Solomon's Fame I Kings 9

I Kings 9:1-2 "And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and the king's house, and all Solomon's desire which he was pleased to do That the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as he had appeared unto him at Gibeon."

At Gibeon, Solomon was granted his desire to have wisdom and understanding to care for the people. Now, we see Solomon getting another visit from the Lord and a promise if only Solomon would walk in integrity as David did.

v4 "And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments: v5Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever..."

There is quite a contrast between David and Solomon. David was a shepherd and a warrior. Solomon was a builder of the kingdom and of the temple and other houses.

It was after Solomon finished building that the Lord appeared to him the second time. I think, often we are too busy to hear the Lord speak to us. In one place in the New Testament, he speaks of standing still and being quiet in another. I know idleness is not good but sometimes we do need to stop and listen to what God is trying to tell us.

The rest of the chapter deals first with King Tyree being given cities for his help to Solomon but he was not pleased with them. It also talks about the navy that brought in gold and other things. There is also information about who did the work. The strangers of the land were the labor force and Israel was the men of war and supervisors.

Psalm 133:1 "Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!"

Key word: Bible Study, Old Old Story. Solomon completes his building.