1Kings 1-2
Sunday Evening Bible Study
May 19, 2002
Introduction
The books of Kings were given their names because they record the histories of all the kings except for Saul. David is only mentioned briefly, with most of the history of his reign being recorded in 2Samuel 2-24 and 1Chronicles 11-29. In the Hebrew, the books of 1Kings and 2Kings are one book. They were not divided into two books because of a natural break in the history, but simply to put the books on two scrolls of equal length. They are regarded as a continuation of the history recorded in 1&2 Samuel.
1&2 Kings are parallel to the account of 2Chronicles, but they come from slightly different perspectives. In Chronicles, the focus is on the kings of the southern kingdom of Judah, whereas in Kings, the focus is on both the kings of Judah as well as the kings of Israel. Chronicles puts an emphasis priestly elements such as the temple and worship. Kings puts emphasis on the kings and prophets.
1Kings 1
:1-4 David and Abishag
:1 Now king David was old and stricken in years;
stricken – bow’ – to go in, enter, come, go, come in; to attain to; to be enumerated
We think David is somewhere around seventy years old.
(2 Sam 5:4 KJV) David was
thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.
:1 and they covered him with clothes, but he gat no heat.
gat no heat – He couldn’t keep warm. This is a common problem with old age.
:2 a young virgin …let her cherish him …
virgin – b@thuwlah – virgin
let her cherish – cakan – to be of use or service or profit or benefit
They didn’t have electric blankets. They have an ingenuous method of keeping David warm.
Ancient historians record that this was kind of therapy was practiced into the Middle Ages.
:3 they sought for a fair damsel …found Abishag a Shunammite
fair – yapheh – fair, beautiful, handsome
damsel – na‘arah – girl, damsel, female servant
Apparently some sort of a beauty contest is held.
Abishag – ‘Abiyshag – “my father is a wanderer”
Shunammite – Shuwnammiyth – “double resting place”; an inhabitant of Shunem, a town seven miles north of Nazareth.
This is close, but not the same word that is used to describe Solomon’s bride in the Song of Solomon, the Shulamite:
(Song 6:13 KJV) Return,
return, O Shulamite; return, return, that we may look upon thee. What will ye
see in the Shulamite? As it were the company of two armies.
Shulamite – Shuwlammiyth – “the perfect” or “the peaceful”. This is a feminine version of Solomon.
Some have suggested that this could be the same woman, but we don’t have any way of verifying it.
This gal will become important later on.
:4 cherished the king, and ministered to him: but the king knew her not.
cherished – cakan – to be of use or service or profit or benefit
ministered – sharath – (Piel) to minister, serve, minister to
This gal was strictly here to be a nurse to David. David did not become intimate with her.
:5-10 Adonijah rises
: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.
Adonijah – ‘Adoniyah – “my lord is Jehovah”
Haggith – Chaggiyith – “festive”
Adonijah is the fourth son of David.
(2 Sam 3:2-4 KJV) And unto
David were sons born in Hebron: and his firstborn was Amnon, of Ahinoam the
Jezreelitess; {3} And his second, Chileab, of Abigail the wife of Nabal the
Carmelite; and the third, Absalom the son of Maacah the daughter of Talmai king
of Geshur; {4} And the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith; and the fifth,
Shephatiah the son of Abital;
The first son, Amnon, was killed by Absalom. We never hear anything about the second son, Chileab. Absalom was the son that rebelled against David and was killed by Joab.
Adonijah is next in line for the throne.
He feels that it is time to do something about it.
…fifty men –
This is what Absalom had done before declaring himself king, sort of a way of showing off.
(2 Sam 15:1 KJV) And it came
to pass after this, that Absalom prepared him chariots and horses, 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?
displeased – ‘atsab – to hurt, pain, grieve, displease, vex, wrest
David had never asked Adonijah what he was doing.
Lesson
Don’t be afraid to say something
As a parent, you have a responsibility to say something.
I think the fact that the writer records that David didn’t do anything to upset Adonijah give the implication that he should have been saying something.
(Prov 29:15 KJV) The rod and
reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.
