Solomon: Why did he have so many wives?
The bottom line to the question is because he could and because he wanted to. There’s nothing in the Mosaic Law or in any other part of the Bible that endorses it. God permitted it like He permits all kinds of things. God created man with free will, even though certain groups claim man hasn’t had it since the time of his fall in the Garden. Regardless of what these people claim, he still has free will! From a volition standpoint, he can do anything he wants to do. A part of the evidence for that is all the commands people have been given of God since the time of man’s fall into sin. What would be the point of the commands if man couldn’t obey them or how could it be right for a just God to hold man responsible for things he was unable to freely obey. Before and since man’s fall into sin, he’s been RESPONSE—ABLE.
The Bible tells us Solomon was given wisdom like no one before him.
2 Chronicles 1:11-12
11 And God said to Solomon, because this was in thine heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or honour, nor the life of thine enemies, neither yet hast asked long life; but hast asked wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my people, over whom I have made thee king:
12 Wisdom and knowledge is granted unto thee; and I will give thee riches, and wealth, and honour, such as none of the kings have had that have been before thee, neither shall there any after thee have the like. [Emphasis added]
But just because he was wise and knew WHAT to do and NOT to do, he chose not to apply much of the wisdom God had given him, especially concerning women and marriage. The Bible tells us the influence of these women contributed to turning his heart against God’s commands.
1 Kings 11:3
3 And he [Solomon] had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. [Emphasis added]
The record clearly tells us Solomon started out well early in his life, listening to the counsel of his father, David.
1 Kings 2:1-3
1 Now the days of David drew nigh that he should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying,
2 I go the way of all the earth: be thou strong therefore, and shew thyself a man;
3 And keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself: [Emphasis added]
Even as a young man the wisdom of Solomon is clearly seen when you discover what he asked God to give him.
1 Kings 3:5-12
5 In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee.
6 And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
7 And now, O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.
8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.
9 Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?
10 And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.
11 And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment;
12 Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. [Emphasis added]
Long before I ever came across these passages about Solomon, a man who was very helpful to me in my early days of ministry told me that I should make a point in my prayers to ask God to give me wisdom. I thought that was great advice then just as I do now. It’s just that now, since more than fifty years have passed since then, I realize, far more than I did then, the value of such advice. However, God doesn’t grant wisdom today as He did with Solomon. Today we gain God’s wisdom, that wise understanding, through faithful and conscientious study of the Bible. What I wasn’t advised at that time was the importance of giving most of my attention to the Pauline epistles. That advice came many years later from several other people. But here’s the Scripture that coincides with that advice.
2 Timothy 2:15
15 Study [SPOUDAZO = Be diligent] to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. [Emphasis added]
This isn’t just a suggestion for us all; it is a clear command. But sadly most people don’t even know what this is. If you commit to studying the articles on this website, you’ll find it to be a wonderful shortcut to gaining what it took me over fifty years to pull together for understanding the Bible. Such would certainly be worth your effort. The whole bible is a totally reliable book everyone needs to not only read but study.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God [THEOPNEUSTOS = God-breathed], and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
17 That the man of God may be perfect [ARTIOS = complete or mature], thoroughly furnished [EXZARTIZO = prepared perfectly] unto all good works. [Emphasis added]
But even though the whole Bible is provided FOR us as such a wonderful help, only a portion of it is specifically addressed TO us today. To get a better understanding of that, you’ll find numerous articles on this website to be helpful. Here’s the link to one of them—
God even gave Solomon information he needed in what we have now as the book of Song of Solomon. Therefore, he didn’t have a shortage of good information available to him; he just refused to apply it in his life. Don’t we have a lot of that going on with people today?
Solomon’s book of Proverbs is filled with practical information about a multitude of things, but any one of the apostle Paul’s letters is even more important for your spiritual growth. That’s why we all need to work at giving attention to his writings literally every day of our lives. Otherwise, we’ll be ignorant of many things we need to know, and we’ll be subject to yielding to a lot of temptations we need to resist. It is the Word of God that is our one effective power source for resisting sin.
Matthew 4:4
4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. [Emphasis added]
This statement He makes is a quote from Deuteronomy 8:3.
For more information about resisting temptation, please see my article about it. Here’s the link to it—
Temptation: How can it be resisted?
Just as God had predicted, Solomon didn’t resist the temptations. His heart was turned away from God by his many wives and concubines. They even got him involved in idolatry, making sacrifices to idols.
1 Kings 11:7-8
7 Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.
8 And likewise did he for all his strange [NOKRI = foreign (and unbeliever)] wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods. [Emphasis added]
Solomon’s choice to disobey God resulted in severe discipline from Him.
1 Kings 11:11
11 Wherefore the Lord said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant. [Emphasis added]
Solomon’s disobedience also resulted in warfare for him and for his country.
1 Kings 11:14
14 And the Lord stirred up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite: he was of the king’s seed in Edom. [Emphasis added]
There were also some others who then opposed him.
1 Kings 11:23
23 And God stirred him up another adversary, Rezon the son of Eliadah, which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah: [Emphasis added]
In our time today, God doesn’t intervene to bring discipline. But bad decisions always result in bad consequences. THIS is a principle that never changes!
Galatians 6:7-10
7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
8 For he that soweth to his flesh [his sinful nature] shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. [Emphasis added]
My article about God’s discipline is also available to you. Here’s the link—
Discipline: Does God punish Christians for their sins?
But note what the scripture tells us about God’s discipline of Solomon. We’re told that God showed mercy to him for his father David’s sake.
1 Kings 11:11-13
11 Wherefore the Lord said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.
12 Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father’s sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son.
13 Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen. [Emphasis added]
None of us are God’s robots or His puppets. Despite the false teachings of some, we all have free will. God doesn’t cause or ever sponsor evil; He permits it and uses it, but He’s not responsible for it.
Solomon was also the author of the book called the Song of Solomon that also clearly illustrates the fact that God uses sinners to accomplish His will. Among other things, that tells us there’s hope for all of us. If He can use people like Solomon, He can use people like you and me in wonderful ways. Knowing that provides a lot of hope for all of us.
Conclusion—
God permits disobedience and evil but He’s by no means the cause for these things. As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, Solomon had all his wives and concubines because God allowed him to have them. He had them because he could and because he wanted to. There’s nothing in the Mosaic Law or in any other part of the Bible that endorses such. God permitted it like He permits all kinds of things. God created man with free will and he freely exercises it. At the end of Ecclesiastes, we all have some wise counsel—
Ecclesiastes 12:13
13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. [Emphasis added]
