Joel M Bradshaw

1King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter—Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. 2They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. 3He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray. 4As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. 5He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. 6So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the Lord; he did not follow the Lord completely, as David his father had done.

7On a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites. 8He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.

9The Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. 10Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the Lord’s command. 11So the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. 12Nevertheless, for the sake of David your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”–1 Kings 11

1. The end of verse 3 is key: “and his wives led him astray.”
2. They did this by getting Solomon to worship their gods.
3. Even though God appeared to Solomon twice, Solomon made Yahweh an equal worship choice to the gods and goddesses of his lovers.
4. Didn’t the Exodus story already settle this? No other object of worship is in Yahweh’s category or is His equal!
5. God, of course, promised Solomon disastrous results regarding his kingdom legacy. Only for the sake of David, would God keep the kingdom, in part, in place.
6. Compromise in marriage is usually a wonderful thing. But compromise should never lead to excusing sin. When we justify or defend sin, we follow an idol. This was literally what Solomon was doing.
7. This kind of compromise specifically breaks the first of the Ten Commandments and is a sin. Solomon’s marriages led him further down his disastrous path of compromise in the worst way. Where do you compromise? What sin in your life do you justify or defend? Are you at times led astray by the things of this world?–JMB