The biblical account of Solomon’s reign contains criticisms; these criticisms illustrate the date of the narrative. Solomon was looked upon as a ruler of peace and welfare. He inherited his throne at a young age from King David. The land he inherited in 970 BC, Israel, ran all along the Mediterranean in the west, up to the Euphrates River in the north, and down all the way to the desert in the south and east.(George Konig, 68) Solomon did not expand his territory any further; rather he built alliances with surrounding countries and developed trade. The traditional powers of the ancient world, the Egyptians and the Hittites, and the empires yet to appear, Assyria and Babylon, were not aggressive during either David’s or Solomon’s rule.(George Konig, 68) David had expanded Israel’s sphere of influence by war; Solomon was a diplomat, who held what his father had gained. During Solomon’s reign, Israel’s wealth and power diminished. Solomon’s broad-mindedness weakened Israel’s wealth and power. (Anderson, 241)
Solomon wrote thousands of proverbs and songs and he is commonly known for his wisdom. His proverbs and songs were what made him known as man of peace and kindness. He however, soon did not stay true to his own writing, his life became promiscuous and materialistic. "Every part of the book bears the mark of foreign influences ... The close connection between the first part of the Thirty Sayings with Egyptian Wisdom ... is only a special instance."(J.C. Rylaarsdam, 444)
The gift Solomon requests is the wisdom to govern well. Yahweh is so pleased that he gives Solomon more than he has asked for: he will receive unparalleled wisdom (v. 12) and, with it, wealth and fame (v. 13). The story of Solomon’s dream has been expanded editorially by the insertion of certain materials lacking in the parallel version of the event in 2 Chron. 1:3-13, which seems to have escaped Deuteronomistic editing. Thus, 1 Kings 3:6 has been elaborated to connect Solomon’s succession to David’s throne with the dynastic promise in 2 Samuel 7; 1 Kings 3:14 has been added to qualify Yahweh’s promise; and v. 15 has been altered to shift the place of sacrifice from Gibeon to Jerusalem. (1988)
In Judgment of Solomon the account of the divine gift of wisdom is followed by an example of its practical application. The sagacity with which Solomon arbitra...
... middle of paper ...
...ve much to live on and their ruler was wrapped up in his own life and in making himself happy. It was a time when the monarchy was being weakened by the monarch. Solomon was criticized for not being like his father, a great military King.
Work Cited
A.S. Herbert. Ruth. Black & Rowley Editors. Peake’s Commentary on the Bible. Routledge Co. Ltd. 1962.
B.W. Anderson. Understanding the Old Testament. Fourth Edition. (Upper Saddle River, NJ.)1986.
Konig, G. Solomon (King): About Bible Prophecy. 2001-2005.
Solomon. 1993-2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
Kings (books of Bible). 1993-2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
The Reign of King Solomon. 2005. http://www.medialdea.net/historyguy80538/kingsolreign.htm
Solomon, a slave, had been a leader when he worked in the cotton fields in the South. One day he decided to fly back to Africa with his youngest son, Jake, leaving behind his wife Ryna and their twenty other children.
The Bible: The Old Testament. The Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces. Ed. Sarah Lawall et al. Vol 1. 7th ed. New York: Norton, 1999. 47-97.
...ticle, Solomon has an unpleasant attitude of blaming others and complaining about the issue without proposing any real solutions. It also seems that he divides people into two categories: readers (good) and non-readers (bad), and he look down upon those who do not read. This will cause the readers to be emotionally uncomfortable and to reject his arguments and opinions because of the bias behind it.
The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha, Augmented Third Edition, New Revised Standard Version, Indexed. New York: Oxford UP, 2007. Print
Sacrifices and compromises are something many leaders have to deal with. Soloman had to put his life on the line in order to gain freedom. Solomon was forced to be away from the people he dearly
...yne A. The HarperCollins Study Bible New Revised Standard Edition . New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1993. 1645-1722. Print.
Frick, Frank S.. A Journey Through The Hewbrew Scriptures. New York: Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 1995.
Song of Solomon tells the story of Dead's unwitting search for identity. Milkman appears to be destined for a life of self-alienation and isolation because of his commitment to the materialism and the linear conception of time that are part of the legacy he receives from his father, Macon Dead. However, during a trip to his ancestral home, “Milkman comes to understand his place in a cultural and familial community and to appreciate the value of conceiving of time as a cyclical process”(Smith 58).
Mobley, Marilyn Sanders. "Call and Response." New Essays on Song of Solomon. Ed. Valerie Smith. Cambridge [England]: Cambridge UP, 1995. 42-43. Print.
The book called Song of Solomon, by Toni Morrison, deals with many real life issues, most of which are illustrated by the relationships between different family members.
The NRSV Notetaker's Bible: New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2009. Print.
“In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in their own sight” (Judg. 21:25). This quote at the end of Judges sets up an optimistic view of kings for the rest of the Deuteronomistic History. King David is considered perhaps the greatest king over all of Israel, whereas King Hezekiah is praised for never turning away from God and being the greatest king among all the kings of Judah (2 Kgs. 5). However, despite the high need for a praise of kings throughout the Deuteronomistic history, Solomon is viewed with a skeptical eye and is the cause of the demise of Israel. Unlike the positive view of kings portrayed throughout the Deuteronomistic history, King Solomon is framed in a negative light in 1 Kings 11: 1-13, which
Wenham, G.J., Moyter, J.A., Carson, D.A. and France, R.T., eds. New Bible Commentary. Downers Grove: Intervarsity Press, 1998.
We see from this passage that Solomon is a loving devoted husband and father. He understands the relationship between a father and his children. Solomon appears through this writings to have been a good father.
David did not do everything right just as Saul did not do everything wrong. David is a study in the human condition. As Peterson points out, King David is a “character consisting of humility and adoration, sacrifice and courage, repentance and obedience, loyalty in the community, and love of God.” The story of David shows people that when they use the things that God places in your life He is preparing people for their service to Him. He prayed to God, consulted God in prayer, and unified the northern and southern kingdoms in obedience to