The number of Solomon’s wives is not just a sign of Solomon’s lust for women but probably more of his lust for power. We are told that Solomon married many foreign women, including women from the nations which God had expressly forbade his people to intermarry with. This was a well-known prohibition, so why did Solomon make such an obvious compromise? If it was just out of his lust for women, he would surely have had enough choice of women from Israel. Each of these marriages represented a political or trade alliance with a foreign noble or king. In these times, the more wives a king had the more powerful he was deemed to be. The wives were trophies of power and influence. If Solomon wanted to keep these alliances healthy, he could not forbid his wives to practice their own religions. In fact, as we read here, Solomon was even drawn into worshipping the gods of his wives with them. This story may seem so obviously shocking to you, but consider how easy it is to turn God’s blessings into our resources for the pursuit of personal ambitions. The more God has blessed you, the more wary you must be of yourself. We are the rich in the world. We have resources that the other ninety five percent of the world’s population could only dream of. We have more than enough resources to build our own security and to fulfil many of our personal ambitions. For this reason, we must be especially vigilant about ensuring we are surrendered always to God’s agenda.
Reflect on all that God has blessed you with. What are you doing with these blessings?
Read 1 Kings 11:1-13
