1 Kings 3:5–28. Solomon succeeds his father, David, as king, and follows the Lord. The Lord appears to Solomon and blesses him with wisdom, riches, and honor (3:5–15). Two women take a child to Solomon, who wisely determines which woman is the mother of the child (3:16–28).
1 Kings 5–6; 7:1–12. King Solomon directs the construction of a great temple (5–6). He has a palace built for himself (7:1–12).
1 Kings 8:22–66; 9:1–9. Solomon dedicates the temple and asks the Lord to bless the Israelites with spiritual and temporal prosperity (8:22–66). The Lord again appears to Solomon, promising to bless the Israelites if they serve him but to curse them if they turn to other gods (9:1–9).
1 Kings 10–11. Solomon’s fame grows because of his wealth and wisdom (10:1–13, 24–25). He becomes excessively wealthy (10:14–23, 26). He marries many non-Israelite women who persuade him to worship false gods (11:1–10). The Lord stirs up adversaries against Solomon (11:11–25). A prophet foretells that the kingdom of Israel will be divided because of Solomon’s wickedness (11:26–40).
What does it mean to have an “understanding heart”? (See 1 Kings 3:28; 4:29.) Why did Solomon feel a special need for that blessing? (See1 Kings 3:7–8.) How would having “the wisdom of God” help us with our responsibilities at home, at work, at school, and in the Church? How can we receive this wisdom?
What promise did the Lord give Solomon regarding the temple? (See1 Kings 6:11–13.) What similar promise has the Lord given us today? (See D&C 97:15–17.) What can we do to keep the influence of the temple strong in our lives?
How did Solomon’s riches and honor increase after the temple was built? (See 1 Kings 10:1–15, 24–25.) How did Solomon misuse these blessings? (See 1 Kings 10:16–23, 26–29.) How should wisdom, riches, and honor be used? (See Jacob 2:18–19.)
Additional reading: 1 Kings 2:1–12; 4:29–34; 7:13–51; 1 Chronicles 29;Doctrine and Covenants 46.
OT Gospel Doctrine Lesson #26: King Solomon: Man of Wisdom, Man of Foolishness
1 King 3, 5-11
Solomon Dedicates Temple
Solomon Slaughters His Enemies
With David growing old, conflict arose between his many sons as to who should replace him. The eldest living son, Adonijah, presumed it should be him. David never dissuaded Adonijah from this presumption. Joab, general of David’s armies, and Abiathar, one of David’s high priests (a descendant of Moses), supported Adonijah in his quest for kingship.
David has 4 sons of prominence for the succession.
(1) Amnon – Amnon, the son of Ahinoam of Jezreel, was David's first-born. His brother Absalom, the son of David's other wife, was famous for his splendid appearance.
Remember the story of Amon and Tamar. Absalom lures Amnon away from the capital and has him killed after he assaulted his sister Tamar.
Absalom had a sister named Tamar, who was very fair. Once Amnon deeply offended her, which exceedingly enraged Absalom. Between Absalom and his half-brother Amnon there was now kindled a terrible feud which could only be quenched in the life-blood of the offender.
(2) Absalom – We didn’t have time to get into Absalom’s rebellion. After Absalom had Amnon killed, he started a rebellion against his father David and very nearly succeeded in winning the throne. David was forced out of Jerusalem for a time. Absalom’s rebellion is squelched (Joab orders the death of Absalom) and David returns to power in Jerusalem.
(3) Adoniah (Adonijah). Adonijah decided not to make an attempt to wrest the throne from his father before his death, but instead, laid plans for the possession of the crown immediately upon his father's death. Adonijah, therefore, sought to obtain the help of Joab and of Abiathar the priest; but he was opposed by the old warriors and others, who remained faithful to the aged king, and among whom Zadok the priest
(4) Solomon (from Bathsheba).
David had sworn that Solomon should be his successor, and he now repeated the promise to Bathsheba. He was determined that from that very day Solomon should be considered as king of Israel.
