Transcript
Last week we covered the first 11 verses of First Kings chapter 2. And so we want to begin reading at verse 12 of First Kings chapter 2.
Then Solomon sat on the throne of his father David and his kingdom was firmly established.
Now Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon and she said, ‘Do you come peaceably?’ And he said, ‘Peaceably.’ Moreover he said, ‘I have something to say to you.’ And she said, ‘Say it.’
Then he said, ‘You know that the kingdom was mine and all Israel had set their expectations on me that I should reign. However the kingdom has been turned over and has become my brother’s for it was his from the Lord. Now I ask one petition of you. Do not deny me.’ And she said to him, ‘Say it.’
Then he said, ‘Please speak to King Solomon for he will not refuse you that he may give me Abishag the Shunammite as wife.’ So Bathsheba said, ‘Very well. I will speak for you to the king.’
Bathsheba therefore went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet her and bowed down to her and sat down on his throne and had a throne set for the king’s mother so she sat at his right hand.
Then she said, ‘I desire one small petition of you. Do not refuse me.’ And the king said to her, ‘Ask it my mother for I will not refuse you.’ In my Bible which is an open Bible it points out that the phrase ‘refused me’ and ‘refused you’ is a Hebrew phrase. It means to turn away the face. I am going to read it that way.
Then she said, ‘I desire one small petition. If you do not turn away my face.’ And the king said to her, ‘Ask it my mother for I will not turn away your face.’ I think the phrase ‘men’ probably meant something like ‘don’t brush me off’ or something of that nature. So she said, ‘Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother as wife.’
And King Solomon answered and said to his mother, ‘Now why do you ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Ask for him the kingdom also for he is my older brother for him and for Abiathar the priest and for Joab the son of Zeruiah.’ Then King Solomon swore by the Lord saying, ‘May God do so to me and more also if Adonijah has not spoken this word against his own life. Now therefore as the Lord lives who has established me and set me on the throne of David my father and who has made me a house as He promised Adonijah shall be put to death today.’
So King Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and he struck him down and he died. And to Abiathar the priest the king said, ‘Go to Anathoth to your own fields for you are worthy of death but I will not put you to death at this time because you carried the ark of the Lord God before my father David and because you were afflicted every time my father was afflicted.’ So Solomon removed Abiathar from being priest to the Lord that he might fulfill the word of the Lord which He spoke concerning the house of Eli at Shiloh.
When the news came to Joab for Joab had defected to Adonijah though he had not defected to Absalom so Joab fled to the tabernacle of the Lord and took hold of the horns of the altar. And King Solomon was told, ‘Joab has fled to the tabernacle of the Lord. There he is by the altar.’ Then Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada saying, ‘Go strike him down.’ So Benaiah went to the tabernacle of the Lord and said to him, ‘Thus says the king, “Come out.”’ And he said, ‘No but I will die here.’ And Benaiah brought back word to the king saying, ‘Thus said Joab and thus he answered me.’
And the king said to him, ‘Do as he has said and strike him down and bury him that you may take away from me and from the house of my father the innocent blood which Joab shed. So the Lord will return his blood on his own head because he struck down two men more righteous and better than he and killed them with the sword without my father David knowing it. Abner the son of Ner the commander of the army of Israel and Amasa the son of Jether the commander of the army of Judah. Their blood shall therefore return upon the head of Joab and upon the head of his descendants forever. But upon David and his descendants and upon his house and upon his throne there shall be peace forever from the Lord.’
So Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up and struck and killed him and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness. The king then put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his place over the army and the king put Zadok the priest in the place of Abiathar.
Then the king sent and called for Shimei and said to him, ‘Build yourself a house in Jerusalem and dwell there and do not go out from there anywhere. For it shall be on the day that you go out and cross the Brook Kidron know for certain you shall surely die. Your blood shall be on your own head.’ And Shimei said to the king, ‘The saying is good. As my lord the king has said so your servant will do.’ So Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem many days.
