2 Chronicles 9:13-31 Click here for Bible Verses
Today’s passage is 2 Chronicles 9:13-31. Let’s go!
On verses 1-18: Here the Chronicler describes all the gold that Solomon accumulated on an annual basis (v13-16), the gold and ivory throne that he sat on, which was unlike anything that had ever been made for any other kingdom (v17-19), the possessions Solomon amassed (v20, 24, 27), the connections Solomon had (v21), the audience he attracted (v23), the horses and chariots he collected (v25, 28), and the territories he ruled over (v26). Verse 22 sums it up: “King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth.”
Yet as impressive as Solomon’s splendor, wealth and wisdom may have been, the sad reality is that none of it lasted and none of it satisfied. Here the Chronicler is very gentle in his treatment of Solomon, as he barely alludes to Solomon’s moral failures such as his refusal to obey God in the area of marriage (2 Chronicles 8:11; see also 1 Kings 11:1-13) and his obsession with accumulating gold and horses in violation of God’s instructions to kings (see Deuteronomy 17:16-17). The Chronicler does not mention the crumbling of Solomon’s relationship with God or the depression and disillusionment that resulted. But Solomon himself would write in the book of Ecclesiastes that all of the riches, fame, possessions, power and wisdom he accumulated were ultimately and utterly meaningless. Solomon’s son Rehoboam would take over his father’s throne, only to see most of the kingdom that Solomon had worked so hard to build slip through his fingers.
It’s a sobering reminder that:
No matter how much gold and riches you accumulate,
No matter how big an audience you garner,
No matter how many horses and chariots you collect,
None of it lasts forever.
The only thing that lasts, and the only thing that satisfies in the end, is a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. As missionary Charles Studd once wrote,
Only one life ’twill soon be past.
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
As impressive as Solomon’s throne may have been, it did not last. In contrast, when you read Revelation 4, you read about God’s throne. Rather than focusing on how impressive the throne itself is, Revelation 4 focuses on how beautiful is the One who sits on that throne and how alive are those that surround the throne. Praise God.
