A Mother's Love

It's likely you have heard of the wise King Solomon and the story about the two women who came to him with a baby, both claiming to be the mother. In an effort to settle the dispute, the king suggested that the child be cut in half and each one could have a half. One of the women agreed, but the other was appalled and said not to hurt the child, just let the other woman have him. Instantly the king knew who the real mother was; the woman who would not see her child hurt.

The king knew all about a mother's love, from his own mother. She sat next to him when he was on his throne, and she was one of his closest advisors. I imagine a king would be surrounded by a bunch of bobbleheads, eager to agree with him on everything, yet the one person who called him out when his drinking was becoming excessive was his mother. And Solomon listened to her.

The book of Proverbs in Christianity is usually credited as being written by Solomon, yet Jewish scholars attribute its beautiful 31st chapter as being the writing of Solomon's mother. The tenth verse reads, "Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is above rubies..."

Lest you think the Queen Mother was some perfect person, let me tell you that her name was Bathsheba, the married woman who was bathing on the roof and caught the eye of King David. From there the story becomes a soap opera, with sex and murder and intrigue and the death of their first baby, and then Solomon was born. And then there is more grief and death and sibling rivalry. It was quite a dysfunctional family, this group that belonged to David and Bathsheba.

The story of the six days of creation in Judaism foretells the fact that David and Bathsheba would have a baby named Solomon. If you believe in fate, it was their destiny. It was going to happen. Yet because they were merely human, David and Bathsheba did what we as humans often do. They didn't just let go and allow it to happen, they twisted it all up and suffered a lot of messy pain. And brought pain to other people they loved.

Yet maybe, just maybe, that is what made Bathsheba such a wise woman in her later years. She knew what it was to make a poor choice, to mess things up, to suffer the consequences. And after David had long passed away, she was right there when her son needed her most.

The kingdom depended on Solomon, and the king depended on his mother. The power of a mother's love and influence is an amazing thing. Long after she held him in his arms, long after she stopped calling the shots in his life, long after he became the most powerful man in the world, long after he had any obligation to obey her, she still held sway in his life.

Love is the most powerful force in the world. And is there any love more powerful than a mother's love? I think not. I hope not.

Susan