The queen of Sheba came from a faraway land to meet King Solomon and see if his fame and wisdom were indeed true. When she arrived, she was overwhelmed by the fact that only half of the reality was really told her. They talked. She asked questions. They exchanged gifts. Then she went back to her land with the truth to tell. It’s kind of like us when we face problems and challenges in our lives. When we go to Jesus, He answers all the questions that lay deep in our hearts. No difficulty can stump Him. No dilemma can disturb Him. Nothing is too hard for our King!
The queen was from Sheba (although some conjecture Ethiopia). Sheba is modern Yemen in Arabia, about 1,200 miles from Jerusalem. The people were called Sabeans. Solomon’s expeditions to the east by sea (1 Kin 9:26-28) would have brought him news of this prosperous and important Arabian kingdom. The visit of the Queen of Sheba was more than a personal visit; it involved setting up trade agreements and other alliances with her country. Think of how slow and arduous a trip like this would be for this woman in ancient days. Traveling by boat and then by land probably on camels and exposed to all the elements. This was really a quest of a queen.
Jesus used the queen of Sheba as an example of a seeker: (Mat 12:42) The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here. If the Queen of Sheba sought Solomon and the splendor of his kingdom so diligently, how much more should people today seek Jesus and the glory of His Kingdom. (Jer 29:13) And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.
The queen’s primary purpose in visiting Solomon seems to have been to see if he was really as wise and wealthy as she had heard. The hard questions she asked him were not just riddles (which was a sport among ancient Near Eastern monarchs) but included difficult diplomatic as well as personal and ethical questions.
What question do you have for the Lord today? Have you been holding all-important questions deep down in your soul? Have there been some unresolved issues in your heart that you wish you could settle about what has happened in your past and how life is now or maybe what the future holds? You don’t have live with that lonely anxiety that most of us harbor in our inmost self. Why not go to the Lord and lay it all out for Him to answer? There’s nothing too hard for the Lord! (Jer 32:17) ‘Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You. (2 Cor 4:8) . . . we are perplexed, but not in despair. (Psa 118:21) I will praise You, for You have answered me, and have become my salvation.
Louie