1 Kings 4 Bible Study (Solomon's Officials, Wealth and Wisdom) | Pastor Daniel Batarseh

And, father, we pray together even now, again, asking you for the help of the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit that we just sang about, that this would be indeed a vibrant and life giving time. We pray that you would remove all weightiness, all distraction, all cloudiness of thought, any obstruction of our own beliefs that are contrary to the truth. And, Lord, just sweep us into the sweetness of your word, the wisdom of your word, the saving power of your word. And we ask that the delivery of this word would not be void of the power of the Holy Spirit. We pray that it would be absolutely energized by what you can only do through a human vessel.

And so we just submit to the leading of the spirit even now, and let this be a changing, a life changing moment for all of us tonight. We trust You, Heavenly Father. We believe You, and we give You glory now. In Jesus' name, amen. Solomon, although he, in chapter three, with his God given wisdom, received national attention and praise for how he solved a seemingly impossible case, is now actually going to, in this chapter, show how he is about to delegate and share certain responsibilities in his kingdom with other people.

This amazing man who is recognized with unparalleled intelligence is actually going to show us here that he relied on other individuals. He relied on other people to make his system, his kingdom, efficient and successful. And we might look at these verses here and, be tempted to ignore them or to fly by them, but the detailed roster here of Solomon's high officials and ministers are inviting us to see the breadth of Solomon's wisdom further. In other words, chapter three was not the only thing that displayed the early signs of the prudence and insight of this man. It continues to be exercised in chapter four, and we have to determine that at the outset of this chapter so that we can see what this is really all about.

This is us looking through the window to examine just how far and how wide the mind of Solomon really was, and it's all been granted by God Himself. And as we see this we'll realize many things, but there is one overarching lesson. There is one simple observation that we can make just by scanning through these various names and territories and different charges that are given to different people under Solomon's leadership, and it is this. Solomon's leadership was not just limited to solving problems or determining true justice. Solomon's leadership here is shown in his administrative abilities, his organizational skills.

But even more than that, Solomon's wisdom here, it's going to be proven in that he sees the value, he sees the necessity of other people working alongside of him. Wisdom does not make you arrogantly self reliant. True wisdom from God opens up your eyes and mind to see, to understand, to perceive that we must be relationally strategic and inclusive. A wise person sees the beauty and the necessity of other people of like mindedness walking hand in hand together for the glory of God. And that's just the overarching lesson, because if we just hear that then we might think, okay this is, this is a Bible study for leaders.

Solomon was a leader, so this is mainly applied to those who are in every in any kind of capacity of leadership, but we are in Bible study and have been in Bible study long enough to know that there's always underlying principles and truths for all of us. And the way that we're going to discover this is to take our time going through what again might cause other people to say, this has no this has no relation to my life. Oh you're wrong. This is Holy Scripture. This is God's word.

This is God's voice, and He had you in mind. He He had you in mind when he wrote this. He had the saints of God in mind in Christ Jesus when he penned these words. And so let's read the first few verses together. First Kings chapter four verse one.

King Solomon was king over all Israel, and these were his high officials: Azariah the son of Zadok was the priest. Elihoreph and Ahiah the sons of Shesha were secretaries. Jehoshaphat, the son of Ahilud, was recorder. Benaiah, the son of Yehoiada, was in command of the army. Zadrach and Abiathar were priests.

Azariah, the son of Nathan, was over the officers. Zabud the son of Nathan was priest and king's friend. Ahishar was in charge of the palace. And Adoniram the son of Abda was in charge of the forced labor. Solomon had 12 officers over all Israel who provided food for the king and his household.

Each man had to make provision for one month in the year. You probably won't find a text like this in one of those daily devotionals, But that's what makes Friday night so special, because we are almost forced to look at these verses with joy to see what is it that God has to say. Well we're not gonna look at each of these names and what these men did, but we will look at some of them. Look back here again in verse two. Here are the names of some of the high officials, and the first one that is mentioned is a man Azariah the son of Zadok, or Zadok was the priest.

Notice it says the priest, not just priest. So it is believed that this man, Zadok, or rather Azariah, the son of Zaraq, was selected or identified rather as the high priest. The high priest. And it is believed here that the fact that this man is mentioned first is to denote how his position was of greatest importance. That of all the offices and all the responsibilities, what was of most significance to Solomon was the establishment of the chief spiritual leader in Israel.

And if that is the case, if that's what this means, that Azariah being mentioned first shows the priority of the priesthood, the priority of this office, then it says something about the wisdom of Solomon, I'm sure. It says something about how he was thinking. It says something about how God led him and directed him as a leader of so many other leaders. And it is this, I was looking at this and I thought to myself, if this is Solomon, the Holy Spirit inviting us to exhibit his wisdom, then it certainly shows how true wisdom knows how to prioritize spiritual matters. True wisdom will guide you, help you, direct you to prioritize the things of the Spirit, the things pertaining to your relationship with God, the things pertaining to the truth.

