Board index ‹ Specific Bible verses, texts, and passages ‹ 1 Kings

[Salam]

Did Solomon repent of child sacrifice?

[jimwalton]

I assume you’re referring to 1 Kings 11.1-8. The text doesn’t specifically say Solomon sacrificed children, but it could plausibly imply that he did. To answer your question, no, there is no record that he ever repented for his sin. The Lord pronounced judgment on him in 1 Ki. 11.11-13, and more in 11.14-18. The Bible doesn’t portray Solomon as a particularly godly man. He did evil (1 Ki. 11.6). He’s more known in the Bible for moral and spiritual compromise than for godliness.

[Salam]

Thanks but how come Ethiopian, greek orthodox churches vieww him as saint?

[jimwalton]

Good question. I wonder that myself. Here are some things we know about Solomon:

• He was David’s choice to succeed him to the throne. I’m not aware of any passage where God chose him to that position. (1 Ki. 2)
• God gave Solomon an extra measure of wisdom for deciding civil and judicial matters. (1 Ki. 3)
• Solomon built a majestic temple for the Lord (1 Ki. 6)
• The Lord appeared to Solomon in 1 Ki. 9, offering to bless him if he followed the Lord but to cut him off if he didn’t.
• There is no indication Solomon ever followed the Lord. He compromised himself politically, morally, and spiritually (1 Ki. 11). He did abominable and evil things int he sight of the Lord (1 Ki. 11.6, 9-10).
• His life, it seems, was nothing but problems (1 Ki. 11). When he died, his kingdom was in disorder, and the nation split in two following his death.

By my study, there is no reason to view Solomon as a saint. I really can’t explain or justify why the orthodox churches view him that way.

[Salam]

Thanks. the orthodox are right bc Jesus compare himself to solomon

[jimwalton]

Jesus’s comparison to Solomon is only in 1 aspect: Solomon was recognized by Israel as a wise king, but Jesus said He is greater than Solomon in wisdom (Mt. 12.42; Lk. 11.31). We have to be careful readers of the Bible, and not sloppy or make unwarranted assumptions.

The Pharisees were pushing Jesus for a heavenly sign. Jesus had already given them multiple signs, but these godless men refused to acknowledge any of them. They weren’t really seeking for the truth, or to honest discern who Jesus was. So Jesus said his resurrection would be the real sign of his identity as God (Mt. 12.39-40). He said that even the men of Nineveh had sense enough to repent when hearing God’s message (implying that these religious leaders were deliberately blocking the truth from affecting them).

He continues that even the pagan Queen of the South will be able to condemn this generation of religious leaders. She was astute enough to recognize Solomon’s wisdom, but these men have been blind to the wisdom of God standing right in front of them (Jesus).

Even a murderous people like the Ninevites were more honest than these religious leaders were. Why? Because Jonah’s preaching to the Ninevites resulted in a national repentance on such a scale that it made history. And Solomon’s wisdom was so widely recognized that it brought people from distant lands just to listen to him. In brief, Jesus is saying that a message in itself won the hearts of the pagans, but those who claimed spiritual fervor were fleeing from the implications of what they already knew to be true. He demonstrated more authenticating signs and persuasions than Jonah, more beauty and wisdom in thought than Solomon. Jonah was not the author of the miraculous. Jesus was. Solomon was not the source of his wisdom. Jesus was. Yet that difference counted as nothing to them.

So there is nothing in this comparison of Jesus with Solomon (it’s actually more like a contrast) that would make us think Solomon should be recognized as a saint.