Week 4: The Decline of Solomon as King

The Decline of Solomon as King: 1 Kings 9-11

Objective: 

• God's second appearance to Solomon
• Queen of Sheba's visit
• Solomon's heart turns from the Lord

Resources:

• Fr Tadros Y Malaty Commentary
• Catena Bible Commentary
• Fr Dawoud Lamie Bible study (Arabic)

Reading:

• • 1 Kings 9:1-9
  • 1 Kings 10:1-13
  • 1 Kings 11: ALL

Key verse(s):

• "Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing so difficult for the king that he could not explain it to her” 1 Kings 10:3

Comments:

• We see God appearing to Solomon again to remind him and the people to walk in his ways. 
• God makes it clear that if they don't follow the commandments and worship other idols, God will cut off Israel from the land. This is what will happen after many years because of the exile.
• The Queen of Sheba traveled a long distance seeking Solomon's wisdom. This teaches us two things:
  • The heavenly wisdom Solomon gained was above and higher than all other things
  • Solomon at this time was famous around the world for his wisdom
• The Kingdom of Sheba is located in Yemen today.
• In Chapter 11, we see the downfall of Solomon.
• King Solomon loved many foreign women who took his heart away from God.
• God tried to bring him back through many adversaries.
• We see Jereboam is rebellious against him. After Solomon's death, Jeroboam will cause the division to split.
• He will reign over 10 tribes and will be called the Northern Kingdom.
• We see this prophecy mentioned by the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite in 1 Kings 11:31
• Rehoboam, Solomon's son, will reign over two tribes and will be called the Southern Kingdom.

Review/recap questions:
**Servant may add more questions

1. Which queen came to see King Solomon?
2. Did he meet her expectation? How?
3. How did Solomon make evil in the eyes of God?
4. How did God punish Solomon?

Homework:
**Servant may add more questions

1. Who was the queen that came to visit Solomon?
   a) the Queen of Sheba b) the Queen of Egypt c) the Queen of The Hibros
2. What did the queen think of King Solomon?
   a) that he was a mean king b) God loved his people that made him the king c) he should not be the king
3. Why was God angry with Solomon?
   a) he did not build The House of The Lord b) he worshipped other gods c) he didn’t pray
4. How did God warn Solomon about his mistake?
   a) He appeared to him twice and told him b) He sent him a prophet c) He made him sick