Ep. 95. 1 Kings 3-4, Psalm 89 | A Prayer for Wisdom

EPISODE 95

A PRAYER FOR WISDOM: 1 KINGS 3-4, PSALM 89

So Solomon allied with Egypt through marriage. He would do this repeatedly, and it would be his downfall. The Bible says, "Solomon loved the Lord, but he sacrificed at the high places." Sadly his love for the Lord would slip to idolatry and he would forsake the Lord in his later days.

One of Solomon's most famous stories is the wisdom he demonstrates with the two prostitutes. This example is so famous that it is used regularly in culture across all sorts of mediums. I assure you that you will see a parody of Solomon's wisdom in the media sometime in the next few months. I always remember the example from Seinfeld, where Elain and Kramer seek the wisdom of Newman regarding a bicycle.

Psalm 89 is the Psalm of Ethan, one of the wise men in the days of David and Solomon. Ethan writes about the love of God for David. It is unclear if this Psalm was written during David's reign or Solomon's. Ethan does write of the coming Messiah, "I will establish his offspring forever" and, "His offspring shall endure forever." No wonder the people in Jesus' day said, "We've heard from the Law that the Messiah remains forever." Even Isaiah says, "Who considered that he would be cut off from the land of the living." The expectation was that the Messiah would not die. No wonder it was so difficult for the disciples and all the Jews to see Jesus as the savior when he went to the cross. But Ethan wasn't wrong; the Messiah would reign forever; he just had to die first. That has always been one of the reasons people missed the truth of Jesus; they thought the Messiah was going to be an earthly king, a man of flesh and blood. They never dreamed the savior would be from heaven and would reign over Spiritual Jerusalem.

I do really love this thought of Ethan, "What man can live and never see death? Who can deliver his soul from the power of Sheol?" The answer is obvious: none. No man can redeem his life from the grave. All are destined to die. Since we must all face death, we must be grounded in Jesus. Though we can not save ourselves from death, in Christ, we can be saved from God's judgment, which is wonderful news.

ADDITIONAL READING: John 12:34; Isaiah 10:22; Hosea 1:10; Romans 9:27; Isaiah 53:8