Solomon's Idolatry

When Solomon became old, his wives shifted his allegiance to other gods; he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God, as his father David had been. – 1 Kings 11:4 (NET)

As Solomon “had seven hundred royal wives and three hundred concubines” (11:3a), it is not surprising to find that “his wives had a powerful influence over him” (11:3b). Israel’s God had warned His people that such entangling relationships “will surely shift your allegiance to their gods” (11:2b), but Solomon, unfortunately, did not heed this warning.

He had been very much a king in the mold that God intended for His covenant people. God had made Solomon a shining light. God had granted Him “firm control of the kingdom” (2:46b), while also giving him “supernatural wisdom to make judicial decisions” (3:28b). During his reign, “The people of Judah and Israel were as innumerable as the sand on the seashore” (4:20a), which is a hearkening voice to God’s covenant with Abraham to make his descendants as numerous as the dust of the earth. In another allusion to the promise that Abraham’s descendants would bless all peoples, we find that “People from all nations came to hear Solomon’s display of wisdom; they came from all the kings of the earth who heard about his wisdom” (4:34).

With that, our eyes are cast to the second Psalm, where we read, “So now, you kings, do what is wise; you rulers of the earth, submit to correction!” (2:10). In many ways, Solomon provides the model for Israel’s messiah; and the flourishing of God’s people under his rule points to the blessings bestowed upon the people of God in union with His anointed Messiah (Jesus the Christ). Yes, “King Solomon was wealthier and wiser than any of the kings of the world. Everyone in the world wanted to visit Solomon to see him display his God-given wisdom” (10:23-24). A shining light of God’s glory for the world to see indeed!

But then, idolatry. “The Lord was angry with Solomon because he had shifted his allegiance away from the Lord, the God of Israel, Who had appeared to him on two occasions” (11:9). By his idolatry, Solomon had broken faith (shifted allegiance). He had violated the primary terms of God’s covenant with His people, which were to avoid idolatry, to reverence His sanctuary, and to keep His Sabbaths. His entrance into idolatry is the context for God coming to him and saying, “Because you insist on doing these things and have not kept the covenantal rules I gave you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant” (11:11b). With that, “The Lord brought against Solomon an enemy” (11:14a).

The fact that idolatry was the issue at hand in the tearing away of the kingdom, and its eventual division into northern (Israel) and southern (Judah) kingdoms, is reinforced by the message delivered to the man who would become the first king of the northern kingdom of Israel. The prophet Ahijah speaks to Jeroboam, a man whom Solomon had made a leader of a work crew (11:28) and was thus one of Solomon’s servants, and says, “I am taking the kingdom from him because they have abandoned Me and worshiped the Sidonian goddess Astarte, the Moabite god Chemosh, and the Ammonite god Milcom. They have not followed My instructions by doing what I approve and obeying My rules and regulations, like Solomon’s father David did” (11:33). Furthermore, Jeroboam is told, “I will select you; you will ruler over all you desire to have and you will be king over Israel. You must obey all I command you to do, follow my instructions, do what I approve, and keep My rules and commandments, like My servant David did. Then I will be with you and establish for you a lasting dynasty as I did for David; I will give you Israel” (11:37-38). Naturally and not unexpectedly, “Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam” (11:40a).

So with the example of Solomon fresh in his mind and with the receipt of clear instruction from the Lord through His prophet, what did Jeroboam do? What was his first act as king of Israel? “After the king had consulted with his advisers, he made two golden calves. Then he said to the people, ‘It is too much trouble for you to go up to Jerusalem. Look, Israel, here are your gods who brought you up from the land of Egypt’.” (12:28) With this mention of Egypt, not only does he invoke memories of the disaster of the golden calf at Sinai, but couches the introduction of idolatry in the language of exodus, suggesting that Israel’s deliverance from real and potential enemies, and their deliverance from dominance by the tribe of Judah, was and will be connected with their worship of these idols, their newly minted gods.

God’s people rarely ever learn. With tremendous irony, it is almost immediately that Jeroboam engages in idolatry, while encouraging the people to do the same, which is the very thing that Solomon had done, and which had produced the result of Jeroboam becoming king in the first place. We read, quite plainly, that this action by Jeroboam “caused Israel to sin” (12:30a). That is, they traveled the same path that Solomon had traveled, submitting in worship to that which was created, willingly giving up their image-of-God-bearing-stewardship-over-God’s-creation. Thereby, it would be impossible for them to fulfill their covenant responsibilities to be lights to the surrounding nations (as Solomon and Israel had been for a time) that would bring glory to their God. This was sin.