1 Kings 11: 1 – 43
Trouble lurks in the shadows
11 But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites— 2 from the nations of whom the LORD had said to the children of Israel, “You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love. 3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. 4 For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God, as was the heart of his father David. 5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6 Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and did not fully follow the LORD, as did his father David. 7 Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon. 8 And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods. 9 So the LORD became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the LORD God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, 10 and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not keep what the LORD had commanded. 11 Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, “Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant. 12 Nevertheless I will not do it in your days, for the sake of your father David; I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13 However I will not tear away the whole kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen.” 14 Now the LORD raised up an adversary against Solomon, Hadad the Edomite; he was a descendant of the king in Edom. 15 For it happened, when David was in Edom, and Joab the commander of the army had gone up to bury the slain, after he had killed every male in Edom 16 (because for six months Joab remained there with all Israel, until he had cut down every male in Edom), 17 that Hadad fled to go to Egypt, he and certain Edomites of his father’s servants with him. Hadad was still a little child. 18 Then they arose from Midian and came to Paran; and they took men with them from Paran and came to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave him a house, apportioned food for him, and gave him land. 19 And Hadad found great favor in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him as wife the sister of his own wife, that is, the sister of Queen Tahpenes. 20 Then the sister of Tahpenes bore him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh’s house. And Genubath was in Pharaoh’s household among the sons of Pharaoh. 21 So when Hadad heard in Egypt that David rested with his fathers, and that Joab the commander of the army was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, “Let me depart, that I may go to my own country.” 22 Then Pharaoh said to him, “But what have you lacked with me, that suddenly you seek to go to your own country?” So he answered, “Nothing, but do let me go anyway.” 23 And God raised up another adversary against him, Rezon the son of Eliadah, who had fled from his lord, Hadadezer king of Zobah. 24 So he gathered men to him and became captain over a band of raiders, when David killed those of Zobah. And they went to Damascus and dwelt there and reigned in Damascus. 25 He was an adversary of Israel all the days of Solomon (besides the trouble that Hadad caused); and he abhorred Israel and reigned over Syria. 26 Then Solomon’s servant, Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite from Zereda, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow, also rebelled against the king. 27 And this is what caused him to rebel against the king: Solomon had built the Millo and repaired the damages to the City of David his father. 28 The man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor; and Solomon, seeing that the young man was industrious, made him the officer over all the labor force of the house of Joseph. 29 Now it happened at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met him on the way; and he had clothed himself with a new garment, and the two were alone in the field. 30 Then Ahijah took hold of the new garment that was on him, and tore it into twelve pieces. 31 And he said to Jeroboam, “Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and will give ten tribes to you 32 (but he shall have one tribe for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel), 33 because they have forsaken Me, and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the people of Ammon, and have not walked in My ways to do what is right in My eyes and keep My statutes and My judgments, as did his father David. 34 However I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, because I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of My servant David, whom I chose because he kept My commandments and My statutes. 35 But I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand and give it to you—ten tribes. 36 And to his son I will give one tribe, that My servant David may always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen for Myself, to put My name there. 37 So I will take you, and you shall reign over all your heart desires, and you shall be king over Israel. 38 Then it shall be, if you heed all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build for you an enduring house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you. 39 And I will afflict the descendants of David because of this, but not forever.’ ” 40 Solomon therefore sought to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose and fled to Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon. 41 Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, all that he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon? 42 And the period that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years. 43 Then Solomon rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam his son reigned in his place.
In the book of 2 Thessalonians 2:7 we read, “7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.”
The world in which we live in believe it or not is the restrained version. Evil or trouble lurks in the dark shadows just waiting and wanting to come forth.
We should daily thank our Precious Holy Spirit for His protection of us for if He didn’t you think you have problems now, just think what would happen if He didn’t cover our backs.
You might not grasp the point I am trying to make so today our Holy Spirit is going to show us exactly what I am talking about and that is Trouble lurks in the shadows.
Our Gracious and ever-loving Holy God had poured out extensively great blessings on Solomon. The thanks He got in return was that the son of David turned from following HIm. His life was a lifetime of peace. All the enemies of king Solomon both domestic and foreign were restrained by our Precious Holy Spirit from coming out of the wood work and causing trouble.
