Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to test him with hard questions. And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon,... Then she said to the king: “It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. However I did not believe the words until I came and saw with my own eyes; and indeed the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame of which I heard. (I Kings 10:1, 4, 6-7)
The Queen of Sheba was a monarch from the ancient kingdom of Sheba, an ancient African kingdom referred to in Yemeni and Ethiopian history. She had heard about what "the Lord", whoever he was, had done for King Solomon, and she wanted to see for herself. This "god" of the children of Isreal was heard of throughout the world at that time, and everything He did for them was known by all the other nations on the earth. ...against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. (Exodus 12:12) So the Philistines were afraid, for they said, “God has come into the camp!” And they said, “Woe to us! For such a thing has never happened before. Woe to us! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wilderness. (I Samuel 4:7-8) Eventhough they had the facts wrong, the Philistines still had heard about God. Nehemiah wrote, regarding how the other nations viewed God, And it happened, when all our enemies heard of it, and all the nations around us saw these things, that they were very disheartened in their own eyes; for they perceived that this work was done by our God. (Nehemiah 6:16)
God chose the children of Jacob (or Isreal), just as He had promised their forefather Abraham, in order to display His existence, power, righteousness, justice, faithfulness, patience and love, so that the world would believe that He was the True and Living God and believe in Him (Deuteronomy 32). That's why we who profess to be Christians have to be so careful how we behave. Just as the prophet Samuel told King Solomon's father, King David, after he had done some terrible things, ...because by this deed [ungodly behavior] you have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme [to speak against God], (II Samuel 12:14) Ancient societies had heard of God, from the very beginning of creation; but not only that, God has put the knowledge of Himself in every human being on the planet (Romans 1:20), whether they choose to accept it or not. Unfortunately, most of these ancient societies did not do as the Queen of Sheba did, they did not seek to find out the Truth, but chose to create their own gods, which the children of Isreal often followed after against the commandement of God (Deuteronomy 12:29-32): Then the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD, and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the people of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; and they forsook the LORD and did not serve Him. (Judges 10:6) Not only did ancient societies choose to create their own gods, but also their own saviors (read Mesonyctium and the Savior Gods and The Virgin-Born Son of the Sun God). The Apostle Paul even addressed this issue thousands of years later, when he was in Rome: Then Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. (Acts 17:22-23)
Through the faithfulness of many of the children of Isreal, some of these other nations and leaders did come to believe in the True God. For example, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the expression on his face changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. He spoke and commanded that they heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated. Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished; and he rose in haste and spoke, saying to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.” “Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.” Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent His Angel and delivered His servants who trusted in Him, and they have frustrated the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God! (Daniel 3:16-19, 24-25, 28; 4:34-36)
Another example, Then these men assembled and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God. And they went before the king, and spoke concerning the king’s decree: “Have you not signed a decree that every man who petitions any god or man within thirty days, except you, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions?” The king answered and said, “The thing is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which does not alter.” So they answered and said before the king, “That Daniel, who is one of the captives from Judah, does not show due regard for you, O king, or for the decree that you have signed, but makes his petition three times a day.” So the king gave the command, and they brought Daniel and cast him into the den of lions. But the king spoke, saying to Daniel, “Your God, whom you serve continually, He will deliver you.” Then the king arose very early in the morning and went in haste to the den of lions. And when he came to the den, he cried out with a lamenting voice to Daniel. The king spoke, saying to Daniel, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?” Then Daniel said to the king, “O king, live forever! My God sent His angel and shut the lions’ mouths, so that they have not hurt me, because I was found innocent before Him; and also, O king, I have done no wrong before you.” And the king gave the command, and they brought those men who had accused Daniel, and they cast them into the den of lions—them, their children, and their wives; and the lions overpowered them, and broke all their bones in pieces before they ever came to the bottom of the den. Then King Darius wrote: To all peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you. I make a decree that in every dominion of my kingdom men must tremble and fear before the God of Daniel. (Daniel 6:11-13, 16, 19-22, 24-26)
The purpose of this extensive background information is to make sure we all understand, there is only ONE TRUE & LIVING GOD, and He is the God Who has revealed Himself in creation and in the scriptures and through the people of Isreal! But ...is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also the God of the Gentiles [non-Jews]? Yes, of the Gentiles [non-Jews] also, (Romans 3:29) And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world. (I John 2:2) We have to make sure if we are going to believe in anything, we have to believe The Truth! The word counterfeit means to be made in exact imitation of something valuable or important with the intention to deceive or defraud. These ancient societies saw a value in the God of Isreal, so they created their own counterfeits, false gods. But just as if a person is caught using counterfeit money, they will end up in jail, if we end this life believing in a "counterfeit" god, we will go to hell! And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire. (Revelations 20:15)
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