20200212
THE
WISDOM AND FOLLY OF KING SOLOMON
12 February,
2020, Wednesday, 5th Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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1 Kings 10:1-10 ©
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Solomon prays to the Lord in the Temple
The fame of
Solomon having reached the queen of Sheba, she came to test him with difficult
questions. She brought immense riches to Jerusalem with her, camels laden with
spices, great quantities of gold, and precious stones. On coming to Solomon,
she opened her mind freely to him; and Solomon had an answer for all her
questions, not one of them was too obscure for the king to expound. When the
queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon, the palace he had built, the food
at his table, the accommodation for his officials, the organisation of his
staff and the way they were dressed, his cup-bearers, and the holocausts he
offered in the Temple of the Lord, it left her breathless, and she said to the
king, ‘What I heard in my own country about you and your wisdom was true, then!
Until I came and saw it with my own eyes I could not believe what they told me,
but clearly they told me less than half: for wisdom and prosperity you surpass
the report I heard. How happy your wives are! How happy are these servants of yours
who wait on you always and hear your wisdom! Blessed be the Lord your God who
has granted you his favour, setting you on the throne of Israel! Because of the
Lord’s everlasting love for Israel, he has made you king to deal out law and
justice.’ And she presented the king with a hundred and twenty talents of gold
and great quantities of spices and precious stones; no such wealth of spices
ever came again as those given to King Solomon by the queen of Sheba.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm 36(37):5-6,30-31,39-40 ©
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The
just man’s mouth utters wisdom.
Commit
your life to the Lord,
trust
in him and he will act,
so
that your justice breaks forth like the light,
your
cause like the noon-day sun.
The
just man’s mouth utters wisdom.
The
just man’s mouth utters wisdom
and
his lips speak what is right;
the
law of his God is in his heart,
his
steps shall be saved from stumbling.
The
just man’s mouth utters wisdom.
The
salvation of the just comes from the Lord,
their
stronghold in time of distress.
The
Lord helps them and delivers them
and
saves them: for their refuge is in him.
The
just man’s mouth utters wisdom.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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cf.2Tim1:10
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
Our
Saviour Jesus Christ abolished death
and
he has proclaimed life through the Good News.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Jn17:17
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
Your
word is truth, O Lord:
consecrate
us in the truth.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 7:14-23 ©
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It is what comes out of a man that makes him unclean
Jesus called the
people to him and said, ‘Listen to me, all of you, and understand. Nothing that
goes into a man from outside can make him unclean; it is the things that come
out of a man that make him unclean. If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen
to this.’
When
he had gone back into the house, away from the crowd, his disciples questioned
him about the parable. He said to them, ‘Do you not understand either? Can you
not see that whatever goes into a man from outside cannot make him unclean,
because it does not go into his heart but through his stomach and passes out
into the sewer?’ (Thus he pronounced all foods clean.) And he went on, ‘It is
what comes out of a man that makes him unclean. For it is from within, from
men’s hearts, that evil intentions emerge: fornication, theft, murder,
adultery, avarice, malice, deceit, indecency, envy, slander, pride, folly. All
these evil things come from within and make a man unclean.’
THE WISDOM AND
FOLLY OF KING SOLOMON
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [1 KGS 10:1-10; Ps 37:5-6, 30-31, 39-40; Mk 7:14-23 ]
It is important that we
start well in life and make the right moves. But it is equally important
that we keep our focus on track as well, otherwise we begin well but end
badly. This was the case of King Solomon. Today’s first reading
tells us how King Solomon started well by putting all the right principles and
things in place. He was not only wise, he acted justly and
righteously. He judged his people without fear or favour. He sought
justice for the poor, as we read in the judgment he rendered to the two
prostitutes who made the same claim that they were the mother of the
child. He was truly a wise ruler as the Queen of Sheba noted. “On coming
to Solomon, she opened her mind freely to him; and Solomon had an answer for
all her questions, not one of them was too obscure for the king to expound.”
But the wisdom of
Solomon was not just seen in being a just and upright ruler but he was a caring
ruler. He
was good in administration and in organizing his staff. He knew how to
take care of those people who worked with him and for him. A good leader
is one who always seeks the welfare of his staff and workers before
himself. That was what Solomon did. The Queen of Sheba spoke
of Solomon’s wisdom “in the palace he had built, the food at his table, the
accommodation for his officials, the organisation of his staff and the way they
were dressed, his cup bearers, and the holocausts he offered in the Temple of
the Lord.” Indeed, it left her breathless because most kings and high
officials think of their own needs, their promotion and their convenience
before others. But not in the case of King Solomon. He ensured that
his staff and collaborators were well taken care of with plenty of food on the
table, good accommodation for his men and families. He gave them dignity
by giving their proper attire so that they could serve with pride.
