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Solomon

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King Solomon

Solomon.jpg

Wise King Solomon deciding for the "baby" wanted by
two mothers with strange goals.
A metaphor against the division of the kingdom into two.
Solomon was the 'good' mother who would not allow the baby to be divided. Solomon or Shlomo (Hebrew: שלמה; Standard Hebrew: Šəlomo; Tiberian Hebrew: Šəlōmōh, meaning "peace") in the Tanakh, is the third king of Israel (including Judah ), builder of the temple in Jerusalem, renowned for his great wisdom and wealth and power, but also blamed for falling away from worshipping the LORD only. He is the subject of many later legends.

In the Torah

Solomon is David's second son by Bathsheba. His name means "peaceful," from the Hebrew "Shelomoh" (Arabic "Suleiman"). The name given by God to Solomon in the Bible is Jedidiah (meaning "loved by God"), and some scholars have conjectured that Solomon is a "king name" taken either when he assumes the throne or upon his death.

Solomon's case is one of the few in the Bible where the name given by God does not stay with the character. Solomon was probably born about 1035 BCE. His birth is considered a gift from God, after the death of the previous child between David and Bathsheba because of questions about the state of Bathsheba's marriage. (According to Jewish law, the custom was that a soldier sent to the front lines, such as Bathsheba's husband, would give his wife a retro-active "divorce" annuling their marriage were he to die or disappear thus allowing the wife to remarry. This was a "loophole" that David and Bathsheba seem to have relied upon, and which has caused some to accuse them of "adultery" when in fact the legal status of Bathsheba's marriage was "suspended" and subject to question, according to the rabbinic commentators.) While this is a comment, the basis is not found in the biblical account, for Uriah was not commanded to go to the front of the battle until after David had slept with Bathsheba.

Succession

He succeeded his father on the throne in early manhood, probably about sixteen or eighteen years of age. His father chooses him as his successor, passing over the claims of his elder sons. His history is recorded in Books of Kings 1–11 and 2 Chr. 1–9. His elevation to the throne takes place before his father's death, and is hastened on mainly by Nathan and Bathsheba, in consequence of the rebellion of Adonijah.

During his long reign of 40 years the Hebrew monarchy gains its highest splendour. This period has well been called the "Augustan age" of the Jewish annals. In a single year he collects tribute amounting to 666 talents of gold. (1 Kings 10:13)

The first half of his reign is, however, by far the brighter and more prosperous; the latter half is clouded by the idolatries into which he falls, mainly from his intermarriages. According to 1 Kings 11:3, he has 700 wives and 300 concubines. As soon as he has settled himself in his kingdom, and arranged the affairs of his extensive empire, he enters into an alliance with Egypt by the marriage of the daughter of Pharaoh.

Buildings and other works AKA Solomon the Mason

He surrounds himself with all the luxuries and the external grandeur of an Eastern monarch, and his government prospers. He enters into an alliance with Hiram I, king of Tyre, who in many ways greatly assists him in his numerous undertakings. For some years before his death David is engaged in the active work of collecting materials for building a Temple in Jerusalem as a permanent abode] for the ark of the covenant.

After the completion of the temple, Solomon engages in the erection of many other buildings of importance in Jerusalem and in other parts of his kingdom. For the long space of thirteen years he is engaged in the erection of a royal palace on Ophel. Solomon also constructs great works for the purpose of securing a plentiful supply of water for the city, Millo (Septuagint, "Acra") for the defence of the city, and Tadmor in the wilderness as a commercial depot as well as a military outpost.

During his reign Israel enjoys great commercial prosperity. Extensive traffic is carried on by land with Tyre and Egypt and Arabia, and by sea with Tarshish (somewhere in the Guadalquivir, Southern Spain) and South India and the coasts of Africa. This is the "golden age" of Israel. The royal magnificence and splendour of Solomon's court are unrivaled. Solomon is known for his wisdom and proverbs. People come from far and near "to hear the wisdom of Solomon", including queen Makedah of Sheba, a country in Arabia Felix. Their son Menelik I would become the first emperor of Ethiopia. His thoughts are enshrined in storytelling, though probably, not all the clever thinking in the stories originates with the one man.

Decline and fall

His decline and fall from his high estate is a sad record. Blamed for it are his polygamy and his great wealth, causing him to become decadent and involved in various forms of idol worship which are contrary to the religious law. Because of this idol worship, a prophet visits Solomon and tells him that after his death his kingdom would be split in two (Israel and Judah) and that his son, Rehoboam, would suffer because of his sin. He dies, after a reign of forty years, and is buried in Jerusalem.

Solomon also appears in the Qur'an, whererin he is called Sulayman (see Similarities between the Torah and the Qur'an).

