And God gave Solomon wisdom and very great understanding and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea-shore.
Here God answers Solomon's prayer with one sweeping gift. It comes at the high point of a reign already marked by peace and wealth. Three questions follow. Where did this wisdom come from? What is a heart like the sand on the seashore? And what did Solomon do with it?
Solomon once told God that the people he had to govern were too many to count. He asked for a heart able to handle them. One writer places the two facts side by side — the size of the nation and the size of the gift.
Solomon pleaded that Israel was "so great": how could he carry the responsibility of guiding such a nation? Now compare verses 20 and 29 of 1 Kings 4. Judah and Israel were as many as the sand by the sea. And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore. Wisdom according to the need!
(The ESV reads "breadth of mind"; the older translation quoted here has "largeness of heart".)
Wisdom here is not information. It is the ability to tell good from evil. And it does not stand on its own.
God had given Solomon wisdom. This is the moral discernment that applies to all things — to the good, to the evil, to every circumstance of man. With it came the knowledge of how to behave in each case. This moral discernment is never found apart from the fear of God. As we have seen, that fear marked Solomon at the start of his career. God's Word is how this wisdom reaches us. That is why Solomon asked God for "an understanding heart."
The second and third terms of the verse are not repetitions of the first. One describes what a man can take in and pass on. The other describes how many people his heart can hold.
Understanding is the power to take in the thoughts of God and make them one's own, so that one can pass them on to others. Beyond that comes a heart wide enough to hold all his people. Solomon identified Israel with himself, met all their needs according to his love, answered all their interests and made them his own. Does this not speak to us of Christ? He will show it in full when He brings us into the glorious rest of His presence, and His heart, divinely large, will embrace us all.
The same writer notes that God gave Solomon wisdom more than once in these chapters. Each grant came for a new task.
He had received wisdom (1 Kings 2:6) to purify his kingdom by judgment. Then (1 Kings 3:12) he received it to discern rightly in governing his people. Then (1 Kings 4:29) it was for leading and instructing the nations, the peoples and the kings of the earth. Finally, he received wisdom to build the temple, the great work which was to mark his glorious reign.
Solomon's wisdom did not stay inside his own borders. One writer reads that flow of visitors as a small picture of something later and larger.
The fame of his wisdom spread throughout the world, so that from all nations people came with the one object of hearing the wisdom of Solomon (v. 34). The nations will be drawn far more strongly in a coming day. The Lord Jesus, the King of kings, will take His great power and reign in His millennial kingdom! Jerusalem will be the centre. The nations will come there to worship Him and learn the wonders of His unequalled wisdom (Zech. 14:16).
The man with this gift ended badly, and one writer refuses to soften it. His lesson is about where safety lies.
It is written for our wisdom, for our learning, for our warning, that we should beware of slipping in the very thing which God singles out. There is no strength in wisdom or in anything else. Our strength is only in the Lord, and the only way to make it good is in dependence upon Him. It was not so with Solomon. He rested in the fruits that God had given him. He enjoyed what came from God, but turned aside from the living source.
- Given, not earned. Every word of the verse hangs on "God gave" — the wisdom came down to Solomon, it did not rise up out of him.
- Given to size. The people were as numberless as sand, and so was the heart granted to hold them; the supply matched the burden.
- Given in parts. Wisdom came for judging, for governing, for teaching the nations, and for building. Each new task got a fresh grant.
- Given to overflow. The nations travelled in to hear him, a small foretaste of the day when a greater King draws the nations to Himself.
- Given, but not a guarantee. Solomon rested in the gift instead of the Giver. There is no strength in wisdom itself — only in dependence on the Lord.
And Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the sons of the east, and all the wisdom of Egypt.
Solomon's fame rested on something he never trained for. His wisdom outclassed the two great centres of learning in the ancient world. Two questions follow: who was he measured against, and what does a man do with a gift that size?
Verses 29-33 describe the gift God gave Solomon. This verse measures that gift against two rivals.
In 1 Kings 4:29-33 we learn something more of the wisdom that God gave to Solomon, for it surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt. The east has long been famed for its wisdom, as was also Egypt, but the wisdom given to Solomon surpassed all.
Why single out Egypt? One writer explains what Egypt relied on, and what it left out.
No country in the early history of men was so distinguished for the wisdom of nature as Egypt. Greece and Rome rose later, long after the time in view here... Egypt depended mainly on good counsel, as if there were no living God. It depended on the counsel of man sharpened by long experience, for it was one of the oldest powers to reach greatness.
