1 Kings 11:1-8
Christian Standard Bible
Solomon’s Unfaithfulness to God
11 King Solomon loved many foreign women in addition to Pharaoh’s daughter:(A) Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women(B) 2 from the nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, and they must not intermarry with you, because they will turn your heart away to follow their gods.”(C) To these women Solomon was deeply attached[a] in love. 3 He had seven hundred wives who were princesses and three hundred who were concubines,(D) and they turned his heart away.(E)
4 When Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away to follow other gods. He was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God, as his father David had been.(F) 5 Solomon followed Ashtoreth,(G) the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom,(H) the abhorrent idol of the Ammonites.(I) 6 Solomon did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, and unlike his father David, he did not remain loyal to the Lord.
7 At that time, Solomon built a high place(J) for Chemosh,(K) the abhorrent idol of Moab, and for Milcom,[b](L) the abhorrent idol of the Ammonites, on the hill across from Jerusalem.(M) 8 He did the same for all his foreign wives, who were burning incense and offering sacrifices to their gods.
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1 Kings 11:1-8
New Living Translation
Solomon’s Many Wives
11 Now King Solomon loved many foreign women. Besides Pharaoh’s daughter, he married women from Moab, Ammon, Edom, Sidon, and from among the Hittites. 2 The Lord had clearly instructed the people of Israel, “You must not marry them, because they will turn your hearts to their gods.” Yet Solomon insisted on loving them anyway. 3 He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines. And in fact, they did turn his heart away from the Lord.
4 In Solomon’s old age, they turned his heart to worship other gods instead of being completely faithful to the Lord his God, as his father, David, had been. 5 Solomon worshiped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech,[a] the detestable god of the Ammonites. 6 In this way, Solomon did what was evil in the Lord’s sight; he refused to follow the Lord completely, as his father, David, had done.
7 On the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem,[b] he even built a pagan shrine for Chemosh, the detestable god of Moab, and another for Molech, the detestable god of the Ammonites. 8 Solomon built such shrines for all his foreign wives to use for burning incense and sacrificing to their gods.
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