Solomon was supported by David’s other chief priest, Zadok, a descendant of Aaron, several military leaders, and Nathan the Prophet. As well, Bathsheba still held the attention of King David over his other wives. She went to him and encouraged him to accept Solomon as heir to the throne. Nathan followed her in, repeating the need to select Solomon. David agreed and had Zadok and Nathan anoint him king (1 King 1).
Solomon Adonijah
Supported by Zadok (High Priest) Abiathar (High Priest)
Supported by Nathan (prophet) Joab (general)
Zadok: Lineage is from Aaron to Eleazar down to Zadok. He comes to support David during Absalom’s rebellion.
Abiathar: Remember back when Saul was chasing David, he had many of the priests killed by Doeg the Edomite. The sole survivor of that slaughter was Abiathar who fled towards David and was taken in. However, during Absalom’s rebellion, David went to Abiathar for advice by way of the Urim and Thummim and no revelation was given causing him to lose favor with David. Thus there were two high priests, but Zadok was largely in charge. He descends through Eli
Upon David’s death, Solomon immediately went forth to destroy his enemies and competition. Joab was put to death for his betrayal and violent life. Adonijah and many others of David’s sons were slain. For the high priest Abiathar, Solomon commanded:
1 Kings 225 And king Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him that he died.
26 And unto Abiathar the priest said the king, Get thee to Anathoth, unto thine own fields; for thou art worthy of death: but I will not at this time put thee to death, because thou barest the ark of the Lord God before David my father, and because thou hast been afflicted in all wherein my father was afflicted.
Thus Abiathar is banished to his estates instead of being killed.
Remember Eli back in 1 Samuel. His son’s were corrupt, sleeping around in the temple and Eli did nothing. Samuel is given the office of High Priest and he replaced Eli.
1 Sam 230 Wherefore the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the Lord saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.
That is the end of influence of Abiathar.
In essence, Abiathar and the priests who were direct descendants of Moses were no longer allowed to serve in the Tabernacle, nor before the king. They were exiled in disgrace. Some scholars see this as the beginning of political rivalry between the sons of Aaron and of Moses.
As the groups struggled for power in the Tabernacle and later the Temple, it is believed that the Old Testament’s writings were changed and even rewritten to reflect personal views.
And we come back to the Documentary Hypothesis
In a previous lesson, we discussed the various authors of the Old Testament (J, E, P, D, R) and how each had their personal beliefs/agenda to promote in the national history. An example of this comes in the Books of Chronicles, which are a second set of books to match the Books of Kings.
- What we are reading now, in Kings is D, Deuteronomic
J Pro-Judah; anti-Israel their rival. Less interested in Moses.
E Pro-Israel; anti-Judah their rival. Pro-Moses; Anti-Aaron.
D Pro-King Josiah. Ironically, Josiah's kingdom collapses 20 years later. They blame the collapse on a previous king, King Manasseh, Josiah's grandfather, so Josiah doesn't take the blame for the collapse of his own kingdom.
P Written as an alternative to JE. Pro-Priests, specifically the priests who claim to be descended from Aaron. Against rival priests who claim to be descended from Moses.
R Redactor. J & E were put together earlier to create JE. The Redactor combined JE, D, & P, adding just a few lines of his own to make the transitions smooth.
In Kings, David and Solomon are criticized for their actions. However, in Chronicles, neither David nor Solomon are excoriated for their huge sins. In fact, Solomon remains praiseworthy throughout the entire Chronicles. It obviously was not written by Abiathar (or E). Abiathar and his sons would be connected later to the northern Kingdom of Israel, who would disdain Solomon and his descendants.
According to what is called the “Documentary Hypothesis”, some of their (Abiathar) writings/beliefs would come forth later in the writings of “E”, which would honor Moses while excoriating David and Solomon. Some LDS scholars have suggested that the E source is none other than the Brass Plates of Laban, which praises Moses, while condemning David and Solomon for their promiscuity.
Solomon’s Plural Marriages
We find incongruencies in 1 King regarding Solomon’s actions. After defeating his internal enemies, he establishes peaceful ties with surrounding nations. One of his first acts is to develop a connection with Pharaoh by marrying his daughter (1 Kings 3:1).
1 Kings 3:1 And Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh's daughter, and brought her into the city of David, until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of the Lord, and the wall of Jerusalem round about.
