Solomon's Many Wives

In Deuteronomy 17:17 Jesus says the following to Israel’s future king "Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away…" As always Jesus knows the end from the beginning for He is the I Am. Isaiah 46:9-10. Jesus knew that in Israel’s future there would be a king that would multiply wives unto himself and that this series of decisions would turn his heart away from God.

As in all things that God predicts He is always correct. We know that David’s gathering of wives was not helpful and we find in Scripture that Solomon followed suit and added many more women than his father had. All was as God predicted. It is sad however that Solomon did not learn, either from the prophecy of God, or from the examples of the great men of God who had gone before him especially those of Abraham, Jacob, and David. We are told in Scripture that Solomon had 700 wives, princesses, and 300 concubines. I Kings 11:3.

A great question is why; in all of Solomon’s wisdom did he make such a titanic error and so blatantly violate the prophecy of God? Why did Solomon not learn from the errors of his fathers and why did his wisdom not tell Solomon that he was going in a wrong direction? We will find some of these answers in the commentary about Solomon in the book Prophets and Kings page 52-53.
"In connection with this instruction the Lord particularly cautioned the one who might be anointed king not to "multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold." Deuteronomy 17:17.

With these warnings Solomon was familiar, and for a time he heeded them. His greatest desire was to live and rule in accordance with the statutes given at Sinai. His manner of conducting the affairs of the kingdom was in striking contrast with the customs of the nations of his time--nations who feared not God and whose rulers trampled underfoot His holy law.

In seeking to strengthen his relations with the powerful kingdom lying to the southward of Israel, Solomon ventured upon forbidden ground. Satan knew the results that would attend obedience; and during the earlier years of Solomon's reign--years glorious because of the wisdom, the beneficence, and the uprightness of the king--he sought to bring in influences that would insidiously undermine Solomon's loyalty to principle and cause him to separate from God. That the enemy was successful in this effort, we know from the record: "Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh's daughter, and brought her into the City of David." 1 Kings 3:1.

From a human point of view, this marriage, though contrary to the teachings of God's law, seemed to prove a blessing; for Solomon's heathen wife was converted and united with him in the worship of the true God. Furthermore, Pharaoh rendered signal service to Israel by taking Gezer, slaying "the Canaanites that dwelt in the city," and giving it "for a present unto his daughter, Solomon's wife." 1 Kings 9:16. This city Solomon rebuilt and thus apparently greatly strengthened his kingdom along the Mediterranean seacoast. But in forming an alliance with a heathen nation, and sealing the compact by marriage with an idolatrous princess, Solomon rashly disregarded the wise provision that God had made for maintaining the purity of His people. The hope that his Egyptian wife might be converted was but a feeble excuse for the sin."

Thus did Solomon leave his simple trust in the wisdom of God and set out to trust in his own wisdom and abilities. Apparently as he looked at how "successful" this first violation had been he then thought he could do it again. Again God speaks about Solomon’s decisions in Prophets and Kings 53-54
"For a time God in His compassionate mercy overruled this terrible mistake; and the king, by a wise course, could have checked at least in a large measure the evil forces that his imprudence had set in operation. But Solomon had begun to lose sight of the Source of his power and glory. As inclination gained the ascendancy over reason, self-confidence increased, and he sought to carry out the Lord's purpose in his own way. He reasoned that political and commercial alliances with the surrounding nations would bring these nations to a knowledge of the true God; and he entered into unholy alliance with nation after nation. Often these alliances were sealed by marriages with heathen princesses. The commands of Jehovah were set aside for the customs of surrounding peoples.

Solomon flattered himself that his wisdom and the power of his example would lead his wives from idolatry to the worship of the true God, and also that the alliances thus formed would draw the nations round about into close touch with Israel. Vain hope! Solomon's mistake in regarding himself as strong enough to resist the influence of heathen associates was fatal. And fatal, too, the deception that led him to hope that notwithstanding a disregard of God's law on his part, others might be led to revere and obey its sacred precepts."

