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1 Kings 11

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1Now king Solomon loved many foreign women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites;

2of the nations concerning which Yahweh said to the children of Israel, “You shall not go among them, neither shall they come among you; for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods.” Solomon joined to these in love.

3He had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart.

4When Solomon was old, his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his heart was not perfect with Yahweh his God, as was the heart of David his father.

5For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.

6Solomon did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, and didn’t go fully after Yahweh, as did David his father.

7Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the mountain that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the children of Ammon.

8So he did for all his foreign wives, who burnt incense and sacrificed to their gods.

9Yahweh was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned away from Yahweh, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice,

10and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he didn’t keep that which Yahweh commanded.

11Therefore Yahweh said to Solomon, “Because this is done by you, and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you, and will give it to your servant.

12Notwithstanding I will not do it in your days, for David your father’s sake; but I will tear it out of the hand of your son.

13However I will not tear away all the kingdom; but I will give one tribe to your son, for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.”

14Yahweh raised up an adversary to Solomon: Hadad the Edomite. He was one of the king’s offspring in Edom.

15For when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the army was gone up to bury the slain, and had struck every male in Edom

16(for Joab and all Israel remained there six months, until he had cut off every male in Edom);

17Hadad fled, he and certain Edomites of his father’s servants with him, to go into Egypt, Hadad being yet a little child.

18They arose out of Midian, and came to Paran; and they took men with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave him a house, and appointed him food, and gave him land.

19Hadad found great favor in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him as wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen.

20The sister of Tahpenes bore him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh’s house; and Genubath was in Pharaoh’s house among the sons of Pharaoh.

21When Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the army was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, “Let me depart, that I may go to my own country.”

22Then Pharaoh said to him, “But what have you lacked with me, that behold, you seek to go to your own country?” He answered, “Nothing, however only let me depart.”

23God raised up an adversary to him, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah.

24He gathered men to him, and became captain over a troop, when David killed them of Zobah: and they went to Damascus, and lived therein, and reigned in Damascus.

25He was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, besides the mischief of Hadad: and he abhorred Israel, and reigned over Syria.

26Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah, a servant of Solomon, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow, he also lifted up his hand against the king.

27This was the reason why he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breach of the city of David his father.

28The man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor; and Solomon saw the young man that he was industrious, and he put him in charge of all the labor of the house of Joseph.

29At that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him on the way; now Ahijah had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field.

30Ahijah laid hold of the new garment that was on him, and tore it in twelve pieces.

31He said to Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces; for Yahweh says, the God of Israel, ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to you

32(but he shall have one tribe, for my servant David’s sake and for Jerusalem’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel);

33because that they have forsaken me, and have worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon. They have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in my eyes, and to keep my statutes and my ordinances, as David his father did.

34“‘However I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand; but I will make him prince all the days of his life, for David my servant’s sake whom I chose, who kept my commandments and my statutes;

35but I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand, and will give it to you, even ten tribes.

36To his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may have a lamp always before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen me to put my name there.

37I will take you, and you shall reign according to all that your soul desires, and shall be king over Israel.

38It shall be, if you will listen to all that I command you, and will walk in my ways, and do that which is right in my eyes, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with you, and will build you a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel to you.

39I will for this afflict the offspring of David, but not forever.’”

40Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam; but Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.

41Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he did, and his wisdom, aren’t they written in the book of the acts of Solomon?

42The time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.

43Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in his place.

Commentary

CHAPTER 111Ki 11:1-8. Solomon's Wives and Concubines in His Old Age.1, 2. But King Solomon loved many strange women—Solomon's extraordinary gift of wisdom was not sufficient to preserve him from falling into grievous and fatal errors. A fairer promise of true greatness, a more beautiful picture of juvenile piety, never was seen than that which he exhibited at the commencement of his reign. No sadder, more humiliating, or awful spectacle can be imagined than the besotted apostasy of his old age; and to him may be applied the words of Paul (Ga 3:3), of John (Re 3:17), and of Isaiah (Isa 14:21). A love of the world, a ceaseless round of pleasure, had insensibly corrupted his heart, and produced, for a while at least, a state of mental darkness. The grace of God deserted him; and the son of the pious David—the religiously trained child of Bath-sheba (Pr 31:1-3), and pupil of Nathan, instead of showing the stability of sound principle and mature experience became at last an old and foolish king (Ec 4:13). His fall is traced to his "love of many strange women." Polygamy was tolerated among the ancient Hebrews; and, although in most countries of the East, the generality of men, from convenience and economy, confine themselves to one woman, yet a number of wives is reckoned as an indication of wealth and importance, just as a numerous stud of horses and a grand equipage are among us. The sovereign, of course, wishes to have a more numerous harem than any of his subjects; and the female establishments of many Oriental princes have, both in ancient and modern times, equalled or exceeded that of Solomon's. It is probable, therefore, that, in conformity with Oriental notions, he resorted to it as a piece of state magnificence. But in him it was unpardonable, as it was a direct and outrageous violation of the divine law (De 17:17), and the very result which that statute was ordained to prevent was realized in him. His marriage with the daughter of Pharaoh is not censured either here or elsewhere (see on [311]1Ki 3:1). It was only his love for many strange women; for women, though in the East considered inferiors, exert often a silent but powerful seductive influence over their husbands in the harem, as elsewhere, and so it was exemplified in Solomon.

