What does the Lord say will happen if Solomon and his children turn to strange gods?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

He says he will remove Israel from the land he gave them and cast the sanctified temple out of his sight. Israel will become a proverb and byword, and passersby will ask why this happened; the answer will name their abandonment of the Lord for strange gods.

Chapter breakdown

After Solomon finishes the Lord’s house, his own house and all he desires and is pleased to do, the Lord appears to him a second time as at Gabaon. He says he has heard Solomon’s prayer and pleas and sanctified this house to put his name there forever; his eyes and heart will be there always. He begins a condition: if Solomon walks before him as his father did, in simplicity of heart and uprightness, does all he commands and keeps his ordinances and judgments.

Challoner’s separate note explains simplicity of heart as the sincerity and integrity of a single heart, opposed to all double dealing and deceit.

With that condition, the Lord promises to establish Solomon’s kingdom’s throne over Israel forever, as he promised David his father: a man of David’s line will not fail on Israel’s throne. But if Solomon and his children revolt, turn from following him, stop keeping his commandments and ceremonies, and worship and adore strange gods, he will remove Israel from the land given them and cast the temple sanctified to his name out of his sight. Israel will become a proverb and byword among all peoples. The house will become an example: everyone passing will be astonished, hiss and ask why the Lord has done this to the land and house. The answer will be that they forsook the Lord who brought their fathers from Egypt, followed, adored and worshipped strange gods, and therefore received all this evil from the Lord.

When twenty years have ended after Solomon’s building of the two houses, the Lord’s and the king’s, Solomon gives Hiram twenty cities in Galilee. Hiram, Tyre’s king, has supplied cedar, fir and gold according to all Solomon needed. Hiram comes from Tyre to inspect the towns and is displeased. Addressing Solomon as brother, he asks whether these are the cities given him and calls them the land of Chabul, a name the account says remains unto this day.

Challoner’s separate note explains Chabul as dirty or displeasing.

Hiram sends Solomon a hundred and twenty talents of gold. The account names the expenses offered for the Lord’s house, Solomon’s house, Mello, Jerusalem’s wall, Heser, Mageddo and Gazer. Pharao, Egypt’s king, captured Gazer, burned it and killed the Chanaanite living in the city, then gave it as a dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s wife. Solomon builds Gazer, Bethhoron the nether, Baalath and Palmira in the wilderness. He fortifies his towns that lack walls, the chariot and horsemen’s cities, and whatever he desires to build in Jerusalem, Libanus and all the land he rules.

Of the Amorrhites, Hethites, Pherezites, Hevites and Jebusites remaining outside Israel, their children left in the land whom Israel had been unable to destroy are made tributary by Solomon, unto this day in the account. He makes none of Israel’s children bondmen; they are warriors, his servants, princes, captains, and overseers of chariots and horses. Five hundred and fifty chief officers oversee Solomon’s works, with people beneath them and charge of the appointed work. Pharao’s daughter moves from David’s city to the house Solomon built for her; then he builds Mello.

Three times each year Solomon offers holocausts and peace-offering victims on the altar he built to the Lord, and burns incense before him; the temple is finished. Solomon makes a fleet at Asiongaber near Ailath, on the Red Sea shore in Edom. Hiram sends his servants, sailors who know the sea, in the fleet with Solomon’s servants. They come to Ophir and bring Solomon four hundred and twenty talents of gold.

The story inside

The Lord’s second appearance follows Solomon’s completion of his desired building work. The reply joins a hearing of his prayer and sanctification of the house to a condition on Solomon’s conduct and a warning about revolt into strange-god worship. The account then turns to the twenty Galilean cities: Hiram inspects them, is displeased and names them Chabul. Gold, building expenses, Gazer’s capture and dowry, fortified towns, tribute, Israelite roles and officers follow. Pharao’s daughter moves to her house before Mello is built. The chapter ends with annual offerings and a fleet whose sailors include Hiram’s servants, bringing gold from Ophir.

Lessons worth keeping

1
The Lord’s promise includes concrete conduct: simplicity and uprightness, all his commands, ordinances and judgments. Challoner explains simplicity separately as sincerity and a single heart opposed to deceit. The warning then addresses Solomon and his children and names the consequences of turning to strange gods.
2
Hiram’s dissatisfaction has a stated action and response: he inspects the twenty towns, finds them displeasing, asks Solomon about them and calls them Chabul. The text also records a hundred and twenty talents of gold sent by Hiram. It gives no reason for his dissatisfaction beyond the towns not pleasing him.
3
The work and fleet accounts keep distinct numbers and roles. Five hundred and fifty officers oversee assigned work; surviving named peoples are tributary while Israelites are not made bondmen. For the fleet, Hiram supplies sailors with knowledge of the sea, and the voyage brings four hundred and twenty talents from Ophir.

