“And the LORD gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him: and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together.” (1Ki 5:12 AV)
It doesn’t escape the mind that God kept his word yet Solomon didn’t use God’s provision to the fullest. This chapter of First Kings tells of Solomon’s ability to set up a kingdom of influence and peace. There has never been a time like Solomon’s time. He could control all the kings of his enemies. Mostly through diplomacy and shared commerce. He could frame hostility as a financially and humanly wasteful way. He built trade partnerships with his neighbors needed to build the temple. What follows in chapter six is the description of the temple as Solomon gave direction to build it. In many ways, Solomon used the wisdom God gave. Yet, in all his wisdom, he couldn’t discipline the flesh. It was his flesh that caused great harm to the people of Israel. It was this one area of weakness that had more impact on Israel than all the wise arrangements he made with his enemies. Wisdom is only as good as the weakest area. This is one lesson Solomon did not learn.
The following is an AI generated overview of the Mars Climate Orbiter disaster: The Mars Climate Orbiter was lost in 1999 due to a critical unit conversion error where Lockheed Martin engineers provided thruster data in English units (pound-seconds) while NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory navigation team assumed the data was in metric units (newton-seconds). This mismatch caused the spacecraft to approach Mars 60 km (37 miles) closer than planned, plunging it too deeply into the Martian atmosphere where it burned up on September 23, 1999, after a 286-day journey. Cost of Loss: The mission cost $125 million (some sources cite a total program cost of $327 million). Technical Failure: The onboard software calculated trajectory corrections based on 4.45 times less force than intended because the software interpreted the English pound-force values as metric newtons. Systemic Issues: The error went undetected because quality control procedures failed to catch the discrepancy during the nine-month flight, despite warning signs that the spacecraft required more course corrections than expected. Consequences: The loss prevented the orbiter from serving as a radio relay for the Mars Polar Lander, forcing mission planners to rely on the existing Mars Global Surveyor instead.
Looking at the overall project and the amount of intelligence required just to get the Orbiter off the ground and to Mars is beyond comprehension. Kudos to the men and women who did all the work to make this happen. Very smart people indeed. Yet it all went for naught because of one small flaw. All the wisdom required to make this project happen was undone by one and only one factor. This is how wisdom works. Wisdom in one area does not mean wisdom is automatic in all areas. We tend to live this way. We are successfully smart is some or most areas of life and think it to be sufficient to cover all areas of life. We may be great in academics, but lack discipline is self-control. We may be great in separation standards of outward appearance, but accept worldly entertainment as a release. We may be disciplined in our personal hygiene, yet overeat. Wisdom is a complete package. Not a partial one. Solomon learned this the hard way. Humility and constant self-examination are the keys. Solomon forgot this. He may have even used his gift of wisdom in ways that solved a short-term goal, but failed in the long game. Marrying Pharaoh’s daughter may have ended conflict and opened trade, but it also introduced paganism. Wisdom is an entire concern. Not only those areas that seem easy to address.
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