II. GENERAL ASPECTS OF ISRAEL IN THE REIGN OF SOLOMON.
1. It was a period of peace. For sixty years there were no wars. This gave opportunity for development, for wealth, and for culture.
2. It was a period of strong government. The age of individual and tribal energy was ended, and now all the life of the nation was gathered around the throne. All the tribes were held under one strong hand; tribal lines were ignored in the government of the empire (1 Kings 4. 7-19); every department was organized.
3. It was a period of wide empire. It was Israel's opportunity for power in the East; for the old Chaldean empire had broken up, the new Assyrian empire had not arisen, and Egypt was passing through a change of rulers and was weak. For one generation Israel held the supremacy in the Oriental world.
4. It was a period of abundant wealth. (1 Kings 3. 12, 13; 4. 20; 10. 23, 27.) The sources of this wealth were: 1.) The conquests of David, who had plundered many nations and left his accumulated riches to Solomon (1 Chron. 22. 14-16). 2.) The tribute of the subject kingdoms, doubtless heavy (1 Kings 10. 25). 3.) Commerce with foreign countries, Egypt, Arabia, Tarshish, and Ophir, in ancient times was not carried on by private enterprise, but by the government. The trade of the East from Egypt and Tyre passed through Solomon's dominions, enriching the land. 4.) There were also taxes laid upon the people (1 Kings 4. 7; 12. 4). 5.) The erection of public buildings must have enriched many private citizens and made money plenty.
5. It was a period of literary activity. The books written during this epoch were Samuel, Psalms (in part), Proverbs (in part), and perhaps Ecclesiastes and Solomon's Song. Not all the writings of Solomon have been preserved (1 Kings 4. 32, 33).
III. DANGERS OF THE PERIOD. There was an Arabian tradition that in Solomon's staff, on which he leaned, there was a worm secretly gnawing it asunder. So there were elements of destruction under all the splendor of Solomon's throne.
1. The absolute power of the king. David had maintained the theocratic constitution of the state; Solomon set it aside and ruled with absolute power in all departments. He assumed priestly functions (1 Kings 8. 22, 54, 64); he abolished tribal boundaries in his administration (1 Kings 4. 7-19); he ignored both priests and prophets, and concentrated all rule in his own person.
2. The formal character of the worship. There was a magnificent temple and a gorgeous ritual, but none of the warmth and personal devotion which characterized the worship of David. The fervor of the Davidic psalms is wanting in the literature of Solomon's age.
3. Luxury and corruption of morals. These are the inevitable results of abundant riches and worldly association. We do not need the warnings in Prov. 2. 16-19; 5. 3-6, etc., to know that a flood of immorality swept over Jerusalem and Israel.