This lesson, presented on 24 October 2026, was in answer to questions raised concerning Solomon and how we use him as an allegory to Christ Jesus as we study the Song of Solomon. The question is, "How can Solomon, who turned his back on the Lord, be compared to Christ in this study?" It is a valid question, and in this lesson, we endeavored to answer that concern. Along with the audio and charts for this lesson, the article below was also presented to those present, so that all students may have an additional opportunity for deeper study from the word of God.
ANSWERS TO CONCERNS
“Is Solomon a fitting shadow/allegory of Christ Jesus?
After teaching the Song of Solomon more recently (2026), some have challenged this author’s correlation of Solomon to Christ Jesus. Their opposition to the allegory is simple: How can one use the “shadow” of Solomon in explaining the very “image” of Christ? Because of this confusion, I have determined to add this addendum as further explanation of my approach to this study.
We must grant that Solomon’s life was not without considerable error as he aged. Students of God’s word realize Solomon’s love for God faded, and that because of his idolatrous life, lived to please his three hundred wives and seven hundred concubines (1 Kings 11:3 -- And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart. ), God took the kingdom from him (1 Kings 11:9 – 13 -- And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded. Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant. Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father's sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen.) Second only to the fact that God granted Solomon wisdom to guide God’s people wisely (1 Kings 3:5 – 15), Solomon’s rejection of God’s way is most remembered. (1 Kings 11:4 – 13). This is a sad reality in the minds of bible students, for it ignores two things about Solomon: 1) 1 Kings 3:3, which speaks of Solomon in his youth, 2) 1 Kings 11:4-6, which speaks of Solomon when he was old! With this in mind, let us make some observations that we hope will clarify the confusion expressed by some students.
The Holy Scriptures are silent about the exact age of Solomon when he became king and when he died. We do know he reigned for forty years over Israel (1 Kings 11:42). We know Solomon was born within a year of David’s marriage to Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:26 – 27) and of the subsequent death of their firstborn (2 Samuel 12:15 – 23). We prove this with the words of 2 Samuel 12:24 – 25 – “And David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in unto her, and lay with her: and she bare a son, and he called his name Solomon: and the LORD loved him. And he sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet; and he called his name Jedidiah, because of the LORD.”
We still do not know David's age at the time of Solomon’s birth. By compiling the events from his coronation as king to the time of Solomon’s birth, we can surmise about thirty years. We know David reigned for forty years, which would make him some seventy years old when he died (1 Kings 2:10). If this is a reasonable assumption, then Solomon would have been about twenty when he became king. We note from 1 Kings 3:7 that Solomon identifies himself as “but a little child,” expressing his humility, while confessing his inexperience. It is also reasonable to conclude that his affinity with Pharaoh and taking his daughter as his wife would make Solomon about twenty years of age. (1 Kings 3:1; 2 Chronicles 8:11 -- And Solomon brought up the daughter of Pharaoh out of the city of David unto the house that he had built for her: for he said, My wife shall not dwell in the house of David, king of Israel, because the places are holy, whereunto the ark of the LORD hath come.) At the very least, we must recognize that this FIRST marriage of Solomon to the daughter of Pharaoh happened in his youth. This woman we take to be the same as the Shulamite of the Song of Solomon (see the study).
1 Kings 3: 1 – 4 must be studied carefully. At verse one, note the duration of time with Pharaoh’s daughter: “until he (Solomon) had made an end of building his own house, and the house of the Lord, and the wall of Jerusalem round about.” 1 Kings 7:1 tells us it took thirteen years for Solomon to build his own house. During that same timespan, seven of those years, he was building the temple (1 Kings 6:38). There is no record telling us how long it took him to complete the walls of the city. But again, our point here is to see the context of 1 Kings 3:1-4 and note that he is still young.
Second, notice verse two shows the people of Israel “sacrificed in high places, because there was no house built unto the name of the Lord, until those days.” Therefore, we note Israel was already tending toward idolatry. This certainly does not justify their conduct but rather explains why Solomon would have been engaged in the same practice. Verse three says, “And Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in high places.” But don’t negate the first of this verse: “Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of David his father.” The conclusion is simple: Solomon was just like all other men – sinful from his youth! Yet, God found him worthy to become king of all Israel, even in his youth!
Think of others who are noted for pleasing God, yet guilty of sin. Noah, after being saved in the ark from the deluge, sinned after that salvation (Genesis 9:21). David, a man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 13:14; Acts 13:22), was guilty of sins (and more than his adultery with Bathsheba). We could name several others who are noted for their righteousness, yet sinned. It is because these men were NOT Christ, but merely a “shadow” of Him – “not the very image” (cf. Hebrews 10:1). God was able to use even wicked men to accomplish His good (Romans 9:17 -- For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Exodus 9:16 And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.) Is it so hard to see Solomon as a “shadow” of Christ Jesus?
Finally, we must remember it was in his old age that Solomon’s passions turned to strange women (1 Kings 11:4 -- For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.) Again, we are not attempting to justify his behavior – God didn’t, and we will not challenge God’s decision! Solomon’s departure from his beloved of the Song of Solomon to the images pleasing his wives and concubines, to his worship of Ashtoreth and Milcom, the abomination of the Ammonites, is stated here as “Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and went not fully after the Lord, as did David his father.” (vs. 5) We can reason that had Solomon heeded his own words recorded in the Song of Solomon and had continued walking in the way of God as did his father David, we might think more highly of him and his wisdom. Instead, we are left with a different view of Solomon – one that presents a serious lesson for us! (Revelation 2:10 –Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life).
Finally, we consider Solomon’s “life lessons” from his book of Ecclesiastes. Common sense shows us he wrote that treatise on his experimentation with life when he was old. He had seen all those things; done all those things; learned from all those things. He concluded, “all is vanity.” Yet, he concludes the book of Ecclesiastes with the most sobering of words: words we cannot ignore if we are examining his life and the lessons he learned throughout his life. His statement is this: “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13 – 14) Might this be an admission of guilt for his deeds and a sentiment of repentance? I don’t know!
This permits me to think of Solomon as a “representative” of Christ, an allegory/shadow. Solomon was not perfect, but he did righteously for a time that we must value. His psalms, proverbs, and his book of Ecclesiastes are found quite useful as wholesome guidance for our morality. And we are convinced that his writings on true love between a husband (king) and his wife (queen) are allegorical of the grandest love to be expressed between Christ and His church. Thus, from this precept, we study the book of the Song of Solomon.
