How did God respond when Solomon asked for wisdom?

A most blessed incident followed. As stated before Solomon was a youth when he was anointed king. Eusebius states that he was only 12 years old; Josephus gives his age as 15 years. He was probably not yet 20 years old when he became King. He felt deeply two things, his own littleness and his great responsibility in governing the multitude of people. It was while still at Gibeon that Jehovah appeared unto him in a dream and said: "Ask what I shall give you." What grace this was, but it also searched his inner-most soul. And this offer was not made exclusively to Solomon. He who appeared unto Solomon and put this gracious question to him, when He was on earth clothed in the garb of a servant, yet greater than Solomon in all his glory, said: "Ask, and it shall be given you" (Matt. 7:7). And again He said: "Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do" (John 14:13). It is faith's prerogative to hear Him speak thus to our hearts and to make use of His great offer. Solomon's answer is beautiful. He acknowledged God's great mercy and kindness. Then he confessed his own weakness and helplessness. "I am but a little child; I know not how to go out or come in." He speaks of his responsibility and duty towards God's people and then utters his request: "Give therefore Thy servant an understanding heart to judge Thy people, that I may discern between good and bad, for who is able to judge this Thy so great a people?" It pleased the Lord as it always pleases Him when His people confess their littleness and expect help from Him. The request is granted. "So there was none like thee before thee, neither shall any arise like unto thee." Wisdom from above filled his soul. The book of Proverbs bears witness to this great understanding the Lord gave to him. But He added much more; He gave him riches and honour. "Seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness and all things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33). And the same Lord does still, to all who put their trust in Him, exceeding abundantly above all they ask or think. "He giveth us richly all things to enjoy" (1 Tim. 6:17). Then there was a conditional promise. "And if thou wilt walk in My ways, to keep My statutes, and My commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days" (verse 14). Alas! Solomon did not fulfill the condition. He forsook the Lord and died when he was not quite 60 years of age. He awoke and behold it was a dream. But it was more than a dream. That the prayer had been answered and that the wisdom of God was in him to do judgment is evidenced in the incident which follows and which needs no further comment. In his wisdom he is a type of our Lord Jesus who is the wisdom of God. And the justice he administered in his kingdom is typical of the righteous judgment of our Lord when He rules as king over the earth. "He shall not judge after the sight of His eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of His ears, but with righteousness shall He judge the poor" (Is. 11:1-4).

Solomon goes to Gibeon to offer burnt-offerings. Jehovah appears to him there in a dream. Solomon is conscious that he needs the help of Jehovah to fulfil the duties before him; and, through the grace of God, he manifests a state of heart with respect to this, which is pleasing to Jehovah. The sense of the difficulty of performing the duties of his position, towards a people who belong to Jehovah, makes him feel his own littleness; and the desire of not failing in the task entrusted to him of God is uppermost in his heart, and leads him to ask for the wisdom requisite to accomplish it. The genuineness of this sentiment is so much the more evident, from its being in a dream that he replies to God. God adds glory and riches to the fulfilment of this prayer. The sense of God's goodness and the joy of his heart, bring him before the ark of His covenant who had thus revealed Himself to him beyond his expectation. God's answer places the king immediately under the condition of obedience. The wisdom he had asked for is manifested in the judgment he gives, and the people acknowledge that it comes from God.

Solomon's reign begins most auspiciously. Having gone to Gibeon, where the altar still remained with the tabernacle, to offer sacrifice, God appeared to him in the night with the wondrous message, "Ask what I shall give thee." It was as though He placed all His resources at the disposal of faith. The young king prays for wisdom and knowledge in order that he may care for the flock committed to him. It was a most remarkable prayer for one placed in his position, and the Lord manifests His pleasure in it by conferring upon him exceeding abundantly above all that he asked or thought. His wisdom is celebrated to this day, and in his own times was the admiration of his people and the surrounding nations wherever his fame was carried.

