Middletown transcript., 1920-09-11
= llRHovEp UNIroRM INTERNATIONAL :.
SUNlNSC[lO0L
7 LESSON
(By REV. p. B. FITZWATER. D. D.,
Teacher Of English Bible in the Moody
Bible Institute Of Chicago)
"a 1920 Western Newspaper Union)
LESSON FOR SEPTEMBER IL
THE GLORY OF soLoMoN's
REIGN.

REIGN.
| LESSON TEXT Kings 10:1-1S, 1875.
GOLDEN TEXT-Blessed Is every on
| that feareth the Lord, that walketn
| his ways.-Ps 1881.
| ADDITIONAL WATERFALL Kings !
| l-2S; 1O:14-29.
PRIMARY ToP1C-A Queen Visits
King.
JUNIOR TOP1C-The Queen Of sheb'
Visits Solomon. ,,
The Climax Of Israel's Greatness.
YOUNG PEOPLE AND ADULT TOP1s
Tests Of National Greatness.
/ The Queen Of sheba Visits Solo
mon wv. l, y.
Her visit was the result Of Solo
mons widespread fame. That whicf
made him famous was:
/. The extent Of his kingdom (4:2l
25). He ruled over all the kfngdomi
from the Euphrates river to the Medi
terranean sea, except the Phoeneci'
ans, but they were in alliance with
him. This was the nearest to the
realization Of the divine promise
(Gen. 1919, that Israel ever en-
joyed but the fulness Of the promised
possession shall be realized when the
Greater than Solomon is king.
2. His great wisdom (4:29-34). 1t
excelled that of the Chaldeans, Per-
SLAMS and Egyptians wv. 30, BY. None
of his contemporaries approached
unto him in knowledge. He had a
singularly comprehensive mind. He
was ~ a moral philosopher-spake
5000 proverbs; (2) poet-his songs
were q thousand and five :. (3) a bot
anist-he spake of trees. from the
cedar tree that is in Lebanon even
unto the hyssop that springeth out OF
the wall; ~ a zoologist-he spake
of beasts and fowl, and of creeping
things, and Of fishes. He was su'
perior in intellect to any of his own
or any other age.
8. The temple (chs. and g.. This
was an exact reproduction Of the tab
ernacle, double in size, In marble ana
gold. The amount Of labor, skill and
money expended on the building was
exceedingly great Il Cnron. 22:14-l6).
Never before had such costly struc-
ture appeared.
4. Royal palaces adjoining the ter:-
pie (ch. y. Following the erection OF
the temple he began the building OF
his own house. He was nearly twice
rs long in building this as In building
the Lords house.
8. His commerce (9:26-2S; ct. II
Chron. 9:1O, Ply. His trading ships
went east as far as the Indian ocean,
perhaps even to India; and west as
far as Spain.
6. Army and navy (10 :26-29; Ct.
9:o7). Such wealth and greatness
would at some time provoke opposi-
ton, so he put his nation into state
Of preparedness.
All this greatness was associated
with the name Of the Lord. It was
known that his fame was due to his
relation with the living God. No one
ever had q greater missionary oppor-
tunity than he. Wealth and knowl-
edge may be powerful factors for the
extension Of the cause of Christ.
II. The Queen Of sheba Aston'shed
(vv. 3-9).
After the interview In which Solo
mon answered all her questions. she
was overwhelmed with his great Wis
dom. She had piled him with hard
questions to see if he could measure
up to his reputation, and found that
the half had not been told her. His
prosperity-houses, servants and their
manner of life, and his manner OF
worship >fiHed her with amazement.
She attributed his wealth and pros
perity to God, but as to whether she
became a believer in the true God we
cannot be sure.
III. The Queen Of sheba Gives
Gifts to Solomon wv. 1919.
As was the custom, she brought
gifts to Solomon, the king. the gold OF
which was in value between three and
four millions of dollars.
This was a large gift for that time,
bit Solomon more than recompensed
her. He gave her all she desired and
in additicc, Of his royal bounty. While
her gift to him was great, his to her
was greater, even in keeping with his
possessions. God gives unto them
who give their hearts unto him ex-
ceeding abundantly above all they
ask or think (Eph. 3:20).
~. All the Earth Sought Solo.
mon wv. o3-26).
His fame spread to all the earth 30
that the people came to hear the wis
dom which God gave to him. They
came with their gifts Of silver, gold,
Spices horses and mules, so
that silver came to be as common in
Jerusalem as stone. There is q time |
coming when the Greater than Solo
mon shall be king over all the earth,
and then all the people thereof shall |
come to him with their gifts. and he !
shall give unto them Of his royal |
bounty. Happy, indeed, will all those |
be who recognize him and give their
allegiance to him!
Solemn and Sacred Duty.
When in the world today we see the