*1 Samuel, which focused on the Prophet Samuel, Israel s first king, Saul, and their future king, David.

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Marsha Marshall
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1 1 Kings 1 June 27, 2013 Introduction: We come now to the book of 1 Kings, after having studied: *1 Samuel, which focused on the Prophet Samuel, Israel s first king, Saul, and their future king, David. *2 Samuel primarily covered the reign of David. *1 and 2 Kings cover the monarchies of both the northern and southern kingdoms - the northern kingdom known as Israel, and the southern kingdom known as Judah. Tragically they ll split in chapter 12, after the reign of Solomon. *1 and 2 Chronicles overlap, but written from a priestly perspective 1 Chronicles primarily covering the reign of David, and 2 Chronicles covering the monarchy of the southern kingdom of Judah. Originally, in the Hebrew texts, 1 and 2 Kings were one book, simply regarded as a continuation of the historical narrative begun in 1 and 2 Samuel. Later in the Septuagint (which is the Greek version of the OT), 1 and 2 Samuel, and 1 and 2 Kings were called, 1, 2, 3, and 4 Kingdoms. The title Kings came from Jerome s Latin translation (the Vulgate); he also combined the 2 books into 1, calling it the The Book of Kings. Dates The timeframe of 1 and 2 Kings is 970 B.C. beginning with the death of David and the reign of Solomon, and going through to 586 B.C., when the southern kingdom of Judah was carried away captive by the Babylonians (the northern kingdom was carried away captive by the Assyrians in 722 B.C.). When you include Solomon s reign 1 and 2 kings covers 385 years; the approximate number of years covered in 1 Kings is 126 years. Israel lasted 209 years after the reign of Solomon; Judah lasted 345 years after the reign of Solomon. Most scholars would say that 1 and 2 Kings was written somewhere between 560 and 536 B.C. 1

2 Author We re not certain as to the authorship of 1 and 2 Kings. Jewish tradition points to Jeremiah; while others believe it to be Ezekiel, or possibly even Ezra. Theme Of course a part of the reason for writing the history of the Jews and their kings, is simply to chronicle the history of a nation but for us as Christians, we know it to be so much more. It s the preservation of a nation by God who promised to bring the Messiah, the king of Kings one day, through this same Davidic lineage ultimately fulfilled in Jesus. But it s also a lesson in God s holiness and graciousness. BKC, The Books of 1 and 2 Kings were written to record history but, more importantly, to teach the lessons of history. ESV study Bible, The books maintain that it is this good and all-powerful God who oversaw the destruction of His chosen city and temple, and the exile to Babylon in 586 B.C. because of God s great sinfulness (2 Kings 17:7-23; 24:1-4). Yet there remains hope because of God s chosen royal line has not come to an end (2 Kings 25:27-30), and God remains ready to forgive those who are repentant (1 Kings 8:22-61). BKC, More importantly the author sought to evaluate the monarchy by the standard of the Mosaic Law. Besides tracing the decline the Northern and Southern Kingdoms, he pointed out the reasons for their decline in general and the fate of each king in particular. He may have intended to teach the exiles in Babylon the reasons for their plight so that they would learn from their past. In particular God s faithfulness to His covenant (blessing the obedient and punishing the disobedient) and the evils of idolatry receive strong emphasis. BKC, People s decisions, made in faith and obedience or in unbelief and disobedience, let to inevitable consequences. V. 1-4 David is now 70 years old; his reign is just about to end. We read in 2 Samuel 5:4 David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. 2

3 They tried covering David but he couldn t get warm, so they searched for, and found a lovely young woman named Abishag, a Shunamite woman, and brought her to David. She served him, she cared for him, she lied down with him to keep him warm, but they didn t know each other sexually (v. 2) the body heat, would keep Solomon warm, she was a sweeter-heater. Ecclesiastes 4:11 if two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one be warm alone? Abishag was a Shunammite, from the town of Shunem, located in the territory of Issachar (mentioned Joshua 19:18), about 60 miles north of Jerusalem. V. 5-6 Adonijah was David s 4 th son. We read in 2 Samuel 3:2-4 Sons were born to David in Hebron: His firstborn was Amnon by Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; his second, Chileab, by Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite; the third, Absalom the son of Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur; the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith Now we know for certain that Amnon died, he was murdered by his brother Absalom (2 Samuel 13). Absalom also died, after his rebellion against his father, he died at the hands of Joab (2 Samuel 18); and it s very likely that Chileab died, since he s only mentioned in 2 Samuel 3 and 1 Chronicles 3:1, in early genealogies. So Adonijah is probably the oldest, he obviously thinks he s both worthy and able, so he so foolishly exalts himself. How so very sad to see, (unlike his father David), Adonijah exalt himself His name means, my Lord is Yahweh but he didn t live up to his name. Jesus said in Matthew 7:21-23 Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name? And then I will declare to them, I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness! To exalt yourself is sin, it goes against the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and goes against all that God teaches in His Word. The principle is clearly taught in the wisdom of Proverbs. 3