Solomon felt that he was "but a little child"; accordingly he seized the golden opportunity divinely given to ask for "an understanding heart to judge Thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this Thy so great people?" His Speech pleased Jehovah well. He might have asked for long life or riches, or the life of his enemies; instead he asked for an understanding heart that he might rule well the people of God. Our blessed Lord once said: "Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you." On this principle Jehovah dealt with Solomon. "Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like to thee. And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches and honour: so that there shall not be any amongst the kings like to thee all thy days" (1 Kings 3:11-13). This seemed to make the blessing of Israel secure, but God went on to say, "If thou wilt walk in My ways, and keep My statutes." The priesthood having been in a secondary place since the breakdown of Eli and his sons, everything depended upon the fidelity of the king. The "if" to Solomon in 1 Kings 3:14 was as fatal as the "if" to Israel in Exodus 19:5, for poor flesh can never be trusted, and Solomon's failure was truly catastrophic. Blessed be God, all that has been lost by the unfaithfulness of men will be taken up by the Lord Jesus, God's faithful Second Man, on the principle of grace, and on the ground of redemption. This makes all things sure for ever.

The Lord appeared to Solomon in the night, saying to him, “Ask what I shall give thee.” What an offer! What a test to this young man! Will he ask for long life, or riches, or success over his enemies? He greatly pleased the Lord. He might have been dazzled by the glory of his position. He might have cherished great ambitions and asked accordingly. On the contrary his conduct is beautiful. See his humility: “I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in … Give therefore Thy servant an understanding heart… that I may discern between good and bad.” How beautiful this attitude was! How different from the attitude of modern youth to God, or even to their elders in this world.

The Lord was so pleased that He granted Solomon his desire, and added to it riches and honour and the promise of long life, if he walked in His ways. As for wisdom he excelled all who ever lived before him, as he would all who came after him. “Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt … he was wiser than all men … there came of all people to hear the wisdom of Solomon from all kings of the earth, which had heard of his wisdom” (1 Kings 4:30-34). He spake three thousand proverbs, and of songs a thousand and five!

A slight examination of the book shows that when God gave Solomon wisdom, it was wisdom from above. His own wisdom, great as it was, was not sufficient to guide him as directed by himself. So we find “the fear of the Lord” connected with wisdom.

He asked then for an understanding heart to administer justice to the people, to discern between good and evil. 2 Chronicles tells us that his request also included "wisdom and knowledge." God was pleased with Solomon's request (v.10), specially since he did not ask for things totally selfish, such as long life, riches or the destruction of his enemies (v.11), but for wisdom to discern justice, thereby expressing a desire to see the people of Israel prosper.

Therefore God gave him a wise and understanding heart which would excel the wisdom of anyone before or after him. Besides this God promised to give him riches and honor greater than all the kings of his day (v.13). Then God added a conditional promise that, if Solomon walked in God's ways, keeping His statutes and commandments, as David had, then God would lengthen his days.

Very likely Solomon thought that wisdom and knowledge would enable him to please God in all he did, but sadly, he failed miserably in keeping God's commandments, for he married 700 wives and had 300 concubines who turned away his heart from the Lord, so that he eventually became an idol worshiper (ch.11:1-8). While his request was good, it was not good enough, for wisdom and knowledge is never enough to keep us walking with God. Solomon did not pray to be preserved from evil in his own life. Had he read Deuteronomy 17:14-20? If so, did he not realize he needed more than an understanding heart, but a submissive heart obedient to the Word of God? Only by this could he have been preserved from the evils into which he fell.

Young as Solomon was, he showed true devotion to the Lord in offering 1000 burnt offerings on the altar (v. 6). Thus, his reign began well. The same night God appeared to him to give him the opportunity of asking what God should give him (v. 7). His response was good, for he first showed a humble attitude of thankfulness for the great mercy God had shown to David his father and toward Solomon also in making him king. He asked that the Lord's promise to David might be established, that is, the promise of David's seed reigning over Israel (v. 9). This desire for the fulfillment of God's word shows a heart dependent on God, which was especially true in Solomon's years.

Being impressed with the size of Israel's population, Solomon felt his own insufficiency for the responsibility of ruling over them, that he asked for wisdom and knowledge, so that he might go out and come in before the people (v. 10). This prayer was good, and God commended Solomon for asking for wisdom and knowledge, rather than for riches or honor or for the destruction of his enemies (v. 11). Therefore, God told him his prayer was answered favorably, so that he was given wisdom and knowledge. But God added to this that He would give him riches, wealth and honor also, greater than any other king before or after him (v. 12).

Solomon evidently took his father's word to heart. We notice his wisdom in his first recorded decisions after he ascended the throne. We especially see it as God asks him to choose what He should give him. A truly wise man will realize his own lack of wisdom and will seek it at the fount of wisdom-God Himself.