Listen, a wise man or a wise woman will not neglect his soul, will not neglect the health of their inner man. A wise man or a wise woman will see again the beauty and the value and the necessity of a fellowship of saints, and will actually orbit their lives around that community. A wise man, a wise woman, somebody who truly has this gift from God, will also understand and know and seek and carefully choose who their spiritual authorities will be, who they will receive the word of God from. And Solomon here is proving that, and it's not just proven by the identification of the high priest. Look down at verse five, and notice this man Zabud, the son of Nathan, who was priest and king's friend.

That's a heartwarming verse. Right? We're told about one of Solomon's closest companions. He was a friend. He was a friend to Solomon.

But I believe this is speaking more than just about somebody who was near and dear to the king. I believe that the king's friend here is actually speaking about a position. And the position I'm thinking of and most people agree with is that this is a chief counselor to Solomon. This is somebody who Solomon could confine in, somebody he can pour his heart out to, somebody from the primary ranks who would receive what Solomon is thinking about in terms of a next project or what he's dealing with. This was who Zabad was.

And in selecting this individual, notice the other thing that he did. Notice who else he was. We're told that he was not just a king's servant, but what else was he? He was a priest. He was a priest.

That's significant as well. It makes me wonder if Solomon having this primary source, this primary voice speaking into his life, makes me think if Solomon wanted somebody who knew the law, Somebody who is very close and near and familiar with the presence of God. Somebody who understood something of the sacrificial system and the different acts of worship makes me think if Solomon wanted that kind of a close friend in his life. And if that is true, then surely wisdom is at work here because you can't make a more life shaping decision than who you choose to keep close to you. And so assuming that this priest was indeed a man of God, a man who feared God, Solomon made the right choice in having him close, near and dear.

You know what's so amazing? When you compare the list of officials here with the list of officials of David, his father. Go to second Samuel chapter eight in your Bibles. Notice the comparison. Notice there are many similarities, but there is one significant difference in second Samuel chapter eight in verse 15.

This is when David reigned over all Israel. Now notice how the Holy Spirit list the officials, his administration in comparison to Solomon's. Verse 15 of second Samuel eight. So David reigned over all Israel, and David administered justice and equity to all his people. Joab the son of Zuriya was over the army, and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, was recorder, and Zadok, the son of Ahitab, and Ahimelech, the son of Abiathar, were priests, and Zaria was secretary.

Up to what we have studied concerning Solomon in first Kings four, what's the main difference between the list of administrators and ministers in David's time and in his time? Who's mentioned first in David's list? Not priest, Joab. What was Joab? Army.

He was the commander of the army. Who is listed first for Solomon? The high priest. Is that accidental? No.

It makes total sense. You know why it makes sense? Because what characterized David's reign? War. What characterized Solomon's reign?

Peace. Peace. And not just peace, the the mark of Solomon's achievements, the the pinnacle of his accomplishment would be the building of the temple. And so it makes absolute sense for the priest to be mentioned first, because you can't have the temple necessarily, at least operating the way God designed it without the right high priest. And more than that, you can't have peace without prioritizing this.

In other words, if if Solomon was going to achieve true peace, then he needed to prioritize the spiritual office above all other things. Is it any different for you and I? Think about it. Here's the lesson. Here's the application.

Is it any different for you and I? You want peace. Right? You want inner peace? You want relational peace?

We all want peace. Even the world that hates our God wants peace. And if you and I wanna achieve that inner tranquility and that rest, get your priorities straight. Get your priorities straight in life, my friend. What do you pursue the most?

What's at the top of the list of your ambitions? Where are your affections set? Where where are you disciplined? Is your spirituality first? Is your walk with Christ primary?

Does everything else submit to that? Is everything else flowing from that place? If not, no wonder that you're not at rest. No wonder you're a chronic spender. No wonder you try to numb yourself with substances, and thrills, and physical intimacy.

Why? I can tell you straight up because somewhere along the line, you have misplaced God. You have put him in a different rank. You've put him in a different position apart from number one. Things always go wrong when God fails to be number one.

And when he's not the bull's eye of our life, he's not the very center, the very thing that everything else orbits around. Alright. Don't be surprised. Don't be surprised with inner turmoil, and even turmoil outside of yourself. But here we see Solomon whose kingdom would be recognized for this amazing peace.

And what do we see here? The first person mentioned is the priest, symbolizing the spirituality of his own life and ultimately the life of the nation. Well, let's keep going here. Let's come down to verse four for the sake of time. Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, was in command of the army.