Today, we are going to see that behind the scenes evil was lurking to spring forth. Now that Solomon stopped following our Great and Marvelous Holy Lord God the restraints came off. Three problems quickly come to the forefront.
Solomon’s obsession with his own glory inevitably resulted in his beginning to feel that he was so great that he could do what he liked, for it is one of the sad traits of mankind that the more they prosper because of God’s goodness, the less concern they have for God. That was recognized by the writer of Proverbs in Proverbs 30.8-9, when he wrote, ‘Give me neither poverty nor riches, --- lest I be full and deny you, and say, Who is YHWH? or lest I be poor and steal and use profanely the Name of my God’. And that was what happened to Solomon.
He had already portrayed the traits of the false king with his chariots and horsemen, and servants and bond-slaves. Now he would do the same with his multiplicity of wives. It will be noted that in Deuteronomy 17.16-17 the multiplication of wives is linked with fetching horses from Egypt, which is again linked with a warning of in any way returning to Egypt, and Solomon had done all three. He had married Pharaoh’s daughter (3.1), he had multiplied horses from Egypt (10.28-29), and now we are to see that he multiplied wives for himself. In other words, he had specifically and deliberately ignored YHWH’s commandment, and was ignorant of God allowing judgment to happen.
11 But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites— 2 from the nations of whom the LORD had said to the children of Israel, “You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love.
The first ‘foreign woman’ to be mentioned is the daughter of Pharaoh. Along with her are mentioned the princesses of the three local Transjordanian states, the Moabites, Ammonites, and Edomites; the Phoenician Sidonians, and the Syrian Hittites. These would be treaty wives, royal princesses married to seal treaty arrangements. They were worshippers of, among others, Chemosh, Molech (Melech), Baal and Asherah (Ashtoreth/Astarte). The Moabite women had led Israel astray after Baal-peor at Shittim on the final part of the journey towards Canaan (Numbers 25.1-4), but the main Moabite god was Chemosh. Molech was a god of the Ammonites, whose influence extended over much of Canaan. It required child sacrifices and was regularly condemned in the Law of Moses (Leviticus 18.21), and by later prophets. Baal and Asherah were ‘Canaanite’ deities (Judges 2.11. We know in fact that Solomon’s first wife was an Ammonite princess, and she bore him Rehoboam (14.21).
3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart.
The extent of the empire is revealed by the number of royal wives Solomon had. And as if this were insufficient he had three hundred concubines, that is, common wives selected mainly for their beauty and ability to satisfy the his desires.
4 For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God, as was the heart of his father David.
Solomon reigned for forty years (11.42), and if he was twenty at his accession, he barely reached sixty years old. The point is that in his later years the younger women he obtained had more influence to steer him towards these gods.
5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
Two especial deities are initially mentioned. For the first we must assume a Sidonian princess got to him to compromise his loyalty to the One and only Living God, Yahweh.
6 Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and did not fully follow the LORD, as did his father David.
Solomon failed to live up to his original promises to YHWH and did what was evil in the sight of Him. The final verdict on Solomon was that he was one of the worst kings, even though he seemed to begin so well!
7 Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon.
Turn away from following the Lord and you go nuts. He built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab and for Molech the abomination of Ammon. In just a few chapters we come from Solomon taking great pride in having the One and True God promise His presence in the Temple at Jerusalem to allowing abominations sit in God’s Land. It was seen as the most heinous of sins.
8 And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
Nor did he stop there but reveled in idolatry with all his ‘foreign wives’, burning incense and sacrificing to their gods. Solomon had always been a compromiser. Now he was letting himself go all the way into evil practices.
Solomon had no doubt appeased his conscience by persuading himself that he was still honoring YHWH at the regular feasts when he took up his position as Intercessor of Israel, not realizing that in fact by that very compromise he was demeaning YHWH. He was bringing Him down to the level of the other ‘gods.
9 So the LORD became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the LORD God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice 10 and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not keep what the LORD had commanded.