Indeed, the Queen of
Sheba was so impressed by his wisdom in
ruling the people, in his organization of his staff and looking after their
welfare, she “presented the king with a hundred and twenty talents of gold and
great quantities of spices and precious stones; no such wealth of spices ever
came again as those given to King Solomon by the queen of Sheba.” She
remarked, “What I heard in my own country about you and your wisdom was true,
then! Until I came and saw it with my own eyes I could not believe what
they told me, but clearly they told me less than half: for wisdom and prosperity
you surpass the report I heard. How happy your wives are! How happy
are these servants of yours who wait on you always and hear your wisdom!
Blessed be the Lord your God who has granted you his favour, setting you on the
throne of Israel! Because of the Lord’s everlasting love for Israel, he
has made you king to deal out law and justice.”
King Solomon got it
right because above all, he placed God above himself and the focus of his rule. He made it a point to offer
holocausts in the Temple of the Lord. The responsorial psalm sums up the
disposition and reverence of King Solomon for the Lord. “Commit your life to
the Lord, trust in him and he will act, so that your justice breaks forth like
the light, your cause like the noon-day sun. The just man’s mouth utters
wisdom and his lips speak what is right; the law of his God is in his heart,
his steps shall be saved from stumbling. The salvation of the just comes from
the Lord, their stronghold in time of distress. The Lord helps them and
delivers them and saves them: for their refuge is in him.” He was that
just man and the Lord blessed him and his kingdom. God fulfilled His side
of His promise to King Solomon when He told him, “I have heard your prayer and
your plea, which you made before me; I have consecrated this house that you
have built, and put my name there forever; my eyes and my heart will be there
for all time. As for you, if you will walk before me, as David your father
walked, with integrity of heart and uprightness, doing according to all that I
have commanded you, and keeping my statutes and my ordinances, then
I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever.” (1 Kgs 8:3-5)
Alas, this did not last
for long. This is the real problem of success. When we become
successful, our glory and fame get to our head. This is the temptation of every
leader. When they have proven themselves, demonstrated to have the most
innovative ideas, charismatic leadership that can persuade others to be on
their side and able to motivate them, they rise very quickly. But then
pride sets in and arrogance alienates them from their people. Arrogant
leaders unfortunately will not last for long because they will be rejected and
deposed by others. Only humble leaders who value people for themselves,
not just for their skills and knowledge or their performance, can command their
loyalty and respect.
That was what happened
to King Solomon. In his achievements, he forgot about God. He forgot
God’s warning.
“If you turn aside from following me, you or your children, and do not keep my
commandments and my statutes that I have set before you, but go and serve other
gods and worship them, then I will cut Israel off from the land that I
have given them; and the house that I have consecrated for my name I will cast
out of my sight; and Israel will become a proverb and a taunt among all
peoples. This house will become a heap of ruins.” (1 Kg
9:6-8) Swamped with luxuries, he lived a life of the flesh. We read
that he loved many foreign women when the Lord forbade the Israelites to
intermarry with them. He had many wives and concubines. Because
many of them are from pagan lands, they turned away his heart from the
Lord. Because of them too, they introduced their gods to King Solomon and
he worshipped them as well. This was the cause of his downfall.
When a man turns away his heart from worshipping the true God and end up
worshipping himself and the world, moral decadence will set in, not just in his
life but for the organization or country he leads.
This is why the Lord
warns us to be careful of how we think and how we love. He made it clear that it is not so
much because of non-observance of dietary and external customs that we become
evil. Rather, evil originates from a heart that is not one with
God. He said, “Nothing that goes into a man from outside can make him
unclean; it is the things that come out of a man that make him unclean.
If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen to this.” He explained to His
disciples, “It is what comes out of a man that makes him unclean. For it
is from within, from men’s hearts, that evil intentions emerge: fornication,
theft, murder, adultery, avarice, malice, deceit, indecency, envy, slander, pride,
folly. All these evil things come from within and make a man unclean.”
Happiness is a question
of right thinking and sincere loving. To live a life of wisdom is to live
a life of truth and love. There
is no other life that can give us happiness unless we give ourselves in love
and service with the blessings that God has honoured us with. Those who
use the blessings just for themselves or worse still, for their self-indulgence
and immoral activities, manipulating people and their bodies, will suffer and pay
a price for their sins. When a man is evil, he will not find peace.
As St Paul said in Romans, “the kingdom of God is not food and drink but
righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. The one who thus
serves Christ is acceptable to God and has human approval. Let us
then pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding. Do not, for
the sake of food, destroy the work of God.” (Rom 14:17-20)
So let us purify our hearts
in truth and love.
We do this by walking in the way of the Lord, seeking Him in scripture and
rendering Him through worship. If we are purified in love, then all our
actions will flow from what is in our heart. Indeed, “the fruit of the
Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity,
faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Gal 5:22f) It is more important to live a
humble life of service than to be famous and great. Humility and fear of
God is the key to success in leadership. Humility will gain us the
respect from those under our charge, fear of God will help us to walk a life of
truth, love and integrity.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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