Lesson
Don’t mistake silence for acceptance
I think we need to be careful about putting all the blame on David here.
Adonijah shouldn’t have been making plans without consulting with his father either.
:6 and he also was a very goodly man; and his mother bare him after Absalom.
goodly – towb – good, pleasant, agreeable
He was born after Absalom. This doesn’t mean that he had the same mother as Absalom (they were different mothers).
:7 And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest: and they following Adonijah helped him.
conferred – dabar – speech, word, speaking, thing; business, occupation, acts, matter, case, something, manner (by extension)
Joab – this is David’s nephew, the head of David’s army. Joab has stayed faithful to David over the years. He did not follow Absalom.
Abiathar – This was one of the two high priests (Zadok was the other). He has been with David for a long time. When Saul had found out that David had received help from the priests, he had ordered all the priests killed (1Sam. 22). Abiathar was able to escape and he has been with David ever since.
(1 Sam 22:20 KJV) And one of
the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped, and fled
after David.
helped – ‘azar – to help, succour, support
It could be that Joab and Abiathar don’t see this as betraying David as much as supporting the next king to take over when David dies.
: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.
Zadok – this is the other high priest
Benaiah – this is the man in charge of David’s body guard. He will eventually take Joab’s place.
Nathan – the one who confronted David with his sin of adultery with Bathsheba.
Shimei – there was another Shimei, the man who cursed David, but he is always introduced as “Shimei the son of Gera”. But that seems unlikely when you see what will happen with him (1Ki. 2:8). This could be “Shimei the son of Elah”, who was an officer in Solomon’s court. (1Ki. 4:18)
Rei – Re‘iy – “friendly”. We don’t know anything else about this guy.
the mighty men – these are David’s top fighting men.
It appears that Adonijah didn’t think he’d get everyone’s support.
:9 And Adonijah slew sheep …by the stone of Zoheleth, which is by Enrogel …
Enrogel – ‘Eyn Rogel – “fount of the fuller”; a spring just south of Jerusalem, from which the permanent source of the pool of Siloam comes. This was where the messengers were hiding out during Absalom’s rebellion (2Sam. 17:17).
Zoheleth
– Zocheleth – “serpent”; a place
identified on the steep rocky corner that overlooks the plain where the Valley
of Hinnom joins the Kidron Valley just south of Mount Zion where the City of
David was situated.
This isn’t just an ordinary barbeque. Adonijah is calling these men together so they can make a declaration that Adonijah is the new king.
:10 But Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he called not.
Adonijah calls all his brothers to be at his coronation except for Solomon. Why didn’t he ask Solomon to come? Because he must have known that David had already made a promise to Bathsheba that Solomon would one day be king.
:11-14 Nathan plans
:12 that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon.
If Adonijah becomes king, Solomon is as good as dead.
Lesson
True friendship
This is the same Nathan that had been the one to call David on the carpet concerning his sin with Bathsheba.
Some people might have looked at Nathan and felt that he wasn’t a “friend of the family” for having said the things he did to David.
Yet you can see here that he is in fact a very faithful friend.
You can see that the things that Nathan said to David weren’t said out of spite or anger, they were said out of love, having been directed by God.
Perhaps this is a bit of an assumption, but it seems that David’s friend Ahithophel responded to David’s sin with Bathsheba by rebelling against David and joining with Absalom to kill David.
Nathan responded to David’s sin with Bathsheba by confronting him, sticking with him, and here working to defend David and Bathsheba.
:15-21 Bathsheba talks to David
:17 My lord, thou swarest …Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me
Apparently at some time (we don’t know when), David had made a promise to Bathsheba that her son Solomon would succeed him as king.
:20 the eyes of all Israel are upon thee
The nation is waiting for David to say who he wants to be king.
Keep in mind, there has been no set standard as ly succession. There have only been two real kings, Saul and David. Even though Saul’s son Ishbosheth briefly ruled over part of Israel, part of the people had made David king.
:22-27 Nathan confirms Bathsheba’s report
:22 And, lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet also came in.
