1Kings 1-2 part 2
Last week we did a basic overview of 1 Kings and tonight we are going to dive in and start taking a closer look at this book starting in,
1 Kings 1:1 Now
King David was old, advanced in years; and they put covers on him, but he could
not get warm. 2 Therefore his
servants said to him, "Let a young woman, a virgin, be sought for our lord
the king, and let her stand before the king, and let her care for him; and let
her lie in your bosom, that our lord the king may be warm." 3 So they sought for a lovely
young woman throughout all the
We start out with David
being on his death bed. This once mighty warrior were now fighting just to
remain warm and he was losing. From what I read it was common practice to give
a man that could not get warm a young virgin to lie beside them until they died.
They believed this would comfort David and make him live a little longer and as
we read David did not have relations with this Shunammite woman. However she
would become a part of David’s harem.
1 Kings 1:5 Then
Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, "I will be
king"; and he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to
run before him. 6 (And his
father had not rebuked him at any time by saying, "Why have you done
so?" He was also very good-looking. His mother had borne him
after Absalom.) 7 Then he
conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest, and they
followed and helped Adonijah. 8
But Zadok the priest, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei,
Rei, and the mighty men who belonged to David were not with
Adonijah. 9 And Adonijah
sacrificed sheep and oxen and fattened cattle by the stone of Zoheleth, which is
by En Rogel; he also invited all his brothers, the king's sons, and all the
men of Judah, the king's servants. 10
But he did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the mighty men, or Solomon
his brother.
As we can Adonijah was
born after Absalom who was dead now and so he probably felt like he should be
next in line to be king. Its also noteworthy that Adonijah copied Absalom by
using chariots and horsemen. You can tell from the text that Adonijah knew that
he was going to be made king by David because when he calls his meeting he
doesn’t invite those people who were loyal to David. Notice verse 10 points
this out. Read verse 10 again.
1 Kings 1:11 So
Nathan spoke to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, "Have you not
heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith has become king, and David our lord does
not know it? 12
"Come, please, let me now give you advice, that you may save your own life
and the life of your son Solomon. 13
"Go immediately to King David and say to him, 'Did you not, my lord, O
king, swear to your maidservant, saying, "Assuredly your son Solomon shall
reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne"? Why then has Adonijah
become king?' 14 "Then,
while you are still talking there with the king, I also will come in after you
and confirm your words."
Nathans finds out about
Adonijah’s plan and he immediately goes to work to fix this problem. So he tell
Bathsheba about what going on and let her know that her life and her sons life
are in danger if this Adonijah is left to become king. Now Nathan informs us
that David had promised Bathsheba sometime in the past that her son would
become king. This is the first time we learn about this promise however, based
on the actions of Adonijah of not inviting David loyal people it appears he
knew about this promise.
1 Kings 1:15 So
Bathsheba went into the chamber to the king. (Now the king was very old, and
Abishag (ab-i-shag) the Shunammite was serving the king.) 16 And Bathsheba bowed and did
homage to the king. Then the king said, "What is your wish?" 17 Then she said to him, "My
lord, you swore by the LORD your God to your maidservant, saying, 'Assuredly
Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.' 18 "So now, look! Adonijah
has become king; and now, my lord the king, you do not know about it. 19 "He has sacrificed oxen
and fattened cattle and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the sons of the
king, Abiathar the priest, and Joab the commander of the army; but Solomon your
servant he has not invited. 20
"And as for you, my lord, O king, the eyes of all Israel are on
you, that you should tell them who will sit on the throne of my lord the king
after him. 21 "Otherwise
it will happen, when my lord the king rests with his fathers, that I and my son
Solomon will be counted as offenders."
Bathsheba caries out
Nathans plan and from the verse you can see that David still had his mind as he
was able to converse with her. She express her concern that he will die before
he pronounce her son King which would lead to her death and her son. Next
Nathan comes in,
1 Kings 1:22 And
just then, while she was still talking with the king, Nathan the prophet also
came in. 23 So they told the
king, saying, "Here is Nathan the prophet." And when he came in
before the king, he bowed down before the king with his face to the
ground. 24 And Nathan said,
"My lord, O king, have you said, 'Adonijah shall reign after me, and he
shall sit on my throne'? 25
"For he has gone down today, and has sacrificed oxen and fattened cattle
and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the king's sons, and the commanders
of the army, and Abiathar the priest; and look! They are eating and drinking
before him; and they say, 'Long live King Adonijah!' 26 "But he has not invited me
-- me your servant -- nor Zadok the priest, nor Benaiah the son of Jehoiada,
nor your servant Solomon. 27
"Has this thing been done by my lord the king, and you have not told your
servant who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?"
