Is obedience to God more important than wealth and wisdom? Can a wealthy and wise man become a fool? Is greed a form of idolatry? Let’s begin in 1 Kings 11.
What did the wisest man on earth do that was very foolish? What was the result? How selfish was his polygamy, a lonely woman seeing her husband once every few years?
Now King Solomon loved many foreign women. Besides Pharaoh’s daughter, he married women from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and from among the Hittites. The Lord had clearly instructed the people of Israel, “You must not marry them, because they will turn your hearts to their gods.” Yet Solomon insisted on loving them anyway. He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines. And in fact, they did turn his heart away from the Lord. (1 Kings 11:1-3 NLT)
What did Solomon do that was evil in the eyes of the Lord?
As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods. He wasn’t committed to the Lord his God with all his heart as was his father David. Solomon followed Astarte the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom the detestable god of the Ammonites. Solomon did what was evil in the Lord’s eyes and wasn’t completely devoted to the Lord like his father David. (1 Kings 11:4-6 CEB)
Did God warn the king about his worship of foreign gods? Did Solomon obey?
Solomon built shrines on a hill east of Jerusalem to worship Chemosh the disgusting god of Moab, and Molech the disgusting god of Ammon. In fact, he built a shrine for each of his foreign wives, so all of them could burn incense and offer sacrifices to their own gods. The Lord God of Israel had appeared to Solomon two times and warned him not to worship foreign gods. But Solomon disobeyed and did it anyway. This made the Lord very angry. (1 Kings 11:7-10 CEV)
What did God plan to do to punish Solomon for his foolish disobedience?
Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this has been your practice and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant. Yet for the sake of David your father I will not do it in your days, but I will tear it out of the hand of your son. However, I will not tear away all the kingdom, but I will give one tribe to your son, for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem that I have chosen.” (1 Kings 11:11-13 ESV)
How did Hadad become an enemy of Israel, because of Solomon’s disobedience?
So the Lord raised up Hadad the Edomite as an enemy against Solomon. He was of the royal family in Edom. Earlier, when David was in Edom, Joab, the commander of the army, had gone to bury the dead and had struck down every male in Edom. For Joab and all Israel had remained there six months, until he had killed every male in Edom. Hadad fled to Egypt, along with some Edomites from his father’s servants. At the time Hadad was a small boy. Hadad and his men set out from Midian and went to Paran. They took men with them from Paran and went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave Hadad a house, ordered that he be given food, and gave him land. Pharaoh liked Hadad so much that he gave him a wife, the sister of his own wife, Queen Tahpenes. Tahpenes’ sister gave birth to Hadad’s son Genubath. Tahpenes herself weaned him in Pharaoh’s palace, and Genubath lived there along with Pharaoh’s sons. 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 leave, so I can go to my own country.” But Pharaoh asked him, “What do you lack here with me for you to want to go back to your own country?” “Nothing,” he replied, “but please let me leave.” (1 Kings 11:14-22 HCSB)
How did Rezon become an enemy of Israel, because of Solomon’s disobedience?
God also raised up Eliada’s son Rezon, who had escaped from his master King Hadadezer of Zobah. He raised an army and commanded a gang of raiders after David had eliminated those who lived in Zobah. Rezon and his army moved to Damascus, remained there, and Rezon ruled from Damascus. He opposed Israel during Solomon’s entire reign, in addition to all of the evil things that Hadad did. Rezon also hated Israel while he reigned over Aram. (1 Kings 11:23-25 ISV)
What did the prophet Ahijah say to Jeroboam about the northern ten tribes of Israel?
And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon's servant, whose mother's name was Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king. And this was the cause that he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breaches of the city of David his father. And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph. And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field: And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee: (1 Kings 11:26-31 KJV)
Would one tribe be left to the descendants of David to rule?
but he will have one tribe, for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel, because they have forsaken Me, and have worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the sons of Ammon; and they have not walked in My ways to do what is right in My sight and to keep My statutes and My judgments, as his father David did. Nevertheless I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, but I will make him ruler all the days of his life, for the sake of My servant David whom I chose, who kept My commandments and My statutes; but I will take the kingdom from his son’s hand and give it to you—the ten tribes. But to his son I will give one tribe, that My servant David may have a lamp always before Me in Jerusalem, the city where I have chosen for Myself to put My name. And I will take you, and you shall reign over whatever your soul desires, and you shall be king over Israel. Then it will be, that if you listen to all that I command you and 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 you an enduring house as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you. Thus I will afflict the seed of David for this, but not always.’” (1 Kings 11:32-39 LSB)
What did Solomon attempt to do to Jeroboam? How long was his reign?
Solomon sought therefore to put Jeroboam to death; but Jeroboam set out and fled to Egypt to Shishak king of Egypt, and he was in Egypt until the death of Solomon. Now the rest of the acts of Solomon and whatever he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the Book of the Acts of Solomon? So the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years. Then Solomon lay down with his fathers and was buried in the city of his father David, and his son Rehoboam reigned in his place. (1 Kings 11:40-43 NASB)
Is idolatry much bigger than just bowing down to idols? Is greed a basic driver of our economy?
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. (Colossians 3:5 NIV)
Is obedience to God more important than wealth and wisdom? Can a wealthy and wise man become a fool? Is greed a form of idolatry? You decide!
