Editing Solomon (section)

===Death, succession of Rehoboam, and kingdom division===
[[File:Kingdoms of Israel and Judah map 830.svg|thumb|The [[United Monarchy]] breaks up—Jeroboam rules [[Kingdom of Israel (Samaria)|Israel]] (blue) and [[Rehoboam]] rules [[Kingdom of Judah|Judah]]]]
King Solomon is a central biblical figure, who, according to the [[Hebrew Bible]], was the builder of the [[First Temple]] in Jerusalem and the last ruler of the [[Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy)|united Kingdom of Israel]]. After a reign of forty years (1 Kings 11:42), he died of natural causes,<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Kings.html |title=Ancient Jewish History: The Kings of Ancient Israel|encyclopedia=Jewish Virtual Library |access-date=2010-03-03}}</ref> at around 55 years of age.

Upon Solomon's death, his son, [[Rehoboam]], succeeded him, but ten of the [[Twelve Tribes of Israel|Tribes of Israel]] refused him as king, splitting the monarchy into the northern [[Kingdom of Israel (Samaria)|Kingdom of Israel]] under [[Jeroboam]], while Rehoboam continued to reign over the smaller southern [[Kingdom of Judah]]. Henceforth the two kingdoms were never again united.

Solomon is associated with the peak "golden age" of the independent Kingdom of Israel and is a legendary source of judicial and religious wisdom.

According to Jewish tradition, King Solomon wrote three [[books of the Bible]]:
* ''Mishlei'' ([[Book of Proverbs]]), a collection of fables and wisdom of life. 
* ''Kohelet'' ([[Ecclesiastes]]), a book of contemplation and self-reflection.
* ''Shir ha-Shirim'' ([[Song of Songs]]), a collection of erotic verse. The verse has been interpreted both literally (describing a romantic and sexual relationship between a man and a woman) and metaphorically (describing a relationship between God and his people).

The Hebrew word {{lang|he|לשלמה}} appears in the title of two hymns (72 and 127) in the [[Psalms]]. This Hebrew word means "to Solomon", but it can also be translated as "by Solomon", thus suggesting to some that Solomon wrote the two psalms.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Gottlieb|first=Isaac|date=2010|title=Mashal Le-Melekh: The Search for Solomon|journal=Hebrew Studies|volume=51|pages=107–127 |doi=10.1353/hbr.2010.a400580 |s2cid=170687286 |via=Gale Literature Resource Center |issn=0146-4094}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Dahood |first=Mitchell|title=Psalms II, 51-100: Introduction, Translation, and Notes|publisher=Doubleday|year=1968|isbn=0-385-03759-7|location=New York|pages=179–180}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=The Anchor Bible|publisher=Doubleday |year=1964|location=New York|page=47}}</ref>