For the Sake of God’s Choosing

From his birth Solomon was loved by God and given the name Jedidiah. While he relied on God, he received wisdom and made the kingdom prosper, yet one by one he broke the laws a king was bound to keep: that no foreigner be set on the throne, that he not multiply horses, nor take many wives, nor heap up wealth.

In the end his marriages to foreign women turned his heart, so that he built high places before the temple in Jerusalem and led the whole nation into idolatry. This was no mistake born of ignorance but apostasy, committed by a man who knew the truth. Yet God did not cut him off completely, as he had done with Saul. He did not take away the whole kingdom, but left one tribe for David’s sake.

In his last years Solomon repented of his sin and turned back. Through that one remaining tribe Jesus Christ came as a son of David. Though human faith may waver, God keeps his covenant faithfully to the very end.