Solomon did not out-study these men. The wisdom came to him from outside himself. The record can name the great experts of his own day and then leave them behind.
Solomon's wisdom was a gift that came straight from God. It surpassed all the wisdom of men of the east and of Egypt, for there were men of outstanding wisdom in these places (v.30). The chapter names four men whose wisdom must have been great, but all of them ranked below Solomon. Ethan the Ezrahite wrote Psalm 89, and Heman the Ezrahite wrote Psalm 88.
What did that wisdom actually cover? The answer reaches back to the first man.
Solomon had asked God for wisdom and an understanding heart to judge God's people, and to tell good from bad. We see in the details mentioned here the breadth of this wisdom. Solomon's understanding of biology reminds us of Adam. God gave Adam dominion over the earth, and Adam's first task was to name the animals. In Scripture, naming someone or something usually goes with knowing that person or thing and holding a position above it. How interesting it would be to have a biology textbook written by Solomon. It would certainly have given glory to the great Creator-God.
Word of this wisdom did not stay inside Israel. Commentators see in its spread a preview of something larger.
Solomon's wisdom was not limited to a few subjects, for he spoke of trees, from the greatest to the lowest, and of animals, birds, creeping things and fish (v.33). The fame of his wisdom spread throughout the world. People came from all nations with one object — to hear the wisdom of Solomon (v.34). The nations will be drawn far more when the Lord Jesus, the King of kings, takes His great power and reigns in His thousand-year kingdom! Jerusalem will be the centre. The nations will come there to worship Him and learn the wonders of His unsurpassed wisdom (Zech. 14:16).
The queen of Sheba brought Solomon her hardest questions and got answers. Commentators point past him to One who is greater and who is alive now.
Now He lives as greater than Solomon. He is the One to whom we may turn for all direction in life, the very wisdom of God for us. He can solve all our hard questions, as Solomon solved the Queen of Sheba's. And He can so captivate our hearts by His personal greatness and glory that we desire nothing apart from Him.
The greatest wisdom on earth did not keep Solomon safe. That raises a question about what wisdom really is.
What is wisdom? Wisdom is not mere knowledge. The more knowledge a man has, if he has not wisdom, the greater mess he can make of things. Wisdom is the right use of knowledge in the circumstances of life. Learning a lesson from Solomon, we find that even wisdom is not a strong enough safeguard.
- Given — the wisdom came straight from God. Solomon never earned it, and the famous experts of his day were left behind.
- Greater — it passed the two great centres of learning, the east and Egypt. Egypt stood for counsel that runs as if there were no living God.
- Wide — it covered creation itself, from trees to fish. Like Adam naming the animals, it pointed glory back to the Creator.
- Global — the nations travelled to hear it. That was a preview of the day when the King of kings reigns and the nations come to Jerusalem.
- Not Enough — knowledge is not wisdom, and even Solomon's wisdom did not keep him. The One greater than Solomon is Himself the wisdom of God for us.
For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all the nations round about.
The verse measures Solomon against four named wise men — Ethan, Heman, Calcol and Darda — and finds him greater than all of them. Two questions follow: where did such wisdom come from, and why did his fame travel so far past his own borders?
One writer traces that wisdom back to its source. He also notes that two of these men left psalms we still read.
Solomon's wisdom was a gift directly from God. It surpassed all the wisdom of the men of the east and of Egypt, for there were men of outstanding wisdom in those places (v.30). The verse names four men whose wisdom must have been great, but all of it was inferior to Solomon's. Ethan the Ezrahite wrote Psalm 89, and Heman the Ezrahite wrote Psalm 88. Psalm 88 shows the agonizing grief of one who feels the shame and sorrow of Israel's guilt before God and cries out for mercy.
The other two left nothing we can read. What survives of Solomon is only a fraction of what he wrote.
As to the other two men, Chalcol and Darda, we find no record of anything they did or wrote. They were clearly well known in the time of Solomon, whose wisdom surpassed all of these. The Book of Proverbs, inspired by God, is a wonderful witness to his wisdom. He wrote many more proverbs than these — 3000 in all (v.32).
The verse calls the four men the sons of Mahol. The same names appear elsewhere with a different parent:
A man whose sons were renowned for their wisdom, but whose wisdom was surpassed by that of Solomon. 1 Kings 4:31. Four men with similar names are in 1 Chronicles 2:6, said to be sons of Zerah. These four are possibly the same persons, the word 'son' meaning grandson in one of the passages.
So what kind of wisdom did these men have? Another writer turns to Ethan's psalm and finds grace at its centre.
