Solomon was a super-achiever who gained everything a man could want from the world. But he still hadn’t found what he was looking for.
What is the key to happiness? This is a question pondered by
wise men of all ages.
Solomon was one of the first to write down his thoughts. He
had a reputation as the wisest man in the world. On top of that he had written
a thousand love songs and accumulated fabulous wealth and a harem and built stately
palaces and pleasure gardens for himself—not to mention the splendid first
temple in Jerusalem.
In short, Solomon was a super-achiever. He felt driven to succeed,
and succeed he did, in almost anything he put his mind to. But he failed to
obtain the one thing he desired most, which was wisdom. He failed to find the happiness
that wisdom gives. He had everything a man could want, and still he was unhappy.
In fact he was miserable, tossing on his bed at night and plagued with dark
thoughts.
When Solomon became an old man, he lost the compulsion to
succeed that had once driven him. And then he discovered that old age and gray
hairs do not necessarily indicate happy retirement. His fabulous successes did
not give him peace of mind, as he confesses in a harrowing outpouring of
bitterness. Only God can give inner peace, shalom, and therefore the fear of
the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.