King Solomon - Adulterer - Idolator

[Duckybill]

What think ye? Was Solomon saved? He committed adultery MANY times. It's clear he also was an idolator.

1 Kings 11:1-4 (NASB)
1 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women, 2 from the nations concerning which the Lord had said to the sons of Israel, "You shall not associate with them, nor shall they associate with you, for they will surely turn your heart away after their gods." Solomon held fast to these in love. 3 He had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines, and his wives turned his heart away. 4 For when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away after other gods; and his heart was not wholly devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been.

 

[xDenax]

By "saved" do you mean spared from going to hell?

 

[Duckybill]

Sure

 

[James1979]

DuckyBill,

King Solomon was not a child of God sadly as that may sound. Here's a verse which helps us see that, despite of Solomon's wisdom that was given to him by God and the many beautiful verses that Solomon spoke about in Songs of Solomon.

1Ki 11:4 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.


When know that King David was not entirely perfect in his ways all the days of his life but as you know with the language of David's heart being perfect before the Lord means that he was a child of God (as God the Holy Spirit gave King David a new spirit and a new heart after God's heart, sealed by the Holy Spirit)

King Solomon was not saved despite of building the Lord's House. He was just simply committing outward righteous acts at the very beginning when he built the Lord House and then his true nature begin to show when he started to mess with various women and setup altars for their Gods and never turned from his wicked ways. So he died as an unsaved person, meaning he died in his sins and did not died with Christ. I hope that helps.

 

[MikhaelDavid]

James,

Solomon was definitely saved, though back-slided for a while.. He was definitely guilty of Idolatry and marrying of unbelievers but those are his only outward sins. Ecclesiastes is known as Solomons penitent words, noticed the ending,

"Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil."


God choose Solomon, and Solomon was and is a man of God. Yes, he sinned and God judged him temporally for it which brought him back to God near the end but God through the shed blood of Christ forgave him spiritually and so his sins have been washed away.. So Yes Solomon I believe is in Heaven.. Salvation can not be lost, it has always been a free gift, By Grace in Christ through Faith Alone. Solomon was saved in the same way we are and did not lose his salvation, but did sin, and he repented which showed a true conversion..


Remember, God requires magistrates to BE men of God... God would not contradict himself, Notice Ex. 18 "Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens"


This requires Magistrates to BE believers.. How much more when God chooses the man who will be king to be over the people... Solomon was also considered a Prophet which wrote scriptures and wrote prophetic utterances in the Psalms.. God would not have a Prophet that was chosen by God to be a Prophet and to be a spoke-voice of God and record Holy Words of God and Prophecy.. These were all gifts of a converted heart and one specially chosen by God....



Thats my two cents...

DuckyBill,

King Solomon was not a child of God sadly as that may sound. Here's a verse which helps us see that, despite of Solomon's wisdom that was given to him by God and the many beautiful verses that Solomon spoke about in Songs of Solomon.

1Ki 11:4 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.


When know that King David was not entirely perfect in his ways all the days of his life but as you know with the language of David's heart being perfect before the Lord means that he was a child of God (as God the Holy Spirit gave King David a new spirit and a new heart after God's heart, sealed by the Holy Spirit)

King Solomon was not saved despite of building the Lord's House. He was just simply committing outward righteous acts at the very beginning when he built the Lord House and then his true nature begin to show when he started to mess with various women and setup altars for their Gods and never turned from his wicked ways. So he died as an unsaved person, meaning he died in his sins and did not died with Christ. I hope that helps.

 

[MikhaelDavid]

Duckybill,

I wanted to send you a private PM for additional private thoughts on Solomon but I can't seem to.

Send me a PM when I can and I will respond further, though privately.. Solomon is a sensitive and emotional topic for most people, and most people do not understand due to our cultural influence..

 

[James1979]

MikhaelDavid,

There's no indication or recorded that Solomon repented, just because it's written in the book of Ecclesiastes about fearing god and keep the whole law is this is the duty of man. That's a true statement, but that doesn't necessarily mean that Solomon repented.

Here in 1 Chronicles 29:19 And give unto Solomon my son a perfect heart, to keep thy commandments, thy testimonies, and thy statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for the which I have made provision.

David his father is asking God to give his son a perfect heart to obey God and we know that God did not give Solomon a perfect.

1Ki 11:4 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.

Solomon forsook the Lord and kept acting wickedly. God sent him some adversary to his life as well.

Plus when ever Solomon spoke..he had two scribes and a recorder with him. They may have penned the books of the bible rather than Solomon. This is recorder in 1Kings 4:3 Elihoreph and Ahiah, the sons of Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, the recorder.

Plus if Solomon had truly repented..the altars and the high places would have been gone for the next king who was in line to rule over the Israel. But obviously that wasn't the case..I believe the altars setting up for false Gods and the high places were finally take away in the days of King Josiah.