Apparently, when Nathan comes in, Bathsheba leaves (vs.28).
:25 they eat and drink before him, and say, God save king Adonijah.
This is the first time we have the mention that they are declaring Adonijah to be king.
:27 Is this thing done by my lord the king
Is this something that came from you and we didn’t know about it?
:28-31 David acts
:29 And the king sware, and said, As the LORD liveth
As surely as the fact that Yahweh lives, the thing David is about to promise will take place.
:30 even so will I certainly do this day.
David promises to take care of the situation.
Lesson
Confirmation
I think it’s interesting that David waits until he hears two reports against Adonijah. He doesn’t just respond with Bathsheba’s report. It’s not until Nathan give his report that he acts.
God said:
(Deu 19:15 KJV) One witness shall not rise up against a man
for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of
two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be
established.
Paul writes,
(1 Tim 5:19 KJV) Against an
elder receive not an accusation, but before two or three witnesses.
I wonder if this isn’t an example of the fact that David has learned in his life to wait for confirmation of things. It seems that Nathan knows this about David and perhaps this is why he spreads out the warning to include both he and Bathsheba.
:32-40 David makes Solomon king
:33 cause Solomon my son to ride upon mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon
upon mine own mule – this will make it known that Solomon is being given the kingdom by David.
Mules were apparently rare in Israel. They were forbidden by law to breed them. They had to be imported. The Hebrew indicates that this was a female mule. This was a special mule, something that only a king rode on.
Gihon – Giychown – “bursting forth”; a spring near Jerusalem
I think that David wants there to be a procession in which the New King enters into the city and the city pays attention.
There were two springs that supplied water to Jerusalem – Enrogel and Gihon.
This was where the people went for water. There was no running tap water. This is kind of like going to the neighborhood grocery store to start a parade. You’re always going to find people there.
Adonijah and his followers are at the spring of Enrogel.
Solomon is at Gihon.
:34 anoint him there king over Israel: and blow ye with the trumpet
anoint – mashach – to smear, anoint, spread a liquid. This is the root of the word “Messiah”, the “Anointed One”. He had oil poured over him.
blow ye with the trumpet – let the world know
:39 an horn of oil out of the tabernacle … they blew the trumpet
horn of oil – the oil was kept in a ram’s horn. This would be the special anointing oil, a perfumed mixture described in Exodus 30:22-33.
the tabernacle – There were two tabernacles at this time. The tent that Moses had made was actually set up at Gibeon, along with the bronze altar. This tent was set up by David in Jerusalem to be a place for the Ark of the Covenant to be kept after he brought the Ark into Jerusalem.
the trumpet – showphar – horn, ram’s horn
:40 the people piped with pipes…so that the earth rent with the sound of them.
pipes – chaliyl – pipe, flute
They made a HUGE noise. The ground is shaking because of the commotion.
:41-53 Adonijah’s response
:41 heard it as they had made an end of eating
Josephus (Antiquities; 7:14:6) writes,
Now when Adonijah and his guests perceived this noise, they were in
disorder; and Joab the captain of the host said he was not pleased with these
echoes, and the sound of these trumpets. And when supper was set before them,
nobody tasted of it, but they were all very thoughtful what would be the matter.
The noise seemed to take away their appetite.
:41 Joab heard the sound of the trumpet
trumpet – showphar – horn, ram’s horn
The trumpet has served part of its purpose. Adonijah and his group hear that something is going on.
:42 Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came
Jonathan was one of the messengers that had helped David keep informed when Absalom had rebelled against David (2Sam. 15:27).
:46 And also Solomon sitteth on the throne of the kingdom.
Solomon has beaten Adonijah to the punch.
:49 And all the guests that were with Adonijah were afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way.
They all realize that they’ve picked the wrong guy to be king. They’re all in deep trouble.
:50 caught hold on the horns of the altar.
This is kind of a way of expressing that you are clinging to God for mercy.
This is very similar to what has happened recently in Israel, with the Palestinian gunmen running into the Church of the Nativity for sanctuary.