He replaced Joab. Zarah and Abiathar were priests. All these names are familiar, but what name there is concerning? What name there stands out? What name shouldn't be there?

Good. Abiathar, you're right. And why is that the case? We'll go to first Kings chapter two twenty seven in case you forgot. First Kings two twenty seven, just a couple chapters back, and you'll get your answer to why this seems to be out of place.

First Kings two twenty seven. So Solomon expelled Abiathar from being priest to the Lord, thus fulfilling the word of the Lord that he had spoken concerning the house of Eli and Shiloh. Abiathar, according to first Kings two twenty seven, is no longer a priest. And then we come to the list of officials and we're told that he was one of the priests. What happened here?

You know, some believe that Abiathar was forgiven and restored. I don't hold to that view. I I believe the best explanation is this, is that although Abiathar was removed and could not operate as a priest and was relocated to Anathoth. Right? He was he was he was expelled, and he was under house arrest, and he was no longer affiliated with the temple or the priesthood.

In a hereditary way, he was still able to keep that title. It was almost inseparable from his identity because of his lineage. He was a priest, though he could not operate as a priest. And so that's all that this is really saying. He did not get reinstalled.

He wasn't inaugurated again. He wasn't allowed back in. No. Because God gave a prophetic word to to Eli that his line would no longer ever be able to recover and to be restored with such a responsibility. I thought about this man and and I thought to myself, okay, he kept his title.

What does status mean? What does position mean? What does any platform provide if ultimately you don't have God's favor upon your life? You know, there are people who are extremely content and think they will find true satisfaction if they can just achieve something like that. They can just have certain letters by their name.

They can have a certain title. They can win the respect and the acknowledgment from other people. And there are very few who are willing to be content to be anywhere God would have them be as long as they have God's blessing upon them. To live for the smile of God, to to live in his light and his beauty in terms of his favor over us should be the thing that keeps us whole and satisfied. Nothing else will.

This is a sad man who had a title, but didn't have god's approval. I'm afraid that there are many people even in the context of the church that have the same. Title does not automatically assume and mean favor. I would even challenge that further. Results.

Results don't necessarily prove anything either. Sometimes God will use a broken vessel, even a disobedient vessel for the sake of being merciful to the people under that person, when in fact they themselves are not in right with God. You don't believe me? Moses struck the rock when he was told to speak to him. What happened to that rock?

Did a trickle come out? No. Waves of water came out even though he disobeyed God. Why? Because God loved the people.

God loved the people, and he wanted to bless the people, and he dealt with Moses later on. And so we see here that this man, unfortunately, was not a true priest in terms of its function, though he remained a priest with a title. And we read on and look at this in verse five. Azariah, the son of Nathan, was over the officers. Over the officers.

Zaba, the son of Nathan, was priest and king's friend. What do these two guys have in common in verse five? They're the sons of Nathan. Now David had another son named Nathan, so that would be Solomon's brother. Some believe that this is Solomon's brother, Nathan.

Others believe he's the Nathan that we're familiar with. Nathan who? Nathan the prophet. And if it is Nathan the prophet, then what a heartwarming verse to see that this man of God had his children also walking in service to the glory of God by serving the purpose of God through King Solomon. I like to think that if this is really Nathan the prophet and his boys, that there's something about Nathan's life that surely influenced the life of his sons.

Perhaps, this is this is not dogmatic, but just thinking about if these are the boys of Nathan the prophet, then did Nathan have any influence in their desire to be part of God's work through Solomon? Could it be that these young men didn't just see a messenger of God outside of the home, but saw a messenger of God within the home? I'd like to think so. May God help us influence and inspire our children to love and serve him. So you see these two men who are the sons of Nathan, and then you come down here and you read something interesting.

Ahisham, verse six, was in charge of the palace, and Adarai, the son of Abda, was in charge of the forced labor. We will see him later on. Nathan, was over the officers. So he had a supervising role over certain certain officers, and these officers are what we hear and see in verse seven. Solomon had 12 officers over all Israel who provided food for the king and his household.

Each man had to make provision for one month in the year. So you had these 12 individuals who were in charge of certain districts, and these districts were, there to there was some form of taxation where they had to gather resources and and funds in order to secure the material needs of the king and his immediate household. And think about it. You had one man that was in charge of one month out of the year. And what we see here is that, this man, Azariah, the son of Nathan, was in charge.

So he was supervising these individuals as they took care of drew from them in order to take care of Solomon and his family, and those who are closest to Solomon. Now, look at verse eight. I'm not going to attempt to read these names, because there are so many of them, from verse eight down to verse verse 19. But just look at the names. Take the time to just examine all of these names.

