The Queen of Sheba Magnifies the God of Israel
Good morning. I invite you to turn with me in your Bibles to 1 Kings 10. This morning we are going to be looking at verses 1-13.
This morning’s passage might be one of the more familiar to you. We’ve had some passages that you may glaze over when you do your bible reading. They are about stones and building projects. But this passage often stands out. It is the visit of the Queen of Sheba.
If you’ve been with us through this series, you may remember back to the beginning. In some of the opening chapters of Solomon’s life we encountered two ladies. They were ladies who were, shall we say, unusual. They were prostitutes who had conceived babies. You may remember that one of the children died and there was a controversy over who owned the other child. Solomon came in and used his wisdom to solve the problem and figure out who was the rightful mother.
All in all, the author of 1 Kings included that story for a particular purpose. He wanted to illustrate the immensity of Solomon's wisdom.
As we come to the end of Solomon’s reign, we encounter another unusual lady. The Queen of Sheba is a Gentile woman. And this lady has the same function in the narrative. She also is here to point out how great Solomon’s wisdom is.
Let’s look at the testimony that she gives. 1 Kings 10, starting in verse 1.
Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him with hard questions. 2 She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels bearing spices and very much gold and precious stones. And when she came to Solomon, she told him all that was on her mind. 3 And Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from the king that he could not explain to her. 4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, 5 the food of his table, the seating of his officials, and the attendance of his servants, their clothing, his cupbearers, and his burnt offerings that he offered at the house of the LORD, there was no more breath in her.
6 And she said to the king, “The report was true that I heard in my own land of your words and of your wisdom, 7 but I did not believe the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report that I heard. 8 Happy are your men! Happy are your servants, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! 9 Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! Because the LORD loved Israel forever, he has made you king, that you may execute justice and righteousness.”
10 Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, and a very great quantity of spices and precious stones. Never again came such an abundance of spices as these that the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 Moreover, the fleet of Hiram, which brought gold from Ophir, brought from Ophir a very great amount of almug wood and precious stones. 12 And the king made of the almug wood supports for the house of the LORD and for the king's house, also lyres and harps for the singers. No such almug wood has come or been seen to this day. 13 And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all that she desired, whatever she asked besides what was given her by the bounty of King Solomon. So she turned and went back to her own land with her servants.
INTRODUCTION
Some of you may remember the name Kenneth Star. He was a name that was bandied about quite a bit in the 1990’s. His claim to fame was that he was the one who was called upon to investigate the allegations against then President Bill Clinton. The former president had been impeached over issues pertaining to the Whitewater controversy, and Ken Star was brought in to examine the whole matter.
I mention Star because he was brought in as an ‘independent investigator.’ He was supposed to be a neutral third party. Obviously, if someone associated with the White House was appointed to do the investigation, the results might be a little skewed. If you have someone from the government investigating the government, the chances of things working out in the government’s favor are pretty good.
So what do you do? You bring in an independent, 3rd party. You get someone who will be less likely to have any kind of bias. And because they are someone out of the regular circles of those who are being investigated, you are more likely to have a good result. The outcome, the conclusions, the final analysis, should all be much more tidy. The trustworthiness of the claims should be much more sound.
If you were not around during the controversies that swirled through the later half of the 1990s, the name Ken Star may not mean anything to you. But, I bet that, even if you are super young, you know the value of a neutral, third party. If you’ve ever had siblings and there was one piece of cake left, you probably have appealed to an independent consultant.
You have to split that piece of cake with your brother or your sister. And there’s no way you will trust your depraved, greedy, uncaring sibling to make a fair slice in that luscious little dessert. So what do you do? You get mom or dad. Why? Because you know they will have no bias. Because mom is not eating the cake and because she’s a neutral 3rd party, she’ll be the best one Mom will cut the cake in just the most precise way. Dad, I’d be a little more wary, as he might add a tax or handling fee for participating.
Well, what does Ken Star and the cutting of cake have to do with our passage this morning? There is very little, I will admit. But there is one thing that may be a parallel. It’s the outsider. It is the testimony of a neutral 3rd party.
In 1 Kings 10 we have a woman who appears out of nowhere. The Queen of Sheba comes trotting into Jerusalem. And she comes with a great deal of pomp and circumstance. She not only comes with an extremely large caravan, but she comes toting immense riches. We are told in verse 10 that she has 120 talents of gold on hand. That’s 4.5 tons of gold. That’s going to be a lot of camels. Based on today’s market prices, that is equivalent to 20 billion dollars that she’s hauling. So factor in the camels, the servants, and military personnel that would be needed to safeguard the travel of all those goods, you’re talking a pretty big retinue, as it is called.
