Rethinking Solomon
By W Bro Dr Philip Quadrio
A view of King Solomon In Masonry we celebrate Solomon as a good and wise king. The reasons are obvious, and a superficial look at 2 Chronicles seems to confirm the view. It is, however, important to look more closely, as the view presented in the Book of Kings is different.
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n fact, the author of Chronicles likely used Kings as source material and then tells a different story. In what follows I will focus mostly on Kings, which is older and is the most extensive text we have on Solomon. Later this year I will offer a follow-up article on Chronicles. One commonly held view on the Book of Kings is that it lays substantial blame for the destruction of the Temple and the Babylonian Captivity at Solomon’s feet. God warns Solomon of both the possible destruction of the Temple and the Cap tivity at the Temple’s dedication. This is found in both Chronicles and Kings: ‘if ye turn away, and forsake my statutes and my commandments…and shall go and serve other gods, and worship them; Then will I pluck them [your people] up by the roots out of my land which I have given them; and this house, which I have sanctified for my name, will I cast out of my sight’ (2 Chronicles 7: 19–20*). Ignoring or forgetting this warning, Solomon breaches the laws of
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Deuteronomy and thereby the Torah. But how? We start with a dodgy real-estate deal. In I Kings 9:10 we hear that, after the building was complete and in exchange for providing cedar wood and gold, Solomon gave Hiram of Tyre a gift of twenty towns in Galilee. While King Hiram is displeased with what Solomon gave him (payment on delivery is generally best), Solomon’s right to redistribute land promised by God to the Israelites is questionable. What is more, most of
At seven hundred wives and threehundred concubines, excess is clear.
those cedars do not end up in Gods House but are used for building the Royal Palace – known as the House of the Forest of Lebanon. Here, if land is given to a foreign King, it is only partly to glorify God, because the larger part of the timber ends up building a house which will glorify the King. There is, however, another issue bound up with Solomon’s interactions with King Hiram. Here we must remind ourselves of an important passage, Deuteronomy 17:16–17, which can be summarised as holding that a king: a) may not multiply** horses (and most explicitly not from Egypt); b) may not multiply wives, and c) may not accumulate gold and silver. Sensible laws, preventing a king from accumulating personal benefits from his kingship. But Solomon’s gift of land to Hiram, is not just about timber. Part of what he is repaying Hiram for is the delivery of gold. Well, Solomon has certainly been
Humility – Kindness – Generosity
Freemason