Now it happened at the end of three years that two slaves of Shimei ran away to Achish the son of Maacah king of Gath and they told Shimei saying, ‘Look your slaves are in Gath.’ So Shimei rose saddled his donkey and went to Achish at Gath to seek his slaves. And Shimei went and brought his slaves from Gath. Then Solomon was told that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and had come back. When the king sent and called for Shimei and said to him, ‘Did I not make you swear by the Lord and warn you saying “Know for certain that on the day you go out and travel anywhere you shall surely die”? And you said to me “The word I have heard is good.” Why then have you not kept the oath of the Lord and the commandment that I gave you?’
The king said moreover to Shimei, ‘You know as your heart acknowledges all the wickedness that you did to my father David. Therefore the Lord will return your wickedness on your own head. But King Solomon shall be blessed and the throne of David shall be established before the Lord forever.’ So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and he went out struck him down and he died. Thus the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.
Many of you have heard me tell that when I was growing up I had a brief and very unsuccessful career as a peach picker. There are a lot of peach orchards in Pennsylvania. I am sure Lewis remembers quite a few from his visits to Pennsylvania. One day my brother David and I decided to go out to eat pick peaches in somebody’s orchard. They paid well. They paid us by the basket. And I must say though I do not remember exactly what the payment was per basket it was a very small and insubstantial amount I thought.
And on top of that I did not pick very many baskets of peaches. And so I ended up the day almost poverty-stricken in my own way of looking at things. My problem was very simple. Every peach I picked was a decision. I had to decide whether it was worth picking whether it was really ripe you know what I had any bad spots on it. And I picked peaches so slowly that the rest of the peach pickers ran circles around me. And I am guessing just modestly that they probably all picked about twice as many baskets as I did.
My problem was making decisions decisions decisions decisions. Every peach was a decision. Now I am quite confident that none of you have ever had a peach-picking decision-making problem to deal with. But if you are human as we all are you have had problems making decisions. For all of us have a problem making decisions. And if we are totally honest with ourselves we will have to admit that some decisions that we really should have made right up front and quickly we fail to make or we waited too long to make or we put off until they could no longer be made.
And it is certainly true that much that happens to us in our life experience is determined by the quality of our decision-making. All of us make decisions large and small every single day. And making good firm and decisive decisions is an important part of Christian living.
Now the interesting thing is that King Solomon when he first came to the throne apparently had no real problem making important and striking decisions. In fact I would say that in the verses that we read just a few minutes ago we have one of the high points of the reign of King Solomon. Now you need to remember that King Solomon is the first king of Israel that has come to the throne without a prophet pointing him out and saying “That is the man who should be king.” But it is evident from this passage that King Solomon realizes that because he is sitting on the throne of Israel it is God who put him there. And he is even able to identify himself with the promise that God had made to David way back in 2 Samuel 7. So he feels his responsibility as a king before God.
Remember that he had come actually to the throne through palace politics. And before his dad had passed away before King David had passed away if we saw last time David made a big old burden on King Solomon some of David’s unfinished business some of David’s old scores. But despite the fact that he was promoted by palace politics despite the fact that he had this kind of selfish and self-centered advice from his father Solomon appears in these verses to be really an independent decision-maker. He never makes a decision as far as the record here is concerned because of the politics of the palace particularly. And he does not make decisions because his daddy had told him to make this decision. His decisions are obviously made in each case with thought about the will of God.
His first problem is Adonijah. Now I do not need to remind you do I that Adonijah was a spoiled little brat. He was a grown man by this time but remember the writer of Kings tells us that his father had never displeased him at any time by saying “Why have you done this?” All parents realize that if you do not say no to your kids sometime they will grow up thinking that the world is their oyster. And that is exactly how Adonijah grew up.
And remember that he had tried to promote himself as the king of Israel without any support from God and without any support from his father. He probably took it for granted that he would get what he wanted. And for the first time in his life perhaps he was defeated and the kingdom wound up in the hands of Solomon. But apparently Adonijah has not given up. And he has not given up his tendency to manipulate people to get what he wants. And so he decides to go to Bathsheba the mother of King Solomon.