4 Wee read in Proverbs 25:6 Do not exalt yourself in the presence of the king, and do not stand in the place of the great; If we aren t to exalt ourselves in the presence of the king, how much more should we refrain from exalting ourselves to be the king! No, we re to let the Lord do the work! Let God raise you up. The Scriptures say in Psalm 75:6-7 For exaltation comes neither from the east nor from the west nor from the south. But God is the Judge: He puts down one, and exalts another. Jesus said in: Matthew 23:12 And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. We read the same words in Luke 14:11 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. This principle is taught for both position and prayer, Jesus said in Luke 18:14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. We know where this originated; self-exaltation was found in the heart, and caused the fall of Satan himself! Isaiah 14:12-15 How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations! For you have said in your heart: I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High. Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, to the lowest depths of the Pit. That s why the antichrist will do this as well. We read about him in 2 Thessalonians 2:4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. How sad to see the absence of humility on the part of Adonjah, but, part of the responsibility was undoubtedly due to the negligence of David his father. Notice again what we read in v. 6 (read) 4

5 NIV, His father had never interfered with him by asking him, Why do you behave as you do? David did the same thing with Amnon, who died; with Absalom who died; and now with Adonijah, who will die in chapter 2. How we parents, fathers especially, need to take this to heart! Proverbs 29:15 The rod and rebuke give wisdom, but a child left to himself brings shame to his mother. Notice here the corporal punishment working in conjunction with the verbal correction, necessary for the healthy heart of the child; he can t be left to himself. If we don t rebuke them, if we don t restrain them, we maim and we shame. That s what happened to the sons of Eli, who also died. We read in 1 Samuel 3:13 For I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knows, because his sons made themselves vile, and he did not restrain them. Proverbs 29:17 Correct your son, and he will give you rest; Yes, he will give delight to your soul. What a blessing it is to us as parents, when our children serve the Lord; Parental correction cleanses the heart. We read in Proverbs 22:15 Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; the rod of correction will drive it far from him. As parents we need to look beyond the present, consider the future, as the rod and rebuke bring the fruit of righteousness over time. Hebrews 12:11 Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Unfortunately David failed in this area. So Adonijah, unrestrained all his life decides to exalt himself with chariots, horsemen, 50 men even run before him. He s a good-looking guy on the outside (v. 6b), but O so very ugly on the inside. Remember 1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said to Samuel, Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have refused him. For the LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart. 5

6 V We ll see as we go through our study this evening, that God had already spoken to David, that Solomon was to be king after him. It s for that reason that Adonijah didn t invite Solomon or certain people who knew better, like Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, or the mighty men. The one s that did follow Adonijah, lacked spiritual discernment they should have known better to at least ask, Does King David approve of this? But God will always test the heart of the people, to weed out those whose hearts are not right, whose hearts are not loyal. Later, Benaih would become the commander of the army under the leadership of Solomon. And the others would be part of Solomon s cabinet, his leadership. Jesus said something very applicable in Matthew 15:14 they are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch. Be ever so careful who you follow! V Nathan was a godly prophet, if you remember he was the one who confronted David for His sin of adultery with Bathsheba, and murder of Urijah. Here God uses him again, with wisdom of words, to do God s will, it s not deception, or manipulation, it simply inspiration, as the Scripture says in Matthew 10:16 Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. He gives Bathsheba tactful words. He follows that with his own words at the right time. We should learn from this. Sometimes people get upset, or emotional, reckless and rash with their words. Proverbs 25:11 A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver. Psalm 141:3 Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips. V David was very old, he couldn t even keep warm, much less keep a kingdom; he should have completed the transition of power by now. The truth is, in dragging his feet, he left the kingdom in jeopardy. 6

7 Bathsheba comes into his presence, and reminds him of his promise. v. 17 Now, we don t have the record of David s promise to Bathsheba, but we do have David s words of when God spoke to him about this matter, and prophesied concerning King Solomon: In 1 Chronicles 22:9 Behold, a son shall be born to you, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies all around. His name shall be Solomon, for I will give peace and quietness to Israel in his days. Solomon s name means peace, his was to be a peaceful reign. This is the very reason David named him Solomon. David knew all this, but He hadn t followed through, as a responsible leader. Wiersbe said this, David had given up the sword and now he must give up the scepter. Wise is the leader who knows when to step aside. We read (in v. 20) that all of Israel looked to David, for his decision as to who would be king. I ve learned in life and ministry, that you need to make it clear who s leading, who s in charge, who has God chosen cause if you don t, who s gonna lead? The dominant person, with the strong personality and the dominant, type-a, charismatic, socalled leader is often times not the one God has chosen to lead. Leaders need to remember their responsibility lives are on the line (v. 21); in this case all the citizens would be affected, and Bathsheba and Solomon would undoubtedly die. V After Bathsheba, Nathan the prophet comes in; his arrival is announced; David must see the seriousness of the situation. And Nathan reiterates what was spoken by Bathsheba, Adonijah has exalted himself as king, they re celebrating with sacrifices, many prominent people weren t invited, but I wasn t, neither was Zadok, nor Benaiah, nor Solomon. Nathan comes with information, and then a simple question, Is this who you want to sit on the throne? V

