The
Wisdom
of King
Solomon
“Lesson 31: The Wisdom of
King Solomon,” Primary 6:
Old Testament, (1996),135
 Name
things you would ask for
if you could ask Heavenly Father
for anything and he would give
it to you.
 I will write your ideas on the
board.
The coins I am
putting in the
container represent
worldly goods.
 Some people go
through life spending
a lot of time and
effort on
accumulating
material goods.




Now I am going to add some water to
the container.
The water represents
good deeds or spiritual
gifts we can develop.
We can help a family
member or friend, gain
a testimony, be honest,
or have an
understanding heart.
 Now
I am going to
pour the contents
of the container
through a strainer
into another
container.
 The
first container
represents life, the
strainer represents
death, and the
second container
represents life
after death.
 We
cannot take
material goods with
us when we die.
 We take with us the
spiritual gifts we
have developed and
the good deeds we
have done.
Which of the items on the board
represent things that could last
forever?
 Would you like to change anything
you named before?
 In today’s lesson, we are going to
learn about someone who was able
to ask God for one thing. He chose
an eternal, spiritual gift instead of a
temporary, earthly one.

The Wisdom of
King Solomon
David was king for a
long time.
 When he became old
he wanted his son
Solomon to be the
next king.
 David asked Nathan,
the prophet, to anoint
Solomon to be king.

David told Solomon to obey God’s
commandments.
 When David died Solomon became
the king of Israel. He loved God.


He asked God to
help him be a good
king. God was happy
Solomon wanted to
be righteous.
God wanted to bless Solomon. God
asked Solomon what blessing he
would like. Solomon wanted to be
wise.
 God was glad
Solomon chose
to be wise.


He told Solomon to obey his
commandments. Then Solomon
would be wise.
Solomon became the wisest man on
earth. People came from other
lands to ask him questions. He gave
them wise answers.
 Kings and
queens came
to see him.
They brought
him beautiful
gifts.

The Israelites
came to King
Solomon when
they needed
help.
 One day two women came to him
with a baby boy. The women said
they lived in the same house.
 They each had a baby boy, but one
of the babies died.



Each mother said the living baby
was hers. They wanted King
Solomon to tell them who could
keep the baby.
Solomon wanted to
find out which
woman was the
baby’s real mother.
He had a wise plan.


Solomon
wanted to
see what
the women
would do.
He asked for a sword. He told a
servant to cut the baby in half. He
told the women they would each
have half of the baby.
Solomon would not really let the
baby be cut in half.
 He knew the baby’s
mother would not let
her son be hurt.
 One mother told
Solomon not to cut
the baby in half.
 She did not want the baby to be
hurt. She loved the baby. She said
the other woman could have him.

The other woman told Solomon to
cut the baby in half.
 Then Solomon knew who should
keep the baby.
 The real mother
did not want the
baby to be hurt.
 Solomon gave
the baby to her.

Soon all the Israelites
heard what had
happened. They knew
God had made
Solomon wise.
 There was peace in the land of
Israel.
 God said King Solomon should build
a temple in Jerusalem. It would be
the house of God.

Thousands of
people helped
build the temple.
It was made of
stone and wood.
 Men brought the
best wood from
far away.
 They cut large stones for the walls
of the temple.

The temple was
beautiful and had
rooms with walls and
floors covered in gold.
There was a golden
altar in one room.
 Another room had a
baptismal font on the
backs of twelve oxen.
The oxen were made
of brass.

It took seven years to
build the temple. At
last it was finished.
 The priests brought
the ark of the
covenant from the
tabernacle. They put
the ark in the temple.


The two stones the Lord had written
the commandments on were in the ark.
The priests of Israel came to the
temple. They sang songs and
thanked God for the temple.
 The cloud that
had been over
the tabernacle
filled the
temple. The
temple was the
house of God.



Solomon spoke to the
Israelites. He told
them to obey God’s
commandments.
Then Solomon
prayed to God. He
asked God to forgive
the people when
they had repented.
Solomon made
sacrifices to God.
Fire from heaven
came down to the
altar. The fire burned
the sacrifices.
 The people
worshiped God. They
thanked him for the
temple.