 

[MikhaelDavid]

James,

Here is a great short article regarding this subject from a minister in a sister denomination of mine. His name is Herman Hanko..


Question: "Is the Solomon of Scripture among the redeemed?"

"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. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. And Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and went not fully after the Lord, as did David his father. Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods. And the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the Lord God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice" (4-9).

II Chronicles, which describes Solomon’s deeds and glorious kingdom, does not refer to his sins. But the striking point of both narratives, and especially the one in I Kings 11, is that no mention is made of Solomon’s repentance, not even when God told Solomon that because of his sin, a large part of the kingdom would be taken from the line of David (11-13).


The Scriptures are clear that no impenitent person will go to heaven. The way to glory for us sinners is the way of repentance. This is true in the new dispensation; it was equally true in the old. One would think that, if Solomon were saved after such atrocious sins, Scripture would make reference to his repentance. That it does not would seem to indicate that Solomon was not among the redeemed.


Nevertheless, I am convinced that Solomon was saved and that we will see Solomon in glory. The grounds for this assertion lie in the Bible’s description of his life, first of all. Scripture tells us that "Solomon loved the Lord" (I Kings 3:3). No unbeliever loves the Lord. That Solomon’s love was genuine is evident from the appearance of the Lord to Solomon at Gibeon (5-14). At the time of that appearance, Solomon made the right choice when asked what he wanted to receive from God; he asked for wisdom because of his awareness that he had to rule the people of God. God approved of that choice, and Solomon, in gratitude to God, "came to Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered up burnt offerings, and offered peace offerings" (15).


God gave Solomon wisdom beyond that which anyone else possessed (I Kings 4:29-34). Wisdom is a gift that God bestows only on His people, for wisdom is the spiritual ability to apply the abiding principles of God’s Word to one’s walk in life. Solomon’s wisdom went even beyond that and included an understanding of God’s creation and the ability to make proverbs and compose songs (32-33). His proverbs are inspired Scripture and tell us of Christ, the true wisdom of God (cf. esp. Prov. 8).

Solomon built the temple because he wanted a house for the Lord his God (I Kings 5:5), and he did so knowing that he was the son of David, the one whom the Lord had promised David and who would build the temple. It is true that these promises refer to Christ, but they refer, first, to Solomon, a type of Christ in his wisdom and in the splendour of his reign (I Kings 5:5; II Sam. 7:12-15; Ps. 89:19-37). It is, I think, impossible that Solomon could be a type of Christ as a son of David, as one who built the temple, as the personification of God’s wisdom, and as the son promised to David as part of God’s covenant with David, without his being among the redeemed.


But, finally, I am convinced that Scripture does give us Solomon’s repentance. It is found in the book of Ecclesiastes. It is quite apparent that Solomon wrote this book at the end of his life, after having tasted to the full all the riches and pleasures that life could afford. He had power, prestige, wealth beyond counting, a mighty kingdom, consorts, palaces and gardens—everything in the world anyone could want or desire. But over the top of it is written: Vanity of vanities; all is vanity. He came to learn the truth of it and he characterized it in the light of God’s evaluation of things. In all the things of this earth one can find no joy, no peace, no genuine usefulness, nothing worthwhile for time or eternity. And, if you might conclude from all this that such an evaluation of this earth’s possessions is not yet repentance, I remind you of what Solomon says at the conclusion of the book (and in the light of his idolatry): "Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity. And moreover, because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs. The preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth [Solomon must have written some of his proverbs after his repentance] ... Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil" (Ecc. 12:8-10, 13-14).


Solomon was among the redeemed; there can be no question about it. But as a type of Christ, he proved to be only a type, an imperfect picture. He was, after all, not wise at all, but very foolish. If salvation was to come through Solomon, it was hopeless, for he too needed salvation. His sins were great, but not beyond the redeeming power of the One who was "greater than Solomon" (Matt. 12:42).



Solomon too looked for Christ’s coming and longed for it.
And the comfort for us is that we too may know that our sins are forgiven in the way of repentance—no matter how many and how great.

MikhaelDavid,

There's no indication or recorded that Solomon repented, just because it's written in the book of Ecclesiastes about fearing god and keep the whole law is this is the duty of man. That's a true statement, but that doesn't necessarily mean that Solomon repented.

Here in 1 Chronicles 29:19 And give unto Solomon my son a perfect heart, to keep thy commandments, thy testimonies, and thy statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for the which I have made provision.

David his father is asking God to give his son a perfect heart to obey God and we know that God did not give Solomon a perfect.

1Ki 11:4 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.

Solomon forsook the Lord and kept acting wickedly. God sent him some adversary to his life as well.