But here comes the Queen. And what is her purpose in the story? Yes, this would have been a significant event in the life of Solomon and history of Jerusalem, but why include it here?
I would suggest to you that she serves as a neutral third party. There’s a sense in which she is a Ken Star like investigator. She comes from far outside the bounds of Israel. She’s not a Jew or any way connected to the Jewish community. She’s essentially a pagan who has come from distant heathen lands. And she wishes to examine the evidence. She wants to see if the rumors that she’s heard are true. She’s come to ask questions and get answers. And, in the end, she’s going to draw conclusions and make an evaluation of all that she sees.
All in all, the Queen of Sheba is a neutral third party. And we are to hear the testimony that she gives. She becomes a witness, you might say. A 3rd party witness to certain truths that are to be very important for us. Her testimony is one that we are to listen to and, if we are going to be obedient to God, take to heart.
So this morning I want us to think about her royal highness of Sheba, and the testimony we have through her. And the first thing she testifies to is the value of God’s Word. The value of what God has revealed.
I. To the value of wisdom
We are told in the opening verses that the Queen makes a rather grand entrance into Jerusalem.
If you’ve seen Disney’s productions of Aladdin and how Prince Ali comes marching into Princess Jasmine's land with all the pomp and circumstance, you probably have a good idea what happened here.
But it's interesting that we never get the royal lady’s real name. She’s only known as “The Queen of Sheba.” And that’s likely on purpose. The text doesn’t care who she is. It’s concern is where she’s from. And sources say that the kingdom of Sheba would have been located in the southern Arabian Peninsula; It would be located in what is today called Yemen.
When you look it up, you find that her royal highness traveled over 1,000 miles. It was probably close to a 15 hundred miles that she traveled. In some respects, she represents one of the outermost territories of Solomon’s world. So it’s no small trip.
But you understand she wasn’t just popping by because she happened to be in the neighborhood. This was not only an intentional, international journey. It would have been a difficult journey. The trip would have taken her through the desert wilderness, over terribly hard terrain. It was a long, difficult trip that she took.
We are to understand that this woman craved wisdom. The extent that she was willing to go shows that she yearned for understanding.
You also recognize that one doesn’t make this kind of trip because you have some minor questions. She was likely dealing with deep questions; questions of real import; questions that her own worldview and the worldviews of the other nations around her could not answer.
And notice how our text testifies to this. She wasn’t just searching out Solomon. Look at what it says in verse 1 again. She had heard of the fame of Solomon, “concerning the name of the Lord.” And after she got her answers, she spoke a blessing to God. In verse 9 she says, “Blessed be the LORD your God.”
So even though she visits Solomon, she recognizes that this is God’s wisdom. It’s wisdom from above.
In other words, Sheba recognizes the value of what God has revealed. She’s a pagan who testifies to the truth that only Yahweh can give. She’s an unbiased witness. She’s an out-of-towner. And she is here to validate the fact that our God has the answers that no one else can give.
I believe that this is the OT’s way of saying what the Apostle Paul said: In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Do you know that? If you are here today I hope you realize this. Jesus Christ is the Way, the Life, and the Truth. And the God of the Bible has the answers to all of life’s difficulties.
The Bible is where God has spoken. Solomon’s wisdom is captured right here in these pages. And this book contains all the depths of understanding. Truth is not something that must be elusive or beyond your ability to get. Sheba tells us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. The Lord is the one who gives understanding.
Really, the only way to really make sense out of the world around us is to understand what God has said about it in his Word. The only way to properly understand good and evil is to read what the Scripture has to say about it. The only way to understand life and salvation is to look to the wisdom that God has revealed.
We hear today about people who walk away from the faith because they don’t get the answers to life’s questions. That may be true; that may happen. But the weird thing is that they walk away from the very thing that holds the answer to what they are looking for. Instead of walking away from the faith, they should press harder into the faith. They should be more determined to study what God has revealed in His Word. The answer isn’t walking away, the answer is to search harder, read more thoroughly, and seek out more people who know what the Scriptures teach. That’s because this is the only place where the answers can be found.
That’s what Sheba did. Sheba searched. She looked harder. She pressed in with passionate zeal. She packed up her palace and made the trek across the desert and seas. She’s presented as an honorable woman because she sought the answers and found those answers in the God of Israel.
