The Destruction of the First Temple (a.) 1 Kings 11:1-28 - King James Version (KJV)
Intermarriage with Foreign Women
11 But king Solomon loved many strange women, together
with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites,
Zidonians, and Hittites:
2 Of the nations
concerning which the Lord said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in
to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away
your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.
3 And he had seven hundred
wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his
heart.
Worship of Idols
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.
5 For Solomon went after
Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the
Ammonites.
6 And Solomon did evil in
the sight of the Lord, and went not fully after the Lord, as did David his
father.
7 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.
8 And likewise did he for
all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.
The Rebuke of God
9 And the Lord was angry
with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the Lord God of Israel, which
had appeared unto him twice,
10 And had commanded him
concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not
that which the Lord commanded.
11 Wherefore the Lord said
unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my
covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the
kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.
12 Notwithstanding in thy
days I will not do it for David thy father's sake: but I will rend it out of
the hand of thy son.
13 Howbeit I will not rend
away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant's
sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen.
The Chastisement of God
14 And the Lord stirred up
an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite: he was of the king's seed in
Edom.
15 For it came to pass,
when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury
the slain, after he had smitten every male in Edom;
16 (For six months did
Joab remain there with all Israel, until he had cut off every male in Edom:)
17 That Hadad fled, he and
certain Edomites of his father's servants with him, to go into Egypt; Hadad
being yet a little child.
18 And they arose out of
Midian, and came to Paran: and they took men with them out of Paran, and they
came to Egypt, unto Pharaoh king of Egypt; which gave him an house, and
appointed him victuals, and gave him land.
19 And Hadad found great
favour in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his
own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen.
20 And the sister of
Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh's house:
and Genubath was in Pharaoh's household among the sons of Pharaoh.
21 And when Hadad heard in
Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the host
was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart, that I may go to mine own
country.
22 Then Pharaoh said unto
him, But what hast thou lacked with me, that, behold, thou seekest to go to
thine own country? And he answered, Nothing: howbeit let me go in any wise.
23 And God stirred him up
another adversary, Rezon the son of Eliadah, which fled from his lord Hadadezer
king of Zobah:
24 And he gathered men
unto him, and became captain over a band, when David slew them of Zobah: and
they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus.
25 And he was an adversary
to Israel all the days of Solomon, beside the mischief that Hadad did: and he
abhorred Israel, and reigned over Syria.
26 And Jeroboam the son of
Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon's servant, whose mother's name was
Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king.
27 And this was the cause
that he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired
the breaches of the city of David his father.
28 And the man Jeroboam
was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was
industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph.
T
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he destruction of the First Temple was the watershed
(turning point) of Jewish history. Notwithstanding their inadequacy, the Jewish
people took the lessons of the destruction to heart and rebuilt their lives
physically and spiritually.
The Ninth of Av
At sunset at the beginning of the ninth day of the month
of Av the Babylonians set fire to the Temple. The fire began at night just
after the close of the Sabbath; and it was completely destroyed.
The Ninth of Av became a
fast day on the Jewish calendar. The Second Temple, too, would be destroyed
four centuries later on the very same date, the ninth of Av.
God’s protective Hand,
which guides everything in history, was removed. When it was
removed, the Temple was but an empty shell. “If the owner of the house is no
longer there then the robbers can plunder.” That is what the Jewish people
mourned.
Three behaviors led to the destruction of Solomon’s temple:
- Paganism
- the lack of any allegiance to God.
- Murder
- little value on human life. Human life reigns supreme. The instances
when human life can be taken are extremely limited.
- Adultery
- sexual immorality. Human beings can – indeed, must – do something to
improve. The lesson of the destruction of the Temple made that concept
real.
Make
no mistake about it: God
gives special recognition to those whose hearts are wholly His. To believe that casual devotion to God is as
blessed as whole-hearted devotion is self-deception. Be very careful not to let
those for whom you have affection lead you away from full devotion to the Lord.
11:1-4 The greatest kingdom
of the known world began to crumble, not from external opposition, but from
internal weakness. Not only was Solomon prohibited from multiplying horses (see
10:26, 28, 29), but it was also forbidden for him to marry many wives (Deut.
17:17). The reason for this
restriction was that pagan wives would lead God’s people into idolatry. As God had warned, so it happened.
11:5-7 Ashtoreth was the
Canaanite goddess of fertility whose worship involved not only sexual rites,
but also astrology. The worship of Milcom
or Molech included human sacrifices, especially of children. The worship of Chemosh was equally
cruel and also centered in astrology. High Places
·
High Places. During the time of the Book
of Judges, Israel adopted the pagan custom of offering sacrifices at high
places (elevated hilltops). The pagans believed the closer they were to
heaven, the greater the chance their prayer and sacrifices would reach their
gods. Since many of these high places
were old Baal sites, this practice was expressly forbidden to the Israelites (Lev.
17:3,4). But in certain exceptions
the Lord gave His approval for His people to worship HIM at a high
place) 1 Sam. 9:12-14). The high
places in v.2 and the great high place in v.4 appear to fall under this
unusual exception, because there was no house built unto the name of the Lord,
until those days (v.2). Since the
tabernacle of Moses and the great bronze altar were at the great high place at
Gibeon (1 Chr. 16:39; 21:29; 2 Chr. 1:3-6).
Solomon’s sacrifice there is not to be seen as idolatrous.
11:9-13 Even in the midst
of judgment, God shows mercy by promising not to take the kingdom from Solomon
in his lifetime (v.12) and by assuring him that his son will reign over one
tribe (v.13).
11:14-25 In addition to
the internal weakness, the Lord now brings external opposition by raising up
two adversaries. Hadad the Edomite (vv. 14-22) and Rezon…of Zobah
(vv. 23-25.
11:26-28 The most
dangerous adversary the Lord raised up against Solomon was Jeroboam, for he led
a revolt from within. Jeroboam would
later lead 10 of the tribes of Israel in a rebellion against Solomon’s
successor Rehoboam, and he became the first king of the northern kingdom known
as "Israel"
Playwright Janet Irene Thomas
Founder/President/CEO
Bible Stories Theatre of
Fine & Performing Arts
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