Joshua 22-24 | Luke 3

“The LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this vast wilderness. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you, and you have not lacked anything.” Deuteronomy 2:7

When we read through the Old Testament Law, there is an interesting command in Deuteronomy 17:14-20. God gave instructions for this future king, where he “is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the Levitical priests. It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life” (Deuteronomy 17:18-19). Written hundreds of years before Israel asked for a king, God knew their hearts would turn away from His sovereignty over their lives and want to be like the surrounding nations by asking for a king. God wanted His kings to be an extension of His rule and reign; hence, kings needed to copy out the Scriptures so that they ruled according to God’s Word.  

As we consider the life of Solomon, we wonder if he wrote out the Law of God and kept a copy of it with him. Right before the instructions to write out God’s Law, Deuteronomy 17:16-17 outlines, “The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself…He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold.” God wanted His kings to have a modest monarchy. Additionally, they were not to rely on their own military strength or clever resources but to rely on His strength and trust Him.  

How does Solomon do with these commands? 1 Kings 10:14 tells us, “The weight of the gold that Solomon received yearly was 666 talents.” In today’s market, that is over a billion dollars. What does Solomon do with all the gold? He spent it on himself. 1 Kings 10:26 further elaborates, “Solomon accumulated chariots and horses; he had fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses…” How? Solomon imported these chariots and horses from Egypt and Kue. 1 Kings 11:1, 3 reveals, “King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter—Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites…He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray.” In the end, “[Solomon’s] wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God” (1 Kings 11:4). 

God wrote the commands in Deuteronomy 17 to protect Israel’s kings from themselves; yet, Solomon was disobedient. What we learn from the life of Solomon is that he started off well, but as God warned, Solomon’s heart was led astray by the things of this world: the gold, the chariots and horses and foreign wives. 

Where have we ignored God’s warning in our desire to get just a little bit more?

PRAYER

Lord God, keep me from the lure of wanting just a little bit more. I want to be obedient to Your commands and walk in Your Word and Your strength. Thank You, Lord.