We are not told how YHWH conveyed His message to Solomon, but it was probably through a prophet Ahijah (11.29) and in it He brought out the seriousness of what Solomon had done. Despite his privilege of being specifically illuminated twice by God at crucial points in his life, he had broken every promise and had defied the covenant. From now on therefore his house was only to have responsibility for two of the tribes of Israel. The other ‘ten’ would be handed over to one of his ‘servants’.
11 Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, “Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant.
YHWH’s verdict was then declared. Because Solomon had failed to keep His covenant and His statutes which YHWH had commanded him, the kingdom that YHWH had given him was to be torn away from him and given to one of his ‘servants’. Solomon was now in total disgrace, and his name was to be humiliated. Solomon’s son, instead of inheriting an empire, would become a king of a little tiny kingdom.
12 Nevertheless I will not do it in your days, for the sake of your father David; I will tear it out of the hand of your son.
Nevertheless, for the sake of David to whom YHWH had given such wonderful promises about Solomon (2 Samuel 7.12-15), this would not take place while Solomon was alive, but after he had gone. After the death of David and Bathsheba’s first son our Holy Creator called their second son ‘Love’ which they named Solomon. For David had been promised that YHWH would not take away His mercy from his son as He had taken it away from Saul (2 Samuel 7.15), and YHWH would never go back on His promise. All His mercy therefore was for David’s sake.
13 However I will not tear away the whole kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen.”
Furthermore, because He had promised to David that his throne and his kingship would last forever and had guaranteed the permanence of his house (2 Samuel 7.16) he would not take the whole kingdom out of his son’s hands but would give him one more tribe other than Judah. And He would do this ‘for David My servant’s sake, and ‘for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen’.
The notion that YHWH had chosen Jerusalem has never been stated before. But that choice had been made by David when he had brought the Ark into Jerusalem and placed it in a Sacred Tent at which sacrifices were offered, and YHWH had therefore ‘chosen it’ for David’s sake (no city had been chosen before). This was where David’s kingship had been set up, and this was therefore where it would be continued. This was quite important, for strictly, now that Solomon had turned away from YHWH, Jerusalem should have been doomed but for David’s sake it was to be spared, because as David’s city YHWH had chosen to watch over it. Jerusalem was not eternally chosen. It was chosen for David’s sake.
Yet even with these promises it did not include that Solomon would now have to deal with various troubles. We will learn of three adversaries whom, during the course of his reign, YHWH ‘raised up’ to be a thorn in Solomon’s side, Hadad the Edomite (11.14-22), Rezon of Damascus (11.23-26), and Jeroboam, the son of Nebat (11.27-40). Thus, even while Solomon had been moving on to greater and greater arrogance, YHWH had been giving him warnings about his vulnerability.
It is significant that two of these adversaries were sheltered by Egypt. Solomon had courted Egypt by marrying Pharaoh’s daughter, and now Egypt was ready to stab him in the back.
14 Now the LORD raised up an adversary against Solomon, Hadad the Edomite; he was a descendant of the king in Edom. 15 For it happened, when David was in Edom, and Joab the commander of the army had gone up to bury the slain, after he had killed every male in Edom 16 (because for six months Joab remained there with all Israel, until he had cut down every male in Edom), 17 that Hadad fled to go to Egypt, he and certain Edomites of his father’s servants with him. Hadad was still a little child. 18 Then they arose from Midian and came to Paran; and they took men with them from Paran and came to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave him a house, apportioned food for him, and gave him land. 19 And Hadad found great favor in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him as wife the sister of his own wife, that is, the sister of Queen Tahpenes. 20 Then the sister of Tahpenes bore him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh’s house. And Genubath was in Pharaoh’s household among the sons of Pharaoh. 21 So when Hadad heard in Egypt that David rested with his fathers, and that Joab the commander of the army was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, “Let me depart, that I may go to my own country.” 22 Then Pharaoh said to him, “But what have you lacked with me, that suddenly you seek to go to your own country?” So he answered, “Nothing, but do let me go anyway.” 24 So he gathered men to him and became captain over a band of raiders, when David killed those of Zobah. And they went to Damascus and dwelt there and reigned in Damascus.
