READ IT! - Introduction to 1st Kings 4-10

Readings for this week

Monday: 1 Kings 4
Tuesday: 1 Kings 5
Wednesday: 1 Kings 6
Thursday: 1 Kings 7
Friday: 1 Kings 8
Saturday: 1 Kings 9
Sunday: 1 Kings 10

Chapters 4-7 

We then read about Solomon building the Temple. Solomon made the people of Israel work for him. He had 30,000 men working shifts in Lebanon gathering lumber. “Solomon had seventy thousand carriers and eighty thousand stonecutters in the hills.” He had thirty-three hundred foremen. The temple was designed from the plans for the tabernacle, but larger, and made with much more extravagant materials. The inside of the temple was made from cedar and was overlaid completely with gold. After seven years of construction, the temple was completed.

Solomon then builds his palace. Solomon spent thirteen years building a palace for himself. He made his palace of cedar wood. He made a second palace like it for his Egyptian wife. 

Chapter 8 

We then read about the dedication of the Temple. Solomon had the Ark of the Covenant brought into the temple, and placed in “The Most Holy Place.” Text says the two tablets of Moses with the 10 Commandments were still in the Ark. And the people sacrificed so many animals that they lost count. After the priests withdrew from The Holy Place, the glory of the LORD filled the temple and no one could enter because it was filled with smoke.

Solomon stood in front of the altar, stretched out his arms, and offered a prayer of dedication.

“LORD, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below—you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way.”
“…keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him…”
“But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!”
“When your people Israel have been defeated by an enemy because they have sinned against you, and when they turn back to you and give praise to your name, praying and making supplication to you in this temple, then hear from heaven and forgive the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the land you gave to their ancestors.”

The people celebrated for fourteen days. 

Chapter 9 

God appeared to Solomon a second time, saying: “I have heard the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you have built, by putting my Name there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.”

Instructions for Solomon…

If you walk before me faithfully:
I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever

If you or your descendants turn away from me:
I will cut off Israel from the land I have given them
I will reject this temple
Israel will then become a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples
This temple will become a heap of rubble.

We then read about Solomon’s other activities. Solomon made the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites who were still living in the land into slaves. He turned the Israelites into their task masters. He went to the Temple three times a year to offer sacrifices. He had a fleet of ships which brought back gold from distant lands, including 420 talents of gold from Ophir. In those days, 420 talents of gold could buy 10,054,800 sheep, or 670,320 slaves, or 167,580 houses. 

Chapter 10 

The Queen of Sheba visited to test Solomon’s wisdom. He was able to answer all of her difficult questions. The Queen of Sheba was overwhelmed by the splendor of Solomon’s kingdom and offered him many gifts of spices and 120 talents of gold. In those days, 120 talents of gold could buy 2,872,800 sheep, or 191,520 slaves, or 47,880 houses.

All of sudden, in the middle of chapter 10, Solomon's life takes a turn for the worse, and for some unknown reason he begins to turn away from God. This all starts with the use of the number 666 in the text. The story teller intentionally uses the number to show that at this point something has gone terribly wrong with Solomon. This text begins by saying that the amount of gold that Solomon brought in annually was 666 talents in addition to everything else. He also made two hundred shields of gold using 600 shekels for each shield. He also made 300 smaller shields of gold using three minas of gold for each of them. Solomon made a grand throne of ivory and gold for himself, with six steps leading up to the throne, and six gold lions on the right and six gold lions on the left. Everything was made from gold in Solomon’s palace. Silver was worthless in Solomon’s day. He had a fleet of trading ships that returned every three years with gold, silver, ivory, apes, and baboons. He had fourteen-hundred chariots and twelve-thousand horses. He did all of this even though the law code of Deuteronomy says that the king must not have much gold and must not have many horses.