Nathan confirms the
report that Bathsheba gave and point out once again how Adonijah had not
invited him nor his other faithful servants to his own self proclaimed
kingship. Now notice David’s response to this news,
1 Kings 1:28 Then
King David answered and said, "Call Bathsheba to me." So she came
into the king's presence and stood before the king. 29 And the king took an oath and
said, "As the LORD lives, who has redeemed my life from every
distress, 30 "just as I
swore to you by the LORD God of Israel, saying, 'Assuredly Solomon your son
shall be king after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,' so I
certainly will do this day." 31
Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the earth, and paid homage to the
king, and said, "Let my lord King David live forever!"
David reassures Bathsheba
that he will keep his promise and Solomon will sit on his thrown and David
immediately moves to action to make this happen as we read in,
1 Kings 1:32 And
King David said, "Call to me Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada." So they came before the king. 33 The king also said to them,
"Take with you the servants of your lord, and have Solomon my son ride on
my own mule, and take him down to Gihon.
34 "There let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet
anoint him king over Israel; and blow the horn, and say, 'Long live King
Solomon!' 35 "Then you
shall come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne, and he shall
be king in my place. For I have appointed him to be ruler over
One key point I want you
to get from the section of scripture is the fact that Solomon was going to king
at the same time David was alive and still king. This becomes very important in
showing in showing that Nathans prophecy in 2 Sam 7: 11- 17 was not referring
to Solomon. So, this make more sense lets look at the prophecy itself.
2 Samuel 7:11 Also
the LORD tells you that He will make you a house. 12 " When your days are
fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after
you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 "He shall build a house
for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 "I will be his Father, and
he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of
men and with the blows of the sons of men.
15 "But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it
from Saul, whom I removed from before you.
16 "And your house and your kingdom shall be established
forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever." '
" 17 According to all
these words and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.
This shows that this
cannot be talking about Solomon because Solomon was not setup after David had
died but before. Please note this in the margin of your Bibles. As we continue
on we see that David’s people are full agreement with making Solomon their
king.
1 Kings 1:38 So Zadok
the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the Cherethites,
and the Pelethites went down and had Solomon ride on King David's mule, and
took him to Gihon. 39 Then
Zadok the priest took a horn of oil from the tabernacle and anointed Solomon.
And they blew the horn, and all the people said, "Long live King
Solomon!" 40 And all the
people went up after him; and the people played the flutes and rejoiced with
great joy, so that the earth seemed to split with their sound.
David’s orders are carried out and Solomon was now sitting
upon the throne itself. He had ridden upon the king's own mule before everyone
which was a symbolical maneuver of great importance in the eyes of the people.
He was anointed by Zadok the priest and had the full approval the prophet
Nathan as "King over all
1 Kings 1:41 Now
Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they
finished eating. And when Joab heard the sound of the horn, he said, "Why is
the city in such a noisy uproar?"
42 While he was still speaking, there came Jonathan, the son
of Abiathar the priest. And Adonijah said to him, "Come in, for you are
a prominent man, and bring good news."
43 Then Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, "No! Our
lord King David has made Solomon king. 44
"The king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah
the son of Jehoiada, the Cherethites, and the Pelethites; and they have made
him ride on the king's mule. 45
"So Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king at
Gihon; and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an
uproar. This is the noise that you have heard. 46 "Also Solomon sits on the
throne of the kingdom. 47
"And moreover the king's servants have gone to bless our lord King David,
saying, 'May God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and may He
make his throne greater than your throne.' Then the king bowed himself on the
bed. 48 "Also the king
said thus, 'Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who has given one to
sit on my throne this day, while my eyes see it!' "
Here we see Adonijah’s world being turned upside down. At first it seems he thought this blowing of the horns and the shouting might have been good new from him but instead Jonathan lowers the boom on him and he finds out that Solomon is now King. Can you imagine the emotions the Adonijah was going through right now. He had to have been horrified. We also see that David worshiped God and that he was able to see his son Solomon sit on his throne.
1 Kings 1:49 So all the guests who were with Adonijah were
afraid, and arose, and each one went his way.
50 Now Adonijah was afraid of Solomon; so he arose, and went
and took hold of the horns of the altar.
51 And it was told Solomon, saying, "Indeed Adonijah is
afraid of King Solomon; for look, he has taken hold of the horns of the altar,
saying, 'Let King Solomon swear to me today that he will not put his servant to
death with the sword.' " 52
Then Solomon said, "If he proves himself a worthy man, not one hair of him
shall fall to the earth; but if wickedness is found in him, he shall
die." 53 So King Solomon
sent them to bring him down from the altar. And he came and fell down before
King Solomon; and Solomon said to him, "Go to your house."
Those who were with
Adonijah ran away with fear and Adonijah grabbed a hold of the horns of the
alter as a place for asylum and would not let go until Solomon promised not to
harm him and Solomon made this promise as long Adonojah proved to be worthy
man.