God spoke to
Solomon. He said if
Solomon and the
Israelites were
righteous he would
bless them forever.
 Solomon was the
king of Israel for a
long time. He obeyed
God for many years.

Solomon had many
wives. Some of his
wives did not
believe in God. They
worshiped idols.
 When Solomon was
old, he forgot God.
His wives wanted
him to worship their
idols.

Solomon did the
wrong thing. He
made sacrifices to
the idols. God was
angry at him.
 God said Solomon’s
kingdom would be
divided after he
died.

 What
advice
did David give
to his son
Solomon?
 Let’s read 1
Kings 2:1–3
 How
can we apply this same
advice in our lives?

Why do you think Solomon referred
to himself as “a little child”?
Let’s read 1 Kings 3:7
 He felt inadequate in his calling to
rule and judge his people.


What did Solomon do because he felt
inadequate?
 Let’s read 1 Kings 3:3–9
 He prepared himself to receive
spiritual gifts.
What should we do if we are facing a
difficult or overwhelming task and we
are unsure of our abilities?
 How can we become worthy to
receive spiritual gifts?

 Knowledge
- learning gained
through study or experience
 Wisdom
- using what we
have learned in the best way
to make right choices
 An
Understanding Heart -
enables us to know how
others feel
Enrichment Activity #1
What are some situations where
you might ask Heavenly Father to
bless you with knowledge, wisdom,
or an understanding heart?
 You can receive these gifts if you
seek them and live a worthy life.
 How can we develop these gifts?
 Through study, service, prayer,
and following the promptings of
the Holy Ghost.

Enrichment Activity #1
 Let’s
look at the ideas we listed
on the board earlier for spiritual
gifts and figure out how
develop and use them.
 Let’s look at the worldly gifts
and put some spiritual gifts in
their place of the worldly.
 How can we develop and use
them?
Enrichment Activity #2
Who appeared to
Solomon in a
dream?
 Let’s read 1 Kings
3:5

What was Solomon told to do?
 What did Solomon ask for?
 Let’s read 1 Kings 3:9 & 2
Chronicles 1:10

Why were
wisdom and an
understanding
heart so
important to
Solomon?
 Why should they
be important to
us?


How did the Lord feel about
Solomon’s request?
 Let’s read 1 Kings 3:10
God was pleased with Solomon
when he asked for spiritual gifts
instead of riches or selfish desires.
 What did the Lord give Solomon in
addition to what Solomon asked for?
 Let’s read 1 Kings 3:11–14

What was King
Solomon known
for throughout his
own country and
other nations?
 Let’s read 1 Kings
4:29–30, 34
 Why was this more important than
being known for his wealth and
power?

What Christlike
quality would
you like to be
known for
among your
family and
friends?
 What can you
do to develop
this quality?

Because Solomon, through his
wisdom and understanding, was
able to judge righteously, the
people brought their problems to
him.
 In one such case, why did both
women claim to be the mother of
the living child?

 Let’s
read 1 Kings 3:16–22
How did
Solomon’s
wisdom help
him discover
the real
mother?
 Let’s read 1 Kings 3:24–27


Solomon’s understanding helped
him know how the baby’s mother
was feeling.
How does it make others feel when
you are kind and understanding
toward them?
 How have you helped someone by
being kind and understanding?
 How has someone helped you this
way?



What do you think it means to have
“largeness of heart”?
 Let’s read 1 Kings 4:29
 To show love for everyone and to be
kind and generous to others.
How can we have “largeness of heart”
in our families? with our friends?

What did Solomon accomplish
because the Lord blessed him with
wisdom and understanding?
 Let’s
read 1
Kings 3:27–28;
chapter
headings to 1
Kings 5–8

Solomon did much good during his
reign as king.
He received
permission
from the Lord
to build a
temple in
Jerusalem.
 He built it with the finest materials
that had been collected by his
father, David, for that purpose.


