His Heart Turned Away: Solomon’s Fall (1 Ki. 11)

Michiana Covenant Presbyterian Church

In chapter 3, verse 1, we are told that Solomon made a marriage alliance with Pharaoh. But we are assured two verses later that Solomon loved the LORD.So at the beginning of his reign, Solomon married Pharaoh's daughter while remaining true to the LORD.But now – we are told that Solomon "loved many foreign women, along with the daughter of Pharaoh." In other words, if he had only loved one – that could have meant the salvation of Egypt! But Solomon turned aside from the path of faithfulness. He forgot the LORD and clung to foreign women instead.In Hebrew, the "heart" includes both the intellectual and the emotional. This is the part of you that makes decisions, and thinks things through.And five times in verses 2-4, we hear about the heart:"You shall not enter into marriage with them, neither shall they with you, for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods." (v2)"His wives turned away his heart" (v3)"his wives tuned away his heart after other gods" (v4)"and his heart was not wholly true the LORD his God" (v4)"as was the heart of David his father" (v4)This contrast with David reminds us that what made David distinct was his heart. He remained true to the LORD – he never turned aside to worship other gods. The first commandment is "you shall have no other gods before me." When you place something else before God, your heart is no longer true to him. And that is where all sin is ultimately rooted.If you don't see how you have sinned against God, then you don't yet really understand your sin.Solomon loved his wives more than he loved his God – and so he worshiped other gods...