The preceding chapter has shown us Solomon’s relationships with the representatives of the nations in submission to his rule. Tyre; Lebanon; The Pharaoh of Egypt; his daughter, Solomon’s wife; and again the land of Edom where he organized his fleet, the desert where he built Tadmor, the kings of Arabia (1 Kings 10:1515Beside that he had of the merchantmen, and of the traffic of the spice merchants, and of all the kings of Arabia, and of the governors of the country. (1 Kings 10:15)); the remnant of the Canaanites whom he brings into bondage — all these diverse elements gravitate around him as their center and contribute to the fame of his kingdom.
Finally we see the queen of Sheba, this “queen of the south” who “came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon” (Mt. 12:42). What distinguishes her from all the others is that she was attracted by the fame of the king’s wisdom. She had heard tell of it (1 Kings 10:11And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to prove him with hard questions. (1 Kings 10:1)), and this had produced in her an intense desire to see this extraordinary monarch, a desire which had caused her to conquer the enormous distance separating her country from Jerusalem and the numerous obstacles to such a journey. This act was an act of faith. She believed the word which had been spoken to her; she believed in the excellence of Solomon, having only that which had been told her to judge by. It is always so with faith. It is attracted by the person and the perfections of Christ. Rebecca, convinced of the love of Isaac which Eliezer had spoken to her of, sets forth to go to meet him. The wilderness does not frighten her, for she desires to reach her bridegroom. Abigail, when judgment is at the door, sets forth to meet the one from whom she should have fled. Why? Because she knew by hearsay the moral glory of David. Later she becomes the companion of His royal glory. Rebecca is drawn by love, Abigail by the perfection of grace, the queen of Sheba by wisdom. This is what happens to souls who become acquainted with Christ. It is impossible for a finite being to embrace infinite perfection; we are attracted at most by a limited knowledge of one side of this divine character, whatever it may be; they all bring us to know His person, and it is on Him that faith feeds.
“She came to hear the wisdom of Solomon.” The queen may have been, in fact was a person of remarkable intelligence, whom nothing escaped and who loved to give an exact account of all things; but from the moment she heard tell of Solomon she had but one thought: to prove his wisdom. Wisdom for herself consisted in having none and in seeking it from another. It was hard questions that she brought to him. Certainly these were not lacking with her: the world is full of enigmas to which man has never yet found a solution. From the mysteries of creation, for the simplest of which Job had no answer, to the mysteries of bodily life; from the mystery of the soul to that of good and evil in the world; from the veiled hereafter to eternal life; all is mystery, a dark enigma. Man is unable to decipher the unknown writing of this book. God must reveal its secrets, and if there is no divine revelation, positive and direct, man’s poor, limited spirit finds that from the very first question on he is brought to a standstill before an insurmountable wall. He may boast and exalt himself, but all his knowledge can never cause him to penetrate beyond the verification of facts whose first cause completely escapes him.
The queen of Sheba brought her enigmas to Solomon to prove his wisdom by them. But what was the reason for her confidence? She had heard tell of Solomon’s fame in connection with the name of Jehovah. If this fame was grounded upon the Lord’s presence at Jerusalem, was not the queen assured beforehand that it was not in vain for her to undertake this long journey? If Solomon should answer her enigmas, it is because his wisdom is none other than that of the Lord who had revealed Himself to him. Thus the queen comes to Solomon — and what will she carry away from this interview? The knowledge of God through him.
She comes with a great train, with all the most precious things her kingdom can produce, and with an abundance of spices such as never would come to Jerusalem, for she esteems this august monarch worthy of all homage. Let us here note that it is becoming not only for a queen, but for the lowest of sinners to approach Him with her perfume, for it is not an exchange that the soul is soliciting in coming to Him; she cannot do otherwise than to present him the homage that is his due. It is the knee that bows before Him, the sign of the obedience of faith, the adoration of a heart that finds in Him all the resources it desires and of which it has need.
But the queen brings something better yet than her gifts; she comes to speak “to him of all that was in her heart. And Solomon explained to her all she spoke of: there was not a thing hidden from the king that he did not explain to her” (1 Kings 10:2-32And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart. 3And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not any thing hid from the king, which he told her not. (1 Kings 10:2‑3)). She opens her heart to Solomon; the secrets of her heart are made manifest (1 Cor. 14:2525And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth. (1 Corinthians 14:25)); but they find a perfect response on part of him from whom nothing is hidden. In meeting Solomon, she has found God Himself. God is indeed there, in condescending mercy occupied with bringing full light into this soul, so as to leave no place for a doubt or for a question without an answer. The king has the secret of all things; he does not keep it to himself; he shows that His secret is with them that fear Him (Psa. 25:1414The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will show them his covenant. (Psalm 25:14)).
The queen of Sheba acknowledges (1 Kings 10:66And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom. (1 Kings 10:6)) the truth of what she had heard tell about Solomon. She has passed from his person to the words of his mouth, and from these to all that has come from his hands, to all that surrounds him—and she has found nothing but perfections. It is thus that every soul comes to know Christ. One hears tell of Him: this excites the interest of a heart in need; one goes to find Him, for He is readily accessible; one enters into relationship with Him; He answers the needs of the heart. One admires Him and adores Him in hymns of praise. One says with the queen: “Mine eyes have seen. Thou surpasses all I had heard about Thee.” One esteems happy His men and His servants who stand continually before Him and hear His wisdom. And pursuing this path, one’s soul boasts in God who has taken pleasure in His King, who has found His delight in Christ and set Him upon the throne. And this is also the proof of the love of God for His people, that He has given them such a King to execute righteousness and justice (1 Kings 10:6-96And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom. 7Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard. 8Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom. 9Blessed be the Lord thy God, which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel: because the Lord loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgment and justice. (1 Kings 10:6‑9)).
This song is really a song of the kingdom. The Church shall also raise her own song about the Lamb that was slain, and her heart and mouth shall be filled with His love even more than with His wisdom and with His righteousness.
The queen of Sheba gives the king all the riches she has brought. The spices for making the incense were most highly esteemed by all at Solomon’s court. Never had they been seen in such abundance at Jerusalem (1 Kings 10:1010And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones: there came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon. (1 Kings 10:10)). The happy queen’s heart thus overflows in her gifts.
But how greatly did Solomon’s gifts surpass those of the queen! He is not content to give to her in return for her gifts he grants her “all her desire, whatever she asked” (1 Kings 10:1313And king Solomon gave unto the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants. (1 Kings 10:13)). Ah! Surely we have to do with Him who does not ask, but whose glory it is to be and to remain the sovereign Giver of all good. Ask and you shall receive. Ask — you will never exhaust them, all the riches of His kingdom, those “unfathomable riches of Christ.” His kingdom is not now of this world, so you will not carry out of His presence the temporal goods that were heaped upon the queen. These lesser treasures are reserved for the millennial reign of the Messiah. Our goods, our treasures, are spiritual; the world despises them; the Christian worthy of this name calls them the true riches (Luke 16:1111If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? (Luke 16:11)).
The queen returns to her country with treasure in her heart, a thousand times better than that her caravans had brought. Her eyes have seen! Now she knows the king of glory!