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THE ONE GREATER THAN SOLOMON

I would just remind the brethren of the Lord’s words as to this incident. He says that the queen of Sheba “came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon.” Then He says, “behold, more than Solomon is here,” Matthew 12: 42. The Lord Jesus is more than Solomon; He is all that Solomon was, but He is more. He is “the wisdom of God”; as the apostle says, “Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God,” 1 Corinthians 1: 24. I trust that some have come this afternoon like the queen of Sheba. Perhaps they have come from “the ends of the earth” — their hearts far away from God’s centre, which is Christ. He said, “I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me,” John 12: 32. He is the Centre of attraction round which everything moves which is of God.

Now I want to say a word about what the queen of Sheba saw when she came. She saw what I trust any inquirer may see in the town in which we live. Wherever Christ is enthroned, wherever the Spirit of God is among His people, these are the things that are to be seen. It says she saw “the wisdom of Solomon.” Where did she see it? It does not say she heard it; she saw it in his servants, in those that loved him, in the house that he had built, in the steps that he had erected to go up to the house of God, in the food that he supplied, in the clothing of his servants. It says of Solomon that God gave him “wisdom... and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea shore,” 1 Kings 4: 29. Think of a heart like that — as large as the sand that is on the sea shore — a heart that could even think of all the people of God, right down to this day.

It says Solomon spoke of the trees “from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall,” 1 Kings 4: 33. I have no doubt the queen of Sheba heard something of all this. The cedar is the king of trees — it speaks of dignity according to God such as was seen in Christ, while the hyssop speaks of His lowliness — His readiness to come in wherever the smallest opportunity is left for Him to do so, like the hyssop which springs out of the wall. We may think of the Lord thus as He comes before us in John 4 — He was ready even to take a place in that woman’s heart. He was lowly enough to come into a dying robber’s heart. That is the hyssop. That robber also saw in Him the King; he says: “thy kingdom” — he saw the glory of the cedar there.

Solomon spoke of beasts, 1 Kings 4: 33, of the lion that “turneth not away for any,” Proverbs 30: 30 — that is Christ; He never turned back. He spoke of the lamb — the one so lowly, accessible, and lovable. What little boy or little girl does not love a lamb? Everybody loves a little lamb; the lamb also brings Jesus before us. He spoke of the birds; of the eagle with all its strength, its wings enabling it to mount up. The Lord could Himself go up into heaven. Solomon could speak of the sparrow: “a sparrow alone upon the housetop” is spoken of in Psalm 102. Nobody wants a sparrow, it is outside of man’s life, alone on the housetop — that is Jesus. He spoke of the fishes; they are all at His service. If He would make use of a great fish. He can create one. If He requires one with a penny in its mouth. He can supply it, for all the fishes are His. He controls the sea.

We can see thus a little of what might have been brought out by Solomon in his wisdom. You can understand the queen of Sheba being greatly impressed. It says when she saw “the house that he had built, and the food of his table, and the deportment of his servants, and the order of service of his attendants and their apparel, and his cupbearers and their apparel, and his ascent by which he went up to the house of Jehovah, there was no more spirit in her.” I wonder whether you have seen that house. The apostle says, “...whose house are we,” Hebrews 3: 6. The house that Christ builds is not of brick and stone, it is a spiritual house made up of persons, every one of them loving Christ, every one of them having received the Holy Spirit. It is Christ’s building. The queen of Sheba saw it in figure.

Then it says she saw “the food of his table.” There never was such food. In Sheba they did not have that food, nor in Egypt; they may have cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic, but they do not have the food of Solomon’s table. The apostle says, “ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils,” 1 Corinthians 10: 21. The Lord has a table; an abundance of spiritual food for His people. When the Lord said, “Take, eat: this is my body,” Matthew 26: 26 — His precious body laid down in death out of love for us — He was calling attention to one kind of food that is provided for His people. Then He said as to the cup, “Drink ye all of it,” Matthew 26: 27. The queen of Sheba had never seen food like that of Solomon’s table. It is the best food available anywhere; it would build up a constitution that would strengthen us for the service of God. The material food we eat will perish, Scripture says it perishes, John 6: 27; but the strength we gather by the spiritual food the Lord provides will remain. It strengthens us in view of eternity, in view of our place in heaven. In Matthew and Mark it says that after the supper “when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.” How can one go up to the holy mountain of the spiritual sphere, except as strengthened by spiritual food?

