Observation: Solomon was RICH. Wealthy beyond the wildest dreams of most of his subjects. As with other rulers of the time, Solomon's wealth included people: slaves, from other nations.
Application: I have an uncomfortable relationship with wealth when I read about it in the Bible. Even though in the Old Testament, it often is seen as a sign of God's blessing --Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Boaz, and of course Solomon were all very wealthy --Jesus' words ring in my head, "Woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation." And I think about my own life...by modern American standards, part of that ever-shrinking middle class. But by global and historic standards, still enormously privileged and wealthy. And if I start to feel superior about where my wealth comes from, thinking "at least I worked hard to earn this," I remember how much of what I have--from the produce in my refrigerator, to the very phone on which I'm typing this --is likely to have come to me through at least one person in the supply chain who is not making a living wage. Forced labor was an accepted practice in the ancient world, but we kid ourselves if we think it has completely gone away. Solomon probably slept fairly well on his silk sheets. I'm not doing as well on my flannel ones.
Prayer: O Lord, have mercy. This world is so hopelessly complex. Any semblance of clean hands, of moral purity, is an illusion. Teach me how to take steps to love the neighbors I will never meet, in how I shop, consume, and give thanks for what I have. Amen.
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