Let that be a lesson to you. God’s Word is invaluable. God’s Word is practical. God’s Word contains the truth that you need; whatever questions you have–whatever answers you are searching for, it is found in Jesus Christ.
So again, this regal lady points us to what God has revealed in Christ. But she not only testifies to the value of God’s Word, she also testifies to the wonder of God’s grace.
II. To the wonder of God’s grace
Look with me at verse 9. I’d like you to think about what Sheba says there. After she gets her questions answered, she gets a tour of Israel. She gets to look around and see all the sights. She sees the servants and the way they are dressed. She sees the sumptuous foods that are served and all the other blessings that have come to the Israelites. And after witnessing all these things. Notice what she says. In verse 9 she says,
“Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! Because the LORD loved Israel forever, he has made you king, that you may execute justice and righteousness.”
What is Sheba saying? She’s highlighting the uniqueness of Israel, isn’t she?. Sheba essentially says, “Out of all the nations of the earth–out of all the peoples who have populated this planet, there is one nation that stands out. There’s one nation that has been given special treatment. There is one people whom God has loved.
Now, what does that sound like to you? When one person or one group of people are loved over and against a bunch of others, what do you call that? You call it sovereign grace. It is evidence of this thing called election. Election is understanding that God has chosen you and given you something (i.e. a special favor) that he did not give to others.
That was not only true for Israel back then, that’s true for you. Of all the people on the earth, why is it that you are able to know Jesus Christ? Out of all the people in your neighborhood, why is it that you should have opportunity to know the truth? Why do you have your sins forgiven as opposed to someone else?
Out of all the people in the room who heard the gospel that one time, why were you the one who was able to respond and receive it while everyone else ignored it and gave zero interest in it?
Was it because you were any more superior? Was it because you were more intelligent? Was it because you had a better sense about you than everyone else? Of course not. That’s simply God’s grace. You were chosen. You were blessed. You were given a blessing that others were not able to enjoy. It’s only because God loved you.. Out of his love for you, he chose you. He enabled you to understand. He saved you from blindness and unbelief.
When you understand what God has done–when you grasp that he has granted you these blessings and not others, you’ll find yourself struck with wonder. You’ll have a new sense of amazement and you’ll be humbled at the thought of it all.
I think an old hymn frames it well. Listen to these words from “How Sweet and Awesome is the Place”:
While all our hearts and all our songs
Join to admire the feast
Each of us cry with thankful tongues
“Lord, why was I a guest?”
“Why was I made to hear Thy voice
And enter while there’s room
When thousands make a wretched choice
And rather starve than come?”
Lord, why? Why was I a guest? The sheer wonder of it all!
When you come to grasp the fact that God has chosen you and chosen to love you (and he has not chosen to love others in the way he has loved you), you’ll have but one response: Blessed be the Lord my God.
Queen Sheba is an independent 3rd party. As such she’s a witness to the wisdom of God and the grace of God. But notice that she’s also a witness to the kingdom of God. Specifically, she’s a witness to the future glory of God’s kingdom.
III. To the future of the kingdom
Just think about what happens here in this passage. You have a gentile who comes into God’s kingdom. She comes and exalts the God of this kingdom. She even presents gifts. This really is an amazing expression of Gentile faith and how gentiles are incorporated into God’s kingdom.
What is interesting is that Sheba’s visit to Israel ends up taking on a prophetic character. Sheba’s visit becomes indicative of what God would do during the Messianic Age.
I’d like you to flip over to Psalm 72. There are a couple different Scriptures that I want you to look at. I want you to see how Queen Sheba foreshadows a future day; a day when God would reign over all the nations of the earth.
Psalm 72 is a song that was written by Solomon. And when you read Psalm 72 you find that Solomon had opportunity to meditate on his visit with the Queen. And as he thinks about it, he starts to compose a song. He writes a song about his reign and he asks God to bless the king.
Look specifically at verse 10. It says,
May the kings of Tarshish and of the coastlands render him tribute; may the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts! May all kings fall down before him, all nations serve him!
Now think about the countries that Solomon mentions here. We already said that Sheba represents one of the nations that was on the outskirts. It was very far away. It was one of the southern most nations that was known at that time. Tarshish was similar. Scholars say that it was located on the western rim of Spain. So it represents a nation that was kind of on the edge of the planet.
All in all, Solomon is praying that the kingdom of God would spread far and wide. He was asking that the Lord would bring all these nations under His rule. He’s saying, “Lord, make your kingdom stretch from sea to sea, and may all the earth’s riches be devoted to you.”
