His heart wasn’t in it…
“So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and did not wholly follow the Lord, as David his father had done.” 1 Kings 11:6 ESV
1 Kings 11 has been fascinating. Several times God compares Solomon to David or extends extra grace to Solomon because of David. This verse says that David “wholly followed the Lord”.
David the sinner…
When I think of David, I think of David the adulterer, David the murderer, and the King that abused his power to take what he wanted. I have struggled with the idea that David was a man after God’s own heart, but then I read verse 11 and it all made sense.
“Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this has been your practice and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant.” 1 Kings 11:11 ESV
Wrestling with Sin
The difference between David and Solomon? Solomon had made it a practice to ignore God’s commands. Solomon didn’t wrestle with his failures. Solomon’s heart had been turned and hardened toward the things of God. David on the other hand was tortured by his failure. David was grief stricken at the reality that he had sinned against God. His heart was broken. (See Psalms 51)
We all fail, we all sin. But do we wrestle with our sin? Does our heart ache because of our sin? At our core, way down deep, are we pursuing God? How deeply are you disturbed at your sin? Solomon’s heart just wasn’t in it. Is ours?
BT
