King Solomon

[Rose]

How can King Solomon be “the wisest king” and yet act foolishly?

 

[Yesua888]

How can King Solomon be “the wisest king” and yet act foolishly?

Very interesting indeedy : )

Solomon acted wisely by seeking divine wisdom above all else when given the chance by God.
In 1 Kings 3, he asked for an understanding heart to govern his people justly rather than riches or long life, which pleased God immensely. As a result, God granted him unparalleled wisdom—so much so that people from around the world, including the Queen of Sheba, came to hear his wisdom. He built the magnificent Temple in Jerusalem, centralized worship, and ruled with great prosperity and justice.

Solomon acted foolishly in his personal life, despite his wisdom. He married 700 foreign wives and 300 concubines, many from nations forbidden by God (Deuteronomy 17:16–17), including the daughter of Pharaoh. Though he began with devotion to God, his heart was eventually turned away by his wives, who led him to worship their pagan gods—Ashtoreth, Milcom, Chemosh, and Molech. He built high places for these idols, violating God’s commandments and provoking His anger. As stated in 1 Kings 11:4, “For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods.” This disobedience led to the eventual division of the kingdom after his death, fulfilling God’s warning.

Thus, Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived, yet he died a fool because he failed to live by the wisdom he possessed. His life illustrates that true wisdom begins with fearing God and obeying His commands—not just knowing them.

 

[Emmaus]

How can King Solomon be “the wisest king” and yet act foolishly?

I would venture that Solomon shows us that the solution to godliness is not rules and regulations. In Romans 7 a man who was well-versed and zealous for God's Law summarized his efforts to keep it. He cried bitterly " Oh wretched man that I am ... who will save me from this body of death". The answer in the fist verses of Chapter 8 is that it is not Law on stones - but the Life of Christ. The duty of Paul is given as dispensing the riches of Christ and that the mystery of godliness is "Christ in you ... the hope of glory". That is what God wanted in Eden, even before the fall of man. He wanted weak man to eat and take INSIDE of himself, Christ. When you eat something it becomes one with you and Christ has established the human life God wants. Now Christ, having been glorified in resurrection, is available as both the Lamb of God and the Bread of Life. God does not want outside Law to govern men, but what is inside man. Solomon had his wisdom, and this wisdom was God-given. But it was outside of him and after a short while he failed. In 1st Corinthians 1 we are told not to seek outside wisdom, but that Christ, Who is IN us "is made wisdom to us". Solomon is a terrible proof of what is inside man - unabated failure. We need to take Christ as our daily Bread, daily Water and in that we deny the flesh and our soul-life, we apply the Law of life IN Christ Jesus.

Solomon didn't. Nor did David. And the Lord confirms in the parable of the rich young man, that it is "IMPOSSIBLE" to do His sayings. John 14 is more than a graveside encouragement. It tells of Jesus coming to dwell IN us. And so, it is the only way - that is, a conscious abiding IN Christ while violently setting the self aside. Don't think I find it any easier than you do. Solomon is a brutal lesson that a man chosen by God, and endowed with every advantage that life can give, WILL FAIL if left to himself.

 

[David]

How can King Solomon be “the wisest king” and yet act foolishly?

Solomon proves something the Bible shows again and again. A man can know the truth and still choose not to live by it.

When Solomon first took the throne, he did something right. He asked God for wisdom. God answered that prayer in a way no king had ever experienced. Scripture says, “And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore” ~1 Kings 4:29. God poured wisdom into that man’s life like rain on dry ground.

That wisdom was real. When two women argued over the same baby, Solomon saw straight through the situation. He understood the heart behind the words. When the people saw that judgment, they recognized that God’s wisdom was operating in him. The text says, “They saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do judgment” ~1 Kings 3:28.

But here is the lesson Scripture presses on us. Wisdom given is not the same thing as wisdom obeyed.

God had already spoken clearly about kings. They were not to multiply wives because those wives would pull their hearts away from the Lord. The command was already written down in the Law long before Solomon ever wore a crown. Yet Solomon walked right past what God had said.

The Bible records the result with painful clarity: “But king Solomon loved many strange women… and his wives turned away his heart after other gods” ~1 Kings 11:1,4.

Think about that for a moment. The wisest king who ever lived knew the truth better than anyone in the palace. Yet knowledge alone did not protect him. His heart drifted. And when the heart drifts, the feet eventually follow.

That is why Scripture says, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom” ~Proverbs 9:10. Wisdom is not just insight. It is a life that bows to God.

Solomon could explain wisdom, write about wisdom, and teach wisdom. But when he stopped fearing the Lord and started following his own desires, the man who could speak wisdom began living like a fool.

And that is a warning for every generation. Knowing the Word of God is not the same as walking in it. Jesus said, “If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them” ~John 13:17.

The tragedy of Solomon is not that he lacked wisdom. The tragedy is that he stopped obeying the God who gave it.