#45 HE KNEW BUT DID NOT OBEY

Daily Devotion from sermon #104 THE BITTERNESS OF SIN

"And Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh’s daughter, and brought her into the city of David, until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of the LORD, and the wall of Jerusalem round about." 1KI 3:1.

Let us consider the commandments, which Solomon had full knowledge of, yet disobeyed. Solomon was well aware of God’s commandments. We read in 1KI 3:3, "And Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of David his father." He was well trained in the commandments of the Lord.

The Lord spoke by Moses in DEU 17:14-16, "When thou art come unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me; Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy God shall choose [Solomon was in compliance with this]: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother [Solomon was in compliance with this also]. But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the LORD hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way." Solomon disobeyed all three of those final commandments. He multiplied horses unto himself, he returned unto Egypt (he had an affinity with Pharaoh and married his daughter), and he received horses from Egypt. He opened a trade agreement with the Egyptians and traded with them constantly.

Verse 17 says, "Neither shall he multiply wives to himself [Solomon disobeyed that], that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold." We read how Solomon’s wives turned his heart away from the Lord. He heard and he knew, but he did not obey. He did the very things the Lord cautioned him against. He compromised the Word of God. "Neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold." Solomon made silver as common as the gravel in the streets. He sent ships to Haran to get gold year by year, multiplying unto himself silver and gold. He fell miserably disobeying the Lord; he heard the Word but did not do it.

Solomon was fully aware of God’s warning in EXO 34:14-16. "For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God: Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice; And thou take of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a whoring after their gods, and make thy sons go a whoring after their gods." Solomon did not obey and ignored the Word of God. He took wives from among the heathen. He bowed down and worshipped their idol gods.

Solomon truly loved the Lord, but his heart was not right with the Lord. Not only was it an exception to God’s commands that he offered in the high places, but also his whole life was filled with exceptions to the Word of God.

God granted Solomon’s request, as we find in 1KI 3:9, "Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?" He was given the wisdom to discern between right and wrong, but he did not do it. This makes our hearts tremble, to see how the Lord is such a jealous God.

He gave Solomon what he requested: a spiritual understanding to discern what was good and what was bad. This promise was granted with a warning in 1KI 3:14; "And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days." The Lord gave a warning not to turn from His ways when He granted Solomon’s request.

Solomon had the Psalms and sermons of his father David ringing in his ears. His father was the sweet Psalmist of Israel. He had the example of his father’s sin and consequent judgment. He saw that the Lord would not tolerate sin. David had warned his son, when he gave him the crown, in 1KI 2:3, "And keep the charge of the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself." Solomon was fully aware, as were the men of Judah and Israel. They loved to hear the Word, but they did not obey it. Amen.

Ye children, come, give ear to me
And learn Jehovah’s fear;
He who would long and happy live,
Let him my counsel hear.
Restrain thy lips from speaking guile,
From wicked speech depart,
From evil turn and do the good,
Seek peace with all thy heart.

Jehovah’s eyes are on the just,
He harkens to their cry;
Against the wicked sets his face,
Their very name shall die.From Psalm 34:11-15

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