Plus when ever Solomon spoke..he had two scribes and a recorder with him. They may have penned the books of the bible rather than Solomon. This is recorder in 1Kings 4:3 Elihoreph and Ahiah, the sons of Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, the recorder.

Plus if Solomon had truly repented..the altars and the high places would have been gone for the next king who was in line to rule over the Israel. But obviously that wasn't the case..I believe the altars setting up for false Gods and the high places were finally take away in the days of King Josiah.

 

[MikhaelDavid]

Matthew Henry in his commentary says regarding Solomon:

The account we have of Solomon's apostasy from God, in the latter end of his reign 1 Kings 11:1, is the tragical part of his story; we may suppose that he spoke his Proverbs in the prime of his time, while he kept his integrity, but delivered his Ecclesiastes when he had grown old (for of the burdens and decays of age he speaks feelingly ch. 12), and was, by the grace of God, recovered from his backslidings.

 

[MikhaelDavid]

The book of Ecclesiastes was to Solomon what Psalm 51 was to David—his document of repentance.

Mikhael

 

[yedida]

James,
God would not have a Prophet that was chosen by God to be a Prophet and to be a spoke-voice of God and record Holy Words of God and Prophecy.. These were all gifts of a converted heart and one specially chosen by God....
Thats my two cents...

MD,
Wouldn't Balaam fall into the above category? He was at first an enemy of God but He was chosen to be His prophet, filled with the Spirit for a season before he apostisized.

 

[Lulav]

What think ye? Was Solomon saved? He committed adultery MANY times. It's clear he also was an idolator.

1 Kings 11:1-4 (NASB)
1 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women, 2 from the nations concerning which the Lord had said to the sons of Israel, "You shall not associate with them, nor shall they associate with you, for they will surely turn your heart away after their gods." Solomon held fast to these in love. 3 He had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines, and his wives turned his heart away. 4 For when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away after other gods; and his heart was not wholly devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been.

I thin the word you are looking for is bigamy, which is not 'illegal' in the Torah.

 

[Henaynei]

This is the same man who, after years of seeking "wine, women and song" to fill his heart wrote that all that is deception, distraction and etherial, satisfying nothing, signifying nothing - in Ecc., and numerous similar strong admonitions in Proverbs.

 

[Lulav]

Not to mention, the most beautiful poetry ever written in the Song of Songs.

 

[Desert Rose]

I want to believe he was saved. Not to move this into pro/anti OSAS debate, but i have hard time believing one can lose/or prove his salvation invalid just by building altars to other gods.
If it was so, most of us would be at risk, considering our devotion to "things", thats figuratevely speaking,is building altars to other gods .....
He never denied One God of Israel.

 

[yedida]

No he didn't and Yeshua called him "great." So????? Guess we'll have to wait to find out for sure, huh?

 

[ContraMundum]

The OT is a rogues gallery at the best of times. Moses was a murderer, for example.

That's what proves that the Bible is not faked. It's ugly in parts. God is good, and loves the contrite heart. So, let's reserve judgment on Solomon, Moses, whoever, for God.

 

[apache1]

Sometimes I think the Bible uses examples of people on how not to live as much as how to live. Neither David nor Solomon would be my ideal. Now, Moses, this dude was larger than life. Not perfect, but I don't want to be around (or model myself after) too goody two-shoes of a person, anyway. Moses was like a living Cecil B. De Mille film walking around, taking care of evil bull-whipping taskmasters, sending (from God, of couse) life altering plagues, causing (once again from God) a big old body of shark-infested water to part, and bringing the Ten Commandments down from Mt. Sinai (that had to be a sobering but epic experience), and still with the health of a young man at 120 years old. He was the ultimate bad-dude you don't mess with!

 

[Gxg (G²)]

The OT is a rogues gallery at the best of times. Moses was a murderer, for example.

That's what proves that the Bible is not faked. It's ugly in parts. God is good, and loves the contrite heart. So, let's reserve judgment on Solomon, Moses, whoever, for God.

It'd be rated "R" if made into a movie..

 

[ContraMundum]

Sometimes I think the Bible uses examples of people on how not to live as much as how to live. Neither David nor Solomon would be my ideal. Now, Moses, this dude was larger than life. Not perfect, but I don't want to be around (or model myself after) too goody two-shoes of a person, anyway. Moses was like a living Cecil B. De Mille film walking around, taking care of evil bull-whipping taskmasters, sending (from God, of couse) life altering plagues, causing (once again from God) a big old body of shark-infested water to part, and bringing the Ten Commandments down from Mt. Sinai (that had to be a sobering but epic experience), and still with the health of a young man at 120 years old. He was the ultimate bad-dude you don't mess with!

..not to mention the execution and slaughter of his fellow Israelites.