Now, flip with me to the book of Isaiah. I want you to look at Isaiah 60. The Prophet Isaiah does something similar, but you might say he takes it one step further. Of course, Solomon was praying. Solomon sang a prayer to God. Isaiah was a prophet. He wasn’t just someone who prayed. He made direct declarations about what would come to pass in the future. And in chapter 60, Isaiah sees a time when Solomon’s prayer would be fulfilled. Isaiah sees a time when that glory of the Solomonic rule would return.
The first verse of chapter 60 starts off by saying, “Arise, shine, for your light has come.” That is a passage that you sometimes hear at Christmas time. It's a messianic prophecy talking about the light of Christ bursting on the scene in his first advent.
In verse 3 he starts to talk about the Gentiles. And he says these foreigners are going to be incorporated into the kingdom of God. Look at verse 3. It says, “Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.”
Now skip down to verse 6. In verse 6 Isaiah mentions some specific nations. He says,
“A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall bring good news, the praises of the LORD.”
Who do you find in Isaiah’s list of nations? None other than Sheba. And the Queen’s camels even get a shout out. Here come those camels again, toting their gold and frankincense (the spices that are spoken of in 1 Kings 10).
All in all, Isaiah speaks of the time when the gospel would go forward into all the nations.
All in all, her highness of Sheba foreshadows what God is doing in our present day. Today the gospel is going forward and people all over the earth are being brought into God’s kingdom. God’s rule is canvasing the far regions of the planet.
I hope that means a good deal to you. For we are part of those nations and peoples.
And the beautiful thing is that the invitation is still going out. Come be part of God’s growing kingdom. Come be part of this glorious kingdom that will live for ever and ever.
All you have to do is put your faith in Christ. You simply need to recognize that you’ve sinned against God. Jesus died so that sinners may be reconciled to God. And if you turn to him, He will pardon you and gladly welcome you into his kingdom.
As we read about the Queen coming to Solomon with all her gifts and greatness, we should remember that this was just a foretaste. It was simply a picture of what God is now doing in and through the gospel.
Now, there’s one more thing I want you to point out. The Queen of Sheba has been a witness to the value of God’s Word. She’s testified to the wonder of God’s grace. And we’ve just seen how she testifies to the future of God's kingdom. But I want you to notice, last of all, that she is also a witness to the reality of God’s judgment.
V. To the reality of the coming judgment
I mentioned how Solomon and Isaiah reflected on Sheba’s visit. They, of course, had some pretty good things to say. But they were not the only ones who talked about Sheba. Jesus did too.
In Matthew 12 Jesus talks about the Queen of the South. He talked about her in the context of the final judgment.
Jesus was being opposed by the religious leaders of his day. They wouldn’t believe in him. They discounted his miracles. They balked at his teaching. And they never missed an opportunity to work him over. And one day they had the audacity to ask for a sign. And he said, “No sign will be given except the sign of Jonah.” And he went on to pronounce a curse. He said, “The men of Nineveh will rise up at the last day and condemn this generation. For they repented at the preaching of Jonah. And behold, something greater than Jonah is here.”
And then he said that the Queen of the South would do the same. She is going to rise up at the last judgment and condemn that generation. Jesus explained why: For she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear Solomon’s wisdom. And behold, something greater than Solomon is here.
Now, that just makes it more necessary for you to hear what I’m talking about. We can talk all day about how wise Solomon is, but he’s nothing compared to Jesus. Jesus is the very embodiment of truth. He is the fountain of wisdom and knowledge. Jesus is, in other words, the Son of God. He is superior to Solomon in every way.
And what will come of those who do not give Jesus the recognition he is due? If you do not put your faith in Christ and follow him–if you do not seek out his wisdom and value the truth that he reveals–what’s going to happen?
I want you to realize what Jesus is saying. Jesus says that we will see the Queen of Sheba again. She will be one of the people who will rise up from the grave on the last day. When the day of judgment comes, she is going to be numbered among the saints. And she’s going to join with the saints in passing judgment on the wicked.
Imagine what this is going to be like. Imagine the irony of it. This pagan woman will judge those who were Jewish men. They refused to embrace Christ and recognize his Lordship. They rejected his wisdom and scorned the Son of God. And this lady from Sheba is going to be a witness against them. She’s going to testify to the just judgment of God. Because she has more integrity, she will help pronounce their condemnation.
I hope that when that Day comes, you won’t find yourself in that same position. I hope that you will be one of the saints who is able to enjoy the eternal world with her. It is my prayer that you know that Jesus is the Son of God and that you honor him with the kind of faith that Sheba had.
