Today’s Scripture Reading (March 21,
2013): 1 Kings 1
There are so
many things that a leader just does not know. One of my pet peeves are those
that gather around any leader and just assume that they know what is going on.
The bigger the organization is, the less likely that is to be true. And those
that want to usurp authority will always make sure that their actions are done
outside the view of the one that is in charge. When the leader is sick, then
the situation is magnified.
David was
sick and close to death. Because of his health situation, the day to day
running of the nation was now being taken care of by people other than David.
For this moment in time, David had become king in name only. And so it is into
this leadership vacuum that David’s son Adonijah steps. He was the logical
choice to replace his father as king. He is now the oldest surviving son of
David and he probably considers the rule part of the right that goes along with
that position in the family. His ascension was logical, except that God seldom
seems to go along with our version of logic.
We have no
record of the promise that David had made to Bathsheba that Solomon would
ascend the throne after his death, but we do have confirmation in 1 Chronicles
22 (admittedly an account that was not written until the time of the Babylonian
captivity) that that was David’s intention. The promise was probably intended
to make up for the loss of both Bathsheba’s husband and first born, both of
whom had died as a direct result of David’s action. But regardless of the
reason, David had made a promise to Bathsheba that Solomon would reign as the
next king over Israel.
It is
evident from the story that David knew nothing of the attempt of Adonijah to
become king. Many of the advisors that David was counting on would seem to have
changed their priorities from the sitting king to the one that would become
king, and in this way they were protecting their own political positions.
Bathsheba had retired and was no longer involved in the day to day running of
the country, so it was quite probable that she also knew nothing of Adonijah
attempt to become king. Bathsheba was also naive enough to have simply believed
that what David had promised would come to pass, and it was not a matter that
she would need to be worried about. Solomon probably knew of Adonijah’s
attempt, but he seems to have been truly David’s son, reflecting the character
traits of his father more than any of the other princes of the nation. Solomon
seemed to be quite content to simply wait on God to move in the matter of who
it was that would become king. So the responsibility fell onto the shoulders of
the prophet Nathan to move. Nathan knew both God’s will as well as David’s. And
he understood the danger in the situation that was developing. If Adonijah
became king, both Bathsheba’s and Solomon’s lives would be forfeit. That was
something that needed to be prevented – and so it was time for Nathan to
move.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 1 Kings
2
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