While this made enormous sense politically, it was discouraged by the Mosaic Law (only marriage to Canaanite women was actually prohibited). Still, he ended up with 700 wives and 300 concubines (slave wives). Most of these wives were considered foreign princesses, meaning he focused his relationships around political necessity. His son and heir, Rehoboam was from his Ammonite (foreign) wife.
Solomon Seeks Wisdom
Still, Solomon in his early years loved the Lord. He and the people sacrificed frequently to Jehovah in the high places - the only places available at the time to worship. Why? Because while there were two Tabernacles, the one in Jerusalem was probably meant mostly to contain the ark of the covenant, but not perform sacrifice. Meanwhile, the high places (Hebrew: Bamah) were temples in the wilderness. So sacrificed Adam, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses.
High places, at least at this time, that were not corrupted, were acceptable.
Solomon Granted Wisdom
It is during one of his trips to Gibeon to sacrifice, where the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream. Solomon is offered anything he could desire: wealth, power, etc. Solomon chose wisdom to lead the nation.
“Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?
“And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing” (1 Kings 3:9-10).
Solomon’s wisdom became renowned in Israel and abroad. Many came to hear the wisdom he espoused. This included the Queen of Sheba. Sheba or Saba was a nation that spanned a large area, including modern Eritrea, Somalia, Ethiopia, and Yemen. This would have included a large portion of the spice trade route through the Arabian Peninsula, providing her with means to bring many riches with her to Solomon on her trip. The Bible tells little of her sojourn in Israel, but there are ancient stories that expand upon it.
Ethiopian tradition (Kebra Nagast, a book also called The Glory of the Kings is a 117 chapter composite work), says that Sheba became his wife, and they bore a son. This son became Menelik I, first ruler of what would become the 2900 year reign of Ethiopia. This reign went almost continuous, with just a couple disruptions, until the royal line was overthrown in 1974. According to the tradition, Solomon made a copy of the ark of the covenant, which he placed in the Tabernacle, and gave the original to Sheba. Supposedly, the ark is still maintained in the land of Ethiopia to this day.
1 Kings 4:29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore.
30 And Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt.
31 For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol: and his fame was in all nations round about.
32 And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and five.
The Temple
1 Kings 5-9
1 Kings 5 Solomon Plans the temple and lays up stores
1 Kings 5:1 And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father: for Hiram was ever a lover of David.
2 And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying,
3 Thou knowest how that David my father could not build an house unto the name of the Lord his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until theLord put them under the soles of his feet.
4 But now the Lord my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent.
So Solomon receives much from Hiram of Tyre
1 King 56 Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon; and my servants shall be with thy servants: and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt appoint: for thou knowest that there is not among us any that can skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians.
7 And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said, Blessed be the Lord this day, which hath given unto David a wise son over this great people.
1 King 6 Solomon Builds the temple. Much talk of cherubim and things inside the temple.
1 Kings 6: 23 And within the oracle he made two cherubims of olive tree, each ten cubits high.
24 And five cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing of the cherub: from the uttermost part of the one wing unto the uttermost part of the other were ten cubits.
25 And the other cherub was ten cubits: both the cherubims were of one measure and one size.
26 The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub.
27 And he set the cherubims within the inner house: and they stretched forth the wings of the cherubims, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house.
28 And he overlaid the cherubims with gold.
Rendition of Solomon’s Temple
To fulfill his father David’s desire to build a house to the Lord, Solomon began plans to build the temple. He did this in conjunction with building his own palace, which many scholars believed was larger than the temple to Jehovah. The temple would begin in his fourth year as king, and would take seven years to accomplish, while his palace required thirteen years to build.
1 Kings 7:1 But Solomon took thirteen years to build his own house; so he finished all his house.
Throughout chapter 7 he builds many other buildings.
These projects were accomplished in a short time because Solomon used slave labor from the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.
Solomon contracted to King Hyram of Tyre for the wood and many other things to build the temple.
1 King 7:13 And king Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of Tyre.
14 He was a widow's son of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass: and he was filled with wisdom, and understanding, and cunning to work all works in brass. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his work.
