May 18, 2017 Bible Study — Leaders Need Wisdom and Knowledge From God

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on 2 Chronicles 1-4.

    When King David moved the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, he left the Tabernacle, and its altar, in Gibeon. We learn from today’s passage (and the account of the same event in Kings) that worship of God continued in Gibeon even after the Ark was in Jerusalem and worship took place there. I wonder if the existence of these dual places of worship (Jerusalem and Gibeon) were what inspired Jeroboam to set up two golden calves at either end of his kingdom rather than just one?

    Solomon’s first official act after taking the throne was to hold a national worship service at the Tabernacle in Gibeon. While there God appeared to Solomon and told him that He would give him whatever he asked for. Solomon asked for two things. We normally do not pay much attention to the first, for good reason. The first thing Solomon asked for was that God would continue to keep the promise He had made to King David. Solomon’s second request is the more important of his requests. It was a two part request, but those two parts were (and are) dependent on each other. Solomon asked for the wisdom and knowledge to lead the people of Israel properly. These two things go hand in hand. While wisdom is the more important of the two, it is impossible to make a wise decision if you completely lack knowledge of the situation. Perhaps the most important part of Solomon’s request was the fact that he acknowledged that he needed God’s knowledge and wisdom. Human knowledge and wisdom were insufficient for the task to which he had been called. The same is true for us, whatever task God has called us to is going to require us to depend on His wisdom and knowledge. We need to recognize that we cannot possible be wise enough, or knowledgeable enough to make the decision which God desires of us. We need to call upon God for Him to give us the wisdom and knowledge which we need to do His will.