In Psalm 89 the wisdom of Ethan instructs us. What does this other wise man speak of? Of grace! This Psalm is about the unchangeable promises of God and the sure mercies of David. On the footing of the law, the people's relationship to God can only lead to the darkness of judgment and death. On the basis of the covenant of grace made with David, their relationship leads to this: "Mercy will be built up forever; you will establish your faithfulness in the very heavens" (v. 2) — in the heavens, where nothing can ever touch it.
Solomon's rule had fixed borders. His fame had none.
Solomon's dominion was but a weak type of Christ's, who will have "the uttermost parts of the earth" (Ps. 2:8) for His possession. The king of Israel ruled "over all the region on this side of the river" — the limits the Lord had assigned to Israel in Joshua 1:4. But the wisdom of Solomon went far beyond those limits. All people came to hear him, and all the kings of the earth came to inquire of him (v. 34). In this we see a picture of what Scripture says of Christ: "I will … give you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth."
So why did his fame spread, and what happened to it later?
The queen of Sheba came "to test him with hard questions" because she heard of "the fame of Solomon concerning the Name of Jehovah." At the beginning of his long reign Solomon cared about the honour of Jehovah's Name, and that is why his fame spread far and wide. Sadly, "when Solomon was old, his wives turned away his heart after other gods … and Jehovah was angry with Solomon." As long as he cared for the interests of Jehovah, his fame and glory stayed untarnished. But when he forgot the honour of Jehovah's Name and let the brightness of his glory be stained, Jehovah stirred up adversaries for him.
Even the wisest man met questions he could not answer.
Solomon's wisdom was greater than that of all men. But its brightness fades before the excellence of the divine wisdom shown in the Son of God. Solomon answered all the hard questions the queen of Sheba asked. Yet both the Old and New Testaments record questions Solomon could not have answered — questions the Lord Jesus Christ answered. Agur son of Jakeh asks in Proverbs 30:4, "What is His name, and what is His Son's name?" The Person of Jesus answers it, for He revealed the Father's Name.
- Given — Solomon's wisdom was a gift directly from God. It surpassed the famous wisdom of the east and of Egypt.
- Measured — He is ranked against real men. Ethan wrote Psalm 89 and Heman Psalm 88; Calcol and Darda left no record we can read.
- Weighed — Their psalms carry real wisdom. Psalm 88 cries out under Israel's guilt; Psalm 89 rests on grace and the sure promises made to David.
- Spread — His kingdom had set borders; his fame had none. All the kings of the earth came to hear him — a picture of Christ, given as a light for the nations.
- Exceeded — His fame grew while he honoured the Lord's Name, and faded when he forgot it. The deepest questions waited for the Lord Jesus Christ to answer.
And he spoke three thousand proverbs; and his songs were a thousand and five.
Scripture measures Solomon's reign here by output, not by battles or buildings: 3,000 proverbs and 1,005 songs. The numbers raise two questions. Where did such output come from? And why does the Bible keep so little of it?
One writer asks how a single man could write so many books. He points to what God gave him:
It is not hard to imagine the Holy Spirit using the same vessel for His power in writing all these books. Nor did a man ever live who could be a more fitting instrument than Solomon, if God so pleased. For He gave him "wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and breadth of mind like the sand on the seashore."
The book of Proverbs is far shorter than three thousand sayings. That gap is deliberate:
"Three thousand proverbs" covers far more than the inspired collection, just as the songs he uttered far exceed those meant to last. Inspiration selected by design.
The same writer applies this principle to the New Testament:
What we have is a selection made by the Holy Spirit — a principle just as true of the "signs" our Lord worked (John 20:30-31; John 21:24-25). Every Scripture is of God's special design.
Of the songs, almost nothing survives:
Solomon was a Preacher (Ecclesiastes) and a Moralist (Proverbs). He was also a song-composer (Song of Solomon). He wrote 1,005 songs. All have perished except this one, which is called "The Song of Songs" because it stands above the rest. That is, unless we count inside the 1,005 the two Psalms, 72 and 127, credited to Solomon.
One writer explains why that surviving song carries such a title:
Why call this precious little book "The Song of Songs"? Just because it is Solomon's — or rather Christ's, who will in due time be King in Jerusalem, in true Solomon glory. On the same principle He is called "King of kings, and Lord of lords." Pre-eminence in all things is His. There are many sweet songs in Scripture... It is said of Solomon himself that "his songs were 1,005"; but this one he calls "The Song of Songs." It far surpassed them all.
