A Journey Through The Old Testament - Elmer Towns

THE WEALTH OF SOLOMON
(1 Kings 9:10-10:29)
Solomon was so incredibly wealthy as a king in the Near East that other monarchs found
it difficult to believe how prosperous Solomon and his nation were before they witnessed it for
themselves. Much of this wealth was acquired as a result of Solomon’s organization of
international trade. In essence he bought raw materials at wholesale prices and sold the finished
products at retail prices. So large were Solomon’s stables and storehouses in contrast to those of
other kings that archeologists today have no difficulty in identifying the ruins they have
discovered in his various principal cities.
The wealth of Solomon is seen in part in some of the gifts he exchanged with other kings.
To celebrate his twentieth anniversary as king, Solomon gave Hiram king of Tyre twenty cities
in appreciation for his help in building the temple and royal palace. This meant Solomon turned
over the tax money from them to Hiram. The King of Tyre responded by sending a gift of 120
talents of gold valued then at well over $3.5 billion. His annual income was estimated to be well
in excess of $20 billion (1 Kings 10:14-15). He sat on an ivory throne that was overlaid with the
finest gold, and every drinking vessel in the palace was pure gold.
But his wealth was the result of his wisdom in dealing with economic matters. When the
Queen of Sheba met with Solomon, she concluded, “It was a true report which I heard in my own
land about your words and your wisdom. However, I did not believe the words until I came and
saw it with my own eyes; and indeed the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity
exceed the fame of which I heard” (vv. 6-7).
THE WEAKNESS OF SOLOMON
(1 Kings 11:1-43)
But there are times when wisdom is not enough. Solomon yielded to his moral weakness
and married 300 wives and had more than 1,000 concubines. His sexual misconduct became
widely known throughout the land as people spoke of the king’s chariot being “paved with love
by the daughters of Jerusalem” (Song 3:10). Solomon’s moral lapse had consequences which
stretched far beyond his own tarnished reputation and sexual frustration.
Solomon married foreign wives who brought their foreign gods into the palace. Solomon
himself may not have worshiped the gods but in allowing his wives to do so, he unwittingly
encouraged the practice of idolatry in Israel. As Israel turned from God to idols, the people were
removing themselves from the place of blessing (1 Kings 11:3-8).
Also, Solomon began to get materialistic in his attitude toward his wealth. Rather than
view his riches as an evidence of the blessing and favor of God, Solomon began to desire wealth
for its own sake, which led him to wander even further from God. God had promised David his
son would reign, but the blessing of God on the nation thereafter would be dependent on its