1 Kings 10 Devotional

Wisdom Worth the Journey

“Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you to set you on the throne of Israel. Because of the LORD’s eternal love for Israel, He has made you king to carry out justice and righteousness.””1 Kings 10:9 (BSB)

The queen of Sheba hears of Solomon's fame, tied to the name of the LORD, and comes to test him with hard questions (10:1). When she sees his wisdom, his house and his worship, it takes her breath away, and she says the reports had not told her even half of it (10:7). Then she blesses the LORD for putting Solomon on the throne out of love for Israel (10:9).

The rest of the chapter piles up gold, ivory, horses and chariots (10:14-29). The law for Israel's kings had warned against gathering many horses from Egypt and great stores of silver and gold (Deuteronomy 17:16-17). Splendor can become a snare. But the deepest note is a foreign ruler traveling far to hear God-given wisdom. Jesus said this queen will stand at the judgment as a witness against his generation, because she went so far to hear Solomon, and he himself is greater than Solomon (Matthew 12:42). His wisdom is worth far more than whatever it costs to come and hear it.

To think about: What keeps you from going out of your way to listen to Jesus, whose wisdom is greater than Solomon's?