This morning’s passage might be one of the more familiar to you. We’ve had some passages that you may glaze over when you do your bible reading. They are about stones and building projects. But this passage often stands out. It is the visit of the Queen of Sheba.
If you’ve been with us through this series, you may remember back to the beginning. In some of the opening chapters of Solomon’s life we encountered two ladies. They were ladies who were, shall we say, unusual. They were prostitutes who had conceived babies. You may remember that one of the children died and there was a controversy over who owned the other child. Solomon came in and used his wisdom to solve the problem and figure out who was the rightful mother.
All in all, the author of 1 Kings included that story for a particular purpose. He wanted to illustrate the immensity of Solomon's wisdom.
As we come to the end of Solomon’s reign, we encounter another unusual lady. The Queen of Sheba is a Gentile woman. And this lady has the same function in the narrative. She also is here to point out how great Solomon’s wisdom is.
Let’s look at the testimony that she gives. 1 Kings 10, starting in verse 1.
Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him with hard questions. 2 She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels bearing spices and very much gold and precious stones. And when she came to Solomon, she told him all that was on her mind. 3 And Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from the king that he could not explain to her. 4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, 5 the food of his table, the seating of his officials, and the attendance of his servants, their clothing, his cupbearers, and his burnt offerings that he offered at the house of the LORD, there was no more breath in her.
6 And she said to the king, “The report was true that I heard in my own land of your words and of your wisdom, 7 but I did not believe the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report that I heard. 8 Happy are your men! Happy are your servants, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! 9 Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! Because the LORD loved Israel forever, he has made you king, that you may execute justice and righteousness.”
10 Then she gave the king 120 talents of gold, and a very great quantity of spices and precious stones. Never again came such an abundance of spices as these that the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 Moreover, the fleet of Hiram, which brought gold from Ophir, brought from Ophir a very great amount of almug wood and precious stones. 12 And the king made of the almug wood supports for the house of the LORD and for the king's house, also lyres and harps for the singers. No such almug wood has come or been seen to this day. 13 And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all that she desired, whatever she asked besides what was given her by the bounty of King Solomon. So she turned and went back to her own land with her servants.
INTRODUCTION
Some of you may remember the name Kenneth Star. He was a name that was bandied about quite a bit in the 1990’s. His claim to fame was that he was the one who was called upon to investigate the allegations against then President Bill Clinton. The former president had been impeached over issues pertaining to the Whitewater controversy, and Ken Star was brought in to examine the whole matter.
I mention Star because he was brought in as an ‘independent investigator.’ He was supposed to be a neutral third party. Obviously, if someone associated with the White House was appointed to do the investigation, the results might be a little skewed. If you have someone from the government investigating the government, the chances of things working out in the government’s favor are pretty good.
So what do you do? You bring in an independent, 3rd party. You get someone who will be less likely to have any kind of bias. And because they are someone out of the regular circles of those who are being investigated, you are more likely to have a good result. The outcome, the conclusions, the final analysis, should all be much more tidy. The trustworthiness of the claims should be much more sound.
If you were not around during the controversies that swirled through the later half of the 1990s, the name Ken Star may not mean anything to you. But, I bet that, even if you are super young, you know the value of a neutral, third party. If you’ve ever had siblings and there was one piece of cake left, you probably have appealed to an independent consultant.
You have to split that piece of cake with your brother or your sister. And there’s no way you will trust your depraved, greedy, uncaring sibling to make a fair slice in that luscious little dessert. So what do you do? You get mom or dad. Why? Because you know they will have no bias. Because mom is not eating the cake and because she’s a neutral 3rd party, she’ll be the best one Mom will cut the cake in just the most precise way. Dad, I’d be a little more wary, as he might add a tax or handling fee for participating.
Well, what does Ken Star and the cutting of cake have to do with our passage this morning? There is very little, I will admit. But there is one thing that may be a parallel. It’s the outsider. It is the testimony of a neutral 3rd party.
In 1 Kings 10 we have a woman who appears out of nowhere. The Queen of Sheba comes trotting into Jerusalem. And she comes with a great deal of pomp and circumstance. She not only comes with an extremely large caravan, but she comes toting immense riches. We are told in verse 10 that she has 120 talents of gold on hand. That’s 4.5 tons of gold. That’s going to be a lot of camels. Based on today’s market prices, that is equivalent to 20 billion dollars that she’s hauling. So factor in the camels, the servants, and military personnel that would be needed to safeguard the travel of all those goods, you’re talking a pretty big retinue, as it is called.