This
is from the Temple
Institute in Jerusalem: The altar was built as a perfect square and was
quite large: it reached a height of 10 amot (app. 5 meters) and its
width was 32 amot (app. 16 meters). It was constructed of two main
parts: the altar itself, and the ascent ramp. Both were constructed of stones
and earth. On top of the altar at its four corners, there were hollow boxes
which made small protrusions or "horns." These horns measured one amah
square and 5 handbreadths high, each (or, app. 18" x 18" x
15")….
Though this is a description of the altar in Solomon’s Temple, one that was not yet built, the principle is still the same.
:52 And Solomon said, If he will show 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.
Solomon does not make the kind of promise that Adonijah asks for. Adonijah wants Solomon to make a blanket statement, swearing an oath that he will not kill Adonijah.
Solomon wisely puts the ball back in Adonijah’s court. He leaves the door open to the possibility that he could put Adonijah to death, but only if he is worthy of it.
1Kings 2
:1-4 David’s final words: Be a man
:2 I go the way of all the earth:
Lesson
Ready for death.
We will all die. It happens to everyone.
Solomon would write,
(Eccl 7:2 KJV) It is better to go to the house of mourning,
than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the
living will lay it to his heart.
The question we need to ask ourselves is not, “Will I die?” The question we need to ask is, “Am I ready to die?”
David had written earlier in his life,
(Psa 23:4-6 KJV) Yea, though I walk through the valley of the
shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy
staff they comfort me. {5} Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of
mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. {6} Surely
goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in
the house of the LORD for ever.
David wasn’t afraid of death because of God’s presence in his life.
David expected to live with God forever.
How can I be ready for death?
It comes from believing in Jesus.
(1 John 5:11-13 KJV) And this is the record, that God hath given
to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. {12} He that hath the Son hath
life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. {13} These things have
I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know
that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of
God.
When I come to the point in my life where I understand that Jesus died on a cross to pay the penalty for my sins, and I am trusting that Jesus has paid for my sins – God gives me eternal life. I can KNOW that I’m going to heaven.
:2 be thou strong therefore, and show thyself a man;
I couldn’t find any data giving me a clue as to how old Solomon was at the time. One source suggested that Solomon might have been about ten years old when Absalom chased David out of Jerusalem, but I could find no supporting evidence for that claim. There is also no linking data as to when Absalom attempted his coup and when David finally died.
The older brothers Amnon, Absalom, and Adonijah were all born in Hebron, at least 33 years before David’s death. Solomon was born some time after David moved to Jerusalem.
We do know that there seems to be the idea that Solomon was fairly young when he became king.
Lesson
Grow up
No matter how young he was, it was time to grow up.
(1 Cor 16:13 NASB) Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith,
act like men, be strong.
Grow up. Be strong. Accept responsibility.
:3 And keep the charge of the LORD thy God…as it is written in the law of Moses
Lesson
Pay attention to God’s Word
It could be that David is simply encouraging Solomon to pay attention to all of God’s Word, as we all should be doing.
But it could be that he might also be referring specifically to the things that God’s Word said for kings:
(Deu 17:14-20 KJV) When thou art come unto the land which the
LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and
shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about
me; {15} Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy God shall
choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest
not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother. {16} But he shall
not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to
the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the LORD hath said unto
you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way. {17} Neither shall he
multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall
he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold. {18} And it shall be, when
he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of
this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites: {19}
And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life:
that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law
and these statutes, to do them: {20} That his heart be not lifted up above his
brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand,
or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and
his children, in the midst of Israel.
I think it’s interesting to see the things that were prohibited for Israelite kings, and these were the very things that Solomon stumbled in.
He had lots of horses, wives, and money.
I like the idea of the king making his own copy of the Scriptures and reading it every day. It keeps your heart in the right place.
:5-6 Regarding Joab
:5 thou knowest also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel …
did to me – in killing David’s son Absalom against David’s expressed command.
Joab had killed Abner, the head of Saul’s and Ishbosheth’s army (2Sam. 3:27) out of revenge for Abner having killed Joab’s brother Asahel.
Amasa had been the head of Absalom’s army but after Absalom was defeated, David had offered Amasa the post of head of the army. It’s possible that Joab didn’t trust Amasa, but it’s more likely that he killed Amasa simply to get his old job back (2Sam. 20:10)
Both Abner and Amasa were killed by Joab at a time when he was not at war with them, a “time of peace”. Both men were killed by Joab against David’s wishes.
:6 Do therefore according to thy wisdom, and let not his hoar head go down to the grave in peace.
Why didn’t David ever deal with Joab? I think this is a tough question.
It’s possible that David felt that despite Joab’s problems, he was still a man who was extremely loyal to David.
It could be that once Joab made the mistake of siding with Adonijah, that David felt that Joab was going to be more of a problem for Solomon than he would be a help. But keep in mind, even though he sided with Adonijah, Joab didn’t necessarily side against David. He was simply against Solomon.
:7 Regarding Barzillai
:7 But show kindness unto the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite
When David fled to the city of Mahanaim from Absalom, Barzillai was one of the people that helped feed and support David and his men. We believe that Chimham is one of the sons of Barzillai (2Sam. 19:37).
:8-9 Regarding Shimei
:9 for thou art a wise man
This is the second time David has referred to Solomon as being wise (also in 2:6). God would give Solomon wisdom at Solomon’s request (1Ki. 3:9), but Solomon already had a measure of wisdom.
:9 his hoar head bring thou down to the grave with blood.
When David had been fleeing Jerusalem from Absalom, Shimei was the guy who stood on the side of the road cursing David, and throwing rocks.
I get the feeling that as David looked back on that day when he returned to Jerusalem from defeating Absalom, that David regretted how he handled Shimei.
(2 Sam 19:15-23 KJV) So the
king returned, and came to Jordan. And Judah came to Gilgal, to go to meet the
king, to conduct the king over Jordan. {16} And Shimei the son of Gera, a
Benjamite, which was of Bahurim, hasted and came down with the men of Judah to
meet king David. {17} And there were a thousand men of Benjamin with him, and
Ziba the servant of the house of Saul, and his fifteen sons and his twenty
servants with him; and they went over Jordan before the king. {18} And there
went over a ferry boat to carry over the king's household, and to do what he
thought good. And Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king, as he was
come over Jordan; {19} And said unto the king, Let not my lord impute iniquity
unto me, neither do thou remember that which thy servant did perversely the day
that my lord the king went out of Jerusalem, that the king should take it to
his heart. {20} For thy servant doth know that I have sinned: therefore,
behold, I am come the first this day of all the house of Joseph to go down to
meet my lord the king. {21} But Abishai the son of Zeruiah answered and said,
Shall not Shimei be put to death for this, because he cursed the LORD'S anointed?
{22} And David said, What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah, that ye
should this day be adversaries unto me? shall there any man be put to death
this day in Israel? for do not I know that I am this day king over Israel? {23}
Therefore the king said unto Shimei, Thou shalt not die. And the king sware
unto him.
Lesson
Be careful about the promises you
make
Confusing forgiveness with enabling
Some look at this as an example of unforgiveness. It could be so, but I have another idea to suggest.
God wants us to be people who keep our word. David took his “oath” seriously.
Because David had sworn an oath to Shimei, David was obligated to God to never take action against Shimei.
It’s one thing to forgive a person. David should have and did forgive Shimei.
But David took a further step of making a promise that would keep him from taking any action against Shimei in the future, even if it was necessary.
Sometimes people make an “apology” simply for the sake of getting off the hook, while they never change at the core of who they are. They will make no further changes in their life to turn away from future sin.
You will find that there are individuals who will consistently hurt others, whether through physical abuse or just being a pest. I’ve seen people who will hurt others, then when confronted, they will ask for forgiveness, then turn around and hurt again.
The person who is being hurt is caught in a trap of being asked to forgive, which they feel obligated to do, but then expected to again place themselves into harms way.
I think that when a person is a habitual abuser, it is perfectly acceptable to say you forgive them, but keep them at arm’s length until you can see whether or not their “repentance” is sincere.