Understanding

King Solomon was the wisest king that ever lived and the richest king also. When Solomon became king he knew that he had a great responsibility and that he would need God’s help to accomplish this enormous task that he was given to accomplish.  The faith of his father, David, must have had a great impact on his life.  Many of the king’s sons did evil in the eyes of the Lord but one of the first things King Solomon did was to seek the Lord for His help.  

It says in 2 Chronicles 1:7–12, “That night God appeared to Solomon and said to him, ‘Ask for whatever you want me to give you.’  Solomon answered God, ‘You have shown great kindness to David my father and have made me king in his place. Now, LORD God, let your promise to my father David be confirmed, for you have made me king over a people who are as numerous as the dust of the earth. Give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may lead this people, for who is able to govern this great people of yours?’  God said to Solomon, ‘Since this is your heart’s desire and you have not asked for wealth, riches or honor, nor for the death of your enemies, and since you have not asked for a long life but for wisdom and knowledge to govern my people over whom I have made you king, therefore wisdom and knowledge will be given you. And I will also give you wealth, riches and honor, such as no king who was before you ever had and none after you will have.’”  (NIV)  

King Solomon knew that without the Lord’s help he couldn’t possibly rule God’s people efficiently.  Could he have ruled and not sought the Lord?  Sure he could have, many of the other kings did.  We can also live our lives without the Lord, we can go through life doing our own thing, and many are, but whatever we accomplish will never be as fruitful as it would be if we had the Lord directing our paths.

The Word says in Psalms 127:1, “Unless the Lord builds the house they labor in vain that build it.  Unless the Lord guards the city the watchman keeps awake in vain.”  (NAS)  If you want to do your best and accomplish the most, you need to partner with the Lord letting Him be in charge of the work.  Unless you have the Lord’s protection over you and your home or your city, town or country you are not safe.  Our President and his advisers could learn a lesson from this.  Solomon knew all this and knew the Lord was the only one that could help him. He saw how the Lord worked in his dad’s life and how faithful He was to him and Solomon wanted the Lord to continue to bless him and work in his life the same way.       

Solomon was very wise and people sought out his wisdom.  Even the Queen of Sheba heard about Solomon’s wisdom and wanted to experience it for herself, for to her hearing about Solomon’s wisdom wasn’t enough she wanted to hear him herself.  I guess that is the way I have always felt about the Word of God, instead of just hearing about it and just taking the person’s word for it I chose to study it for myself.  The same could be said about the Lord, instead of just hearing about Him I wanted to know Him personally.  Where could I get to know the Lord on a more personal level and to receive more of his wisdom?  By studying His Word!

Solomon was the one who wrote the book of Ecclesiastes and most of it seems very negative.  I don’t think Solomon was a negative person but I think he knew that without God controlling a person’s life everything was really meaningless, kind of like chasing the wind.  I think he was speaking from his own experience.  Being a king was no easy task and Solomon knew it.  Think about this, with all the wisdom he was given he still made some very bad choices.  So when it was all said and done after he had seen it all and knew what was needed the most in everyone’s life Solomon said this in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, “Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.  For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” (NIV)  

Solomon learned what real wisdom was, as it says in Proverbs 11:10, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”  If you would like godly wisdom, the first thing you have to do to obtain this wisdom is to confess that you are a sinner, repent and ask the Lord to forgive you and believe that Jesus is God’s Son and that He shed His blood for your sins.  If you are truly sincere you will be born-again.  Then ask the Lord for wisdom and He will give it to you.  Get a Bible and start studying it, for in those pages you will find much wisdom and knowledge, be sure to put what you read into practice.  Find a Bible believing church and continue to learn.  Then start thanking and praising the Lord and let the Lord fulfill the plan He has for your life.  God bless and have a great day!