But here comes the Queen. And what is her purpose in the story? Yes, this would have been a significant event in the life of Solomon and history of Jerusalem, but why include it here?
I would suggest to you that she serves as a neutral third party. There’s a sense in which she is a Ken Star like investigator. She comes from far outside the bounds of Israel. She’s not a Jew or any way connected to the Jewish community. She’s essentially a pagan who has come from distant heathen lands. And she wishes to examine the evidence. She wants to see if the rumors that she’s heard are true. She’s come to ask questions and get answers. And, in the end, she’s going to draw conclusions and make an evaluation of all that she sees.
All in all, the Queen of Sheba is a neutral third party. And we are to hear the testimony that she gives. She becomes a witness, you might say. A 3rd party witness to certain truths that are to be very important for us. Her testimony is one that we are to listen to and, if we are going to be obedient to God, take to heart.
So this morning I want us to think about her royal highness of Sheba, and the testimony we have through her. And the first thing she testifies to is the value of God’s Word. The value of what God has revealed.
I. To the value of wisdom
We are told in the opening verses that the Queen makes a rather grand entrance into Jerusalem.
If you’ve seen Disney’s productions of Aladdin and how Prince Ali comes marching into Princess Jasmine's land with all the pomp and circumstance, you probably have a good idea what happened here.
But it's interesting that we never get the royal lady’s real name. She’s only known as “The Queen of Sheba.” And that’s likely on purpose. The text doesn’t care who she is. It’s concern is where she’s from. And sources say that the kingdom of Sheba would have been located in the southern Arabian Peninsula; It would be located in what is today called Yemen.
When you look it up, you find that her royal highness traveled over 1,000 miles. It was probably close to a 15 hundred miles that she traveled. In some respects, she represents one of the outermost territories of Solomon’s world. So it’s no small trip.
But you understand she wasn’t just popping by because she happened to be in the neighborhood. This was not only an intentional, international journey. It would have been a difficult journey. The trip would have taken her through the desert wilderness, over terribly hard terrain. It was a long, difficult trip that she took.
We are to understand that this woman craved wisdom. The extent that she was willing to go shows that she yearned for understanding.
You also recognize that one doesn’t make this kind of trip because you have some minor questions. She was likely dealing with deep questions; questions of real import; questions that her own worldview and the worldviews of the other nations around her could not answer.
And notice how our text testifies to this. She wasn’t just searching out Solomon. Look at what it says in verse 1 again. She had heard of the fame of Solomon, “concerning the name of the Lord.” And after she got her answers, she spoke a blessing to God. In verse 9 she says, “Blessed be the LORD your God.”
So even though she visits Solomon, she recognizes that this is God’s wisdom. It’s wisdom from above.
In other words, Sheba recognizes the value of what God has revealed. She’s a pagan who testifies to the truth that only Yahweh can give. She’s an unbiased witness. She’s an out-of-towner. And she is here to validate the fact that our God has the answers that no one else can give.
I believe that this is the OT’s way of saying what the Apostle Paul said: In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Do you know that? If you are here today I hope you realize this. Jesus Christ is the Way, the Life, and the Truth. And the God of the Bible has the answers to all of life’s difficulties.
The Bible is where God has spoken. Solomon’s wisdom is captured right here in these pages. And this book contains all the depths of understanding. Truth is not something that must be elusive or beyond your ability to get. Sheba tells us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. The Lord is the one who gives understanding.
Really, the only way to really make sense out of the world around us is to understand what God has said about it in his Word. The only way to properly understand good and evil is to read what the Scripture has to say about it. The only way to understand life and salvation is to look to the wisdom that God has revealed.
We hear today about people who walk away from the faith because they don’t get the answers to life’s questions. That may be true; that may happen. But the weird thing is that they walk away from the very thing that holds the answer to what they are looking for. Instead of walking away from the faith, they should press harder into the faith. They should be more determined to study what God has revealed in His Word. The answer isn’t walking away, the answer is to search harder, read more thoroughly, and seek out more people who know what the Scriptures teach. That’s because this is the only place where the answers can be found.
That’s what Sheba did. Sheba searched. She looked harder. She pressed in with passionate zeal. She packed up her palace and made the trek across the desert and seas. She’s presented as an honorable woman because she sought the answers and found those answers in the God of Israel.
Let that be a lesson to you. God’s Word is invaluable. God’s Word is practical. God’s Word contains the truth that you need; whatever questions you have–whatever answers you are searching for, it is found in Jesus Christ.
