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EARLY HISTORY OF JUDAISM: A BRIEF LOOK 219

him killed in the battlefield. This being done, he soon married her. The
child she bore did not survive,but later she bore him a second son, Solomon,
and was instrumental in appointing him King. 39

Solomon's reign (c. 962-931 B.C.)
Solomon's lavish lifestyle was a drastic departure from his father's simple
ways and, according to Biblical legend, he was not content with marrying
the daughters of his tributaries for he f:tlled his harem with other women
besides. The claim made in I Kings 11:3, that he possessed 700 wives and
300 concubines, is likely an exaggeration though.t" He built the Temple
inJerusalem on a massive scale," dedicating it to the singular worship of
Yahweh.f Simultaneously though he erected pagan shrines for his numerous
heathen wives; "he himself, moreover, is said to have been influenced by
his wives to pay some tokens of respect to their gods, while he remained
essentially a Yahwist.i't"

i. The Divided Kingdoms

Following his death, Solomon's realm was splintered into the twin states
of Judah and Israel.

When the kingdom was divided... [the] empire came to an end. The
time of her political glory had been less than a century, and her empire
disappeared, never to return. The nation, being divided and its parts
often warring with one another, could not easily become again a power
of importance."

A. KINGS OF ISRAEL
Here I will briefly mention some of the kings of Israel, to give the reader
a taste of the political and religious anarchy which seized that country.

1. Jeroboam 1, son if Solomon (931-910 B.C.)
He was the first king of Israel after the splitting of the monarchy.
As people were discontent with Solomon's taxation policies, he had

39 Who~ Who, i:65-6, 93. In Islam this tale is a brazen lie.
40 Dictionary ofthe Bible, p. 435.
41 1 Kings, Ch. 5-8.
42 The Hebrew term for God.
43 Dictionary of the Bible, p. 410. Islam rejects these allegations.
44 ibid, p. 436.