David assures the throne to Solomon
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| 1 ¶ Now king David was
old and stricken in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he gat
no heat.
2 Wherefore his servants said unto him, Let there be sought for my lord the king a young virgin: and let her stand before the king, and let her cherish him, and let her lie in thy bosom, that my lord the king may get heat. .3 So they sought for a fair damsel throughout all the coasts of Israel, and found Abishag a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4 And the damsel was very fair, and cherished the king, and ministered to him: but the king knew her not. |
1 -
David
was old 70 years old 2sa0504.
Older at death than any other king in the record.
2 - Young virgin This was considered a way to preserve the life force. 3 - Shunamite She was from Shuman, in the area of Issachar. Solomon wrote of a Shulamite. The names are similar. See on so0613. The city of Shunam was in the territory of Issachar near Mount Tabor – southwest of it jos1917f. See map. 4 - Knew her not Did not have an intimate relationship with her. She "ministered to him" as a nurse. |
| .5
¶ Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, I will
be king: and he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run
before him.
6 And his father had not displeased him at any time in saying, Why hast thou done so? and he also was a very goodly man; and his mother bare him after Absalom. .7 And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest: and they following Adonijah helped him. 8 But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men which belonged to David, were not with Adonijah. 9 And Adonijah slew sheep and oxen and fat cattle by the stone of Zoheleth, which is by Enrogel, and called all his brethren the king's sons, and all the men of Judah the king's servants: .10 But Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he called not. 11 ¶ Wherefore Nathan spake unto Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, Hast thou not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith doth reign, and David our lord knoweth it not? 12 Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon. 13 Go and get thee in unto king David, and say unto him, Didst not thou, my lord, O king, swear unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? why then doth Adonijah reign? |
5 -
Adonijah
The fourth son of David 2sa0304.
The two oldest sons were dead and the third apparently was, too. He was
willing to use force although it was not God's plan for him to be king
1ch2205ff.
6 - Not displeased him A sad testimony. Letting children have their way is a mistake. Only his appearance was "goodly." Absalom had a different mother. Thus this does not mean after she gave birth to Absalom, but after Absalom was born. 9-10 - En-rogel "... Adonijah's feast at En-rogel was ... on a large scale (2Sa 3:4,5; 5:14-16; 1Ch 14:1-7). At the accession of a new king there were sacrifices offered (1Sa 11:15). But on such an occasion it was no less customary to entertain the grandees of the kingdom and even the populace in a public manner (1Ch 12:23-40). There is the strongest probability that Adonijah's feast was purely political, to court popularity and secure a party to support his claim to the crown." 11 - Nathan spake "The revolt was defeated by this prophet, who, knowing the Lord's will (2Sa 7:12; 1Ch 22:9), felt himself bound, in accordance with his character and office, to take the lead in seeing it executed. Hitherto the succession of the Hebrew monarchy had not been settled. The Lord had reserved to Himself the right of nomination (De 17:15), which was acted upon in the appointments both of Saul and David; and in the case of the latter the rule was so far modified that his posterity were guaranteed the perpetual possession of the sovereignty (2Sa 7:12)." (JFB). |
| 14 Behold, while thou
yet talkest there with the king, I also will come in after thee, and confirm
thy words.
15 And Bathsheba went in unto the king into the chamber: and the king was very old; and Abishag the Shunammite ministered unto the king. |
11 - |
| 16 And Bathsheba bowed,
and did obeisance unto the king. And the king said, What wouldest thou?
17 And she said unto him, My lord, thou swarest by the LORD thy God unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne. 18 And now, behold, Adonijah reigneth; and now, my lord the king, thou knowest it not: 19 And he hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the sons of the king, and Abiathar the priest, and Joab the captain of the host: but Solomon thy servant hath he not called. |
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| 20 And thou, my lord,
O king, the eyes of all Israel are upon thee, that thou shouldest tell
them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him.
