Proclaimer Blog
What do you make of Solomon?
Helpful comment on the life of King Solomon and the question people ask:
In a sense Solomon sums up in himself the range of all subsequent kings. This is not only because he is most directly 'son of David' and the last to sit on the throne of the united kingdom, but that good and bad qualities are expressed most starkly in him. Many of the kings ‘do evil in the eyes of the Lord’ ; a few, notably Hezekiah and Josiah ‘walk in the ways of David’. Solomon does both and this needs to be taken into account in considering the often-raised question as to whether Solomon was condemned to eternal judgment as an apostate. We have to acknowledge that the Bible is silent on this question. The preservation in Scripture of Proverbs and other wisdom books may suggest that in the end he repented. This may be confirmed by the absence of negative comment in the New Testament.
However, often behind this lurks another question: how far can I dabble with forbidden things and get away with it? That is the wrong approach: the story of Solomon is not telling us that we can sin as much as we want and come back when we choose; rather it tells us to recognise our own weaknesses and frailties and trust in the grace of our Advocate who is able to keep us from falling. (From a forthcoming PT title)