The story in brief
David’s son wins the throne in a palace race, asks God for wisdom, and gets riches too. A baby and a sword, a temple of cedar and gold, a queen from the edge of Arabia. Then seven hundred wives, heavy labor and a kingdom torn in two.
The chapters
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Chapter 1 · 5 min · Free
Long Live the King
King David is dying, and his eldest son is already throwing his own coronation party.
Sources: 1 Kings 1–2; 2 Samuel 12:24–25
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Chapter 2 · 5 min · Free
Split the Baby
God offers a young king anything he wants. His first case: two mothers, one baby, no witnesses.
Sources: 1 Kings 3–4; 2 Chronicles 1:3
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Chapter 3 · 5 min
A House of Cedar
Cedar rafts, a quarry with no hammer, a room of gold. Solomon builds a house for God.
Sources: 1 Kings 5–8; 2 Chronicles 2:16; 3:1
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Chapter 4 · 5 min
The Queen of Sheba
A queen crosses 2,400 kilometers of desert to test a king with hard questions.
Sources: 1 Kings 9:26–10:29; Quran 27:20–44; Kebra Nagast
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Chapter 5 · 5 min
Vanity of Vanities
Seven hundred wives, heavy taxes and a foolish son. The wise king’s kingdom splits in two.
Sources: 1 Kings 11–12; 14:25–26; Ecclesiastes 1, 3; Proverbs 16:18
Who’s who
The people you meet. Each one is a hero card you can collect.
- BathshebaQueen Mother · Kingmaker
- The True MotherShe Would Rather Lose Him
- Hiram of TyreKing of Tyre · Timber Merchant
- The Queen of ShebaQueen of Saba · Tester of Kings
- JeroboamForeman · Rebel · First King of Israel
- SolomonThe Wise King · Builder of the Temple
What you’ll be able to tell
This story belongs to the journey “Kings of Israel”. By the end of it, you can tell how one stone ended forty days of taunts, why a wise judgment is still called Solomonic, and who Jezebel really was.
Stories in this journey
- David: The Shepherd King
- Solomon: The Wise King
- Elijah: The Chariot of Fire
Sources
- 1 Kings 1–12
- Ecclesiastes 1, 3
Bible quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain.
