relationship between his father, David, and the Lord. Solomon must have recognized some value in it, but in the end that is not what he asked for. So God gladly gave the young king the wisdom for which he asked plus the wealth for which he had not asked. And there, sadly, Solomon seems to have remained, demonstrating the fact that no one ever asks God for the one thing they need the most. The old man shifts from one elbow to the other, absentmindedly knocking to the ground a scroll. It unrolls across
Page 42