1 Kingschapter 11

King Solomon in Old Age — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

A.A thousand wives turn away the wisest heartvv. 1-8

1 King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh—women of Moab, Ammon, Edom, and Sidon, as well as Hittite women. 2 These women were from the nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, for surely they will turn your hearts after their gods.” Yet Solomon clung to these women in love. 3 He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines—and his wives turned his heart away. 4 For when Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the LORD his God, as his father David had been. 5 Solomon followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6 So Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD; unlike his father David, he did not follow the LORD completely. 7 At that time on a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites. 8 He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.

B.I will rend the kingdom — but not in thy daysvv. 9-13

9 Now the LORD grew angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. 10 Although He had warned Solomon explicitly not to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the LORD’s command. 11 Then the LORD said to Solomon, “Because you have done this and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant. 12 Nevertheless, for the sake of your father David, I will not do it during your lifetime; I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13 Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom away from him. I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”

C.Hadad the Edomite and Rezon of Damascusvv. 14-25

14 Then the LORD raised up against Solomon an adversary, Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom. 15 Earlier, when David was in Edom, Joab the commander of the army had gone to bury the dead and had struck down every male in Edom. 16 Joab and all Israel had stayed there six months, until he had killed every male in Edom. 17 But Hadad, still just a young boy, had fled to Egypt, along with some Edomites who were servants of his father. 18 Hadad and his men set out from Midian and went to Paran. They took men from Paran with them and went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave Hadad a house and land and provided him with food. 19 There Hadad found such great favor in the sight of Pharaoh that he gave to him in marriage the sister of Queen Tahpenes, his own wife. 20 And the sister of Tahpenes bore Hadad a son named Genubath. Tahpenes herself weaned him in Pharaoh’s palace, and Genubath lived there among the sons of Pharaoh. 21 When Hadad heard in Egypt that David had rested with his fathers and that Joab, the commander of the army, was dead, he said to Pharaoh, “Let me go, that I may return to my own country.” 22 But Pharaoh asked him, “What have you lacked here with me that you suddenly want to go back to your own country?” “Nothing,” Hadad replied, “but please let me go.” 23 And God raised up against Solomon another adversary, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer king of Zobah, 24 and had gathered men to himself. When David killed the Zobaites, Rezon captained a band of raiders and went to Damascus, where they settled and gained control. 25 Rezon was Israel’s enemy throughout the days of Solomon, adding to the trouble caused by Hadad. So Rezon ruled over Aram with hostility toward Israel.

D.Ahijah tears a new garment into twelve piecesvv. 26-40

26 Now Jeroboam son of Nebat was an Ephraimite from Zeredah whose mother was a widow named Zeruah. Jeroboam was a servant of Solomon, but he rebelled against the king, 27 and this is the account of his rebellion against the king. Solomon had built the supporting terraces and repaired the gap in the wall of the city of his father David. 28 Now Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor. So when Solomon noticed that the young man was industrious, he put him in charge of the whole labor force of the house of Joseph. 29 During that time, the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met Jeroboam on the road as he was going out of Jerusalem. Now Ahijah had wrapped himself in a new cloak, and the two of them were alone in the open field. 30 And Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing, tore it into twelve pieces, 31 and said to Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and I will give you ten tribes. 32 But one tribe will remain for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel. 33 For they have forsaken Me to worship Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites. They have not walked in My ways, nor done what is right in My eyes, nor kept My statutes and judgments, as Solomon’s father David did. 34 Nevertheless, I will not take the whole kingdom out of Solomon’s hand, because I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of David My servant, whom I chose because he kept My commandments and statutes. 35 But I will take ten tribes of the kingdom from the hand of his son and give them to you. 36 I will give one tribe to his son, so that My servant David will always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put My Name. 37 But as for you, I will take you, and you shall reign over all that your heart desires, and you will be king over Israel. 38 If you listen to all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight in order to keep My statutes and commandments as My servant David did, then I will be with you. I will build you a lasting dynasty just as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you. 39 Because of this, I will humble David’s descendants—but not forever.’” 40 Solomon therefore sought to kill Jeroboam. But Jeroboam arose and fled to Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt, where he remained until the death of Solomon.

E.Forty years ended, and Rehoboam reigns in his steadvv. 41-43

41 As for the rest of the acts of Solomon—all that he did, as well as his wisdom—are they not written in the Book of the Acts of Solomon? 42 Thus the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years. 43 And Solomon rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of his father David. And his son Rehoboam reigned in his place.

