Topic: DO WHAT YOU CAN: PLAY YOUR ROLE
Text:1 Kings 4:1-19
4:1 So King Solomon ruled over all Israel.
4:2 And these were his chief officials: Azariah son of Zadok—the priest;
4:3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, sons of Shisha—secretaries;Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud—recorder;
4:4 Benaiah son of Jehoiada—commander in chief; Zadok and Abiathar—priests;
4:5 Azariah son of Nathan—in charge of the district governors; Zabud son of Nathan—a priest and adviser to the king;
4:6 Ahishar—palace administrator; Adoniram son of Abda—in charge of forced labor.
4:7 Solomon had twelve district governors over all Israel, who supplied provisions for the king and the royal household. Each one had to provide supplies for one month in the year.
4:8 These are their names: Ben-Hur—in the hill country of Ephraim;
4:9 Ben-Deker—in Makaz, Shaalbim, Beth Shemesh and Elon Bethhanan;
4:10 Ben-Hesed—in Arubboth (Sokoh and all the land of Hepher were his);
4:11 Ben-Abinadab—in Naphoth Dor (he was married to Taphath daughter of Solomon);
4:12 Baana son of Ahilud—in Taanach and Megiddo, and in all of Beth Shan next to Zarethan below Jezreel, from Beth Shan to Abel Meholah across to Jokmeam;
4:13 Ben-Geber—in Ramoth Gilead (the settlements of Jair son of Manasseh in Gilead were his, as well as the region of Argob in Bashan and its sixty large walled cities with bronze gate bars);
4:14 Ahinadab son of Iddo—in Mahanaim;
4:15 Ahimaaz—in Naphtali (he had married Basemath daughter of Solomon);
4:16 Baana son of Hushai—in Asher and in Aloth;
4:17 Jehoshaphat son of Paruah—in Issachar;
4:18 Shimei son of Ela—in Benjamin;
14:19 Geber son of Uri—in Gilead (the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and the country of Og king of Bashan). He was the only governor over the district.
STUDY:
Our text today presents a glimpse into the administrative structures of King Solomon’s kingdom, highlighting how he organised his reign and delegated responsibilities. It was a system in which every individual had a role to play, for the collective success of the community. Each member served a unique purpose that contributed to the overall harmony and functioning of society (1 Cor. 12:14-25). The king did not operate alone but relied heavily on skilled advisors who understood their respective areas of operation. They provided support to go through the issues arising from the governance of a big territory. Sometimes, in large organisations, leaders think so highly of themselves and take credit for all achievements while the lowest followers think that they have nothing to offer in the organisation’s success.
We are reminded one more time that in the scheme of God, no one is useless and no one is an island. We need each other to succeed, and we should not allow our positions to make us look down on others. There is a reason why both the ant and elephant are members of the same community. While we pray to God to do the miraculous, let us first endeavour to do the ordinary as it is required of us.
Prayer:
Lord, wherever You put me, help me to be a good team player and to value the contributions of others in Jesus’ Name. Amen.
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