And there are, as you saw, 12 of them, and some of them are related to Solomon by marriage. So they married some of his daughters. So Solomon is at an older point of his life here. But, you know, I'm looking at these names, and I'm thinking to myself, and maybe you're thinking to yourself, why does the Holy Spirit take up space in Holy Scripture for this? Complicated Hebrew names, tongue twisters, some of the things that they did, some relation to Solomon, and we have pages, ink, used up for us to know these names.

I love asking those questions. I love coming to these texts and asking and investigating the mind of God behind this, and here's what I came from and came with, and maybe you are thinking the same. The Holy Spirit does this in order to emphasize players on a team that often do not receive recognition as they should. The Holy Spirit in taking the time to surface these names and to inscribe them in holy scripture helps us see that there are other contributors to the grand scheme of things that make things work. And in this context, it is the kingdom of Israel, which was really the kingdom of God on earth to an extent.

And they were valuable. They were assets. They were very important. And so for leaders reading this, even just looking at these names, you know what you can come away with if you're a leader of of any group? You can't do it on your own.

You can't. No matter how gifted you are, just like Solomon, you can't try to, put your hand into everything and make it happen. You need other people. God designed you no matter how many gifts of the spirit you think you have, God designed you to be dependent upon some. And for those who are not leaders, you can look at a text like this and also be encouraged to realize that your efforts and your involvement and whatever part you have to play in this machine is not without importance.

It's not something that can be easily replaced. It is absolutely essential. And so you have these guys, and they're in charge of the scheduling and the gathering of material needs, food and supplies for the animals. And the Holy Spirit wants us to know their names. I love that.

That's wonderful. It makes me think of a chapter in the book of Romans, that masterpiece of an epistle, Where after giving this incredible essay about justification by faith, and you have election and the sovereignty of God, and you have life in the spirit, and all these different deep thoughts about God and our relationship with him. Near the end, near the end of that dissertation, you have almost an entire chapter given to names. Just different people listed from the Roman church. Actually, turn there in Romans 16, and notice the heart of God, the beauty of God, the loveliness of God, and something like this.

In Romans 16, and just just like you probably did with first Kings chapter four, just look back at all the different people that Paul greets personally. That that he wants to ensure receive a personal greeting from himself. You know what the impression you and I to receive in that? You and I to understand that the church of Jesus Christ is made up of ordinary people who have been brought together through the shared conviction and submission to the lordship of Jesus Christ. That's what the church is made up of, and Paul here understands that.

You know what a common phrase is in Romans 16? In the Lord or in Christ. He says that over and over again. In the Lord. In the Lord.

In Christ. In Christ. In Christ. This is what binds people together. This is what brings men and women, slaves and bureaucrats and these sophisticated individuals.

This is what ultimately brings them into one family, being in Christ, being in the Lord. And Paul here as he's writing this, he's not speaking to famous individuals. He's not speaking to people who are impressive from a worldly perspective. But he is speaking to people because this is what Paul says a lot of times in that same section, that they worked hard for the Lord. So these are not just Christians who are positionally enjoying the status of being children of God.

They were also active as Christians, and Paul recognized that. Working hard in the Lord, serving the Lord, and he says that over and over again, and Paul wants to ensure that he sees them. God, the Holy Spirit, through this amazing man, this magnificent apostle, wants to let him know, I recognize the value that you have in the church. You know how he does it? He remembers their names, and he takes time in this thesis of Romans to say, please say hi to so and so.

Please say hi to so and so. Please say hi to the mother of Rufus. Please say hi to Julia. Please say hi. This guy's a brilliant theologian.

He has a colossal intellect. He is so rich in the spirit, and you know what? It didn't make him isolated. It didn't make him a separatist. It didn't it didn't cause him to just be among the elite of the church.

Paul was a deep theologian, but he was also deeply involved in the lives of ordinary people. He he he wanted to sit with them. He wanted to talk with them. He wanted to have relationships with them. You know, the more spiritual you'll be, the more real you'll be, really.

You wanna know how somebody's real? You're natural. You're natural. You should be approachable if you're spiritual. You know, people people try to achieve this persona, this this aura that causes people to to not even want to look at them because they're so holy.

What's that? That's not that's not the heart of Paul. Paul was so down to earth. Paul was somebody who worked with his hands. Paul was somebody who gave and he helped others out.

Paul remembered names. Paul Paul was real. If you're gonna be spiritual, you're gonna be real. That's true spirituality. And this my this man had a mind unlike any other in so many ways, but he was somebody who had a heart that was just as big.

You know, he could have just written to the elders of the church in Rome. To the elders. He doesn't do that. He speaks to the people. You know why?

Because he believed that the church is comprised of people, not just leaders. You know, the church functions beyond just the preaching and teaching of a few select men. You are the church. You you sitting there right there. You are an irreplaceable instrument, tool, parts that is connected to other parts that makes this thing move forward, makes this thing grow.