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David, Solomon’s father, had
wanted to build a temple but was
denied the privilege.
The Lord instead
chose Solomon
to direct the
seven years of
construction.
Enrichment Activity #3
When the elaborate temple was
finished, the priests carried in the
ark of the covenant.
 The ark contained
the two tablets of
stone the Lord gave
Moses, “to the most
holy place” of the
building.
 Let’s read 1 Kings 8:6

Enrichment Activity #3


The glory of the
Lord filled the
temple.
 Let’s read 1
Kings 8:10–11
Solomon offered the
dedicatory prayer.
 Let’s read 1 Kings
8:22–53
Enrichment Activity #3

Each temple today has a baptismal
font resting on twelve oxen, similar
to that in Solomon’s temple.
 In Solomon’s day
this font was used
to baptize the living;
in our temples today
the fonts are used
to perform baptisms
for the dead.
Enrichment Activity #3
Solomon also
shared his
wisdom with
others.
 Many of his
wise sayings
were recorded
in the book of
Proverbs in
the Bible.



Find the
book of
Proverbs
in your
Bible.
Most of these proverbs (wise
sayings) were written by Solomon,
and because of his great wisdom,
these sayings can help us today.
Enrichment Activity #4
In this container are
papers with passages
from Proverbs.
 Take turns choosing
a paper from the
container.
 Read the proverb and put it in your
own words.
 How does it apply to you?

Enrichment Activity #4
Solomon’s Proverbs
a. “Hear the instruction of thy
father, and forsake not the law
of thy mother” (Proverbs 1:8).
b. “If sinners entice thee,
consent thou not” (Proverbs
1:10).
c. “Trust in the Lord with all
thine heart; and lean not unto
thine own understanding. In all
thy ways acknowledge him, and
he shall direct thy paths”
(Proverbs 3:5–6).
d. “Happy is the man that
findeth wisdom, and the man
that getteth understanding”
(Proverbs 3:13).
e. “Lying lips are abomination to
the Lord: but they that deal
truly are his delight” (Proverbs
12:22).
f. “A soft answer turneth away
wrath” (Proverbs 15:1).
g. “A merry heart maketh a
cheerful countenance”
(Proverbs 15:13).
h. “The Lord is far from the
wicked: but he heareth the
prayer of the righteous”
(Proverbs 15:29).
i. “How much better is it to get
wisdom than gold!” (Proverbs
16:16).
j. “Pride goeth before
destruction, and an haughty
spirit before a fall” (Proverbs
16:18).
k. “Pleasant words are as an
honeycomb, sweet to the soul,
and health to the bones”
(Proverbs 16:24).
l. “He that is slow to anger is
better than the mighty”
(Proverbs 16:32).
m. “A friend loveth at all times”
(Proverbs 17:17).
n. “A merry heart doeth good
like a medicine” (Proverbs
17:22).
o. “Wine is a mocker, strong
drink is raging: and whosoever
is deceived thereby is not wise”
(Proverbs 20:1).
p. “Even a child is known by his
doings, whether his work be
pure, and whether it be right”
(Proverbs 20:11).
q. “As he thinketh in his heart,
so is he” (Proverbs 23:7).
r. “Say not, I will do so to him
as he hath done to me”
(Proverbs 24:29).
s. “A faithful man shall abound
with blessings” (Proverbs
28:20).
t. “Whoso putteth his trust in
the Lord shall be safe”
(Proverbs 29:25).
 Choose
one
of the
proverbs to
memorize
and share
with your
family.
Enrichment Activity #4
Despite Solomon’s accomplishments,
he eventually turned away from
God.
 He used his riches and wisdom for
his own glory.
 He also married women outside of
the covenant. These women
worshiped idols and persuaded
Solomon to worship idols also.

 When
God gives us a gift, we
should use it to glorify him and
serve others.
 It is extremely important to use
these gifts properly throughout
our lives, not just when we are
young.



As I have loved you,
Love one another.
This new commandment:
Love one another.
By this shall men know
Ye are my disciples,
If ye have love
One to another.
Words: Luacine Clark Fox, 1914–2002
Music: Luacine Clark Fox, 1914–2002; arr. by Jo Marie Borgeson Bray, 1925–1998
© 1961 by Luacine C. Fox. Copyright renewed 1989.
Enrichment Activity #5

I testify that as
you develop the
ability to be wise
and to have an
understanding
heart toward
your family and
friends, you will
become more
like the Savior.



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