Solomon the son of David established himself in his kingdom, and the LORD his God was with him and made him exceedingly great.
Second Chronicles opens with Solomon already settled on the throne, with God beside him and God making him great. It says nothing about the fights that filled the start of his reign in 1 Kings, and that silence is the first thing worth asking about.
The Keynote of the Book
The verse does more than introduce a king. It sets the theme for the whole book, and it does that by what it leaves out.
Arno Clemens GaebeleinChronicles leaves out the events at the start of Solomon's reign that 1 Kings 1–3:3 records. Second Chronicles begins by saying that Solomon established himself in his kingdom, and the LORD his God was with him and made him exceedingly great. This shows the keynote of Chronicles. It is the LORD's gracious dealing with the house of David, and His giving of the blessing He promised.
Why Chronicles Leaves the Failures Out
Solomon failed badly later in life. Chronicles says nothing about it on purpose, and commentators tie that silence to what David and Solomon picture.
Leslie M. GrantThese two books are very different from the books of Samuel and Kings. They stress the grace of God, while Samuel and Kings stress His government. 1 Chronicles never mentions David's great sin with Bathsheba and her husband. 2 Chronicles passes over Solomon's serious failure and disobedience too. The Lord is stressing here that David and Solomon are types of Christ — pictures of Him — and in Him there is no failure.
The same silence shapes these opening chapters. Set the Solomon of Chronicles beside the Solomon of Kings, and one quality stands out.
Henri L. RossierWe cannot stress enough, at the start of this book, that Solomon's reign in Chronicles has a completely different character from his reign in the book of Kings. His righteousness carried out in judgment on his father's enemies is left out of Chronicles. So is the case of the two prostitutes in 1 Kings 3:16-28, where his wisdom served righteousness so that he could rule fairly. Chronicles does not present Solomon's reign in that character. It is above all a reign of peace, presided over by wisdom.
Established, Yet Dependent
Solomon "established himself in his kingdom." That sounds like self-sufficiency. The rest of the verse cuts against it, and the parallel account in Kings sharpens the point.
Henri L. RossierFrom the very first words of our chapter (2 Chron. 1:1), Solomon is shown strengthening himself in his kingdom. In 1 Kings 2:46, by contrast, the kingdom was settled in his hand after judgment fell on all of David's personal enemies. Here Solomon strengthens himself with his full personal authority. Even so, he remains the dependent man. If he were not, he would not be the type of the True King in God's purposes. In Psalm 2 He is urged, "Ask of me, and I will make … the ends of the earth your possession." That is why our verse says: "and the LORD his God was with him and made him exceedingly great."
"The LORD His God Was with Him"
That short clause reaches beyond Solomon's court. God's people have known the same thing, with a double effect: outsiders saw it, and insiders grew careful.
W. T. P. WolstonTurn for a moment to 2 Chronicles 1:1, and you will find something of great importance there. It says about King Solomon that "God was with him," and in the first days of the church, at Pentecost, people said the same about the church. Everyone knew God was among His gathered people. He also showed He was there by judging the evil that appeared among them. A holy fear gripped their hearts… so the world knew God was with His saints, and among the saints themselves there was a healthy fear of anything that would not please the One they knew was with them.
Made Exceedingly Great
God had promised David a descendant. Solomon is the first sight of that promise, and his greatness points past him.
George DavisonHere in chapter 1 verse 1 is the first picture of the descendant God had promised to David, a descendant who was a type of our Lord Jesus Christ. When we read that God "made him exceedingly great," it reminds us of the One who will yet fill the universe with the glory of God.
Set beside the long genealogies that close the first book, this opening line lands like daylight after a long night.
The Bible TreasuryNor is this feeling of surprise lessened when we open the Second Book of Chronicles, to read, as in the morning light, "that Solomon, the son of David, was strengthened in his kingdom, and the Lord his God was with him, and magnified him exceedingly."
Summary
- Grace, not government — Chronicles retells the history of Samuel and Kings from the side of God's grace to David's house. That keynote is struck in the first line.
- Grace omits — Chronicles leaves out Solomon's worst failures, because it draws him as a picture of Christ, in whom there is no failure.
- Grace strengthens — Solomon establishes himself in his kingdom, yet he stays the dependent man, asking rather than grabbing.
- Grace accompanies — "the LORD his God was with him" is what the early church knew too: outsiders saw it, and inside there was a holy fear.
- Grace magnifies — Solomon's greatness is only a first sketch of the promised Son, who will fill the universe with God's glory.