What were the effects of King Solomon's reign?

Answer 1

Vast prosperity and renown, both personal and national.

Through his vast God-given wisdom (1 Kings ch.3), he spoke and taught about God's creations, influencing many nations (at least temporarily) to recognize the wisdom of God. This was similar to the practice of Abraham (Genesis 21:33) and is what is meant by "And he [Solomon] spoke of the trees, from the cedars of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows on the wall; and he spoke of the animals, the birds, the insects, and the fishes. And people came from all nations to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom" (1 Kings 5:13-14).

Answer 2

1) King Solomon built the First Temple in Jerusalem (1 Kings ch.6-8), whose foundations are still visible. This was a massive project which required skillful handling, cordial relations with the neighboring nations, and firm yet proper supervision of tens of thousands of builders.
2) Through his vast God-given wisdom, he spoke and taught about God's creations, influencing many nations (at least temporarily) to recognize the wisdom of God. This was similar to the practice of Abraham (Genesis 21:33) and is what is meant by "And he [Solomon] spoke of the trees, from the cedars of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows on the wall; and he spoke of the animals, the birds, the insects, and the fishes. And people came from all nations to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom" (1 Kings 5:13-14).

During Solomon's time, the Israelites enjoyed unequaled prosperity (1 Kings 4:20), and there weren't any complaints. (Only after his death, the people requested that taxes be lowered because the tax had served its purpose with all of Solomon's large-scale projects now complete.)

Each Israelite king was expected to be the leading judge of his generation, as the young Solomon stated explicitly (1 Kings 3:7-9). This is why he asked God for wisdom. The famous case narrated in that chapter of Kings is recorded because it was one of the first that Solomon adjudicated, and because the people were so impressed (1 Kings 3:28). There is no question that he went on to use his vast wisdom (1 Kings ch.5) in other cases of judgment.

3) King Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes (Kohellet), Proverbs, and Song of Songs.

Also:

1) He built up a very large cavalry, or at least the equipment for one, including the horses.2) He built up good relations with many foreign monarchs.

3) He maintained strong ties of foreign commerce and trade.

4) Most importantly, he served God all his life (with a couple of notable missteps). His love of God ensured God's blessing upon the Israelites.

See also the Related Links.

Link: About Solomon's errors

Link: The reliability of the Hebrew record

Link: More about the Song of Songs

Answer 3

The Bible tells us Solomon asked God for the gift of wisdom, which it is said that God granted. In spite of this, the Bible says he lived a life of gross self-indulgence, which can only have been at the expense of his subjects, who did not share in this prosperity. When Rehoboam succeeded Solomon, the people of Israel in the north of his kingdom rose up in rebellion because they were unwilling to continue with the heavy tax burden that Solomon had unwisely imposed. According to the Bible, the people of Judah, in the south, made no such complaint, but for the people in the north life under Solomon would seem to have been intolerable.
Archaeologists estimate that the city of Jerusalem had no more than 2000 inhabitants in total, at the time attributed to King Solomon. Yet, 1 Kings 11:3 says that he had 700 wives and 300 concubines, which must have included every female person in the entire city. If these figures are even close to correct, all the men of Jerusalem must have lived in voluntary celibacy.

Much is made of the great empire Solomon ruled. He is said to have built an entire chariot army, although historians note there is no evidence these chariots were ever used in war. When what appeared to be stables were found in Megiddo, they were immediately attributed to the time of Solomon and seen as evidence for his chariot army. More recent archaeological analysis suggests that the archaeological finds in places such as Megiddo should be dated to a later century, and that the 'stables' were more likely warehouses. Gradually, evidence has emerged that Israel and Judah were too small and impoverished during the tenth century BCE, and that there probably never was a United Monarchy of Israel. A developing consensus among scholars is that David and Solomon were, at best, local warlords with a small territory surrounding Jerusalem.

Answer 4

Vast prosperity and renown, both personal and national.

• 1) King Solomon built the First Temple in Jerusalem.
  
• 2) Through his vast God-given wisdom (1 Kings ch.3), he spoke and taught about God's creations, influencing many nations (at least temporarily) to recognize the wisdom of God. This was similar to the practice of Abraham (Genesis 21:33) and is what is meant by "And he [Solomon] spoke of the trees, from the cedars of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows on the wall; and he spoke of the animals, the birds, the insects, and the fishes. And people came from all nations to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom" (1 Kings 5:13-14).
• 3) King Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes (Kohellet), Proverbs, and Song of Songs.
  

See also the Related Links.

Link: About Solomon's errors

Link: More about the Hebrew Bible

Link: More about the Song of Songs

Answer 5

Wealth, wisdom, peace, and the seeds of apostasy.

Answer 6

he finished building the temple of Jehovah, he brought in wealth, but eventually deviated from God and then began to worship the God's that his foreign wives believed in.