship rules through his servant, Jeroboam. The object of worship was changed from God, the Creator, to a golden calf.

God’s ordained priestly tribe of Levi was relieved of its duties and expelled from the land of Israel. Also, a new feast day was added on the fifteenth day of the eighth month. Remember that the Mosaic laws required that the fifteenth day of the seventh month be celebrated as the Feast of Tabernacles (Lev. 23:33-44).

As the Word says, Jeroboam devised the new feast day in his heart and celebrated it in the eighth month rather than the seventh month.

Jeroboam reigned for twenty-two years, and there was war between Israel and Judah all of his days. Then, God took the throne away from Jeroboam and gave it to another.

“Therefore behold! I will bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam and will cut off from Jeroboam every male in Israel, bond and free; I will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as one takes away refuse until it is all gone. The dogs shall eat whoever belongs to Jeroboam and dies in the city, and the birds of the air shall eat whoever dies in the field; for the Lord has spoken” (1 Kings 14:10-11)!

During the next thirty years, the Northern Kingdom of Israel suffered great turbulence, and three different dynasties ruled before it was stabilized under the dynasty of Omri.

Perhaps we will remember Omri as the father of Ahab. Omri served only twelve years, but he built a new capital at Samaria, located about eight miles northwest of Shechem. Because of his building project, he gained much fame, and for years, the kingdom of Israel was known as the “Land of Omri.”

However, Scripture says, “Omri did evil in the eyes of the LORD and did worse than all who were before him. For he walked in all the ways of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sin by which he had made Israel sin, provoking the LORD God of Israel to anger with their idols” (1 Kings 16:25-26).

Ahab, the son of Omri, became king of Israel about 875 BC, and he reigned with his infamous, wicked wife, Jezebel, the daughter of the king of Sidon.

The Phoenician princess Jezebel worshiped the Canaanite god of nature, Baal, and the Goddess of fertility, Astarte. Soon after marrying Ahab, Jezebel reintroduced these gods, which demanded human sacrifice and temple prostitution, into the religion of Israel.

During these years, God raised two of the greatest oral prophets: Elijah and his successor, Elisha. Sixteen chapters of Scripture, 1 Kings 17 through II Kings 10, are devoted to Elijah and Elisha’s struggles against the prophets of Baal, Jezebel, and the house of Ahab.

Twenty-two years later, God raised up a young man named Jehu, who, following instructions from Elisha, defeated the house of Ahab and destroyed the idols of Baal.

The reign of Jehu began in 843 BC, and his dynasty lasted almost 100 years.

Scripture says that Jehu eradicated Baal worship, but he “departed not from the sins of Jeroboam”, and worshipped the golden calves at Bethel and Dan” (2 Kings 10:28-31).

During the last days of Ahab’s reign, under the leadership of their King, Shalmaneser II, the Assyrians began to come into the land of Israel. For years, Israel fought against the Assyrians, but during the dynasty of Jehu, Israel was required to pay tribute to the Assyrians.

During the reign of Jeroboam II, the great-grandson of Jehu, God raised the prophet Jonah and instructed him to go to Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian Empire, and witness to the Assyrians.

After some persuasion from God, Jonah went, and the Assyrians repented. Under Jeroboam II, peace and prosperity existed for several years.

However, by worshiping the golden calves, Jeroboam II did evil in God’s sight and did not depart from Jeroboam I’s sins (2 Kings 14:24).

About 750 BC, during the reign of Jeroboam II, the prophets Hosea and Amos came into the Northern Kingdom and began to prophesy about the destruction that was about to occur.

By 721 BC, Israel’s end was near—God had had enough of her apostasy!

“Now the king of Assyria went throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria and besieged it for three years.” “For so it was that the children of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God”….”and had walked in the statutes of the nations whom the LORD had cast out from before the children of Israel.” “And they rejected His statutes and His covenant that He had made with their fathers, and His testimonies which He had testified against them.” “So they left all the commandments of the LORD their God, made for themselves a molded image and two calves, made a wooden image and worshiped all the host of heaven, and served Baal. And they caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, practiced witchcraft and soothsaying, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him to anger. Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah alone” (2 Kings 17:5, 7a, 8a, 15a, 16-18).

“So Israel was carried away from their own land to Assyria, as it is to this day. Then the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Ava, Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel; and they took possession of Samaria and dwelt in its cities.” (2 Kings 17:23b-24).

Over the years, these displaced foreigners intermarried with the Jews in and around Jerusalem and became the forefathers of the hated, half-breed Samaritans of Jesus’ day.