Solomon’s Wives

Solomon’s Wives

Q: How many wives did Solomon have?

• a. 10 wives of royal birth and 10 concubines
• b. 100 wives of royal birth and 2 concubines
• c. 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines

Solomon started out as a king who loved God and followed his commands. But then he began making poor choices. He married 700 wives and had 300 concubines. (Concubines were women who lived with Solomon but weren’t married to him.) King Solomon’s wives and concubines worshiped idols, and they turned his heart away from God.

How did Solomon end up with so many wives and concubines? Some Bible scholars suggest it was because Solomon was aggressive in foreign policy. It was the custom at the time for the lesser king to give the greater king a daughter in marriage when a treaty was signed as a gesture of goodwill. So this may be how Solomon ended up with so many wives.

Whether that is true or not doesn’t change the fact that in Genesis 2 God said one woman and one man should leave their parents, marry, and begin life together. God also forbade marriage to women from countries that did not worship God. He knew the women could turn their husbands from the Lord. Solomon not only had 700 wives and 300 concubines, but these wives and concubines were idol worshipers. Solomon began worshiping the idols his wives and concubines brought from their cultures.

Because of Solomon’s disobedience, God said he would take the kingdom from Solomon’s son and give it to the king’s servant. Solomon’s son would only rule a small part of the kingdom, and the servant would rule the rest.

For You

God commanded his people not to marry idol worshipers because they’d turn his people’s hearts from him. That is exactly what happened to Solomon. It’s important not to become friends with people who will cause you to act against your beliefs and God’s Word. If someone is encouraging you to do wrong, he or she is not someone who should remain your friend.

Answer: c

[Solomon] had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines. And in fact, they did turn his heart away from the LORD.   1 Kings 11:3

(The Whole Story: 1 Kings 11:1-13)