8 David calls Bathsheba back in, and vows to fulfill his promise to her (v ). I love the way he vows, As the LORD lives who has redeemed by life from every distress. v. 29 David here testifies to the fact that God delivers His people from every distress. We read earlier in 2 Samuel 4:9 similar words from David to Rechab and Baanah As the LORD lives, who has redeemed my life from all adversity, Every distress, all adversity; The Hebrew word for both of these words is the same, and is usually translated, troubles. The dictionary defines distress as extreme anxiety sorrow or pain. Adversities speaks of difficulties, misfortunes, even connected to adversaries. David does not lie, he testifies, the Lord has redeemed my life from all troubles, tragedies, and tribulations, transforming them into triumphs; by His grace and in His power He has worked all things out for good! David also wrote in Psalm 34:19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all. Whenever you go through hard times, I want to encourage you to remember His Word, keep the faith, stay focused, stay true and trust the Lord; in His perfect timing and because of His perfect purpose, you can stand on the promise He will deliver you. I love what we read in Psalm 138:7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; You will stretch out Your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and Your right hand will save me. (incident with Shelly?) After Bathsheba, David calls in Benaiah v Solomon s ride on David s mule clearly identifies him as David s favored son. Riding on a donkey or mule was regarded as a king coming for a peaceful transition of power. We know this was the symbol of the sovereign Savior; when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey in (Matthew 21:1-11); propehcied in Zechariah 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, Lowly and riding on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey. 8

9 Adonijah is actually a picture of self or Satan. Solomon is a picture of Jesus, the Father s sovereign Son. I like what Benaiah says: v. 37 Benaiah clearly communicates the core and key to success, and that is the very presence of God. It was evident that the LORD was with David. Benaiah prayed that He would be with Solomon as well. That was the key to Joseph s life, even in the hard times, we read over and over again, how the Lord was with him. The LORD spoke to Joshua, in Joshua 1:5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. Matthew 28:19-20 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen. Acts 18:9-10 Now the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision, Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent; for I am with you, and no one will attack you to hurt you; for I have many people in this city. V They do as David asks. Solomon is crowned king, and there is a very loud celebration. V Adonijah was too far to see what was going on, but close enough to hear the loud celebration. Next thing you know a runner arrives, a messenger, and he just lays everything out! All of Adonijah s supporters split. 9

10 And so does Adonijah, who runs to the horns of the altar in the tabernacle. V It had evidently become the practice of those who had committed crimes to flee to the tabernacle (like a city of refuge), and hold on to the horns on the altar. First Adonijah and soon Joab (2:28-34) would seek to escape punishment Morris Adonijah asks his brother the king, in desperation, Promise you won t kill me. Solomon promises on one condition, prove yourself a worthy man. (v. 52) NET if he is a loyal subject NLT if he proves himself to be loyal This was a simple request, and actually a gracious act on the part of the new king. God gave Adonijah a second-chance; unfortunately he doesn t take it to heart; later, because of the poison in his heart, he asks for Abishag to be his wife, an utterly foolish request, manipulative, and demonstrative, evidence of his unrepentant and non-submissive heart so Solomon executes him, and he s judged by God. I like what Wiersbe said about him, Adonijah fled to the altar for safety, not for sanctity. There s a big difference between physical life, and Spiritual life; there s a big difference between safety and Spirituality. Going to Cambodia, I know many people were concerned about our physical wellbeing; about the 30 hour flight, there and back. About malaria, about mosquitos, about land-mines, about the uncertainties of being in a foreign country, and it s way okay to pray for that physical protection but this must be a distant second to our Spiritual well being and effectiveness. We don t want to simply flee to the altar for physical safety, like Adonijah; we want to flee to the altar for Spiritual sanctity. *Beware of negligence as a leader (in the ministry or the family) *Beware of arrogance as a follower! *May there be responsibility, may there be true humility! 10

A bishag brought in to provide warmth for aging King David A donijah seeks to be king D avid made Solomon king instead 1 Kings 1:1-53 D avid is old A

A bishag brought in to provide warmth for aging King David A donijah seeks to be king D avid made Solomon king instead 1 Kings 1:1-53 D avid is old A bishag brought to care for the king 1 N ow King David