1 Kings 2:1 Now the
days of David drew near that he should die, and he charged Solomon his son,
saying: 2 "I go the way
of all the earth; be strong, therefore, and prove yourself a man. 3 "And keep the charge of the
LORD your God: to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His
judgments, and His testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you
may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn; 4 "that the LORD may fulfill
His word which He spoke concerning me, saying, 'If your sons take heed to their
way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul,'
He said, 'you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.' 5 "Moreover you know also
what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two
commanders of the armies of Israel, to Abner the son of Ner and Amasa the son
of Jether, whom he killed. And he shed the blood of war in peacetime, and put
the blood of war on his belt that was around his waist, and on his
sandals that were on his feet. 6
"Therefore do according to your wisdom, and do not let his gray hair go
down to the grave in peace. 7
"But show kindness to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be
among those who eat at your table, for so they came to me when I fled from
Absalom your brother. 8
"And see, you have with you Shimei the son of
Now we don’t know for
sure how much time has passed between chapter 1 and chapter 2. In fact some
have suggested the David carried our several more task before he was about to
die. Now as any good farther would do David give Solomon some words of wisdom
and some tasks he would like for him to take care after he is gone. First he
talks about what Moses said in Deut 18 about following God’s Law so that he
would be blessed. Not only was this great advice for Solomon it great advice
for us today.
We must understand that
our salvation is conditional and it based upon if are we remaining faithful to
God’s commands. We also learn from this that David is confirming that book of
Deuteronomy was written before this time and that he had access to it. In fact
many times throughout David’s life he refers to the laws that Moses gave which
against those critics of the Bible that try to say that the first 5 books were
written at earlier time.
He also asks his son to
put Joab to death for the murders he committed earlier and also ask him to put
Shimei to death as well. Then ask Solomon to show kindness to the son of
Barzillia.
1 Kings 2:10 So
David rested with his fathers, and was buried in the City of
So David’s 40 year reign
is over and not Solomon’s begins
1 Kings 2:13 Now
Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. So she
said, "Do you come peaceably?" And he said,
"Peaceably." 14
Moreover he said, "I have something to say to you." And she
said, "Say it." 15
Then he said, "You know that the kingdom was mine, and all
Here we Adonijah speaking
to Bathsheba claiming the kingdom was rightful his and so he tries to get her
to talk Solomon into giving him Abishag as his wife. Now some have thought
maybe he just wanted her because of her beauty while other believe he was
trying to make a political move. This women was part of David Harem and if
someone tried to marry one of them it was considered as them wanting to take
the kingdom as well. But, Bathsheba decides to tell her son the message.
1 Kings 2:19
Bathsheba therefore went to King Solomon, to speak to him for Adonijah. And the
king rose up to meet her and bowed down to her, and sat down on his throne and
had a throne set for the king's mother; so she sat at his right hand. 20 Then she said, "I desire
one small petition of you; do not refuse me." And the king said to her,
"Ask it, my mother, for I will not refuse you." 21 So she said, "Let Abishag (ab-i-shag)
the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother as wife." 22 And King Solomon answered and
said to his mother, "Now why do you ask Abishag the Shunammite for
Adonijah? Ask for him the kingdom also -- for he is my older brother --
for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of
Zeruiah." 23 Then King
Solomon swore by the LORD, saying, "May God do so to me, and more also, if
Adonijah has not spoken this word against his own life! 24 "Now therefore, as the
LORD lives, who has confirmed me and set me on the throne of David my father,
and who has established a house for me, as He promised, Adonijah shall be put
to death today!" 25 So
King Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he struck him
down, and he died.
As you can see Solomon took this as threat to his kingship so he has Adonijah killed and he doesn’t stop there because he continues to cleanse his kingdom of rebels as we read in,
1 Kings 2:26 And to
Abiathar the priest the king said, "Go to Anathoth, to your own fields,
for you are deserving of death; but I will not put you to death at this
time, because you carried the ark of the Lord GOD before my father David, and
because you were afflicted every time my father was afflicted." 27 So Solomon removed Abiathar
from being priest to the LORD, that he might fulfill the word of the LORD which
He spoke concerning the house of Eli at
So to summarize Abiahthar is removed as high priest to
fulfill what Samuel had said would happen to the house of Eli and he put Zadok
in his place. He has Joab put to death where he was holding on the same horns
of the alter that Adonijah had held onto earlier. He also Benaiah over his army
and he even shows mercy to Shimei and allows him to live if he stays in
1 Kings 2:39 Now it
happened at the end of three years, that two slaves of Shimei (shem-i-uh)
ran away to Achish the son of Maachah, (may-ah-kah) king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying, "Look, your slaves are
in
Shimei life was in own hands and he took his own life when he went out from Jerusalem and Solomon’s points this out to him and reminds him of how he shamed his father by cursing him and then he has him put to death.