Can someone be an ethical billionaire? I’m not going to settle that debate here, but the prophet Samuel had some thoughts about people with too much wealth and power. Ancient Israel didn’t have billionaires. It had kings. Samuel warned that kings would take from the people they were supposed to lead, and Solomon’s story proves his point.
I grew up hearing King Solomon was a Bible “good guy” who asked for wisdom and made his nation wealthy. The real story is more complicated than the version I heard as a kid.
Whether you’re new to the Bible or revisiting a familiar name, we’ll walk through who Solomon was, what he did with his wisdom, and who paid for his choices. You don’t need a throne to recognize the problem: Knowing what’s right doesn’t always stop us from hurting people. Solomon’s life gives us a reason to look at what we’re doing with whatever influence we have.
5 Common Questions About Solomon
Who Was Solomon?
Solomon was a king of ancient Israel and a son of David and Bathsheba. The Bible remembers him for his wisdom, wealth, and temple, as well as the harm he caused with his power.
Where Is Solomon’s Story in the Bible?
His story runs through 1 Kings 1–11. 2 Chronicles 1–9 also tells much of his story, with particular attention to the temple.
When Did Solomon Live?
Solomon’s life is traditionally dated to the 10th century BCE, around 970–931 BCE. The Bible says Solomon’s reign lasted around 40 years, though we can’t verify the exact dates.
What Is Solomon Known For?
He asked God for wisdom, settled a dispute between two mothers, and built the first temple in Jerusalem. He’s also known for his extraordinary wealth and the kingdom that split after his death.
Did Solomon Write Proverbs and Ecclesiastes?
Both books are associated with Solomon, but that doesn’t mean he wrote every word. Proverbs includes sayings attributed to other people, and most scholars date Ecclesiastes centuries after his lifetime (more below).
A Short Summary of Solomon’s Life
Here’s a brief outline of what the Bible tells us about Solomon’s life and reign.
- Solomon is born to King David and Bathsheba and becomes king after a dispute over who will succeed his father.
- Early in his reign, God appears to him in a dream and invites him to ask for anything. Solomon asks for wisdom to govern well.
- He settles a dispute between two mothers, and his judgment makes him famous throughout Israel.
- He builds the first temple in Jerusalem, along with a palace and other projects that require forced labor.
- His kingdom grows wealthy, and rulers from other nations come to hear his wisdom.
- Solomon takes hundreds of wives and concubines and builds places to worship other gods.
- After he dies, his son refuses to ease the people’s burden, and the kingdom splits in two.
When Did Solomon’s Story Happen in the Bible?
Solomon’s story happens after these Bible stories:
- Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt.
- God calls young Samuel, who later warns Israel about the dangers of having a king.
- David defeats Goliath and eventually becomes Solomon’s father.
Solomon’s story happens before these Bible stories:
- The prophet Elijah confronts kings in the divided kingdom.
- Esther risks her life to save her people centuries later, after Judah’s exile.
- Much later, Jesus lives and teaches in a land ruled by Rome.
What Were the Bible’s Rules for Kings?
As a kid, I read Solomon’s story like a golden age. Then I read the instructions. Deuteronomy 17 told Israel’s kings to:
- Avoid building up a huge military. Solomon accumulated 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horses.
- Avoid taking many wives. Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines.
- Avoid piling up wealth. Solomon received 666 talents of gold a year.
- Read God’s law throughout their lives. The point was to keep them from thinking they were better than everyone else.
Keep those instructions in mind as you read. The impressive numbers start looking a little different.
How Did Solomon Become King?
Solomon was a son of King David but he wasn’t the obvious heir. In David’s final days, Solomon’s older brother, Adonijah, declared himself king. Bathsheba (Solomon’s mother) and the prophet Nathan preferred Solomon, so they convinced David to appoint him on his deathbed. (1 Kings 1).
Solomon began his rule by executing his brother Adonijah and Shimei, a critic of King David. This should give us an early clue about what Solomon is like.
Why Did Solomon Ask God for Wisdom?
God appeared to Solomon in a dream and said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you” (1 Kings 3:5). Solomon admitted he didn’t know how to govern the people in his care. He asked for a “discerning heart” to tell right from wrong. God gave him wisdom, along with wealth and honor.
Knowing right from wrong doesn’t make us immune to choosing wrong
So we’ve met a king willing to kill to keep power, and a king humble enough to admit he needs help. Those two versions of Solomon keep showing up together. That’s what my childhood “good guy” version left out.
Why Did Solomon Order a Baby Cut in Half?
In perhaps Solomon’s most famous wisdom story, two women who lived together came to Solomon, each claiming the same baby was hers. Both had recently given birth, but one child had died. There were no other witnesses.
