Jeffrey,<\/p>\n
Another question that I realize we probably can’t really answer. However, since I’ve been curious about it for some time, I thought I’d ask anyway. In the Old Testament, we read of Solomon letting his wives turn his heart from God.<\/p>\n
“For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father<\/em>” (I Kings 11:4).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Surely this state would have kept him from fellowship with God and in that he would have missed out on a heavenly home. Some teachers seem to think the book of Ecclesiastes may have been repentance from this state.<\/p>\n
What would your thoughts be on the subject? Just curious.<\/p>\n\t
Answer:<\/h2>\n
We have to keep in mind that we are not in God’s judgment seat. The final say in this matter belongs to the Lord. We know Solomon strayed at the end but we don’t know if he returned to God before his death. However, this should serve as a warning that a faithful life before God can be marred by sin. “But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity and does according to all the abominations that a wicked man does, will he live? All his righteous deeds which he has done will not be remembered for his treachery which he has committed and his sin which he has committed; for them he will die<\/em>” (Ezekiel 18:24). Great wisdom doesn’t keep a man from making foolish mistakes.<\/p>\n
I would reject the idea that Ecclesiastes was written as a result of Solomon’s repentance. That view hints that books of the Bible were written by the will of man instead of the will of God. “But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God<\/em>” (II Peter 1:20-21).<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Question: Jeffrey, Another question that I realize we probably can’t really answer. However, since I’ve been curious about it for some time, I thought I’d ask anyway. In the Old Testament, we read of Solomon letting his wives turn his heart from God. “For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[791,786],"class_list":["post-35985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-ecclesiastes","tag-solomon"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":28842,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/should-songs-be-used-by-a-writer-who-was-improperly-divorced\/","url_meta":{"origin":35985,"position":0},"title":"Should songs be used by a writer who was improperly divorced?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 5, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I noticed in our songbook that a few of the songs written are by Amy Grant. I don't know if you are familiar with her, but she is a singer and songwriter who divorced because of \"irreconcilable differences\" and promptly remarried. My question is, do you think it is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16176,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-was-the-kingdom-divided-in-the-old-testament\/","url_meta":{"origin":35985,"position":1},"title":"Why was the kingdom divided in the Old Testament?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 26, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Why was the kingdom divided in the Old Testament? Answer: \"But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites- from the nations of whom the LORD had said to the children of Israel, \"You shall\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":30294,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/was-solomon-sinning-before-god-offered-him-wisdom\/","url_meta":{"origin":35985,"position":2},"title":"Was Solomon sinning before God offered him wisdom?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 22, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: In I Kings 3:3 it says that Solomon showed his love for the Lord\u00a0except\u00a0that he offered sacrifices and burned incense on the high places.\u00a0 In Deuteronomy 12:4-5 God says you must not worship the Lord your God in their way, but you are to seek the place the Lord\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":29079,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/who-is-the-one-man-among-a-thousand-and-why-couldnt-a-woman-be-found\/","url_meta":{"origin":35985,"position":3},"title":"Who is the one man among a thousand and why couldn’t a woman be found?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 21, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: What does Ecclesiastes 7:28 mean? Who did Solomon refer to as the one upright man? Was it himself? Did Solomon manage to find a good wife, as some verses from Proverbs and Ecclesiastes seem to suggest not? If yes, how could he love them but not seem to trust\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2693,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-can-solomon-say-that-having-multiple-sexual-partners-is-bad-when-he-had-hundreds-of-wives\/","url_meta":{"origin":35985,"position":4},"title":"How can Solomon say that having multiple sexual partners is bad when he had hundreds of wives?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 26, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: You stated, \"Solomon explains why having multiple sex partners is unhealthy by comparing sexual desire and intercourse to thirst and having a drink of water. 'Drink water from your own cistern, and running water from your own well. Should your fountains be dispersed abroad, streams of water in the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":53994,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/solomon-failure-of-the-worlds-wisest-man\/","url_meta":{"origin":35985,"position":5},"title":"Solomon: Failure of the World’s Wisest Man","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 22, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"by Max Dawson In my mind, it is one of the most difficult things to reconcile. How did it happen? How could it possibly happen? I am talking about King Solomon. How did the wisest man in the world mess up so badly? 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