Soon Solomon became the ruler of a huge commercial empire. II Chr 9:23-26;

I Kg 9:10-18. What motivated Solomon’s acquisition drive?

In what ways did Solomon’s wealth affect him? I Kgs 10:14-29; Eccl 2:22-24, 2:10-11

What lessons can we learn from his experience? Ps 62: 10b, Dt 17:14-17

Is there any danger in exposing children to large amount wealth?

1kg 11:1-10; I Cor 15:33, Neh 13:26-27

What was Solomon’s sin?

What do we learn from the promises of God in His dealing with Solomon? 11:11-13; Acts 10:34;

Eze 33:13-20; Mat 10:22b

Solomon’s reign brought changes not only to Israel but also to his own life. Near the end of his

life, the king lost the ideals of his youth, I Kg 8:61, becoming restless and unsatisfied. The

constant influx of wives and concubines in Solomon’s court led eventually to his downfall. Thus,

Solomon broke the Mosaic Law and violated the warning not to stray from the path of his father

David.

With respect to I Kgs 11:11-13, what can we say about the faithfulness of God in dealings with men.

Eccl 1:1-2, 12:1, 8-14.

His writings in Ecclesiastes, proclaiming that "all is vanity," support the view that the world’s wisest man had become a pathetic figure in his old age. He was a confused man. This is a sharp contrast to the proverbs he had written.

Years before Solomon’s death, his heavy taxation of the people brought unrest and rebellion. The result was a division of Solomon’s United Kingdom into two separate nations-the southern kingdom of Judah and the northern kingdom of Israel.

Of his actual end nothing positive is known. Whether he finally repented and returned to God has been a subject of debate.

He is known as the wisest man, yet his wisdom did not teach him self-control. He taught well but failed to practice his own precepts. He describes the fool in Proverbs and thus draws a vivid picture of his own failings. Pr 18:2.