Solomon called for a sword and ordered the living baby cut in two. One woman accepted the absurd compromise. The other begged him to spare the child, even if it meant giving him up. Solomon gave her the baby (1 Kings 3:16-28).
Weird story though, right? There’s something Sherlock Holmes adjacent here. With no reliable witnesses, Solomon still uncovers the truth. News spreads, and people recognize his gift for administering justice. After David’s murderous plots and ignored injustices, this looks promising.
What Did Solomon Build, and Who Paid the Price?
Next came the first temple in Jerusalem. For generations, Israel had worshiped at the tabernacle, a portable sanctuary built in the Sinai wilderness. David wanted to build a permanent temple, but God said he’d shed too much blood. The job went to Solomon.
Solomon bought cedar from King Hiram of Tyre, “recruited” a massive workforce, and spent seven years building. At the dedication, he prayed that God would hear anyone who came seeking Him, including foreigners (1 Kings 8). Okay, anyone praying to God is nice, but let’s get back to the labor.
Did Slaves Build Solomon’s Temple?
Yes, partially. Solomon’s workforce included:
- Conscripted Israelites: people drafted to work for a set time.
- Enslaved people: non-Israelite peoples forced into ongoing labor.
Yikes. People can and do say, “This was a different time.” But Israel’s own story gives us a reason to question Solomon. Their ancestors had suffered in slavery until God freed them through Moses. Their laws repeatedly told them to remember that experience in how they treated others.
And how’s that going for them? Solomon built a temple to the God who freed them from slavery using slave labor.
Why Did Solomon Have So Many Wives?
The temple wasn’t King Solomon’s only big project. His kingdom grew wealthy, and his relationships with other nations grew too. He married the Egyptian Pharaoh’s daughter, connecting himself to Egypt’s royal family. According to 1 Kings 11, he eventually had 700 foreign wives and 300 concubines.
Many of these marriages helped secure political alliances. The books of Kings focus more on what happened to Solomon’s worship after marrying wives who worshiped other gods. Apparently, Solomon had a thing for building temples, because he began building places for his wives to worship their gods. Then he began worshiping those gods himself.
God became angry with Solomon and told him the kingdom would be taken from his son. To understand why the marriages and everything else Solomon accumulated are such a big part of this story, we need to look at a much earlier warning.
What Happened After Solomon Died?
After Solomon died, the people asked his son Rehoboam to ease their harsh labor. Older advisers told him to listen. His friends told him to make their burden heavier. He chose his friends.
Most of the kingdom rejected him and made Jeroboam king of the northern kingdom, Israel. Rehoboam kept the south, Judah. Solomon’s son inherited a kingdom full of people asking for relief, and he answered by threatening them.
What Lessons Can We Learn From Solomon?
- Wealth and power can make it harder to care about people. Solomon had enough to help others and enough power to make them serve him. Billionaire or not, what are we doing with our influence?
- Defining success isn’t always obvious. Solomon had the best of everything. His people asked his son for relief. Which version of his success are we measuring?
- Ask who pays for success. Someone built the palace. Someone makes the cheap stuff we order today. Their experience belongs in the success story too.
- Watch what you pass along. Rehoboam inherited his father’s problems and added to them. Breaking that pattern can take reflection, therapy, and, if you’re a Christian, prayer.
Common Questions About Solomon
Who Was the Queen of Sheba, and Why Did She Visit Solomon?
In 1 Kings 10, the Queen of Sheba hears about Israel’s reputation and visits to test Solomon’s wisdom with difficult questions. Solomon answers her questions, and his wisdom and wealth impress her.
The Bible doesn’t give her name or describe a romance between them. Those details come from later traditions. In Kings, the visit shows how far Solomon’s reputation had traveled.
Did Solomon Really Exist?
We don’t have an inscription from Solomon’s lifetime that names him. So archaeological evidence can’t confirm his existence or works in the way it can for later biblical kings like Omri and Hezekiah.
Scholars and Christians can disagree on how much of this story is history, and how much is historical allegory.
Did Solomon Write Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon?
All three books are associated with Solomon, but their authorship is more complicated than a name on the cover.
- Proverbs attributes several collections to Solomon and names other contributors too. It’s a collection of wisdom gathered over time.
- Ecclesiastes introduces its speaker as a son of David and king in Jerusalem, but any descendant of David would likely call themselves the “son of David” as the head of their royal line. Most scholars date its composition centuries after his lifetime. So it was likely written by a later king descended from David.
- Song of Solomon, also called Song of Songs, opens with a reference to Solomon. The Hebrew wording can mean a song by, for, or about him, so it doesn’t settle who wrote it.
More Bible Characters Explained: