So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not follow the Lord fully, as his father David had done.
Parallel translations
- WEB Solomon did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, and didn’t go fully after Yahweh, as David his father did.
- KJV And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father.
- BSB So Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD; unlike his father David, he did not follow the LORD completely.
- NKJV Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David.
- NLT In this way, Solomon did what was evil in the Lord’s sight; he refused to follow the Lord completely, as his father, David, had done.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Solomon did evil in the LORD's sight and did not follow Him fully, unlike David. It renders God's verdict on his later life.
Overview
The narrator pronounces the damning summary that Solomon, like the apostate kings to come, did evil and failed to follow the LORD wholeheartedly. Again David is the standard of comparison, not as sinless but as wholehearted toward God. This sober assessment of even the wisest king underscores the universal need for a perfect King, the Lord Jesus, who alone followed His Father fully and without fault.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Num 14:24But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and has followed me fully, him I will bring into the land into which he went. His offspring shall possess it.
- Josh 14:8Nevertheless, my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt; but I wholly followed Yahweh my God.
- Josh 14:14Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he followed Yahweh, the God of Israel wholeheartedly.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Solomon's glory, wisdom, and temple where God's presence dwells are a shadow of the greater Son of David — 'one greater than Solomon is here' — and of the true Temple, Christ himself.
How 1 Kings 11:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.