Test your recall

What actions by Solomon and his children are named before the Lord’s warning about removal from the land and rejection of the temple?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 35907–35926
3 Kings Chapter 9 The Lord appeareth again to Solomon: he buildeth cities: he sendeth a fleet to Ophir. 9:1. And it came to pass when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the Lord, and the king’s house, and all that he desired and was pleased to do, 9:2. That the Lord appeared to him the second time, as he had appeared to him in Gabaon. 9:3. And the Lord said to him: I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, which thou hast made before me: I have sanctified this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and my eyes, and my heart, shall be there always. 9:4. And if thou wilt walk before me, as thy father walked, in simplicity of heart, and in uprightness: and wilt do all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my ordinances, and my judgments,
Lines 35928–35930
As thy father walked, in simplicity of heart.... That is, in the sincerity and integrity of a single heart, as opposite to all double dealing and deceit.
Lines 35932–35953
9:5. I will establish the throne of thy kingdom over Israel for ever, as I promised David, thy father, saying: There shall not fail a man of thy race upon the throne of Israel. 9:6. But if you and your children, revolting, shall turn away from following me, and will not keep my commandments, and my ceremonies, which I have set before you, but will go and worship strange gods, and adore them: 9:7. I will take away Israel from the face of the land which I have given them; and the temple which I have sanctified to my name, I will cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb, and a byword among all people. 9:8. And this house shall be made an example of: every one that shall pass by it, shall be astonished, and shall hiss, and say: Why hath the Lord done thus to this land, and to this house? 9:9. And they shall answer: Because they forsook the Lord their God, who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and followed strange gods, and adored them, and worshipped them: therefore hath the Lord brought upon them all this evil.
Lines 35955–35966
9:10. And when twenty years were ended, after Solomon had built the two houses; that is, the house of the Lord, and the house of the king, 9:11. (Hiram, the king of Tyre, furnishing Solomon with cedar trees, and fir trees, and gold, according to all he had need of) then Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee. 9:12. And Hiram came out of Tyre, to see the towns which Solomon had given him, and they pleased him not; 9:13. And he said: Are these the cities which thou hast given me, brother? And he called them the land of Chabul, unto this day.
Lines 35968–35968
Chabul.... That is, dirty or displeasing.
Lines 35970–35988
9:14. And Hiram sent to king Solomon a hundred and twenty talents of gold. 9:15. This is the sum of the expenses, which king Solomon offered to build the house of the Lord, and his own house, and Mello, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Heser, and Mageddo, and Gazer. 9:16. Pharao, the king of Egypt, came up and took Gazer, and burnt it with fire: and slew the Chanaanite that dwelt in the city, and gave it for a dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s wife. 9:17. So Solomon built Gazer, and Bethhoron the nether, 9:18. And Baalath, and Palmira, in the land of the wilderness. 9:19. And all the towns that belonged to himself, and were not walled, he fortified; the cities also of the chariots, and the cities of the horsemen, and whatsoever he had a mind to build in Jerusalem, and in Libanus, and in all the land of his dominion.
Lines 35990–36007
9:20. All the people that were left of the Amorrhites, and Hethites, and Pherezites, and Hevites, and Jebusites, that are not of the children of Israel: 9:21. Their children, that were left in the land; to wit, such as the children of Israel had not been able to destroy, Solomon made tributary unto this day. 9:22. But of the children of Israel, Solomon made not any to be bondmen, but they were warriors, and his servants, and his princes, and captains, and overseers of the chariots and horses. 9:23. And there were five hundred and fifty chief officers set over all the works of Solomon, and they had people under them, and had charge over the appointed works. 9:24. And the daughter of Pharao came up out of the city of David to her house, which Solomon had built for her: then did he build Mello.
Lines 36009–36021
9:25. Solomon also offered three times every year holocausts, and victims of peace offerings, upon the altar which he had built to the Lord, and he burnt incense before the Lord: and the temple was finished. 9:26. And king Solomon made a fleet in Asiongaber, which is by Ailath, on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom. 9:27. And Hiram sent his servants in the fleet, sailors that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon. 9:28. And they came to Ophir; and they brought from thence to king Solomon four hundred and twenty talents of gold.