The first adversary was Hadad, the Edomite. He was of the royal family of Edom and had escaped the retaliatory massacre that necessarily followed an Edomite raid on Israel that had produced many dead. Joab had, in retaliation, carried out an extermination campaign in which he had attempted to kill every male capable of fighting in Edom. To be fair to him it was the only way of preventing further raids from the mountains of Edom and making southernmost ‘Israel’ safe.
Hadad, a young teenager of the royal family, was smuggled out of the country into the land of Midian, with the aim, once it was feasible, of fleeing for refuge to Egypt. From Midian they eventually moved on to Paran in the Sinai wilderness, and then, with the assistance of the men of Paran, escaped into Egypt, where Hadad was received by the Pharaoh as royalty, and given a house, food fit for royalty and land. He gained such favor with the Pharaoh that he could marry the Pharaoh’s wife’s sister. This marriage resulted in the birth of a son named Genubath who was weaned and grew up in the Pharaoh’s household among his own sons.
Once, however, news reached Egypt that David and Joab were dead, Hadad presumably saw an opportunity of gaining back his throne and asked to be allowed to return to Edom. The Pharaoh tried to dissuade him, but in the end gave him permission to go. Once safely hidden in the mountains of Edom he rallied the men who remained (some would have escaped the massacre either by hiding in remote places, or fleeing to surrounding countries), and began to cause Solomon a great deal of ‘trouble’. In other words, from his mountain hide-out he was a constant thorn in Solomon’s side.
This crack in the peace of his realm should have given Solomon pause for thought. But when men are set on the downward path they rarely stop to think.
The next ‘adversary’ that God raised up against Solomon was Rezon of Damascus. He was an office in the army of Hadadezer, king of Zobah, at the time when David retaliated against Hadadezer for aiding the Ammonites, and brought him into subjection, slaying many men of Zobah.
23 And God raised up another adversary against him, Rezon the son of Eliadah, who had fled from his lord, Hadadezer king of Zobah. . 24 So, he gathered men to him and became captain over a band of raiders, when David killed those of Zobah. And they went to Damascus and dwelt there and reigned in Damascus. 25 He was an adversary of Israel all the days of Solomon (besides the trouble that Hadad caused); and he abhorred Israel and reigned over Syria.
Once more God is seen to be active in allowing trouble for Solomon through historic events. This time it was a man called Rezon (which means ‘chieftain’, probably the name he took when he became leader of his band.
Rezon deserted Hadadezer, and gathered a band of marauders (as David had done before him), and eventually, probably after a considerable period of time, established himself in Damascus. From there he was a constant adversary to Solomon, seeking to cause trouble whenever possible, hating Israel, and reigning over Aram (Syria). In other words, he was a constant trouble-maker and thorn in the flesh.
It may well be that Damascus still paid tribute to Solomon on and off, and that it was at least nominally tributary, but that Rezon, with his men, having virtual control of Damascus, constantly caused trouble. (It is difficult to see how it could totally have resisted the power of Solomon and remained fully independent, and it is noticeable that Rezon is not said to have been king of Damascus, which had once been garrisoned by David). Again, it was seen to be a thorn in the flesh rather than a major threat, and it does not appear to have greatly affected Solomon’s trading arrangements. In the future, however, Damascus would grow into a greater threat to Israel than Edom could ever be.
Had Solomon taken notice of this chastising of YHWH it might have faced him up with his waning obedience, but he was far too busy on his pet projects and with his wives and their false worship to bother too much about such things. And the result was that it passed him by. His failure will have devastating consequences for his descendants.
Because Solomon had not responded to YHWH’s chastening and had grievously sinned YHWH, now raised up one who was to be given the large part of Solomon’s kingdom. His name was Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and he was an Israelite, an Ephraimite from Zeredah.
