1 Kings 10

1 Kings 10

As Israel continued to prosper under the leadership of Solomon, word spread throughout the world of the riches that were in Israel. Solomon’s fame became a worldwide phenomenon, and stories were being told of all he had done for Israel. Furthermore, the world knew that God was the one who had blessed Israel, and people began making their way to the small nation to see the blessings God had given them. One of these people was the Queen of Sheba who had heard the stories about Solomon, but she was not so sure that they were true.


She went in wanting to test Solomon in order to make sure that the stories she had heard were true. She questioned him constantly, and at the end of their meeting she discovered that the stories did not even tell half the story. She was amazed at Solomon’s wisdom and the riches he had accumulated. She knew that Solomon had truly been blessed by the Lord. While she blessed God for all He had done for Solomon, Scripture is not clear what her standing with God was. Did she become a follower? Did she trust Him in her life? We really do not know. However, she is a prime example of what God wanted out of Israel. When they chose to follow Him, He blessed them. He made them a great nation that stood out, and the other nations took notice. The Queen of Sheba was one who came to check things out, and she was amazed at what she saw, possibly drawing close to God in the process. In the end, this was one moment in Israel’s history where they were doing things right, and the world was taking notice.

The Queen of Sheba left Solomon with great riches that she had brought from her land. In the same way, people from many nations were bringing in gifts to Solomon. The Queen of Sheba was not the only person to travel a great distance just to hear his great wisdom. People from several nations traveled to Israel for that reason alone, and in the process they heard about the Lord.

This leads me to question what our lives look like. Do our lives so stand out in this world that people come to us just to see what is different? Do people take notice of the different type of life that we live (living for God) or do we just blend into the world? Like Israel, our lives should reflect the Lord, and if they do, people will take notice. They will see that we are different, and it may lead them to question why. But we should never leave it up to them to come to us. Jesus commanded us to go. We are to be the ones who initiate those conversations, sharing the Gospel with those around us. Then, when our lives back up what we are preaching, people will take notice, and hopefully they will come to know Christ in the process. So while it is important that we live a holy life that is separate from the world, we must also take the initiative to go and spread the Good News as well.

Matt