Then it says “the deportment of his servants.” Servants in Sheba did not deport themselves like that, nor in Egypt. How did Solomon’s servants deport themselves? The Lord shows us the character of such service; He says, “he that is chief” among you let him be “as he that doth serve,” and “I am among you as he that serveth,” Luke 22: 27. That is not how the servants of the world comport themselves, they are all looking for uniform, medals, ecclesiastical robes; but Solomon’s servants do not do that. They deport themselves like Christ — with His spirit. All that greatly impressed the queen of Sheba.

“And the order of service of his attendants,” the order of it. There was no confusion in the attendance, every attendant had his place. The priests had their place, the captains had their place, those who had control of the food had their place. All the servants had their duty, as the Lord says; He gave “to every man his work,” Mark 13: 34. Each Christian has his work. There is no confusion, no trying to replace one another in Solomon’s realm.

“And their apparel.” The queen looked round and noticed how they were clothed. What delight to look round and see how Christians are dressed, specially in these days! They are not dressed like the world, with short hair, painted faces and finger nails. They are dressed as Solomon’s servants. How are they dressed? “Let thy garments be always white,” it says in Ecclesiastes 9: 8. That is how Solomon’s servants are clothed always in white — that is, in purity. In their homes, between husband and wife, parents and children, in business, amongst the saints — purity. That is how Solomon’s servants were clothed.

“And his cupbearers and their apparel.” Cupbearers — what a wonderful service that is. Are we His cupbearers? Do we minister refreshment to the true Solomon? Do we make His heart glad — that blessed heart that was broken in sorrow? “Reproach hath broken my heart,” He says in Psalm 69: 20. “A man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief,” Isaiah 53: 3. Now He has millions of cupbearers bringing Him that which makes His heart glad. We may well recall what Joseph’s servant says, speaking of his master’s silver cup “Is not this it in which my lord drinks, and in which indeed he divines?” Genesis 44: 5. Have we stolen Joseph’s cup? You say: Joseph’s servant put it in the sack; but he only did what they had done. Those ten brothers had stolen Joseph’s portion, they had robbed him of what was due to him. Their sheaves should have bowed down to him, the stars were to bow down to him — it was his cup, it was what God had appointed to him and they had robbed him of it. So he raises the question with them: Where is my cup, my silver cup? And they bring it back to him — they acknowledge he is lord. That is the silver cup, his lordship over them. They bow down to him, they say: “we are my lord’s servants”; he drinks thus out of his cup. Do we carry the silver cup to Him? Are we His cupbearers? Is He our Lord, our only Lord? Other lords have had dominion over us, but Jude says He is “our only Master and Lord Jesus Christ.” These cupbearers are all clothed in white. They do not say, “Lord, Lord,” without meaning it. They do mean it, they obey Him, they confess with their mouth Jesus as Lord.

“And his ascent by which he went up to the house of Jehovah.” That is perhaps one of the greatest things of all. You can think of the queen of Sheba’s eyes fixed on that ascent, to see the way by which this wonderful king went up to God. David is spoken of as coming down. Eliab said to David: “Why art thou come down?” He went down into the valley. What a descent Jesus has made! “He that descended is the same also that ascended,” Ephesians 4: 10, but first of all he descended like David; He came down to the battle-field. He came down where the giant was. He came down where death was, where man could do nothing, where every heart was filled with fear. Where did He come from? He “came down from heaven,” John 3: 13. He is the second Man, out of heaven. He is God “manifest in the flesh,” come down as Man to the earth, come down to face the enemy, to annul him that had the power of death, to take Goliath’s sword and use it Himself. Death is in the hand of Jesus now. He has come down so that every heart should love Him. After David came up from the valley, the women showed the affections of the people towards him, and sang his praises: “Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands,” 1 Samuel 18: 7. Jonathan’s soul was knit with the soul of David and he “loved him as his own soul.” Who does not love Christ — the One who came down from heaven, came down into the valley, went down into death, overthrew the power of death? The Lord has triumphed gloriously. The queen of Sheba saw Solomon’s ascent; she saw the way by which he went up to the house of God. How wonderful those steps by which He went up! The Lord Jesus went up into heaven; the first step was out of the grave. Standing there at the grave side, He says: “Mary.” He is no longer in death. The angel says: “He is not here... Come, see the place where the Lord lay,” Matthew 28: 6; but He is not there now. The Lord Jesus is out of death; what a wonderful step that is! Then He was taken up to heaven. Luke says He was “carried up”; Mark says He was “received up into heaven”; in John He says, “I ascend” He goes up by His own proper right. Peter says in Acts, “Whom the heaven must receive,” Acts 3: 21. If you are to be in Solomon’s courts, you must receive Him. It was not a question of forcing His way into heaven, heaven received Him. Paul says He was “received up in glory,” 1 Timothy 3: 16. And He “ascended up far above all heavens” — not simply heaven; each heaven is a step. Resurrection is one step and then the heavens are each a step. The first heaven, the second heaven; then there is the third heaven. Paul went up to the third heaven, and the Lord has gone into the third heaven — into paradise. “Today shalt thou be with me in paradise “ — that is the third heaven. He has gone higher than that. In the type the queen of Sheba watches the ascent. Jesus has “ascended up far above all heavens,” Ephesians 4: 10. When the queen of Sheba saw this in type, it says “there was no more spirit in her,” and she became a worshipper, that was all that was left to her to do. Her enigmas are answered, her soul is filled with the glory of Solomon and the great house that he had built, the food of his table, the way his servants behaved, the order of his attendants and how they are dressed, his cupbearers and how they are dressed, and the ascent by which he went up into the house of God. She becomes a worshipper.