And Paul absolutely understood that. That was his theology of the church. It wasn't just for a few spiritual men to come and to and to give some kind of presentation and make other minions in the church feel insignificant. I'll never learn like that. I'll never know that.

Oh, that's wonderful. And just go on to their own world. No. It's this collective body, interconnected. They can't operate apart from one another.

Men and women. Go roam read Romans 16 on your own, and notice how much how many women are mentioned. How many ladies are mentioned. Even these women who who according to the Saint Paul, Paul who who said that the role of an elder is exclusive to men, he also saw what women contribute to the church. Their gifts and their zeal and their participation.

He was moved by it, and he recognized it. Not just men and women, there's young and old. Right? And so there's a mother in there that he wants to agree, who who he says was a mother to me as well. So there is somebody who who shared that kind of motherly like affection and and took care of Paul at some point in his life where he says, she's like a mom to me.

This is real. Not just that you had households, like actual units that shared the same that were part of the Roman church that blessed the wider family of faith. Don't we have that in this church? We have families here, parents and children that bless this church. Their own homes that come to this collective home, this household of God, and contribute so much.

This is the church. It's amazing. It's supernatural. And Paul saw it, and he wrote about it, and he's demonstrating his absolute appreciation to these separate individuals. And that's what we see here to my some extent.

Before I even turn back to Romans, first Kings four, Paul is speaking to these ordinary common folk, if you can use that language. He's not just greeting them. Do you realize that he wrote Romans chapter one to 15 to them? Is Romans a deep book? It's a dense book.

It's one of those books where you just have to keep the cap of your highlighter off because you're just gonna highlight almost every verse anyway. It's so rich, so comprehensive. It's so elaborate. It's it's it's deep. And who did he write it to?

Theologians? No. He wrote it to what you see in Romans 16. You know what that tells you and I? Because there are many pastors who are under the persuasion that the philosophy of their ministry is to remain and stay surface level in their teaching and preaching, lest you lose your people.

That's not what Paul believed. Paul goes through Romans one, the the wrath of God, Romans two, Romans three, the depravity man, Romans four, justification by faith, Romans five, six, Romans seven, the flesh, the spirit, Romans eight, life in the spirit, Romans nine, ten, 11, election in Israel. He's speaking to to common people. Why? Because we're meant to go deep.

We're invited to go further and explore the mind of God, all that he has to say to us. So don't convince yourself, my brother, my sister. I'm not a pastor. I'm not a theologian. I didn't go to this seminary.

Well, the book of Romans wasn't for seminarians. It's for you and I, for all of us. So let's come back now to first Kings chapter four. Again, I told you I wasn't gonna read all these names. That's a good thing for your hearing experience.

But let's come here to verse 20. We go from the cabinet of Solomon's government to the condition of the country. So here's how how the nation is responding to the governance of Solomon and these other leaders with him. Verse 20. Judah and Israel were as many as the sand by the sea.

They ate and drank and were happy. There's joy. There is a fulfillment of an Abrahamic promise, and that promise continues in verse 21. Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt, they brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life. Why is verse 21 an important thing for the spirit of God to bring to our attention?

Holy Spirit wants to let us know the borders of Israel, not spiritual Israel, not metaphorical Israel, physical Israel and its land. Why is it important for us to see this here in verse 21? Good. And and more than just that, that it's a fulfillment of a promise. A promise that God made to Abram.

And what promise did God give to Abram? It's in Genesis fifteen eighteen, and you're gonna see similar ingredients in in the verse that you and I just read to what was said hundreds of years ago before this time. So go to Genesis fifteen eighteen, and notice this with me. On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram saying, to your offspring I give this land from the River Of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates. From the River Of Egypt to the great river of Euphrates.

What do we read in verse 21 of first Kings four? We're told here that Solomon rule over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines to the border of Egypt. This is a partial fulfillment of that promise that God gave to Abraham. Your offspring are gonna possess a land, and that land is gonna have certain parameters and borders. And I'm gonna assure that at some point, they're gonna know that land and enjoy that land, because I gave it to them.

Are you nervous? Yeah. There's a lot of tension today. Right? There's a lot of debate today.

There's a lot of dispute, not just among Christians. And there are theological persuasions concerning Israel, but even in our world today, who does this land belong to? Is it the Palestinian's land? Is it the nation of Israel's land, 1948? Who is the oppressor?

Who is the oppressed? This is what this is what's dominating our media. This is what domin is dominating social media. Maybe you're getting caught up in the frenzy. It's inescapable almost.

And we can make the rest of the bible study about this, but here's what I'm comforted by. The bible has answers even with this modern issue, because it's not a modern issue. It's an ancient issue. And I would say this, that you don't even have to get into much of the history necessarily. I'm more satisfied to look at the future, and the reason that is is because there is an undeniable concrete, unless you're not a Christian, answer to this whole thing.

