1 Kings 1:1-4
King David was 70 years old; and while not a very old man, he was feeble from the rough life that he had lived. Think of all the roads this man had traveled just since we saw him appear in the bible. And we surely don't know of all the stories and adventures of his life.
David couldn't get warm and it was ordered by the servants to find a young woman to sleep with him to keep him warm. At first appearance this doesn't seem right and sounds immoral. But this was viewed more as a medical treatment. This was consistent with historical record of how they treated this.
They sought a women eligible to be a concubine. So Abishag took care of David in his old age serving him and caring for him.
1 Kings 1:5-8
While the King was ill his son Adonijah declared himself king and raised up a small army. Adonijah was an opportunist, the elderest now that Absalom was gone. He felt he deserved to be king; but knowing David wold not anoint him, he exalted himself. He started a campaign to take the throne of Israel.
Strangely enough, some key people in David's cabinet followed Adonijah. Joab was the commander of David's army and had always been loyal to David and did what was best for Israel even when it angered David. The relationhip between David and Joab was damaged by Joab killing Absalom and by David's response to it. Abiathar the priest also followed after Adonjah.
1 Kings 1:9-10
Adonijah threw a coronation party to celebrate his new kingship. He began to sacrifice sheep and oxen on the stone of Zoheleth. Zoheleth means serpent stone and is the site of Jebusite snake worship. It must have looked like all of Israel was there when all the kings sons were there, many of David's servants and all the men of Judah. But Adonijah wisely didn't invite some key people; he did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the mighty men, or Solomon his brother.
1 Kings 1:11-14
Many of the David's faithful didn't take part in these false king's actions. Nathan recruits Bathsheba to help him break this news to David and encourage David to act. We often view Bathsheba only as an adulteress but we see here active and influential in the kingdom. This situation was critical because if this rebellion was allowed to thrive, David, Bathsheba, Solomon and others would all be killed.
1 Kings 1:15-21
Bathsheba informs the king of just how critical the situation is. Solomon was supposed to be king but Adonijah had assumed power. All of Israel was watching what would happen. No action on David's part would be seen as a blessing from the king. David needed to respond fast and it was particularly critical that Isrel know his wished for his successor should he die anytime.
1 Kings 1:22-27
Nathan follows Bathsheba with a confirmation of the same critical news. Imagine David's response when he heard Nathan say they were saying, "Long live king Adonijah!" This must have been so reminiscent of Absalom's rebellion, yet David was too old to run. He needed to deal with this differently. Nathan almost sounded as if he was rebuking David for allowing this to happen; as if he was failing in his duties to tell folks who would follow him.
1 Kings 1:28- 40
David directs them of how to go about this anointing and informing the people. It was a cooperation of the Prophet, priest and king (all of which would some day be fulfilled perfectly by Jesus). This had to be done so there was no doubt; it would be conclusive to the people. David would use several things to convey this to the people:
- The servants of the Lord would be in attendence with the priest.
- Solomon would ride David's mule.
- They would go to Gihon – the place of anointing.
- The horn of oil from the tabernacle was a specific vessel used for this purpose.
- The priest and prophet acted together to anoint him.
- They would blow the horn declaring Solomon King.
- Solomon would go back and sit on David's throne.
The sound of this celebration was great. This news drew a crowd that celebrated David's son as succeeding King David.
1 Kings 1:41-49
The noise was so great it was heard for miles. The news traveled fast and made its way back to Adonijah. This plan of exalting himself seemed like such a good idea at the time. Did he think this wasn't possible; that David would stand by and do nothing? It may be that he thought David wouldn't stand up to his son. There seems to be some history of David not correcting his sons. In fear, the party broke up and everyone scattered.
1 Kings 1:50-53
When word gets to Adonijah he worries for his life and asks for mercy from Solomon. By grabbing the horns of the altar he was pleading for mercy. Solomon grants that mercy and essentially places him under house arrest.
A man can declare himself king but if God has not ordained it, it is not so. Adonijah didn't act like a king on the surface, going through the motions, but he was only playing the part. Unfortunately, many were fooled by his actions. Across history we see examples of phony leaders playing the part while people are duped into following them. It seems people will follow a fake and phony if they at least act like a leader.
©2016 Doug Ford
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