Verse 22: So King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.
So King Solomon had it all: gold, silver, success, wives, and on top it all, wisdom. His fame reached out 1500 miles from Jerusalem and touched the ear of Queen Sheba. When she heard of how great Solomon's kingdom was prospering, naturally, she wanted to see it for herself.
When she got to Jerusalem, she was astounded by all that she heard and saw. Indeed, King Solomon exceeded her expectation, and as a result, left him with lots and lots of....you guessed it, gold and spices galore.
On top of all his wealth, the Kings from Arabia and Governors of provinces gave him tons of gold and silver. Merchants and traders also generated revenue for King Solomon, because their trading routes from Egypt to Mesopotamia runs through Israel.
With all of these wealth, King Solomon turned many of his household items and eating utensils into gold. He even built himself a throne, which was "immaculate" in its design. Personally, I preferred less giant cats gold sculptures beside my seat. .......Anyway, he collected tons gold and stored multiple chariots, amassed more horses and married more women than anyone who has ever lived. In the modern slang,.... "he had it made."
Unfortunately, in this particular case, what Solomon did (example: amassed horses) ran contrary to what God had stated in the past to Israel. The reason is that people tend to trust in military might than on the power of God. Deuteronomy 17: 16&17 the Lord says, "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."
Well, somewhere along the latter part of his life, amidst all of his kingdom's prosperity, Solomon finally realized that all of these stuff did not mean a thing. This is when he wrote the book of 'Ecclesiastes.' King Solomon nicely summed it all up in the last two verses in Ecclesiates, "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil."
From this chapter, we learn that King Solomon was an imperfect picture of Jesus Christ. With all the lavish table spreads, golden utensils, prepared foods and royal garments that adorned Solomon's guests and servants, they were all dimmed compared to what Jesus Christ is going to do with His bride-the Church, one day in glory! And as for Queen Sheba, she depicts you and I coming to Jesus Christ and giving our all to him. Do you want to dine with Jesus, then come to the table!
Prayer: Lord, help us to put our trust in you each and everyday. Help us to see that materialism and money in the bank often times stumbles us to think that we got it made. Help us to seek you first in our hearts. May we surrender our all to you every moment of our lives. Thank you that you have called and invited us to the banquet table to fellowship with you!
2 Chronicles 8 - Inside Out
Verse 16 Now all the work of Solomon was well-ordered from the day of the foundation of the house of the LORD until it was finished. So the house of the LORD was completed.
King Solomon and his kingdom flourished and prospered. He flourished economically by revamping and rebuilding surrounding cities. He even used the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites to do the hard work. (As we later will see, these Canaanites became the stumbling block to Israel by introducing idolatry).
Another bonus was that King Solomon obtained gold from India with the help of King Hiram's sailors. The amount was 450 talents of gold. Compared to what his father David acquired from war, this was puny. David's gold was 120,000 talents.
Politically, King Solomon was making many alliances. I believe that Solomon made a mistake when he married the Pharaoh's daughter. When he brought her to Israel, he had her stayed at a different place--away from the Ark of the Lord. I assume that he did this because she was an unbeliever. Whatever the case, his steps might look good to the world that he married "Pharaoh's daughter," but it certainly looks ugly in terms of not being able to treat her like his one and only wife and partner in life.
King Solomon certainly had a lot going for him and for Israel, but internally in his heart and soul, he has started walking in the wrong direction. A lot of 'compromises' have been done, and untangling them is like untangling dirty hair on a hair-brush.
Prayer: God, thank you for all that you are providing for us today. Help us to stay on the right track and never compromise our faith in you. We give you all the glory and honor! Amen.
King Solomon and his kingdom flourished and prospered. He flourished economically by revamping and rebuilding surrounding cities. He even used the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites to do the hard work. (As we later will see, these Canaanites became the stumbling block to Israel by introducing idolatry).
Another bonus was that King Solomon obtained gold from India with the help of King Hiram's sailors. The amount was 450 talents of gold. Compared to what his father David acquired from war, this was puny. David's gold was 120,000 talents.
Politically, King Solomon was making many alliances. I believe that Solomon made a mistake when he married the Pharaoh's daughter. When he brought her to Israel, he had her stayed at a different place--away from the Ark of the Lord. I assume that he did this because she was an unbeliever. Whatever the case, his steps might look good to the world that he married "Pharaoh's daughter," but it certainly looks ugly in terms of not being able to treat her like his one and only wife and partner in life.
King Solomon certainly had a lot going for him and for Israel, but internally in his heart and soul, he has started walking in the wrong direction. A lot of 'compromises' have been done, and untangling them is like untangling dirty hair on a hair-brush.