Vast knowledge is not the same as faithful use of it. One writer asks hard questions about what Solomon did with it:
Solomon is also responsible for the right use of the wisdom God gave him... He asked for wisdom and knowledge so that he might judge and rule God's people rightly, and God approved his request. And the Lord added riches, wealth and honour such as no other king had. He was wiser than all men. He spoke three thousand proverbs and one thousand and five songs. He spoke of trees, from the cedar in Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall. He spoke also of animals, birds, creeping things and fish. Amazing knowledge! But was this wealth of knowledge needed to govern Israel according to the law?... Did he not waste that power, that wisdom with which he was so richly endowed?
Another writer notes what Solomon was importing as his kingdom grew rich:
As the material prosperity of his kingdom grew, we are told his imports were "gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks" (1 Kings 10:22)... For a man unrivalled on earth for wisdom, this is a descent from the sublime to the ridiculous... Apes stand for folly, and peacocks for vanity.
Solomon's wisdom points past him. One writer turns from Solomon to the One he calls the greater Solomon:
Not a question brought to Jesus on earth puzzled Him. The wisdom of the true Solomon, the Greater than Solomon, could meet and answer every hard question. Nor is it different now, for Christ, risen from the dead and glorified in heaven, "became to us wisdom from God" (1 Cor. 1:30). There is not a question the troubled, anxious sinner can bring to Him that He will not answer in wisdom and in grace.
- Source. The 3,000 proverbs were not Solomon's own achievement. God gave him understanding "like the sand on the seashore." That made him a fitting instrument.
- Selection. Scripture keeps far less than he produced. Inspiration chose by design. The same principle decided which of Christ's signs John's Gospel records.
- Survival. Of 1,005 songs, only one remains. It is called "The Song of Songs" because it surpassed them all. One writer adds that Psalms 72 and 127 may belong inside that number.
- Stewardship. The gift left him accountable. Writers ask whether he used or wasted such wisdom, and note where he ended — importing apes and peacocks, folly and vanity.
- Substitute. Solomon's wisdom slipped into folly. Christ, the "Greater than Solomon," "became to us wisdom from God," and still answers every hard question brought to Him.
And he spoke of the trees, from the cedar-tree that is on Lebanon even to the hyssop that springs out of the wall; he spoke also of cattle, and of fowls, and of creeping things, and of fishes.
This verse closes the record of Solomon's God-given wisdom by showing how far it reached. Where did that wisdom come from, what do the two named plants stand for, and did it do Solomon any lasting good?
Solomon did not build this knowledge up by study. It came to him as a gift, and writers are careful about what kind of wisdom it was.
Solomon's wisdom was given by God, but it was natural wisdom. It was the wisdom he needed to rule his kingdom well and to look into the realm of nature. It showed before men in all that he accomplished and discovered. We see his wisdom shown in his discovery of the true mother of the living child in 1 Kings 3:16-27, and in the "hard questions" that he answered for the queen of Sheba.
The two plants mark opposite ends of a scale.
Solomon "spoke of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall." I take that to mean: from the greatest thing in the plant kingdom to the smallest, with everything else included between the two.
Hyssop is the small end of that scale.
Hyssop is a plant used in Israel's ceremonies. It is often linked with cedar wood and scarlet, and it was used in sprinkling those who were unclean. It springs out of the wall, which shows how small it is. Yet some of its stems may have been long enough to serve as the reed for the sponge that gave the Lord vinegar on the cross… The hyssop stands in contrast to the tall cedar. It is a symbol of man's littleness.
What Solomon knew was not a list of names.
His wisdom held sway over all these things, from the cedar to the hyssop, from the beasts to the fishes. He understood their life and the reason for their being. He knew how they relate to each other and to the whole of creation. He saw the examples God was giving through them for the moral life of mankind, and he spoke of all these things. Modern science, with all its high claims, is nothing but darkness compared with these certainties. But Solomon did not have universal dominion over all this. That is kept for a Greater than Solomon, for the Second Adam.
Cedar and hyssop meet again in Scripture, at a sacrifice. Read alongside this verse, the pairing carries a verdict on man.
Three things were thrown into the fire and burned with the sacrifice: cedar wood, hyssop and scarlet. In Scripture cedar wood stands for the greatness of man and hyssop for his littleness. They are the two extremes that make up the natural man, and the two extremes of his wisdom and knowledge too (1 Kings 4:33). All of it is only fit for the fire. Man, however you look at him, finds his end and his judgment in the cross of Christ.
However far Solomon's grasp of creation went, commentators do not treat it as final.
The great King knew creation itself… But this knowledge of creation was not perfect. It still reminds us of a glorious time to come. The secrets of nature, lost through the fall of man, will be restored through Him who will set groaning creation free (Rom. 8:21).