Israel, Palestine, Jerusalem. Who does it belong to? Can I tell you where Jerusalem is headed? Can I tell you who will own Jerusalem? Christ.

That's who's gonna own it. Jesus Christ of Nazareth is going to occupy Jerusalem. Oh, you don't believe me? You think that's my opinion? Well, let me show you what the prophets say.

If you believe the Bible in Jeremiah chapter three and verse sixteen and seventeen, where is this all headed to? Where is this ending? I'll tell you where it's ending, because the prophets told us by the spirit in Jeremiah three six 16 to 17. Here's a prophecy of a time that has not yet been known, a time to come, an era that is yet to be experienced in Jeremiah three sixteen. Here's what the word of the Lord says.

And when you have multiplied him and fruitful in the land in those days, declares the Lord, they shall no more say the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord. There's a time coming for the Jewish people according to Jeremiah that they're not they're not going to, seek after the Ark of the Lord at some I guess at some place, and we see it already. It's displaced. Nobody knows its whereabouts. But there's a time coming where it won't even be a thought.

It won't be a desire. It won't be something sought after. Well, when will that happen? Says here, it shall not come to mind or be remembered or missed. It shall not be made again.

It's gonna be completely irrelevant at one point. You know, there are some archaeologists now and some documentaries online where people claim they found the ark, and it was placed here, and this is there there's there's time coming where there's gonna be no more documentaries, no more questions about it. It's just gonna be completely out of mind. Why? Because of verse 17.

At that time, Jerusalem Jerusalem shall be called what? The throne of the Lord. The throne of the Lord, and all nations shall gather to it, to the presence of the Lord where? In New Jersey? In Sydney?

In Shanghai? In Moscow? No. In Jerusalem. And they shall no more stubbornly follow their own evil heart.

Do you know why they're not gonna want to even discuss about the Ark of the Covenant? Because the thing that the ark of the covenant pointed to is now in their midst. The ark of the covenant was a symbol of God's presence. We're told here that Jerusalem will become the throne of the Lord, meaning the Lord himself Yahweh will be on a physical throne in that holy city. And they'll say, we don't want the ark.

We have what the ark spoke of here. The unfiltered, unhindered presence of God in the person of Jesus Christ. I know it's a charged political issue today, but here's what the Bible says. It's gonna be solved when Christ claims it. And guess what?

Nobody's gonna take it from him. Nobody will be able to take it from him. No organization, no terrorist group, no protest from college students. It's not gonna work. He will rule and reign for a thousand years, and the nations will come and honor him.

You guys okay. Right? Good. This is bible, my friend. This is not my opinion.

And so we read here that the borders of Israel, this is arguably the largest terrain that was experienced and enjoyed by the nation of Israel. Verse 22, Solomon's provision for one day was 30 cores of fine flour and 60 cores of meal, 10 fat oxen, and 20 pasture fed cattle, a 100 sheep besides deer, gazelles, robux, and fat and fowl. Wow. What a menu. For he had dominion over all the region West Of The Euphrates from Tifshah to Gaza, over all the kings West Of The Euphrates.

And he had peace on all sides around him, and Judah and Israel lived in safety from Dan even to Beersheba, every man under his vine and under his fig tree all the days of Solomon. So here's a summary of the reign of Solomon. They had peace. They knew peace all around them, and there's a proverbial saying that we heard at the conference that every man sat under his own fig tree. And that's just a beautiful way of explaining that there was a sense of safety in the hearts of the nation of Israel that they can live out in the open, and enjoy their own personal garden, and live in their own shade with no fear of being attacked or siege to come about them.

They knew a security that was ushered in by this king who had a promise from God. And this proverbial saying, that every man will sit under his fig tree became a proverbial, portrait of the Messiah, and his rule and reign. That when the Messiah comes, our Messiah being Jesus Christ, each man will also know this reality. They will know some kind of a peace and safety in the streets, and that will only come when the Prince of Peace comes. That's Micah four four, if you're taking notes.

Micah four four, Zechariah three ten, where you see this description repeated as prophecy. Repeated as prophecy. And again, may I remind you that at the conference perhaps, that is the significance of Nathaniel sitting underneath a fig tree. That he himself in that moment, though they were occupied by Rome and there was so much spiritual leadership and corruption, he's sitting underneath that fig tree maybe maybe maybe was meditate meditating on when the Messiah would come and clean up all that mess. And when Jesus Christ says, I saw you underneath that fig tree, and Nathaniel's response was, you are the king of Israel.