So again, this regal lady points us to what God has revealed in Christ. But she not only testifies to the value of God’s Word, she also testifies to the wonder of God’s grace.
II. To the wonder of God’s grace
Look with me at verse 9. I’d like you to think about what Sheba says there. After she gets her questions answered, she gets a tour of Israel. She gets to look around and see all the sights. She sees the servants and the way they are dressed. She sees the sumptuous foods that are served and all the other blessings that have come to the Israelites. And after witnessing all these things. Notice what she says. In verse 9 she says,
“Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! Because the LORD loved Israel forever, he has made you king, that you may execute justice and righteousness.”
What is Sheba saying? She’s highlighting the uniqueness of Israel, isn’t she?. Sheba essentially says, “Out of all the nations of the earth–out of all the peoples who have populated this planet, there is one nation that stands out. There’s one nation that has been given special treatment. There is one people whom God has loved.
Now, what does that sound like to you? When one person or one group of people are loved over and against a bunch of others, what do you call that? You call it sovereign grace. It is evidence of this thing called election. Election is understanding that God has chosen you and given you something (i.e. a special favor) that he did not give to others.
That was not only true for Israel back then, that’s true for you. Of all the people on the earth, why is it that you are able to know Jesus Christ? Out of all the people in your neighborhood, why is it that you should have opportunity to know the truth? Why do you have your sins forgiven as opposed to someone else?
Out of all the people in the room who heard the gospel that one time, why were you the one who was able to respond and receive it while everyone else ignored it and gave zero interest in it?
Was it because you were any more superior? Was it because you were more intelligent? Was it because you had a better sense about you than everyone else? Of course not. That’s simply God’s grace. You were chosen. You were blessed. You were given a blessing that others were not able to enjoy. It’s only because God loved you.. Out of his love for you, he chose you. He enabled you to understand. He saved you from blindness and unbelief.
When you understand what God has done–when you grasp that he has granted you these blessings and not others, you’ll find yourself struck with wonder. You’ll have a new sense of amazement and you’ll be humbled at the thought of it all.
I think an old hymn frames it well. Listen to these words from “How Sweet and Awesome is the Place”:
While all our hearts and all our songs
Join to admire the feast
Each of us cry with thankful tongues
“Lord, why was I a guest?”
“Why was I made to hear Thy voice
And enter while there’s room
When thousands make a wretched choice
And rather starve than come?”
Lord, why? Why was I a guest? The sheer wonder of it all!
When you come to grasp the fact that God has chosen you and chosen to love you (and he has not chosen to love others in the way he has loved you), you’ll have but one response: Blessed be the Lord my God.
Queen Sheba is an independent 3rd party. As such she’s a witness to the wisdom of God and the grace of God. But notice that she’s also a witness to the kingdom of God. Specifically, she’s a witness to the future glory of God’s kingdom.
III. To the future of the kingdom
Just think about what happens here in this passage. You have a gentile who comes into God’s kingdom. She comes and exalts the God of this kingdom. She even presents gifts. This really is an amazing expression of Gentile faith and how gentiles are incorporated into God’s kingdom.
What is interesting is that Sheba’s visit to Israel ends up taking on a prophetic character. Sheba’s visit becomes indicative of what God would do during the Messianic Age.
I’d like you to flip over to Psalm 72. There are a couple different Scriptures that I want you to look at. I want you to see how Queen Sheba foreshadows a future day; a day when God would reign over all the nations of the earth.
Psalm 72 is a song that was written by Solomon. And when you read Psalm 72 you find that Solomon had opportunity to meditate on his visit with the Queen. And as he thinks about it, he starts to compose a song. He writes a song about his reign and he asks God to bless the king.
Look specifically at verse 10. It says,
May the kings of Tarshish and of the coastlands render him tribute; may the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts! May all kings fall down before him, all nations serve him!
Now think about the countries that Solomon mentions here. We already said that Sheba represents one of the nations that was on the outskirts. It was very far away. It was one of the southern most nations that was known at that time. Tarshish was similar. Scholars say that it was located on the western rim of Spain. So it represents a nation that was kind of on the edge of the planet.
All in all, Solomon is praying that the kingdom of God would spread far and wide. He was asking that the Lord would bring all these nations under His rule. He’s saying, “Lord, make your kingdom stretch from sea to sea, and may all the earth’s riches be devoted to you.”
