1 Kings 3: Who Will You Rely On?

Verse 1: 

Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt and married his daughter. He brought her to the City of David until he finished building his palace and the temple of the Lord, and the wall around Jerusalem.

◇ Verse 1 is the beginning of the famous text that tells us how Solomon became the king of wisdom. In a dream, God asked Solomon what he wanted. At that time, Solomon did not ask for long life or wealth, but for wisdom to govern his people well. God, who found this remarkable, promised him wealth that everyone would envy, along with wisdom. As God promised, Solomon became a man of wisdom, so much so that his fame spread to all the surrounding nations, and he enjoyed wealth.

Unfortunately, Solomon did not maintain his devotion to God and his people until the end of his life. As we well know, as Solomon grew older, he did not follow God's command and built temples for idols (1 Samuel 11:6-7).

Verse 1 seems to foreshadow Solomon's end. David told Solomon to "be strong and courageous, and to keep all the laws of Moses". This was God's command through David. Solomon started by not following God's command as strongly and courageously as a commander.

To strengthen his reign and secure his kingdom, he made a strategic marriage with the powerful nation of Egypt. This became a snare in his later years. He did not know then that this small matter would become a death trap that would turn him away from God.

Instead of relying on Egypt through a strategic marriage, he should have relied on God, who established Israel. Marrying the princess of Egypt did not violate the provision in the Law of Moses against marrying Canaanites (Exodus 34:16, Numbers 7:3), but the deeper intent of the marriage held a seed more dangerous than the marriage itself.

The most dangerous thing in our relationship with God is to rely on something other than God. It is the seed, the starting point of serving something or someone other than God as Lord.

Like Solomon, we too sometimes want to rely more on something or someone visible than on God. That's when we need strength and courage. We need to be like commanders. We must not forget that God is the only one to rely on and show it through our actions. We must not create a trap that will ensnare us.

♧ God, help me overcome the temptation to rely on what is visible. Even though You are invisible, help me to rely on You, the God who created me! Holy Spirit, lead me in truth!