Believe It Or Not – There’s A Man In The Bible Who Got Married 700 Times

1 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women, 2 from the nations concerning which the Lord had said to the sons of Israel, “You shall not associate with them, nor shall they associate with you, for they will surely turn your heart away after their gods.” Solomon held fast to these in love. 3 HE HAD SEVEN HUNDRED WIVES, PRINCESSES, and three hundred concubines, and his wives turned his heart away. 4 For when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away after other gods; and his heart was not wholly devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. 5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and after Milcom the detestable idol of the Ammonites. 6 Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not follow the Lord fully, as David his father had done. 7 Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable idol of Moab, on the mountain which is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the detestable idol of the sons of Ammon. 8 Thus also he did for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods. (1 Kings 11:1-8)

I DO, I DO, I DO, I DO

You saw it in v. 3.

There’s a man in the Bible who got married 700 times and he was none other than King Solomon.

And can you just imagine the challenges you face in your marriage, and down through the years, multiplied by hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of times?

And because all marriages do have challenges!

Is yours the exception?

But there are just as many happy days.

But King Solomon got married 700 times.

700 times.

He said, “I do,” and “I do,” and “I do,” and “I do” and “I do,” and “I do,” and “I do,” and “I do,” and “I do,” and “I do,” and “I do,” and “I do” … I think you get the point.

DEFECTION AND DEGENERACY

And ultimately it’s a sad story in 1 Kings 11, Matthew Henry puts it, of Solomon’s defection and degeneracy.

Defection – to defect – means to forsake someone and join the opposition (Webster’s).

Defectors are considered traitors.

And then degeneracy has to do with depravity and deterioration.

It’s sinking below what’s normal (Webster’s).

To degenerate is to sink until you’re sunk.

In Solomon’s case, he sunk from serving and worshiping God to serving and worshiping other gods.

And his getting married 700 times had everything to do with it.

Look at v. 4 again…

For when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away after other gods (do you see that there?) – his wives turned his heart away after other gods (this is defection); (and the verse goes on) and his (Solomon’s) heart was not wholly devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been – and his (Solomon’s) heart was not wholly devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. (1 Kings 11:4)

And then it goes on to talk further about Solomon’s defection and degeneracy in v. 5.

And you can look at it again if you like.

WISEST MAN WHO EVER LIVED

But what I wanted to say here now as we’re considering this first “Believe It Or Not” is this: Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived.

Noting Solomon’s smarts, 1 Kings 4:30-31 reads…

Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the sons of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt. For he was wiser than all men, than Ethan the Ezrahite, Heman, Calcol and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was known in all the surrounding nations. (1 Kings 4:30-31)

Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived.

But I don’t care how wise or smart you are or how wise or smart you think you are, you can still do some pretty stupid things.

It’s my point here.

And even when you’re old, you can still do some pretty stupid things.

1 Kings 11:4, the first part again, says…

For when Solomon was OLD, his wives turned his heart away after other gods. (1 Kings 11:4a)

Go find someone (after you’re done reading this, of course) and say, “Don’t you dare do anything stupid.”

“Don’t you dare do anything stupid.”

And it’s important.

It really is.

And as we’re talking about “Believe It Or Not” point number one.

You can live your whole life for the Lord and then in the last few years you backslide like Solomon and it’s all for naught.

Right?

Now go find that person and tell them what I told you to say adding this to it, “Don’t you dare do anything stupid that’ll keep you out of Heaven.”

It can still happen even in the later years of your life.

Watch for “Believe It Or Not – The Devil Once Argued With An Angel Over Moses’ Body” to come soon.

(Wedding Rings via pixabay)

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