I Kings
Please read as much as you can of I Kings for Tuesday, March 14. Please read especially closely the chapters on Solomon. Does it seems to you that the I Kings account of Solomon has in it the makings of a good tragedy? Or is the I kings account better viewed as history, biography, or prophecy rather than as tragedy. Cite below any passages/verses you think particularly support your view.
posted by Ancient Art at 1:23 PM
8 Comments:
The acount of Solomon seems a bit like a tragedy. Solomon is very faithful to God at first. He builds a temple for God and a palace. He even makes a nice long reverant prayer. However, Solomon has the same failing that his father, David, has. Solomon has a weakness for women. It says here that he had 700 wives and 300 concuibines. That's just ridiculous. And if he has this many women, then he definately has more kids than e can take care. It seems to be Eli, Samuel, and David all over again. The same flaw is turning up time and time again. These men keep making the same mistake of having to many wives, and kids than they can care for. The reoccurance of this mistake to me is a tragedy because it means people are not learning from their mistakes or those of their parents.
Another tragedy in the story of Solomon is that he starts worshipping idols and not God. Solomon makes the same mistake that many before him have made. Because of this God punishes not only Solomon, but the rest of Israel as well. I guess the tragedy here is that people never learn to not make the same mistakes again.
I thought it was interesting how it took seven years to build the temple and thirteen years to build Solomon’s house. I guess it took longer to build Solomon’s house because he would need kitchens, guest rooms, dining rooms, store rooms, etc… I also thought the blessing made by Solomon was interesting in that he did not ask for himself but for the kingdom and even the stranger within the country.
This book is both prophesy and history. The prophesy told to Jeroboam came true so this prophesy was also history in that it occurred in the same book. It seems that every prophesy uttered in this book was completed in this book. It seems that Israel went downhill fast after the death of Solomon. Of course, in my opinion, Solomon was not as wise as he may have thought he was. He should have known (and I believe he did) that some of his actions were wrong.
I found it strange how the widow doubted that Elijah was a prophet of God even though the amount of oil and grain did not diminish. She did not really believe until Elijah was able to bring her son back to life. Of course there are similar cases like this throughout the Bible.
While it may be true that this book may be tragic it does show us today that everyone has temptations that we need to overcome. We all have flaws, even those chosen by God.
I think it has the making for a great tragedy. Solomon had a minor conflict to get to King, with some road bumps here and there. Then after taking the throne from a man who was well qualified to be the next King, Solomon himself makes himself better with many horses, chariots, a huge temple, tons of gold, etc. This is a great buildup for what's about to come. Because he pleeded to God and God told him just obey me. Solomon didn't and now we get to see the end to a great story.
I think I Kings sets Solomon up for a tragedy. When the LORD appears to Solomon and says: "But if you or your sons turn away from me and do not observe the commands and decress I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them, then I will cut off Israel from the land I have given them and will then become a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples." The LORD had also said "You must not intermarry with them because they will surely turn your hearts after other gods". Solomon later doesn't keep His command...following in great tragedy. He intermarried and ended up not keeping true to God.
Solomon had been blessed with so much. He had been told to not follow other gods and could have better avoided this by also following God's command not to intermarry.
I Kings has all the makings of a tragedy. The conflict between the ways of God (obedience) and the ways of Samuel (luxury & pleasure) is a right v. right conflict. The protagonist - Soloman - is a man who has much of everything in his kingdom. The resolution of Solomon is that he dies and his kingdom splits into two warring factions because he did not follow in God's way.
I Kings is also a biography of Solomon in that it details every aspect of Soloman's life as King and every undertaking he ordered, from building the temple to killing a rival to the throne.
I Kings is also a history because it details the kings and prophets that lived during the time of the two kingdoms. I Kings describes in brief detail the reigns of each king in both Judah and Israel and what they did during their time as monarch.
Finally, I Kings is also prohecy in that those that heard God's voice pronounced the eventual failure of both state because Solomon and his descandents did not follow in God's way.
There are some tragedies, but i feel that 1 Kings is views of biography and prophecy. It states on how Solomon becomes king and dispenses out situations in his life and how he deals with them individually. He knows he is not quite a good man, and asks to be blessed with tons a wisdom and a better heart for others. This does eventually come true. And God told him, "As long as you are obidient to me, you will be ok as king." And i feel that for the most part Solomon does his absolute best to stay this way.
Much like all parts of history... Soloman's story is a repeat of previous problems. Soloman has what (in most cases) everyone has: at least one human flaw. His heart was in the right place... Soloman was continually trying to do what God wanted him to do. Like all of us, he erred.
I think the tragic part of this story is the fact that it is a repeat of previous tragic stories. Doesn't anyone learn from others' mistakes anymore?! Altogether, I think 1 Kings has a little of everything...tragedy with Soloman's wrongful choosing; prophecy with Nathan the prophet coming telling David Soloman should be king, along with Jeroboam's prophecy... history in the fact that it tells a lot about the laws and how/why things were run as they were. It explains about why soloman became king, about his govenors and officials, how long it took to build the temple and Soloman's home and the details of both, etc.
In 1 Kings the greatest tragedy with with Solomon. He was probably the greatest of rulers that the hebrews had ever had. He made the Kingdom of Israel the richess nation in the region. also the most powerfull nation. then he had all his wives that he had to keep happy. so he started to worship with them which was his greatest mistake. this led to a fall of the worship of the god of israel and the destruction of his kingdom.
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