| I Kings 11:1 “But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites;” There is no one in this world that I love more than Sena, my wife. One of the many reasons I love her is that she knows the very best and the very worst about me and loves me anyway! Whatever bad thing someone may be able to say about me, I probably know it to be true, but my wife certainly does! Yet she loves me anyway! No one is more familiar to me than my wife.
The marriage relationship and special familiarity became the very downfall of Solomon. The Bible says that Solomon “loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh. . . .” That does not mean that Solomon had several weird wives; the word strange means “something that does not belong to someone”. Ironically, Solomon warned his son often about the strange woman in the book of Proverbs!
While Solomon warned about the strange woman in Proverbs (a woman who does not belong to his son), the strange women in I Kings 11 were strange because they did not belong to God. Solomon was most familiar with people who were not familiar with God! That makes for a real problem!
God is making a profound point by telling us that “Solomon loved many strange women”. The point is this: no one who does not belong to God should belong to you. If you are reading this and you are already married to someone who does not know the Lord, I can tell you that God can give you grace and hope. God would love to win your loved one to Himself through you! However, if you are not married, heed the warning of Solomon: no one who does not belong to God should belong to you!
These strange women were a pitfall to Solomon because they divided his affection and his direction. It is true that “a house divided against itself cannot stand.” (refer to Matthew 12:25/Luke 11:17). I Kings 11:3 tells us that “Solomon had seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart.” It is very hard to love God and love someone who does not love God! Solomon’s wives “turned away his heart after other gods” which resulted in Solomon not going “fully after the LORD.”
The commentary on Solomon in I Kings 11 is not good, but it is instructive to us today. No one who does not belong to God should belong to you. We can see that Solomon’s most familiar relationships were a pitfall, and they affected his affection and direction. May we all learn from the example of Solomon.
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Camp Quotes… “God is not looking for the highly gifted; He is looking for those who will let God be God in them.” -Evangelist Billy Ingram Prayer Requests: 1. Salvation of unsaved teen, junior, and deaf campers 2. Safety for staff and campers |