And people of all nations came to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and from all the kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom.
– 1 Kings 4:34
So Solomon, out of all the things he could have asked God for, asked for wisdom, and God granted him wisdom. When you look at 1 Kings 4: 29, before the 1 Kings 4:34, the Bible says, “God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure and breadth of mind like the sand on the seashore so that Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.” So God answered Solomon’s prayer for wisdom.
God did not bless Solomon not just for his sake, but the sake of all the nations.
But then you keep going and you see in the verse I read, 1 Kings 4:34, that “God gave him wisdom so that people from all nations might see and learn about the wisdom of God in Solomon’s life and leadership.”
1 Kings 4:34 Reminds Us of God’s Blessings
In other words, God blessed Solomon by answering his prayer for wisdom, but not just for Solomon’s sake. God blessed Solomon, answered Solomon’s prayer for wisdom, for the sake of his blessing, his wisdom, spreading to the nations.
This is one of many, many, many places all throughout the Bible where we learn that when God blesses us, it’s not just for us. It’s for the spread of his blessing through us, and specifically here and all over the Bible, through us among the nations. This is the great commission, right? We have been invited to be disciples of Jesus, saved by Jesus, redeemed by Jesus, forgiven of all of our sins, not just for us, but for the spread of this good news, the Gospel of Jesus, among all the nations, that we might make disciples of all the nations.
1 Kings 4:34 Reminds Us of the Gospel
And so to make this connection, whenever you see it in the Bible, so that we make this connection in our lives, God has blessed you and me in immeasurable ways, in countless ways, that we could never deserve. Why? He’s done this, yes, for us, that we might know His goodness and His grace and His love and His blessing, yes, but not just for us; so that we might make his goodness and his grace and his blessing known among the nations of the earth, among all the peoples of the earth, which is what he has commanded us to do. “Go and make my blessing, my Gospel, my grace, my mercy, my life, known among all the nations.”
So God, help us to make this connection in our lives. Help us today, just overwhelmed by your blessing in our lives, to spread your blessing in the world around us, to people right around us. God, we pray that the Gospel would not stop with us today, that the good news of your grace and your mercy would spread through us today to people in our homes, our neighborhoods, our workplaces, restaurants we would go to, places where we’ll exercise, wherever we find ourselves today, tomorrow. God, we pray that your grace would spread through us, and God, we pray that your grace would keep spreading through us into all the nations, know your grace and your love and your mercy and the Gospel.
This Verse Leads Us to Pray for the Unreached
God, we pray for the Romani people of India. God, we pray for the spread of your grace to this 235,000 people in India who need the good news of your grace and your mercy. We pray for the spread of your grace and your Gospel to 7,000 other people, groups like them. Help us to make the connection between your blessing in our lives and our families and our churches, and your purpose: to make your blessing, your goodness, and your grace known among all the nations of the earth. God, please use our lives when you’re blessing in our lives. Toward that end, we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