But King Solomon loved many strange women,.... His love was a lustful and not a lawful one, and of women who were not only of foreign countries, but not his lawful wives, and these many:

together with the daughter of Pharaoh; besides her, or as he loved her, and perhaps more; his sin was not that he loved her who was his lawful wife, but others with her; it is very probable she was a proselytess, and had no hand in turning him to idolatry, since we read not of any high place built for an Egyptian idol:

women of the Moabites, Anmonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites; all of the neighbouring nations. Some think he did this with political views, to get intelligence of the state of those countries, or to abate and extinguish their enmity; but it rather seems to be the fruit of lust or pride.

Chapter 11 This chapter begins with as melancholy a "but" as almost any we find in all the Bible. Hitherto we have read nothing of Solomon but what was great and good; but the lustre both of his goodness and of his greatness is here sullied and eclipsed, and his sun sets under a cloud. I. The glory of his piety is stained by his departure from God and his duty, in his latter days, marrying strange wives and worshipping strange gods (v. 4-8). II. The glory of his prosperity is stained by God’s displeasure against him and the fruits of that displeasure. 1. He sent him an angry message (v. 9–13). 2. He stirred up enemies, who gave him disturbance, Hadad (v. 14–22), Rezon (v. 23–25). 3. He gave away ten tribes of his twelve, from his posterity after him, to Jeroboam, whom therefore he sought in vain to slay (v. 26–40), and this is all that remains here to be told concerning Solomon, except his death and burial (v. 41–43), for there is nothing perfect under the sun, but all is so above the sun.Verses 1-8 This is a sad story, and very surprising, of Solomon’s defection and degeneracy.I. Let us enquire into the occasions and particulars of it. Shall Solomon fall, that was the beauty of Israel, and so great a blessing of his generation? Yes, it is too true, and the scripture is faithful in relating it, and repeating it, and referring to it long after, Neh. 13:26. There was no king like Solomon who was beloved of his God, yet even him did outlandish women cause to sin. There is the summary of his apostasy; it was the woman that deceived him, and was first in the transgression.1. He doted on strange women, many strange women. Here his revolt began. (1.) He gave himself to women, which his mother had particularly cautioned him against. Prov. 31:3, Give not thy strength unto women (perhaps alluding to Samson, who lost his strength by giving information of it to a woman), for it is that which, as much as any thing, destroys kings. His father David’s fall began with the lusts of the flesh, which he should have taken warning by. The love of women has cast down many wounded (Prov. 7:26) and many (says bishop Hall) have had their head broken by their own rib. (2.) He took many women, so many that, at last, they amounted to 700 wives and 300 concubines, 1000 in all, and not one good one among them, as he himself owns in his penitential sermon (Eccl. 7:28), for no woman of established virtue would be one of such a set. God had, by his law, particularly forbidden the kings to multiply either horses or wives, Deu. 17:16, 17. How he broke the former law, in multiplying horses, and having them out of Egypt too (which was expressly prohibited in that law) we read ch. 10:29, and here we are told how he broke the latter (which proved of more fatal consequence) in multiplying wives. Note, Less sins, made gold with, open the door to greater.

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Translations8 · 5

AMHEVG ንጉሡም ሰሎሞን ከፈርዖን ልጅ ሌላ፥ በሞዓባውያንና በአሞናውያን በኤዶማውያን በሲዶናውያንና በኬጢያውያን ሴቶች፥ በብዙ እንግዶች ሴቶች ፍቅር ተነደፈ። አማርኛ ENGNIV King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh's daughter–Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and… English BCV ንጉስ ሰሎሞን ኣብ ልዕሊ ጓል ፈርዖን ብዙሓት ጓኖት ኣንስቲ፥ ሞኣባውያን፥ ኣሞናውያን፥ ኤዶማውያን፥ ሲዶናውያን፥ ኬጢያውያን ፈተወ። ትግርኛ GAZBIB Solomoon mootichi warra ormaa keessaa intaloota baay'ee in jaallate; inni intala mootii Gibxii malee, durba warra Mo'aa… Afaan Oromoo BCV GIZ ወሰሎሞንሰ ንጉሥ መፍቀሬ እንስት ውእቱ እምነ ነኪር ሕዝብ፡ ወለተ ፈርዖንሂ ወሞአባውያትሂ ወአሞናዊያትሂ ወእምሶርያ ወእምሲዶና ወእምኤዶምያስ ወእምኬጤዎን ወእምነ አሞሬዎን። giz GAZGAZ Solomoon mootichi warra ormaa keessaa intaloota baay'ee in jaallate; inni intala mootii Gibxii malee, durba warra Mo'aa… Afaan Oromoo BCV aksum ንጉስ ሰሎሞን ኣብ ልዕሊ ጓል ፈርዖን ብዙሓት ጓኖት ኣንስቲ፥ ሞኣባውያን፥ ኣሞናውያን፥ ኤዶማውያን፥ ሲዶናውያን፥ ኬጢያውያን ፈተወ። ትግርኛ AMHNIV ንጉሥ ሰሎሞን ከፈርዖን ልጅ ሌላ ብዙ የባዕድ አገር ሴቶችን ማለትም ሞዓባውያትን፣ አሞናውያትን፣ ኤዶማውያትን፣ ሲዶናውያትን፣ ኬጢያውያትን አፈቀረ። አማርኛ