Commentary on this chapter: read the Exposition

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Chapter summary

The collapse is domestic.

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The collapse is domestic. Solomon loves many foreign women, and when he is old they turn away his heart after Ashtoreth and Milcom and Chemosh, and he builds high places on the mount before Jerusalem: Deuteronomy's ban on kings broken point by point. Jehovah is angry with the man to whom he had appeared twice, and the sentence is the kingdom torn away, though for David's sake not in Solomon's day and not entirely. Adversaries rise: Hadad the Edomite, Rezon of Damascus, and the servant Jeroboam, whom the prophet Ahijah meets in the field and hands ten pieces of a new garment torn in twelve. Solomon reigns forty years; Rehoboam succeeds.

Drawn from Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory, Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary and John Wesley, Notes on the Old Testament.

Context

History · Jeremiah — 1 Kings overview

A. 1–8 A thousand wives turn away the wisest heart
B. 9–13 I will rend the kingdom — but not in thy days
C. 14–25 Hadad the Edomite and Rezon of Damascus
D. 26–40 Ahijah tears a new garment into twelve pieces
E. 41–43 Forty years ended, and Rehoboam reigns in his stead

Top cross-references8 chapters ▾

1 Kings 1112 verses
- 1 Kings 11:1King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh—women of Moab, Ammon, Edom, and Sidon, as well as Hittite women.
- 1 Kings 11:5Solomon followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
- 1 Kings 11:7At that time on a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab and for Molech the abomination of the Ammonites.
- 1 Kings 11:8He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
- 1 Kings 11:9Now the LORD grew angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.
- 1 Kings 11:11Then the LORD said to Solomon, “Because you have done this and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant.
- Read 1 Kings 11: 6 more there →
1 Kings 94 verses
- 1 Kings 9:2the LORD appeared to him a second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon.
- 1 Kings 9:4And as for you, if you walk before Me as your father David walked, with a heart of integrity and uprightness, doing all I have commanded you, and if you keep My statutes and ordinances,
- 1 Kings 9:15This is the account of the forced labor that King Solomon imposed to build the house of the LORD, his own palace, the supporting terraces, and the wall of Jerusalem, as well as Hazor, Megiddo, and Gezer.
- 1 Kings 9:24As soon as Pharaoh’s daughter had come up from the City of David to the palace that Solomon had built for her, he built the supporting terraces.
- Read 1 Kings 9 →
1 Kings 123 verses
- 1 Kings 12:2When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard about this, he was still in Egypt where he had fled from King Solomon and had been living ever since.
- 1 Kings 12:15So the king did not listen to the people, and indeed this turn of events was from the LORD, to fulfill the word He had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite.
- 1 Kings 12:20When all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they summoned him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah followed the house of David.
- Read 1 Kings 12 →
1 Kings 22 verses
- 1 Kings 2:10Then David rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David.
- 1 Kings 2:34So Benaiah son of Jehoiada went up, struck down Joab, and killed him. He was buried at his own home in the wilderness.
- Read 1 Kings 2 →

4 more chapters this one speaks with

2 Samuel 52 verses
- 2 Samuel 5:7Nevertheless, David captured the fortress of Zion (that is, the City of David).
- 2 Samuel 5:13After he had arrived from Hebron, David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, and more sons and daughters were born to him.
- Read 2 Samuel 5 →
Joshua 142 verses
- Joshua 14:8Although my brothers who went with me made the hearts of the people melt with fear, I remained loyal to the LORD my God.
- Joshua 14:14Therefore Hebron belongs to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite as an inheritance to this day, because he wholly followed the LORD, the God of Israel.
- Read Joshua 14 →
Acts 72 verses
- Acts 7:10and rescued him from all his troubles. He granted Joseph favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt, who appointed him ruler over Egypt and all his household.
- Acts 7:43You have taken along the tabernacle of Molech and the star of your god Rephan, the idols you made to worship. Therefore I will send you into exile beyond Babylon.’
- Read Acts 7 →
2 Kings 202 verses
- 2 Kings 20:17The time will surely come when everything in your palace and all that your fathers have stored up until this day will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left, says the LORD.
- 2 Kings 20:19But Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “The word of the LORD that you have spoken is good.” For he thought, “Will there not at least be peace and security in my lifetime?”
- Read 2 Kings 20 →

Cross-references from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge and OpenBible.info.