Today’s passage: 1 Kings 9:1-28
Helpful thoughts:
- Because the Lord waited until after Solomon had finished building his own house, this second appearance of the Lord to Solomon happened about twelve years after the events of chapter 8.
- In pledging His eyes and heart, God promised his attention and great affection to be given to the people of Israel.
- “Cabul” means, good for nothing. Hiram would later give these twenty cities back to Solomon.
- Gezer was a strategic city that was right on the “Coastal Highway”, a main trade route that ran right through Israel. It is amazing that the Pharaoh of Egypt knew and obeyed God’s orders for conquering these cities in the Promised Land for Israel and kept them as well or even better that Israel had herself (See verses 20-21).
Questions to consider:
- Why has there been so much trouble in Israel over the years? Both in ancient history and still today? Why is there a mosque on the Temple Mount today? (Verse 9)
- Go ahead and peek at the beginning of chapter 11…what is the sad truth of what happens after the Lord shared His promises with Solomon in the first part of this chapter? How long did this agreement actually hold from man’s end of the covenant?
- Which of these achievements sticks out to you as the most impressive, or perhaps the most surprising? How many of them did Solomon achieve on his own? What can the answer to that last question teach us?