By Kings, Old Testament

July 11, 2019

READING TIME: 1-2 MINUTES

David, was King Solomon a believer?

Though Solomon began his reign well as Israel’s third king, he did not finish well. 1 Kings 1-10 describes Solomon’s glory and his dedication to God. There’s plenty of evidence in the text that Solomon was regenerate.

  • The Lord granted his request for wisdom with discernment between good and evil (1 Kings 3:9).
  • His childlike humility (1 Kings 3:7), his intimacy with the Lord (1 Kings 3:11-12), his prayer of dedication (1 Kings 8:23-53), and his God-given wisdom and administration.

He began his kingship by seeking and receiving wisdom from the Lord to do God’s will (1 Kings 3) but then ended it with open disobedience to the Lord through idolatry (11:1-2) due to marrying foreign wives who stole his heart from the Lord (11:35). He became an idolater and worshiped the Ashtoreth, the moon-goddess of the Sidonians and female counterpart to Baal, and Molech, the detestable god of the Ammonites (11:5) to whom children were sacrificed in the Valley of Hinnom (Gehenna).

To discipline Solomon, God raised adversaries, Hadad the Edomite (11:14), Rezon, Hadadezer, king of Zobah, and others (11:23). Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam (11:40). He was unrepentant and in carnality up to the point of his death. The kingdom was split because of his sin (12:1-33).

He “did evil in the sight of the Lord” (11:6) and then was sternly rebuked by the Lord (11:9-13). The Lord promised that his kingdom would later become divided (11:11-13) and then was divinely chastened by Him through the use of foreign enemies to Israel (11:14ff). What a sad ending to his life. Yet was Solomon a true believer in the Lord? Without question! The Holy Spirit used him to write various books of the Old Testament. Did he lose his salvation? Nowhere do the Scriptures indicate this possibility.

SOURCES USED

Dillow, Joseph. Final Destiny: The Future Reign of The Servant Kings: Fourth Revised Edition. Grace Theology Press, chapter 32.

Rokser, Dennis. Shall Never Perish Forever. Grace Gospel Press.