Slices
Prepare
What gifts and talents has God given you? Pause to thank him for them and ask for opportunities to use them in his service.
Bible passage
The queen of Sheba visits Solomon
10 When the queen of Sheba heard about the fame of Solomon and his relationship to the Lord, she came to test Solomon with hard questions. 2 Arriving at Jerusalem with a very great caravan – with camels carrying spices, large quantities of gold, and precious stones – she came to Solomon and talked with him about all that she had on her mind. 3 Solomon answered all her questions; nothing was too hard for the king to explain to her. 4 When the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the palace he had built, 5 the food on his table, the seating of his officials, the attending servants in their robes, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings he made at the temple of the Lord, she was overwhelmed.
6 She said to the king, ‘The report I heard in my own country about your achievements and your wisdom is true. 7 But I did not believe these things until I came and saw with my own eyes. Indeed, not even half was told me; in wisdom and wealth you have far exceeded the report I heard. 8 How happy your people must be! How happy your officials, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! 9 Praise be to the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and placed you on the throne of Israel. Because of the Lord’s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king to maintain justice and righteousness.’
10 And she gave the king 120 talents of gold, large quantities of spices, and precious stones. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 (Hiram’s ships brought gold from Ophir; and from there they brought great cargoes of almug-wood and precious stones. 12 The king used the almug-wood to make supports for the temple of the Lord and for the royal palace, and to make harps and lyres for the musicians. So much almug-wood has never been imported or seen since that day.)
13 King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired and asked for, besides what he had given her out of his royal bounty. Then she left and returned with her retinue to her own country.
Solomon’s splendour
14 The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents, 15 not including the revenues from merchants and traders and from all the Arabian kings and the governors of the territories.
16 King Solomon made two hundred large shields of hammered gold; six hundred shekels of gold went into each shield. 17 He also made three hundred small shields of hammered gold, with three minas of gold in each shield. The king put them in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.
18 Then the king made a great throne covered with ivory and overlaid with fine gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and its back had a rounded top. On both sides of the seat were armrests, with a lion standing beside each of them. 20 Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom. 21 All King Solomon’s goblets were gold, and all the household articles in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Nothing was made of silver, because silver was considered of little value in Solomon’s days. 22 The king had a fleet of trading ships at sea along with the ships of Hiram. Once every three years it returned carrying gold, silver and ivory, and apes and baboons.
23 King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth. 24 The whole world sought audience with Solomon to hear the wisdom God had put in his heart. 25 Year after year, everyone who came brought a gift – articles of silver and gold, robes, weapons and spices, and horses and mules.
26 Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses, which he kept in the chariot cities and also with him in Jerusalem. 27 The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore-fig trees in the foothills. 28 Solomon’s horses were imported from Egypt and from Kue – the royal merchants purchased them from Kue at the current price. 29 They imported a chariot from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty. They also exported them to all the kings of the Hittites and of the Arameans.
Explore
The notes in the ‘Explore’ sections of this series in 1 Kings are written as the diary of a fictional courtier in King Solomon’s court (but look carefully at the Bible passages to check out his accounts!). As he observes, questions and comments on what he sees happening in Solomon’s life, he tries to discern God’s hand at work – and challenges us to do the same in our families, churches, communities and societies.
‘Undoubtedly, King Solomon is wise! His fame has spread all around the world and numerous foreign dignitaries (including the queen of Sheba) come to Jerusalem to learn from him. However, it seems that while they are learning godly wisdom from him, he is learning worldly wisdom from them.
‘The foreigners who come praise God for the wisdom he has given Solomon, but it’s a while since I have heard Solomon openly acknowledging that his wisdom, fame and wealth are gifts from the Lord. Instead, he seems to have become like other leaders in his display of wealth and power. Ivory thrones and gold shields are ostentatious with no practical purpose – except to impress our visitors!
‘For years now, Israel has been experiencing its most peaceful era since our nation began, but our military forces are greater than they have ever been, with new garrison cities springing up. Maybe we are at peace because the armed forces are creating a deterrent which keeps other nations from attacking us.
‘I am uneasy about all the trade taking place with Egypt and the personal wealth that Solomon is amassing (Deuteronomy 17:16,17). I wonder what God thinks?’
Respond
List some Christians in the public eye or in leadership positions. Pray that they will be able to keep God central in their lives.
Deeper Bible study
Lord, keep us from taking ourselves too seriously. Speak to us and humble us as we come to your Word today.
The desire to be famous is one of the facets of modern Western culture. It seems some people will do anything to be recognised as a celebrity. Solomon has achieved such fame that the Queen of Sheba (Sheba is a land towards the southern tip of the Arabian peninsula) has heard of him. It is perhaps not surprising, as Solomon is the key trading partner in the region, with economic power and significant influence. The queen is impressed by what Solomon has achieved – and his wisdom is breathtaking (vs 1–9). Solomon is prospering in relationship with the Lord (v 1) and his success is entirely God’s work. As people hear of Solomon, it is so that the Name of the Lord can be spread and recognised across the world. The Lord’s fame and that of Solomon are tied together.
The Queen of Sheba herself controlled a large amount of wealth (v 2). The fact that her extraordinary gifts receive mention underlines how great Solomon’s wealth is. There is so much wealth in the kingdom that even silver has become commonplace (v 21), not to mention the exotic imports (v 22). A nation established by heaven is not inferior to one established by people! To look at some churches you would be forgiven for thinking we lack resources, but God owns the cattle on a thousand hills.1 He supplies all our needs.
There is a contrast between godly and kingly rule here. Solomon has a marvellous throne (vs 19,20), but there is One who has a higher and greater throne than this, with justice and righteousness as its foundation.2 Solomon reigns over a territory, but Jesus will reign over all the earth. Solomon has enormous wealth: Jesus had everything at his disposal, yet chose to come in humility and meekness.
How often do we seek the Lord’s renown and fame above our own? Lord, sorry for times when it has been all about me.
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: 1 Kings 14,15; 1 Corinthians 15
Pray for Scripture Union
With six languages and active partner organisations in more than 30 countries, please pray for the mission of the Guardians of Ancora app. Around half the new players come to the game because friends have invited them – praise God that they are so excited about an app that lets them explore the life of Jesus.