21 Otherwise it shall come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders. 22 And, lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet also came in. 23 And they told the king, saying, Behold Nathan the prophet. And when he was come in before the king, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground. |
20 - Eyes of all Israel Normally the oldest son became king after his father. |
| 24 And Nathan said,
My lord, O king, hast thou said, Adonijah shall reign after me, and he
shall sit upon my throne?
.25 For he is gone down this day, and hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the king's sons, and the captains of the host, and Abiathar the priest; and, behold, they eat and drink before him, and say, God save king Adonijah. 26 But me, even me thy servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and thy servant Solomon, hath he not called. 27 Is this thing done by my lord the king, and thou hast not shewed it unto thy servant, who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him? |
25 - God save "Long live" RSV. |
| 28 Then king David answered
and said, Call me Bathsheba. And she came into the king's presence, and
stood before the king.
29 And the king sware, and said, As the LORD liveth, that hath redeemed my soul out of all distress, 30 Even as I sware unto thee by the LORD God of Israel, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my stead; even so will I certainly do this day. .31 Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the earth, and did reverence to the king, and said, Let my lord king David live for ever. |
28-31 - David answered "He renews to her the solemn pledge he had given, in terms of solemnity and impressiveness which show that the aged monarch had roused himself to the duty the emergency called for." |
| .32
¶ And king David said, Call me Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet,
and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the king.
.33 The king also said unto them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon: .34 And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there king over Israel: and blow ye with the trumpet, and say, God save king Solomon. 35 Then ye shall come up after him, that he may come and sit upon my throne; for he shall be king in my stead: and I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah. 36 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, and said, Amen: the LORD God of my lord the king say so too. 37 As the LORD hath been with my lord the king, even so be he with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord king David. |
34
- Anoint him Samuel, who anointed David 1sa1613
was both prophet and priest. The prophet and the priest were appropriately
called. Zadok and Nathan ... also in v38.
35 - Over Israel and over Judah They were administered as one nation although separate in several ways. See map of Solomon's domain. |
| .38
So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada,
and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, went down, and caused Solomon
to ride upon king David's mule, and brought him to Gihon.
39 And Zadok the priest took an horn of oil out of the tabernacle, and anointed Solomon. And they blew the trumpet; and all the people said, God save king Solomon. .40 And all the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth rent with the sound of them. |
39
- God save king Solomon The text actually reads, "May King
Solomon live." Perhaps a bit of British idiom influenced the KJV translators.
40 - Pipes See on je4836. |
| 41 ¶ And Adonijah and
all the guests that were with him heard it as they had made an end of eating.
And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, Wherefore is this
noise of the city being in an uproar?
42 And while he yet spake, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came: and Adonijah said unto him, Come in; for thou art a valiant man, and bringest good tidings. 43 And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, Verily our lord king David hath made Solomon king. 44 And the king hath sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and they have caused him to ride upon the king's mule: 45 And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon: and they are come up from thence rejoicing, so that the city rang again. This is the noise that ye have heard. 46 And also Solomon sitteth on the throne of the kingdom. |
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| 47 And moreover the
king's servants came to bless our lord king David, saying, God make the
name of Solomon better than thy name, and make his throne greater than
thy throne. And the king bowed himself upon the bed.
48 And also thus said the king, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which hath given one to sit on my throne this day, mine eyes even seeing it. 49 And all the guests that were with Adonijah were afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way. .50 And Adonijah feared because of Solomon, and arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. |
50 - Horns of the altar Projections at the corners ex2702, le0407. This action was not appropriate and did not help Joab ex2114, 1ki0228ff, but Solomon was kind to Adonijah. |
| 51 And it was told Solomon,
saying, Behold, Adonijah feareth king Solomon: for, lo, he hath caught
hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear unto me
to day that he will not slay his servant with the sword.
52 And Solomon said, If he will shew himself a worthy man, there shall not an hair of him fall to the earth: but if wickedness shall be found in him, he shall die. 53 So king Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and bowed himself to king Solomon: and Solomon said unto him, Go to thine house. |
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