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Solomon.

Solomon is the wisdom king — son of David and Bathsheba, anointed at his mother's insistence, blessed by God with unmatched wisdom in response to his prayer at Gibeon. He builds the first temple in Jerusalem, expands Israel's territory and trade, and receives visitors like the Queen of Sheba. The 700 wives and 300 concubines, however, draw his heart away from the LORD; the kingdom splits in two after his death. Tradition credits him with Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon.

Timeline

• Anointed king through Bathsheba's intervention (1 Kings 1)
• Asked God for wisdom (1 Kings 3)
• Built the temple (1 Kings 5–8)
• Visited by the Queen of Sheba (1 Kings 10)
• 700 wives, 300 concubines, drift into idolatry (1 Kings 11)
• Kingdom divided after his death (1 Kings 12)

Key verses

• 1 Kings 3:9 →
• 1 Kings 4:32-34 →
• 1 Kings 11:4 →

Why Solomon matters

Solomon embodies the high point of the Davidic kingdom and the seed of its collapse. Jesus claims to be "something greater than Solomon" (Matthew 12:42). The wisdom literature traditionally associated with him — Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon — shaped the Hebrew wisdom tradition that Christ inherits. The temple Solomon built becomes the central symbol of the Old Testament; its destruction in 586 BC and the New Testament's claim that Christ is the true temple all flow from this beginning.

Related tools

• All 29 figuresThe full index
• Bible verse lookupAny reference, ESV
• Trivia categoryKing