Prayer: God, thank you for all that you are providing for us today. Help us to stay on the right track and never compromise our faith in you. We give you all the glory and honor! Amen.
2 Chronicles 7 - The Choice is Yours
Verse 14 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.
After King Solomon had prayed and dedicated the temple, fire from heaven came down and consumed the sacrifices and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. Then more sacrifices began: 22,000 bulls and 120,000 sheep over seven days. The people of Israel were filled with joy and continued to worship the Lord God.
After this grand dedication, the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time and spoke to him. The Lord emphasized that Israel did good this time, because they sought His face in all they did. The Lord was pleased with the nation of Israel. Verse 14 is the prescription of how to please the Lord and bring about renewal. But as good as that may sound, the Lord also gives everyone the freedom to choose. This is the center of what love is.......the freedom of choice. People can choose to rebel, to forget all that the Lord has done for them and go their separate ways. Unfortunately, the nation of Israel chose the latter and paid greatly for it.
America has a choice to! In 1970 at Asbury College in Wilmore Kentucky, the people chose to humbled themselves, pray, seek God's face and turned from their wicked ways. God heard their prayers and poured out the fire of the Holy Spirit and consumed their hearts. A spiritual revival and renewal broke out, later to be known as 'the Asbury Revival.' The beautiful thing was that it spread like wildfire to other states.
If only we pray like King Solomon and the college students at Wilmore..........................
After King Solomon had prayed and dedicated the temple, fire from heaven came down and consumed the sacrifices and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. Then more sacrifices began: 22,000 bulls and 120,000 sheep over seven days. The people of Israel were filled with joy and continued to worship the Lord God.
After this grand dedication, the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time and spoke to him. The Lord emphasized that Israel did good this time, because they sought His face in all they did. The Lord was pleased with the nation of Israel. Verse 14 is the prescription of how to please the Lord and bring about renewal. But as good as that may sound, the Lord also gives everyone the freedom to choose. This is the center of what love is.......the freedom of choice. People can choose to rebel, to forget all that the Lord has done for them and go their separate ways. Unfortunately, the nation of Israel chose the latter and paid greatly for it.
America has a choice to! In 1970 at Asbury College in Wilmore Kentucky, the people chose to humbled themselves, pray, seek God's face and turned from their wicked ways. God heard their prayers and poured out the fire of the Holy Spirit and consumed their hearts. A spiritual revival and renewal broke out, later to be known as 'the Asbury Revival.' The beautiful thing was that it spread like wildfire to other states.
If only we pray like King Solomon and the college students at Wilmore..........................
2 Chronicles 6 - Stand Up!
verse 12: Then he stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands.
After King Solomon had built the temple for the Lord, he now dedicate it to Him. The way that he dedicated the temple was a way that I would imagined his father David would have done it. He stood as a spokesman for the nation of Israel. As the people looked to their king, Solomon's arms stretched high into the heavens and proclaimed jaw dropping words toward God.
If a President of this so called 'sophisticated world' would've done this very act on Capitol Hill, CNN would be all over him like they did with Anna Nicole Smith. Bill Mahr and Jon Stewart would have a heyday. Indeed, King Solomon modeled what a King ought to do with the Creator of the Universe.
After King Solomon had built the temple for the Lord, he now dedicate it to Him. The way that he dedicated the temple was a way that I would imagined his father David would have done it. He stood as a spokesman for the nation of Israel. As the people looked to their king, Solomon's arms stretched high into the heavens and proclaimed jaw dropping words toward God.
If a President of this so called 'sophisticated world' would've done this very act on Capitol Hill, CNN would be all over him like they did with Anna Nicole Smith. Bill Mahr and Jon Stewart would have a heyday. Indeed, King Solomon modeled what a King ought to do with the Creator of the Universe.
The Word of God
I've always wanted a platform to do some reflections on what I have been reading, specifically on the Word of God. I heard someone said that 'the Word of God is like a deep forest with many layers that has not been explored fully.' All of the scholarly works that have been done through the centuries have only lightly touched the treetops and felt the wind blow old leaves to the bottom of this vast and magnificient forest.
Whenever I read the Bible, it shows me that I don't know much, which helps me get a glimpse of how awesome, beautiful and magestic our God is. No doubt, the Word of God is His revelation to man! It is one of two things that will last forever; the other one being, the souls of men. Praise God for even considering reaching out to us!
Holiday Season!
With all the business of this holiday season, don't forget to live with an eternal perspective!
Veteran's Day
We thank God for all the men and women who gave their lives to fight for freedom that we all enjoy! May the Lord continue to protect those who are serving in our military today!
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