It would appear that Solomon made this mistake approximately 1000 times, and apparently with 1000 different kingdoms of man. O vain hope that one can be successful while rebelling against the direct commandments of Jesus. Praise God that we can learn from the foolishness of Solomon and not make the same mistake literally or spiritually.

But sadly the story does not end with Solomon making a thousand mistakes. God predicted that the king who would multiply wives would have his heart turned from Him. Deuteronomy 17:17. This prophecy would also come to pass. I Kings 11:1 states that Solomon loved many "strange" women and then lists places that God had forbidden Israel from taking wives from. I Kings 22:2; Exodus 34:10-17. God knew that once Solomon took these steps it would be virtually impossible to turn back without harm or injury.

Jesus also knew of His own counsel that He would give to the Apostle Paul in II Corinthians 6:14-16
"14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?
15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? 16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you."

I Corinthians 6:16-20
"15 Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid.
16 What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh.
17 But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.
18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's."

And God knew that if Solomon was to be safe he must surrender to the wisdom of God. God knew that once you unite with unbelievers it grows harder and harder to turn away and live a life dedicated to Jesus. Satan understands these same principles and he is constantly seeking to undermine these principles and to get us, as well as Solomon, to trust to ourselves and slowly turn away from God. Once we are outside of the protection of Jesus we will be his helpless prey. And sure enough God’s prediction about Solomon came to pass – "For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father." I Kings 11:4

Then to add insult to injury Solomon’s wives seduced him to worship the gods of their homelands. Solomon built temples to worship Ashtoreth, Milcom, Chemosh, and Molech, and whatever gods the rest of his wives had. In addition Solomon built these temples on the Mount of Olives directly across the valley from the temple dedicated to the worship of Jehovah. Prophets and Kings 57 records these events in the following manner:
"On the southern eminence of the Mount of Olives, opposite Mount Moriah, where stood the beautiful temple of Jehovah, Solomon erected an imposing pile of buildings to be used as idolatrous shrines. To please his wives, he placed huge idols, unshapely images of wood and stone, amidst the groves of myrtle and olive. There, before the altars of heathen deities, "Chemosh, the abomination of Moab," and "Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon," were practiced the most degrading rites of heathenism. Verse 7.

Solomon's course brought its sure penalty. His separation from God through communication with idolaters was his ruin. As he cast off his allegiance to God, he lost the mastery of himself. His moral efficiency was gone. His fine sensibilities became blunted, his conscience seared. He who in his early reign had displayed so much wisdom and sympathy in restoring a helpless babe to its unfortunate mother (see 1 Kings 3:16-28), fell so low as to consent to the erection of an idol to whom living children were offered as sacrifices. He who in his youth was endowed with discretion and understanding, and who in his strong manhood had been inspired to write, "There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death" (Proverbs 14:12), in later years departed so far from purity as to countenance licentious, revolting rites connected with the worship of Chemosh and Ashtoreth. He who at the dedication of the temple had said to his people, "Let your heart therefore be perfect with the Lord our God" (1 Kings 8:61), became himself an offender, in heart and life denying his own words. He mistook license for liberty. He tried--but at what cost! --to unite light with darkness, good with evil, purity with impurity, Christ with Belial."

What a sad testimony for the wisest man in the history of the world to give, that wisdom, apart from God is foolishness. Praise God that He was able to find a way to bring this wounded man back to a saving relationship with God, but O what a cost. O that Solomon would have been true throughout his life, what a wonderful testimony that would have been.

But the story goes on. God will use this experience of Solomon to tell us more and give us greater warnings to stay close to Jesus lest in our pride we think we stand when in actuality we have fallen. I Corinthians 10:12. In our next chapter we will see that God has a message for the end times and He has chosen to use this fall of Solomon, through his wives, to warn us and to clarify spiritual issues.