Now, flip with me to the book of Isaiah. I want you to look at Isaiah 60. The Prophet Isaiah does something similar, but you might say he takes it one step further. Of course, Solomon was praying. Solomon sang a prayer to God. Isaiah was a prophet. He wasn’t just someone who prayed. He made direct declarations about what would come to pass in the future. And in chapter 60, Isaiah sees a time when Solomon’s prayer would be fulfilled. Isaiah sees a time when that glory of the Solomonic rule would return.
The first verse of chapter 60 starts off by saying, “Arise, shine, for your light has come.” That is a passage that you sometimes hear at Christmas time. It's a messianic prophecy talking about the light of Christ bursting on the scene in his first advent.
In verse 3 he starts to talk about the Gentiles. And he says these foreigners are going to be incorporated into the kingdom of God. Look at verse 3. It says, “Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.”
Now skip down to verse 6. In verse 6 Isaiah mentions some specific nations. He says,
“A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall bring good news, the praises of the LORD.”
Who do you find in Isaiah’s list of nations? None other than Sheba. And the Queen’s camels even get a shout out. Here come those camels again, toting their gold and frankincense (the spices that are spoken of in 1 Kings 10).
All in all, Isaiah speaks of the time when the gospel would go forward into all the nations.
All in all, her highness of Sheba foreshadows what God is doing in our present day. Today the gospel is going forward and people all over the earth are being brought into God’s kingdom. God’s rule is canvasing the far regions of the planet.
I hope that means a good deal to you. For we are part of those nations and peoples.
And the beautiful thing is that the invitation is still going out. Come be part of God’s growing kingdom. Come be part of this glorious kingdom that will live for ever and ever.
All you have to do is put your faith in Christ. You simply need to recognize that you’ve sinned against God. Jesus died so that sinners may be reconciled to God. And if you turn to him, He will pardon you and gladly welcome you into his kingdom.
As we read about the Queen coming to Solomon with all her gifts and greatness, we should remember that this was just a foretaste. It was simply a picture of what God is now doing in and through the gospel.
Now, there’s one more thing I want you to point out. The Queen of Sheba has been a witness to the value of God’s Word. She’s testified to the wonder of God’s grace. And we’ve just seen how she testifies to the future of God's kingdom. But I want you to notice, last of all, that she is also a witness to the reality of God’s judgment.
V. To the reality of the coming judgment
I mentioned how Solomon and Isaiah reflected on Sheba’s visit. They, of course, had some pretty good things to say. But they were not the only ones who talked about Sheba. Jesus did too.
In Matthew 12 Jesus talks about the Queen of the South. He talked about her in the context of the final judgment.
Jesus was being opposed by the religious leaders of his day. They wouldn’t believe in him. They discounted his miracles. They balked at his teaching. And they never missed an opportunity to work him over. And one day they had the audacity to ask for a sign. And he said, “No sign will be given except the sign of Jonah.” And he went on to pronounce a curse. He said, “The men of Nineveh will rise up at the last day and condemn this generation. For they repented at the preaching of Jonah. And behold, something greater than Jonah is here.”
And then he said that the Queen of the South would do the same. She is going to rise up at the last judgment and condemn that generation. Jesus explained why: For she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear Solomon’s wisdom. And behold, something greater than Solomon is here.
Now, that just makes it more necessary for you to hear what I’m talking about. We can talk all day about how wise Solomon is, but he’s nothing compared to Jesus. Jesus is the very embodiment of truth. He is the fountain of wisdom and knowledge. Jesus is, in other words, the Son of God. He is superior to Solomon in every way.
And what will come of those who do not give Jesus the recognition he is due? If you do not put your faith in Christ and follow him–if you do not seek out his wisdom and value the truth that he reveals–what’s going to happen?
I want you to realize what Jesus is saying. Jesus says that we will see the Queen of Sheba again. She will be one of the people who will rise up from the grave on the last day. When the day of judgment comes, she is going to be numbered among the saints. And she’s going to join with the saints in passing judgment on the wicked.
Imagine what this is going to be like. Imagine the irony of it. This pagan woman will judge those who were Jewish men. They refused to embrace Christ and recognize his Lordship. They rejected his wisdom and scorned the Son of God. And this lady from Sheba is going to be a witness against them. She’s going to testify to the just judgment of God. Because she has more integrity, she will help pronounce their condemnation.
I hope that when that Day comes, you won’t find yourself in that same position. I hope that you will be one of the saints who is able to enjoy the eternal world with her. It is my prayer that you know that Jesus is the Son of God and that you honor him with the kind of faith that Sheba had.