The Lord came to the well of Sychar; He went there to attract one more human heart to God. “If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water,” John 4: 10. Who is it that has come near to men? If the woman had known who it was, she would have asked and He would have given her “living water.” Then the Lord says “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” All true worship is in the light of the glory of Christ. That is in figure what the queen of Sheba reached.

“She gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and spices in very great abundance, and precious stones; neither was there any such spice as that which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon,” 2 Chronicles 9: 9. “And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatever she asked, besides what she had brought to the king. And she turned and went to her own land, she and her servants,” 2 Chronicles 9: 12. The queen of Sheba now comes out as a giver. What can we give to the Lord? “The earth is Jehovah’s, and the fulness thereof,” Psalm 24: l. The silver and gold are His, “the cattle upon a thousand hills” are His. What could you and I give Him? “My son, give me thine heart,” He says, Proverbs 23: 26; that is what we can give Him. That is what gold and spices mean — the fragrance and beauty of a heart that loves Christ. The queen of Sheba gave it to Solomon, and he gave her everything she wanted. What would she desire? She would not desire the world’s pleasures after seeing Solomon; she would not want the latest novel, nor the pictures. What would she want? Something that would speak to her of Solomon, of Christ. The Lord will answer any such desire. That is what the Lord said to the woman in John 4: “Whosoever drinks of the water which I shall give him shall never thirst for ever, but the water which I shall give him shall become in him a fountain of water, springing up into eternal life.” That fountain is the Holy Spirit in our hearts. The greatest gift that God can give us is the Holy Spirit: “How much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him,” Luke 11: 13. He gave her “all her desire” — the Holy Spirit answers to that.

Just a word or two about Revelation 11: l. That is a very sobering scripture for us to take account of. John is given a reed to measure with, “Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship in it.” “Measure the temple”; does it come up to the divine measurements? If you were to put God’s measurements alongside the cathedrals of men, would they come up to the divine standards? In God’s temple everything saith, Glory, Psalm 29: 9 — not the glory of man, you would never hear a word about that in God’s temple. There is no burying-place for great men of the world in God’s temple; there are no flags of any nation flying over God’s temple. In God’s temple everything speaks of God’s glory, and the glory of Christ. If I go to God’s temple, all are occupied with God and Christ, and all that speaks of divine glory — nothing else has any place. I never hear any other name but that of divine Persons. It is all for divine glory. “Measure it,” it says. Measure what represents the temple locally in this town. Is that what we have — something for the glory of God, for the glory of Jesus? It says: Measure it. Let us measure it, let us see whether what we are connected with corresponds to the divine standard.

Then it says: “measure... the altar.” The altar is the means of approach to God — how we draw near to God; the altar is where the sacrifice is put. What would happen if all the altars of christendom were measured? They would not answer to the divine measurements. The epistle to the Hebrews speaks of this. Christ is the altar, the altar is greater than the sacrifice. It is the altar that sanctifies the sacrifice. Where is such an altar? Only in Jesus. “By him... let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name,” Hebrews 13: 15. Do we possess that altar?

Finally it says: “Measure... them that worship in it”; measure the worshippers. Christendom measures the worship, but God measures the worshippers. The idea in the world is that so long as there is good music, a good building, and a learned service, it is acceptable to God. But God says: Measure the worshippers — measure the persons; what are they like? That is the great point.

The Lord says, “the Father seeketh such” — that is the persons. He does not seek organs, vestments, or prayer-books. He seeks persons whose hearts love Him and love Christ. Measure them, it says. Each one of us has to face this. When the Lord measures us, what does He find? Do we answer to the divine requirements?

One would just leave these thoughts with us. The Lord help us to see this wonderful scene, that we might become worshippers — worshippers of God, worshippers of Jesus — for His name’s sake.

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