Wisdom and Understanding

Day 63:  1 Kings 1–5; Lamentations 1–5; Colossians 1–2

Today I begin 1st Kings...the end of David's reign and the shaky beginning to Solomon's reign. I also read Jeremiah's second book entitled Lamentations. Lamentations inspired the wonderful hymn "Great Is Thy Faithfulness."  And in the New Testament the Letter to the Colossians I start today.  Colossians is like a briefer version of Ephesians. It is considered to be an encyclical epistle, meaning that it was written as a general letter to encourage churches in a region.  It was not written in response to specific circumstances like the Corinthian letters or Philippians, although there are circumstances unique to this letter that are affecting the region.

King David is old so the people get him a young and beautiful virgin to “keep him warm.”  The virgin remains so because David is so very near dead.  This let’s everyone know it’s time for a new king.  Absolom’s brother, Adonijah announces himself king with the support of Joab, David’s military commander, Abiathar the priest and others.  He holds a celebration but doesn’t invite Nathan the prophet or Solomon or alert King David.

David, after being approached by Nathan and Solomon’s mother Bathsheba, responds to Adonijah’s insolent move by anointing Solomon king of Israel immediately.  This leads to Solomon taking the throne with David’s approval. 

David dies and tells Solomon to stay faithful to God by keeping all His commands and statutes.  He then lays out the names of enemies that Solomon must deal shrewdly with (i.e. kill them).  Joab was on the list for murdering Abner and Amasa (1 Kg. 2:5).  David apparently doesn’t mention Joab’s part in killing Absalom, although it may be implied in his words, “know what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me.”  Shimei who cursed David and threw rocks at him is on the hit list.  And David tells Solomon who he can trust like Barzillai the Gileadite because he came to David’s aid when he fled Jerusalem from the revolt lead by Absalom.

Solomon carries out the “house cleaning.”  Adonijah is executed for asking for the beautiful young virgin, Abishag, given to King David to comfort him as he approached death. Joab is executed in front of the altar before the Lord where he had taken sanctuary.  Abiathar the priest is banished.  He was the last of Eli’s family.  No more of Eli’s descendants would ever minister before the Lord as priests (1 Sam. 2:31-35).  Shimei is confined to Jerusalem under Solomon’s eye commanded never to leave the city.  But 3 years after the command Shemei went of to Philistine country (Gath) in search of runaway slaves.  It costs him his life. When he returned to Jerusalem Solomon had him executed.

The Lord met Solomon in a dream and asked him what He should give to Solomon. Solomon asked for wisdom and understanding to rule over Israel. The Lord was pleased and granted it and great wealth.  Solomon became the wisest of all and kings sent people to learn from him. 

This is the pinnacle of Israel’s glory days.  They had rest on every side. There were no crises.  Solomon builds the temple with slave labor and help from the Sidonians timber and carpenters.  Interesting how the once enslaved people became enslavers to build public works.  It feels a lot like Pharaoh in Egypt.

Jump ahead to Jerusalem under attack, starving to death, besieged by Babylon.  Jeremiah writes laments with a stanza for every letter in the Hebrew alphabet.  While Solomon is the pinnacle of biblical Israel’s glory, Zedekiah and the sacking of Jerusalem is their greatest shame.

All your (Jerusalem’s) enemies
    open their mouths against you.
    They hiss and gnash [their] teeth,  
    saying, "We have swallowed [her] up.
    This is the day we have waited for!
    We have lived to see [it] (Jer. 2:16).

Jeremiah laments that God has become like an enemy to His own people (Jer. 2:5).

He (God) is a bear waiting in ambush,
    a lion in hiding;

He forced me off my way and tore me to pieces;
    He left me desolate.

He bent His bow and set me as the target for His arrow (Jer. 3:10-12).

But there is hope. “The Lord will not reject us forever (Jer. 3:31).”

[Because of] the LORD's faithful love
    we do not perish,
    for His mercies never end.

They are new every morning;
    great is Your faithfulness!

I say: The LORD is my portion,
    therefore I will put my hope in Him (Jer. 22-24).

So the wisdom learned in the face of peril and tragedy is to trust in God’s mercy and wait.  “The Lord is good to this who wait on Him, to the person who seeks Him (Jer. 3:25).”  Wait patiently, silently, accepting the consequences of our mistakes and learn to lean on God.

Paul prayed that the Colossians “may be filled with the knowledge of His (God’s) will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing [to Him], bearing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God (Col. 1:9b-10).”  He also prays that they would be strengthened by the power of God to endure to the end in faith.

The Colossians are being lead astray by mystical philosophies having to do with angels and demons and ascetic practices which deny the body for spiritual purposes. You may remember the self flagellation of the Opus Dei monk in the film “Da Vinci Code.”  Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness, resisted the devil’s temptations and angels came to minister to Him (Mk. 1:13, Mat. 4:11).  Fasting is a form of asceticism that Paul wouldn’t disapprove, but only as a means of deepening prayer and not as a means to attract the attentions of angels to gain their aid. 

Paul reminds the Colossians that Christ is everything.  In Him is all a Christian ever needs. For all things were “created by Him,” “through Him and for Him (Col. 1:16).”  “In Him all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden (Col. 2:3).”  They need look no further than Jesus.

 As an apostle Paul’s greatest desire is to “present everyone mature in Christ. I (Paul) labor for this, striving with His strength that works powerfully in me (Col. 1:28b-29).” 

There seems a relationship between wisdom and God’s strength or energy in Paul’s thinking.  The very wisdom he proclaims about Christ is what he hopes the Colossians and all Christians everywhere will gain.  And the very strength by which he carries on in the ministry of the gospel is the same energy coming from Christ living in the believer to give them endurance to stand firm in faith.  Both wisdom and strength come from God through faith in Christ.  Strength is needed to live according to the wisdom revealed in Christ and wisdom is what opens minds and hearts to receive divine strength.

Kingdoms rise to glory and fall in disgrace, but the kingdom of heaven has no end.  Yet will the wisdom of this good news draw us away from self-indulgence to gain the power of God?  Or will we continue to help ourselves by rejecting what God offers? It takes strength to say no to the vain diversions of this life in order to live in the wisdom of God.  Solomon gained great wisdom and all Israel was blessed for it, but we will soon see he didn’t have the strength to resist idolatry through his many wives and concubines.  And when the strength of the Israelites was gone all they had to cling to was the wisdom to trust that God is faithful and He will not forget them forever.

Dear Father, I pray that Your church might live by Your wisdom revealed in Jesus Christ.  May we be given understanding so that we may gain wisdom and open up to receive grace upon grace.  May we stand firm always in the faith You give through Christ our Lord. Amen.