Solomon later weighed all this learning himself.
He was a great botanist, an ornithologist and zoologist. He traced God's wonders in nature, which the natural man can so easily do. But what about all this wisdom? Did it satisfy his soul? We listen to his answer: "I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit." The more knowledge, the more sorrow.
(Where the older translation reads "vexation of spirit," the ESV has "a striving after wind.")
- Given — Solomon's grasp of trees, beasts, birds and fish came from God, not from his own study. It was real wisdom, but wisdom for life in this world.
- Wide — naming the cedar and the hyssop is a way of naming everything. It takes in the largest tree, the smallest wall-plant, and all the rest between.
- Deep — he knew what creatures are, why they exist, and what God teaches us through them.
- Judged — the same two plants went into the fire at a sacrifice. Man's greatness and his smallness both meet their end at the cross.
- Unfinished — his knowledge was not perfect, and it never satisfied him. The secrets of creation wait for a Greater than Solomon, who will set groaning creation free.
And there came of all peoples to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom.
The last verse of 1 Kings 4 shows Solomon's reign at its peak. His wisdom had become world news, so why did wisdom — and not wealth or armies — draw the nations to Jerusalem, and what is it a picture of?
Solomon's political rule had fixed limits, marked out long before by God. His wisdom had none.
Solomon's rule was only a weak picture of Christ's rule. Christ will have "the ends of the earth" (Ps. 2:8) for His possession. The king of Israel ruled "over all the region on this side of the river," "to the land of the Philistines, and to the border of Egypt" (vv. 24, 21). These were the limits the Lord had assigned to Israel in Joshua 1:4. But the wisdom of Solomon went far past those limits. All people came to hear him, and all the kings of the earth came to consult him (v. 34). Here we see a picture of what is said of Christ: "I will … give you for a light to the Gentiles, that you may be my salvation to the end of the earth."
The verse before lists what he spoke about: trees, animals and fish. This was far more than a collection of facts.
His wisdom ruled over all these things, from the cedar to the hyssop, from the beasts to the fish. He understood their life and the reason for their being. He understood how they relate to one another and to the whole of creation, and the examples God was providing through them for the moral life of mankind. He spoke of all these things. Modern science, with all its high claims, is nothing but darkness compared with these certainties.
Solomon had asked for wisdom because the nation he had to govern felt too big for him. The chapter shows how God answered.
Solomon pleaded that Israel was "so great": how could he carry the responsibility of guiding such a nation? Now compare verses 20 and 29 of 1 Kings 4. Verse 20: "Judah and Israel were as many as the sand by the sea." Verse 29: "God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore." Wisdom according to the need!
This worldwide traffic to Jerusalem was a preview of something far greater.
The fame of his wisdom spread throughout the world. From all nations people came with one aim: to hear the wisdom of Solomon (v. 34). How much greater will be the attraction awakened in the nations when the Lord Jesus, the King of kings, takes His great power and reigns in His millennial kingdom! Jerusalem will be the centre. The nations will come there to worship Him and to learn the wonders of His unequalled wisdom (Zech. 14:16).
Jesus later pointed back to one of these visitors. Her journey turned into evidence against people who had something far better within walking distance.
This showed how earnestly she wanted to hear the wisdom of Solomon. David's wise and wealthy son did not carry the Word of God in his ordinary speech, as the Lord Jesus did. Yet she came without a single miracle to attract her, without a sign to guide or confirm her, and heard the wisdom of Solomon: "and behold, a greater than Solomon is here."
The man whose wisdom drew kings failed to guard his own heart.
Of course, Solomon was a believer. But he had not been reigning long before he shamefully compromised the truth that he knew, by acquiring many wives and concubines. How forcefully this teaches us that the greatest wisdom and knowledge cannot by itself protect us from evil. Only a steady, dependent submission of heart to the Lord Himself will give such protection. To know the truth is one thing: to obey it is another.
- Given — Solomon asked for wisdom because the nation was too great for him, and God gave it in the measure of the need.
- Wide — it covered all creation, from cedar to hyssop. He knew why living things exist and the moral lessons God set in them.
- Far — his rule stopped at the borders God set for Israel. His wisdom crossed them, and people came from every nation to hear it.
- Forward — this traffic to Jerusalem is a small picture of Christ's reign, when the nations will come to worship Him and learn His wisdom.
- Greater — one visitor travelled far with no sign to convince her, and Jesus said that someone greater than Solomon stood among His hearers. Knowing the truth is one thing; obeying it is another.