1 Kings 4:34
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.
Tag: God equips us to engage with others
First Kings opens with the transfer of power form King David, to his son, King Solomon. Another brother, Adonijah, attempts to secure the throne, but, instead, King David appoints Solomon as his successor. Solomon is young and when God appears to him and asks him what he would like to be given from God, Solomon asks for wisdom. Since Solomon is a young man, it would have been quite natural for him to ask for power, or property, or a willing people to follow him. Instead, Solomon ask for wisdom. Wisdom is the ultimate thing. Later, Solomon might have remembered this time in his life when he would write:
Proverbs 4:7
The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom,
and whatever you get, get insight.
And, remember, wisdom only comes by the Fear of the Lord. So, what Solomon requested from God came from his Fear of God:
Proverbs 9:10
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.
God granted him wisdom but also gave him all the things he didn't ask. He gave him prosperity, people and power. And, as the above verse points out, God gave Solomon as place of persuasion on the world stage. Solomon did not seek fame, but what he did seek (the fear of the Lord) God granted and that came with fame and fortune. Solomon was able to speak God's Wisdom into the lives of people who did not know God. Ultimately God would be glorified by this. When we have a choice on what to desire from God, make it knowing God and the wisdom that comes from Him.
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