Hiram Abiff and Masonry
Masons have a tradition of Hiram Abiff, a widow’s son (1 Kings 7:13-14), being killed for refusing to give up the secret passwords known by Masons, related to the temple of Solomon and the original Hiram of Tyre (also a widow’s son).
2 Chr 2:13
KJV 13 And now I have sent a cunning man, endued with understanding, of Huram my father's, 14 The son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre, skilful to work in gold, and in silver, in brass, in iron, in stone, and in timber,
NIV 13 “I am sending you Huram-Abi, a man of great skill, 14 whose mother was from Dan and whose father was from Tyre. He is trained to work in gold and silver, bronze and iron, stone and wood,
The name Hiram Abiff is not found in Scripture. Yet, the Masonic account of Hiram is often said to be based upon the Holy Bible. In the Master Mason degree, in that portion of the ritual known as the Legend of the Third Degree, there are three central characters. The story line is set around the building of Solomon’s temple. The characters, King Solomon, Hiram - the King of Tyre and Hiram Abiff are all taken from the Scriptural account of the temple building.
Discuss the story of Hiram Abiff… (three ruffians demand the secret name, fail to get it, murder Hiram Abiff, body hid, found but could only be raised by Solomon’s grip, this in turn recurrects Hiram Abiff…)
The Real Story is…
The legend of Hiram Abiff is the Masonic version of the Egyptian story of the pagan gods of Isis and Osiris. Many parallels in these stories.
The last name, Abiff, while not found in the Bible, could possibly be from the Hebrew word for “father” or “abi”. In the Nauvoo period, many Latter-day Saints became Masons. Some noted that Joseph Smith was also a temple builder, and (by that time) a widow’s son, perhaps a new Hiram Abiff for the last days.
Solomon’s temple was 40 cubits long, or about 60 feet. Cherubim (angel warriors) were placed in the Holy of Holies standing 15 feet tall and with 15 foot wingspans that touched the walls and each other in the middle. Under them would sit the Ark of the Covenant and the Mercy Seat. This was God’s special room and throne. It would represent his throne in heaven, which was surrounded by concourses of angels worshiping him. It would also represent the ancient Divine Council, where archangels (governing angels) including the warrior angel Michael, would stand in council with God (see Isaiah 6).
Two giant pillars were built to set in front of the temple. These pillars were 18 cubits (27 feet) high. Their names were Boaz (Strength) and Jachin (Jah/Yahweh establishes). John the Revelator made a significant mention of these pillars and how they relate to the righteous:
“Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name” (Revelation 3:12).
A large brass basin of brass was also built and set upon twelve oxen representing the tribes of Israel. This basin would be used for cleansing rituals according to the Mosaic Law. The priests would wash in the basin in order to be clean prior to entering the temple, just as they did in the Tabernacle of Moses. Today, LDS also have a basin upon 12 oxen in their temples. These are used for proxy baptisms for ancestors who have died without the opportunity to receive baptism (1 Corinthians 15:29).
Upon finishing the temple, the ark of the covenant was placed under the cherubim.
“The priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord unto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims.
“For the cherubims spread forth their two wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves thereof above” (1 Kings 8:6-7).
Solomon dedicated the temple in prayer and with innumerable sacrifices. In a dream, the Lord told Solomon that he accepted the temple and that Israel would be blessed as long as they were faithful to God.
1 Kings 8:10 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the Lord,
11 So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord.
12 Then spake Solomon, The Lord said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.
13 I have surely built thee an house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in for ever.
1 Kings 9, the Temple is accepted. God appears to Solomon
1 Kings 9:2 That the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon.
3 And the Lord said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.
4 And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments:
5 Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.
1 Kings 10 the Queen of Sheba comes to visit, to test Solomon’s Wisdom. Solomon becomes very wealthy.
1 Kings 10:23 So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom.
24 And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.
Solomon Falls From Grace
1 Kings 11
Sadly, Solomon’s many wives took a toll on him. Not only did he marry Egyptian princesses, but also many Canaanite princesses, as well.
“1 But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites;
“2 Of the nations concerning which the Lord said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love” (1 Kings 11:1-2).3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart.
