Once again, the succession of kings is smooth and none of the palace intrigue is present in the Chronicler’s account of Solomon’s ascension. The writer only wants to present the greatness of Solomon.
But with that greatness comes a paradox, and you see it at the end of chapter one. In Deuteronomy 16, God has said: The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the Lord has told you, “You are not to go back that way again.” He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold. At the end of 2 Chronicles 1, Solomon violates nearly every one of these prohibitions.
I find it interesting that while David brought the ark to Jerusalem, he did not bring the tabernacle, but left it in Gibeon. Though the Ark was in Jerusalem, consulting the Lord was done in Gibeon, which bring me back to the matter of leadership. David’s administration provided for leadership from the top down. David was the chief leader. Leaders under him followed David’s example, and the people followed those leaders. It was true when David called them all together to give them the news he was building the temple, and resulted in the wholesale participation of all Israel. It continues to be true of Solomon as his call to Israel results in nearly the same participants coming together – this time for worship.
Again, the spirituality of a people seldom rises higher than its leadership. As the author of Chronicles writes for the returning exiles, it is a message he doesn’t want them to miss.