The Bible In Paintings: SOLOMON’S 700 WIVES! 300 CONCUBINES! AND HIS IDOLATRY!

[Hebrews 11:6]

The Bible In Paintings 2
ENCOURAGEMENT FOR APPRECIATING AND APPLYING GOD'S MESSAGE

1st KINGS
CHAPTER 11

King Solomon loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter—Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. They were from nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines.

1
JAMES TISSOT
"Solomon and His Harem"

2
Source

3
Source

4
Source

5
Source

His wives led him astray. As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been. He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the LORD; he did not follow the LORD completely, as David his father had done.

On a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.

6
WILLEM DE POORTER
"The Idolatry of King Solomon"

7
"Solomon and His Wives Worship Foreign Gods"

8
Source

9
GIOVANNI BATTISTA VENANZI
"King Solomon with His Wives"

10
JACOB WILLEMSZ. DE WET I
"The Idolatry of Solomon"

11
JACOPO AMIGONI
"The Idolatry of King Solomon"

12
DOMENICO ANTONIO VACCARO
"Solomon Worshiping the Pagan Gods"

13
SEBASTIANO CONCA
"The Idolatry of Solomon"

14
Detail
Source

15
SALOMON KONINCK
"The Idolatry of King Solomon"

16
GERARD HOET
"The Idolatry of King Solomon"

17
LUCAS VAN LEYDEN
"Solomon's Idolatry"

18
LUCAS VAN LEYDEN
"Solomon's Idolatry"

19
LUCAS VAN LEYDEN
"Solomon's Idolatry"

20
LUCAS VAN LEYDEN
"King Solomon’s idolatry"

21
LUCAS VAN LEYDEN
"Solomon Worshiping an Idol"

22
BERRETTINI
"Salomone Adora l'Idolo"

23
JACQUES STELLA
"Solomon Worshipping Idols"

24
SEBASTIANO RICCI
"Solomon’s Idolatry"

25
GEORG PENCZ
"Solomon Worshipping Idols"

26
SÉBASTIEN BOURDON
"Solomon Sacrificing to the Idols"

27
SÉBASTIEN BOURDON
"King Solomon Sacrificing to the Idols"

28
PIETRO DANDINI
"Solomon Worshiping Idols"

29
JAN ERASMUS QUELLINUS
"The Idolatry of Solomon"

30

31
FRANS FRANCKEN II
"The Idolatry of Solomon"

32
Source

33
LUCA GIORDANO
"The Idolatry Of Solomon"

34
ADRIAEN VAN STALBEMT
"Idolatry of Solomon"

35
SÉBASTIEN BOURDON
"King Solomon Sacrificing to the Idols"

36
GERBRAND VAN DEN EECKHOUT
"Idolatry of Salomon"

37
PIERRE REYMOND
"Solomon Turning to Idolatry"

38
HANS THOMAN
"Solomon's Idolatry"

→ a n d... f i n a l l y ←

The LORD became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the LORD’s command. So the LORD said to Solomon, “Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. Nevertheless, for the sake of David your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son. Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”

New International Version ©1984, Abrdgd, EMPHASES Added
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[Hebrews 11:6]

R E S O U R C E S
Read 1st KINGS 11 in full
Hear MAX McLEAN reading it
Hear a DRAMATIZATION of it
Read J-F-B's COMMENTARY
BIBLE TIMELINE

Click for 129 prior episodes in THIS series:
The Bible In Paintings 2
Click for 434 links in the FIRST series:
The Bible In Paintings 1


HOW GOD PROMPTED
THIS BIBLE-ART SERIES

"The Bible comes alive so much more with all the
illustrations, paintings, sculptures and stained glass windows.
Through them the stories are crystallized in our minds."

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[Hebrews 11:6]

SOLOMON'S WOMEN
THE QUEEN OF SHEBA, Part 1
THE QUEEN OF SHEBA, Part 2
THE QUEEN OF SHEBA, Part 3
SOLOMON’S 700 WIVES, ETC., ETC., ETC.
E L I J A H
GOD SENDS RAVENS TO FEED ELIJAH
A GENTILE WIDOW FEEDS ELIJAH
ELIJAH RAISES THE WIDOW’S SON

[Red Badger]

Trivia:

Who was Solomon’s FIRST wife?.....................

[Angelino97]

So Solomon died in sin. Did he make it into heaven? I often wondered.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Tell us.

[Hebrews 11:6]

I don’t recall any explicit indications in Scripture, so we’re left in suspense.

[Red Badger]

That would spoil the fun of looking it up!................

[Sirius Lee]

I dated one of her direct descendants.

[Red Badger]

Bonus point:

What was the bride’s father’s wedding gift?..........

[Hebrews 11:6]

As promised last week.

[Hebrews 11:6]

I’m busy.

[mkmensinger]

700 wives....I can’t imagine all the scolding he must have gotten!

[dfwgator]

Worse, 700 Mothers-In-Law.

[miserare]

Quite formidable.

And this was way before Viagra!

[mkmensinger]

:^)

[Hebrews 11:6]

Don’t forget the 300 concubines....

[Rodm]

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 Here is my final conclusion: fear God and obey his commandments, for this is the entire duty of man. For God will judge us for everything we do, including every hidden thing, good or bad.

[etabeta]

Very nice compilation of paintings. Apart from the always wonderful Tissot, #3 by the 19th c. French J. C. Delincourt, very colorful and detailed.
#5 is a detail from the beautiful work by Edward Poynter “Queen of Sheba meeting with Solomon”, showing a group of his wives behind him.
#20, 37, 38 of merit.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Pharaoh’s daughter. Can’t recall any gift.

[NorthMountain]

Interesting choices of words for 1Kings 11:5 in different translations selected in no particular order:

NIV:
He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molek the detestable god of the Ammonites.

Douay:
But Solomon worshipped Astarthe the goddess of the Sidonians, and Moloch the idol of the ammonites.

KJV:
For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.

RSVCE:
For Solomon went after Ash′toreth the goddess of the Sido′nians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.

NCB:
He followed Ashtaroth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Moloch, the abomination of the Ammonites.

[”Abomination” is used in a lot of translations]

CSB:
Solomon followed Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom, the abhorrent idol of the Ammonites.

GNT:
He worshiped Astarte, the goddess of Sidon, and Molech, the disgusting god of Ammon.

International Childrens Bible:
Solomon worshiped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the people of Sidon. And he worshiped Molech, the hated god of the Ammonites.

IIRC, the worship of ‘molech’ involved the slaughter of infants. The Sacred Author reserves extra contempt for that particular demon-posing-as-a-god.