George Rawlinson's Evaluation

"The kingdom of Solomon," says George Rawlinson, "is one of the most striking facts in the Biblical history. A petty nation, which for hundreds of years has with difficulty maintained a separate existence in the midst of warlike tribes, each of which has in turn exercised dominion over it and oppressed it, is suddenly raised by the genius of a soldier-monarch to glory and greatness."

Rawlinson continues, "an empire is established which extends from the Euphrates to the borders of Egypt, a distance of 450 miles; and this empire, rapidly constructed, enters almost immediately on a period of peace which lasts for half a century. Wealth, grandeur, architectural magnificence, artistic excellence, commercial enterprise, a position of dignity among the great nations of the earth, are enjoyed during this space, at the end of which there is a sudden collapse."

Rawlinson concludes, "the ruling nation is split in twain, the subject-races fall off, the pre-eminence lately gained being wholly lost, the scene of struggle, strife, oppression, recovery, inglorious submission, and desperate effort, re-commences."

Later legend

MWSwordofsolomon.jpg

Medieval Times's gift shop offers: The Sword

of King Solomon pays tribute to this monarch's
great spirituality and wisdom. The sword has a
24-karat gold plated hilt, handle and pommel
wrapped in fine burgundy leather and accented
with silver plated medallions. Imagery includes
Star of David and the Ark of the Covenant. To Solomon are attributed by commentary, but not internally, the Biblical books of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon. Then comes the Wisdom of Solomon, probably written in the 2nd century BCE where Solomon is portrayed as an astrologer. Other books of wisdom poetry attributed to Solomon are the "Odes of Solomon" and the "Psalms of Solomon".

The Jewish historian Eupolemus who wrote about 157 BCE included copies of letters exchanged between Solomon and the kings of Egypt and Tyre.

The Gnostic Apocalypse of Adam which may date to the 1st or 2nd century refers to a reputed legend in which Solomon sends out an army of demons to seek a virgin who had fled from him, perhaps the earliest suviving mention of the later common tale that Solomon controlled the demons and made them his slaves.

This tradition of Solomon's control over demons appears fully elaborated in the early Christian work called the "Testament of Solomon" with its elaborate and grotesque demonology.

Solomon's mastery of demons is a common element in later Jewish and Arabic legends, and is often attributed to possession of a magic ring called the "Seal of Solomon".

The Seal of Solomon - A magic Ring

In Medieval Jewish, Islamic and Christian legends, the Seal of Solomon was a magical signet ring said to have been possessed by King Solomon (or Sulayman in the Islamic version), which variously gave him the power to command demons (or jinni), or to speak with animals. In one of the Arabian Nights' Entertainments, an evil djinn is described as being imprisoned in a copper bottle for 1,800 years by a lead seal stamped by the ring. Other, later books (Pseudomonarchia Daemonum) manage to fit far more demons in the bottle.

In some versions of the story, the ring was made of brass and iron, carved with the Name of God, and set with four jewels. In later versions the ring simply bore the symbol now called the Star of David, often within a circle, usually with the two triangles interlaced rather than intersecting. Often the gaps are filled with dots or other symbols. Other versions have it as a pentacle or other more complicated figures. Works on demonology typically depict the pattern of the seal as being two concentric circles, with a number of mystical sigils between the inner and outer circles, and various more-or-less complex geometric shapes within the inner circle.

In one Arabic story: as Arabic tradition, unlike the Biblical and later Jewish, Solomon is a great warrior. Various warlike expeditions of his are mentioned, and it was the daughter of the conquered King of Sidon who introduced idolatry into his house. His love for horses led him to forget at one time the afternoon prayer. It is claimed that the demon Sakhr deceived one of Solomon's wives into giving him the ring. Sakhr then ruled in his stead for forty days (or years, in some versions) while Solomon wandered the country in poverty. However eventually Sakhr threw the ring into the sea, where it was swallowed by a fish, caught by a fisherman, and served to Solomon! In punishment Sakhr was made to build a great mosque for Solomon.

However the earliest of such stories is dated to more than a thousand years after the time of Solomon, and the story of the fish, in particular, bears a strong resemblance to Herodotus' tale of Polycrates.

Menelik I

The ancient Imperial legend of Ethiopia, as told in the Kibre Negest maintains that the Queen of Sheba returned to her realm from her Biblical visit to Solomon, pregnant with his child. This child would eventually inherit her throne with the new rank and title of Menelik I, Emperor of Ethiopia. The dynasty he would establish would reign in Ethiopia with few interuptions until the overthrow of Emperor Haile Selassie in 1974.

Solomon in Fiction

The Toni Morrison novel Song of Solomon makes allusions to Solomon.

The Star Trek: Original Series episode "Requiem for Methuselah" indicated that Solomon was an immortal man named Flint, born in Mesopotamia in the year 3834 BCE. His wealth, power, and knowledge were the result of centuries of acquistion. Other identities included Leonardo Da Vinci, Merlin, Lazarus, and Johannes Brahms. Flint was portrayed in the episode by actor James Daly.