4 For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father.
Not only did he cleave unto the women in love, but to keep them happy, he built temples for their gods, rather than convert them to worship Jehovah, which was expected of all those Israel married from outside the faith. In giving into them, he first gave other gods equal time, and ignored the injunction to “have no other gods before me.” Finally, he began giving much time to worshiping other gods, creating graven images of the many gods. Jehovah was competing for equal time in Jerusalem and the surrounding area.
1 Kings 11 6 And Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and went not fully after the Lord, as did David his father.
Solomon began to worship other gods, including Chemosh, Ashteroth (goddess), Milcom and even Molech. Molech was an exceptionally wicked god, who required that the children pass through/in fire. Those that did not die were considered blessed by the followers of Molech. Those children who died were a sacrifice to the god, who demanded a high price for his blessings. Why one would worship Molech rather than Jehovah really makes one wonder. Yet Solomon did.
1 Kings 11 9 And the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the Lord God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice,
10 And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the Lord commanded.
11 Wherefore the Lord said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.
12 Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father's sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son.
13 Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen.
The Curse
David’s throne was to last forever, according to some sections of the Old Testament. God could not take away that promise easily. So, he told Solomon that half the kingdom would be ripped from his hands and given to his servant. Because of God’s promise to David, it would not happen in Solomon’s lifetime, but in his son’s life. Doesn’t seem like much of a punishment to Solomon, does it? However, in addition to the curse, the Lord also stirred up enemies around Solomon. He had decades of peace while faithful to the Lord. Now the Lord would punish him and Israel for allowing such abominations to enter into the Promised Land.
1 Kings 11 14 And the Lord stirred up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite: he was of the king's seed in Edom.
15 For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain, after he had smitten every male in Edom;
16 (For six months did Joab remain there with all Israel, until he had cut off every male in Edom:)
Who would the Lord raise up to remove Solomon? Hadad the Edomite.
17 That Hadad fled, he and certain Edomites of his father's servants with him, to go into Egypt; Hadad being yet a little child.
18 And they arose out of Midian, and came to Paran: and they took men with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt, unto Pharaoh king of Egypt; which gave him an house, and appointed him victuals, and gave him land.
19 And Hadad found great favour in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen.
We get a taste in Solomon’s day of how David’s line will lose Israel. Jeroboam, whom Solomon made ruler/chief captain over the tribe of Joseph, was ordained by the prophet Ahijah, to be king over 10 of the tribes. Upon learning of it, Solomon went the direction of Saul, seeking to slay Jeroboam through the rest of Solomon’s days.
Solomon would sleep with his father, David. But in the end, he left the kingdom divided because of his greed, hatred of internal enemies, and becoming more friendly with foreigners than with his own people.
1 Kings 11: 43 And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.
Bibliography
“Who Wrote the Bible?”, Richard E. Friedman http://www.amazon.com/Wrote-Bible-Richard-Elliott-Friedman/dp/0060630353
Kevin Barney on the Documentary Hypothesis: http://www.members.shaw.ca/mschindler/B/doc_hyp.htm
Links to previous lessons that discussed the Documentary Hypothesis:
Lesson 17: http://joelsmonastery.blogspot.com/2010/04/lesson-17-beware-lest-thou-forget.html
Lesson 15 : http://joelsmonastery.blogspot.com/2010/04/gospel-doctrine-ot-lesson-15-look-to.html
Lesson 6: http://joelsmonastery.blogspot.com/2010/02/lds-gospel-doctrine-class-old-testament.html
Lesson 3: http://joelsmonastery.blogspot.com/2010/01/lds-gospel-doctrine-class-old-testament_12.html
Hiram Abiff: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiram_Abiff
Solomon’s Temple:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solomon%27s_Temple
3D walkthrough of Solomon’s Temple:http://www.biblelife.org/temple1.htm
Hi-Res depiction of Solomon’s Temple:http://deohsan.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/solomon-temple.jpg
Temple of Solomon videos at David Larsen’s blog:http://www.heavenlyascents.com/2010/06/21/temple-of-solomon-videos/
Thanks very much for this!
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