Solomon did not request wisdom out of vanity or for personal advantage. He realized what a tremendous responsibility the Lord had entrusted to him, young and inexperienced as he was. He wanted wisdom so as to be able to rule God's great people well. May we too seek wisdom from above to function well in our daily tasks, family needs, and in the responsibilities God entrusts to us among His people! God will be delighted to honor such requests. James 1:5-6 assures us that God is pleased to grant wisdom to all who request it of Him in faith, nothing doubting.

God bestowed upon Solomon wisdom and knowledge, and very great understanding and largeness of heart, and additionally, riches, wealth, and honor. The wisdom of God was in him to do justice. Kings came to hear his wisdom, for his fame spread to all lands.

Solomon loved the Lord, and worshipped Him at the altar at Gibeon, and there the Lord appeared to him in a dream, and said, "Ask what I shall give thee." Solomon asked for an understanding heart to judge the people wisely. The choice pleased God, and He gave him wisdom such as no king before nor since has had, and added to it both riches and honour beyond all others. If he would be obedient God would lengthen his days. His wisdom soon became apparent by his judgement in the case of the two women with the living and dead child. And people came from all the kings of the earth to hear his wisdom. The queen of Sheba came also. This is again symbolical of the reign of Christ during the millennium. It is further exemplified by all dwelling in safety, "every man under his vine and under his fig tree . . . . all the days of Solomon."

Solomon went to Gibeon, but he loved the Lord, and the Lord always takes account of our affection for Him. There it was that He appeared to him in a dream (v. 5). This fact, as others have remarked, has its importance. In a dream one is unable to disguise the true state of one's heart; one is not controlled by either his reason or his will to repress the manifestation of what is in his heart. In a dream the soul is laid bare before the Lord. What then were the thoughts harbored in this young king's heart when God said to him, "Ask what I shall give thee" (v. 5)? What the divine word finds in the first place in this heart is gratitude for the great mercy of the Lord towards David: "Thou hast showed unto thy servant David my father great mercy," and at the same time the high esteem he held this latter in (v. 6) because of his walk of truth, of righteousness, and of uprightness which had proved that David feared the Lord (Prov. 14:2). Next there is thankfulness for the mercy of God towards himself, David's son; "Thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day" (v. 6). Lastly, there is the consciousness of his youth, of his ignorance, of his incapacity. "And I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in." Such a state of soul promises abundant blessing; it is summed up in this: Fear the Lord, have the consciousness of His grace, esteem others better than yourself, and count yourself as nothing.

Solomon was there before God with an undivided heart and he was seeking but one thing: to serve the Lord in the circumstances in which He had placed him as leader of the people. He asks the Lord for "an understanding heart," for hearing is the door to discernment and intelligence. In order to be wise one must begin by listening to wisdom: "Blessed is the man that hears me" (Prov. 8:34). All true service starts with hearing. Solomon did not know how to "go out or come in"; he could not learn this except by listening. He who does not begin by enrolling himself in the school of wisdom will never be a true servant. Such was the pathway of service of Christ Himself as man. "He wakens morning by morning, he wakens mine ear to hear as the learned" (Isa. 50:4).

Let us remark that Solomon asks the Lord for "an understanding heart." One does not truly learn to know the mind of God except with the heart - not with the intelligence. True intelligence is produced by affection for Christ. The heart listens and when it has received the lessons it needs, it is made wise, capable of discerning between good and evil and of governing the people of God. That which makes the role of the heart so important in service is that no judgment can be according to God if it does not have love as its starting point. We experience this in cases of discipline, in guiding souls, and in caring for saints and assemblies.

Solomon's answer "pleased the Lord" (v. 10). What grace to have His approval on all that we ask of Him and to receive His testimony that we have been pleasing to Him! The Lord grants Solomon his request and is pleased to add that which Solomon had not requested. He grants him the first place in wisdom, "so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee." Moreover, He gives him "both riches, and honour: so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days" (vv. 12-13). Solomon's humble dependence put him in first place, according as it is written: "Whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; and whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant." It was so with Christ: "For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many" (Mark 10:43-45). In every respect there is none like Him! Wisdom, power, wealth, the crown of glory and honour — all things shall be His in "the day which the Lord shall make," and even the greatest, most magnificent things will only serve as His footstool!

In verse 14, as in all the books we are studying, the question of the king's responsibility is brought up. "If thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days." It is this if that Solomon could not come up to and which led to his ruin and to the division of his kingdom.