26 Then Solomon’s servant, Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite from Zereda, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow, also rebelled against the king. 27 And this is what caused him to rebel against the king: Solomon had built the Millo and repaired the damages to the City of David his father. 28 The man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor; and Solomon, seeing that the young man was industrious, made him the officer over all the labor force of the house of Joseph. 29 Now it happened at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met him on the way; and he had clothed himself with a new garment, and the two were alone in the field. 30 Then Ahijah took hold of the new garment that was on him and tore it into twelve pieces. 31 And he said to Jeroboam, “Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and will give ten tribes to you 32 (but he shall have one tribe for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel), 33 because they have forsaken Me, and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the people of Ammon, and have not walked in My ways to do what is right in My eyes and keep My statutes and My judgments, as did his father David. 34 However I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, because I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of My servant David, whom I chose because he kept My commandments and My statutes. 35 But I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand and give it to you—ten tribes. 36 And to his son I will give one tribe, that My servant David may always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen for Myself, to put My name there. 37 So I will take you, and you shall reign over all your heart desires, and you shall be king over Israel. 38 Then it shall be, if you heed all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as My servant David did, then I will be with you and build for you an enduring house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you. 39 And I will afflict the descendants of David because of this, but not forever.’
Jeroboam had come to prominence because Solomon had observed how industrious and capable he was during some of his building work and had therefore set him over ‘all the labor of the house of Joseph (Ephraim and Manasseh, and possibly even more)’. This had given him great influence due to the constant levies on the people of Israel during the period of the building of the Temple, and it had also enabled him to be one who experienced the same hardship.
After some time in his position, as he was leaving Jerusalem one day, he was met in the solitariness of the countryside by the prophet Ahijah. Ahijah was deliberately wearing a new cloak (symbolic of the new kingdom), and tearing it into twelve pieces he gave ten pieces to Jeroboam, declaring that just as this cloak had been torn so Israel would be torn, with the result that ten tribes of Israel would be given to him to rule over, with two tribes remaining under the rule of the house of Solomon because of His promises to David. Jeroboam was thus destined to become king over Israel, because of Solomon’s grievous sins in connection with foreign gods.
Such a prophetic utterance was not intended to be an incitement to rebellion. It was simply preparing Jeroboam for the future (as Samuel had with David). But the fact that Solomon sought Jeroboam out to kill him suggests that Jeroboam did initiate some moves against Solomon, moves which Solomon found out about, something confirmed by later tradition which cites an actual rebellion. That may have been overstating the case, but certainly we are told that he ‘lifted up his hand against the king’ and it would appear later that the tribes of Israel looked to him as their prospective leader (12.2-3). It may well be that these moves related to seeking to make the burden of the people lighter carried to such an extent that it became insubordination.
The consequence was that he had to flee to Egypt, where he came under the protection of Shishak, the Pharaoh of a new, more enterprising dynasty, who was delighted to do anything that might contribute towards undermining Solomon’s power.
Each of these cases of the three adversaries is:
• First a reminder that if we are not wholly following the Lord He will raise up chasteners to seek to bring us to our senses (Hebrews 12.5-12).
• Second a reminder that if we ourselves do what is wrong, or fail to do what is right, we will thereby give opportunity for the enemies of God to cause trouble in our lives.
• Third a reminder, in the case of Jeroboam, that if we do not consider the consequences of our behavior and attitudes, they will in the end rebound on us.
• There is the constant warning in Kings that what we sow we will reap. It is a reminder that while God is gracious, He will not be mocked.
41 Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, all that he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon?
Quite an interesting verse that we read here. We learned how our Great Father God Yahweh had given Solomon everything a man could ever dream of. One amazing thing was ‘wisdom’. However, you must realize that what Solomon received was worldly wisdom not spiritual wisdom. For I have learned in life I would prefer if I get to pick is that I want spiritual wisdom. I want to sense God’s Presence and hear His words of instruction and guidance. We see that all the worldly wisdom of Solomon was written in a book called ‘The Acts of Solomon’. Somehow this book is not around for us to read about.
42 And the period that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.
Our Great and Gracious Jehovah Elyon – The Lord Most High gave David 40 years of rulership. Solomon reigned in Jerusalem for the whole of his adult life, and he also reigned for forty years. The ‘forty years’ indicates a full and complete reign.
43 Then Solomon rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam his son reigned in his place.
Solomon died and was buried in the city of David, and eventually Rehoboam reigned in Jerusalem in his place. At this point Rehoboam does not know yet that his kingdom is going to be drastically reduced in size.