I believe Nathaniel in that moment wasn't just impressed how Jesus knew about his physical location, but what was occupying his heart. He couldn't wait for that messianic age to to be a reality in his own day. But listen, to sit under your fig tree and to have your own personal garden as impressive as that is is limited. It's limited. Why?

Because it it speaks of economic flourishing. It speaks of political tranquility, but it's not a complete peace. Solomon couldn't offer the peace of heart when it comes to how you relate to God necessarily. Solomon could not offer a peace with the account of your sins. Solomon couldn't go there.

He can only go so far. And so this is why Jesus is greater than Solomon. You remember that if you're at the conference that he is the giver of a better peace. And if this is a summation of Solomon's peace, right, that they knew safety from Dan to even to Beersheba, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, what's the summation of the peace that king Jesus offers? Anybody remember if you're at the conference?

What is that reference that tells us about the extent of the peace that Jesus Christ gives? It's a verse that you and I should memorize in these days. It's in the last few verses of second Thessalonians three sixteen. Here's the peace that Jesus gives. Here's the repose.

Here are the green pastures for your soul that he leads you and I on and to lay upon. Second Thessalonians three sixteen. Oh, this is a beautiful scripture. Now may the lord of peace he's not just the giver of peace. He is the lord of peace.

May the lord of peace himself give you peace when? When you have the right party in office, when your bank account is full, when your body's intact and disease free. No. May the lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way, uninterrupted peace. Every second of every season, you can know this peace.

The Lord be with you all. That's the peace that the greater than Solomon offers. A peace that secures emotional, spiritual, mental serenity every second of every season. And I wanna tell you that this kind of quality of peace is totally unattainable, if you don't have the Lord of peace. You need the Lord of peace.

You need to be rightly related with the Lord if you want this peace to be deposited in your heart. If you don't have the Lord of peace, you will never know this peace, neither will this world, neither will the Middle East. It's only the Lord of peace. And that's what you and I can walk in. Now we come here back as we finish up this chapter.

What do we see here? A crack in Solomon's faith, the foundation of his faith. We read here that he lived in peace, surely. But in verse 28, barley also and straw for the horses and swift steeds they brought to the place where it was required, each according to his duty. Earlier read that he had 40,000 stalls of horses and 12,000 horsemen.

Good or bad? For Solomon to acquire all these horses, is that just another symptom of his success or symptom of something else? Could a king have all these horses? Was it right for a king to possess this kind of artillery? How do you know?

Yes. Okay. It was supposed to be a time of peace. Sure. But what if he just really liked horses?

Is that the idea? No. It was supposed to be a time of peace, so there seems to be a contradiction here in Solomon's planning. But in the law, whether you're Solomon or not, to acquire many horses was illegal. Do you know the reference to this?

In Deuteronomy seventeen sixteen, we're told explicitly that for all kings, all succeeding kings, all future kings of Israel, you could not acquire for yourself many horses. Only he must not acquire many horses for himself or cause the people to return to Egypt. Here's the bad thing with Solomon here is that he does both. He establishes relationship with Egypt and he acquires horses in order to acquire many horses since the Lord has said to you, you shall never return that way again. You shall never return that way again.

Why was God against chariots? Why was God against a king acquiring all this? Because you'd be tempted to rely on that and not on him. What does the psalmist say in Psalmist in Psalm 20 verse seven? You know it.

Yes. What is it? Some entrust trust in horse and others in chariots, but where is our trust? In the name of the Lord, our God. So the lords the Lord said, you can't do this because I want you to rely on me.

I mean, didn't they learn the lesson? What did God do with a bunch of chariots when they crossed the Red Sea? He buried them. He actually messed with the spokes and the wheels, and they jammed. Why Why are you gonna put your trust in that?

Why are you gonna put so much energy and time and investment in breeding? And look, they even had to feed the horses and cause slaves and servants to go out and to acquire to make sure make sure that they were strong and healthy. You could have avoided all of that if you just simply listen to my word. Just trust in me. Just trust in me.

And so already here, just like in chapter three, we're seeing problems in Solomon's faith. So in the midst of all of this, promising and flourishing, you see issues. You see issues with his relationship with the Lord. He is not careful with the word of God. And let me repeat myself from something I said a couple weeks ago.

If you are not careful with the word of God today, you'll not be prepared for the temptations that await you tomorrow. He's already flimsy. He's not standing on solid ground. He's not taking every aspect of his life and screening it through the word of God and the wisdom of God. He's slipping here and there.

You and I can't afford to do that, because what starts out as a crack can ultimately crumble. And we're gonna see that we already know that. Well, it doesn't even end there, does it? We get a summary of his wisdom in verse 29 down as we close here. God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and breath of mind like the sand on the seashore, so that Solomon's wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the East and all the wisdom of Egypt, for he was wiser than all of their men.

Wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Kalqole, and Darda, the sons of Mahol. And his fame was in all the surrounding nations. He also spoke 3,000 proverbs, and his songs were 1,005. How many songs do we have of Solomon in our Bibles? Psalms.

Unless you're trying to say that the songs are also Psalms. If it's purely a song, we have one, the song of Solomon, out of 1,005. 3,000 proverbs? Incredible. He spoke of trees from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall.

He spoke also of beasts and of birds and of reptiles and of fish, and people of all nations came to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom. And so this is really like a resume. Right? This is just showing how excelling this man was. But notice here, this this is what intrigued me.

The name of certain men in verse 31. He was wiser than all other men. So there is these other men who had a reputation of of being wise as well. Four of them. One of them being Ethan, another man being Heman, Khalkul, and Darda.

So clearly at this time, there were contemporaries in Solomon's day who had a reputation of being extremely intelligent. And what we're told here is that even the most famous that had a reputations that were sought after, they could not compare. They stood in the shadows of this towering mind of Solomon's. Do we ever see Ethan and Heman or any of these men mentioned elsewhere in scripture? That's right.

They're both found in the book of Psalms. Actually, Ethan wrote one Psalm and Heman wrote another, and they're coupled together. Does anybody know where the Psalms are found? Which Psalms? Psalm 88 and Psalm 89.

Go there with me for a second. So not only were these wise men, these men were worshipers. These men were psalmist. These men were prayer men, and we don't have time to go through this. But look at Psalm 89.

I mean, think about it this way. And maybe I mean, this is just my my individual kind of meditation on what we just read in first Kings four. You have Solomon being compared to these other amazing men who are contemporaries, and he outshined them all. He outshined them all. Makes you wonder what you would feel if for the longest time you were a reputable individual, sought after individual, and then some guy comes out of nowhere and he just takes over.

You know, some people would be intimidated by by that. Some people will be insecure by that. But then I come to Psalm 88, Psalm 89, and I'm comforted to know that these men were worshipers nonetheless. And we know that the contemporary is because in Psalm 89, Ethan is actually writing about the covenant that God made with David and his sons forever, and he was rejoicing in that. Solomon wasn't a a competitor.

Solomon wasn't somebody who challenged his ego. Solomon was just another display of God's mercy that gave Ethan another reason to glorify God. I I hope we can see each other that way. I hope you and I, when we see a gifted individual, an individual that's been given much opportunity to glorify God, you can look at that person and that give you another reason to rejoice in the Lord, to praise the Lord. Look at the sum of the language.

Look at here. Verse one of Psalm 89. I will sing of the steadfast love of the Lord forever. With my mouth, I will make known your faithfulness to all generations. And he rehearses over the covenant that God made with David.

And look at this verse 11, the heavens are yours, the earth also is yours, the world and all that is in it, you have founded them. He just can't get over that everything, even the covenant that David was experiencing and that Solomon was experiencing, that came from God. It all comes from God. This is how he can view people. This is how he can view circumstances.

This is how he can view shifts in his own life. I mean, in a sense, he was among the first place, and now he's second, third, fourth, and he's totally unmoved by that. You know, a believer comes in, and they play beautifully on music, probably more beautifully than you. Do you rejoice in that? Somebody comes in and they they preach better than you.

Do you rejoice in that? Somebody comes in and they they have the ability to give wise counsel better than you. Do you rejoice in that? Or do we shrink and we harbor jealousy? I was that person one time.

That's not godly. That's not wisdom. That's not spirituality. And I was just looking over this quickly. I mean, I was looking it's a long Psalm, but, one verse touched me, and I think it's a good verse.

It's not even related to this thought, but just a thought for us in the time that we're living in. Look at verse 46. How long, oh Lord, will you hide yourself forever? How long will your wrath burn like fire? This is the verse that touched me.

Remember how short my time is. For what vanity you have created all the children of man. What man can live and never see death. Who can deliver his soul from the power of Sheol. And I found myself on my way here meditating on this bible study, looking at Ethan's words and seeing and praying the same thing in my heart.

Lord, remember how short my time is. Remember how short my time is. Your time is short. True? Isn't it true?

And the time of what we're seeing here, the times that we're in is indicating that time is indeed very short. And so I want us to just if we can close in prayer and ask the Lord to make the most of our time while we still have it. Father, we thank you for this bible study. We thank you that you can speak to us through the high officials, the administration, the cabinet of King Solomon, and touch our hearts. We ask father, like what this man said by the spirit, please consider how short our time is, and we ask that you would help us use it for your name's sake.

May every second be a fragrance of worship to you, and may we know your peace every second as well. May that peace be a fragrance unto others in these last days that they would realize that the miracle of freedom of turmoil and pain can only come from the prince of peace. In Jesus' name, amen.