Now he admits to Bathsheba that although everybody wanted him as king the Lord turned it around so that Solomon became king. Never the kind of a grudging admission that okay Solomon is king because the Lord chose him. But whether he really believed that is an open question. He had to say that to Bathsheba. But he blanched Bathsheba to go to King Solomon to ask him Solomon to give him Abishag the Shunammite as wife.
Now this was a very unusual request as I am sure you will recognize if you remember who Abishag was. When David got too old for his body to get warmth Abishag a very beautiful virgin woman was brought in to nurture King David. She did not marry him. She was not a wife. She was not a concubine. But she was very very close to David physically during the closing years of his life. It is presumptuous to say the least for Adonijah to come and say I want the woman who waited on my father in this way.
Now she was a very beautiful woman as the text of Kings is careful to inform us. And one suspects that Adonijah had some political motivations in this proposal. He could wind up with the woman who might almost have seemed to be David’s last queen. And Adonijah himself was a very handsome man. And the two of them probably would have cut quite a figure in Israel. And judging from the words that Solomon speaks to Bathsheba about it one suspects that behind this activity was the desire of Adonijah might perhaps attract attention to himself again. Maybe just maybe things would work out for him finally and the kingdom would turn back to him.
Now I have no idea why Bathsheba carried this request to Solomon. But you need to remember that as far as we can tell from Kings and Chronicles the queen mother was very important in Israel. She had a position of prestige. And you notice that when she comes to Solomon he sets up a throne at his right hand so she can sit down. And she says now listen I want you to listen carefully to my request. And the king says of course of course I am going to do that. And then she makes the request that Adonijah had made.
And did you notice at this point Solomon says boy this is a hard decision for me to make. I mean I can see that Adonijah is scheming behind this request. But this is my mother. How can I say no to my mother? Now we all know do not we that sometimes sometimes parents give us advice contrary to the Word of God and it takes a lot of wisdom. And sometimes it is hard to say no to them. But notice there is apparently no hesitation in Solomon here. And he says so why are you asking this for Adonijah? Why do you not just ask for him the kingdom also? You know it is going to have the ninety after. And he says then he swears by the Lord that Adonijah has spoken this word against his own life.
And notice the reason he gives through this in verse 24. “As the Lord lives who has established me and set me on the throne of David.” He recognizes his throne is from God. “And who has made me a house as He promised.” With apparent reference to God’s promise to David to establish his house and the house of his descendants. He is trying to be put to death. God has given me this throne. So Solomon I see myself as a part of God’s promise to David. I am not going to tolerate this kind of thing.
Obviously Solomon anticipates that Adonijah is going to be trouble from here on in. And so he orders his execution.
The next problem was Abiathar the priest who had sided with Adonijah when Adonijah tried to set himself up as king. And notice that this time the decision that Solomon makes is tempered with mercy. He says to Abiathar you really deserve to die for your part in the rebellion of Adonijah. But he says you carried the ark before my father. You underwent all of the hardships that my father went through in many of his trials. So I am not going to put you to death. But I am going to banish you from the priesthood. So that you must go back to your farm and you are never going to perform as priest again.
And notice that the writer of Kings tells us that he did this in verse 27 that he might fulfill the word of the Lord which He spoke concerning the house of Eli at Shiloh. Way back at the beginning of the book of Samuel God had pronounced a judgment upon the house of Eli because Eli had failed to restrain his sons and their misconduct as priests. And here Solomon carries out an action that fulfills the prophetic word of God.
The next problem is Joab. Now Joab is a smart guy and he can put two and two together. Another way of saying this is he can see the handwriting on the wall. He heard that Adonijah had been executed and that Abiathar had been banished to his farm. So Joab goes to the tabernacle the tent where God was worshiped. He goes inside the court of the tabernacle and he grabs the horns of the altar. Now the altar ever had four horns on it. This is apparently in the Old Testament something that people did a kind of symbolic act saying that they were putting themselves under the protection of the tabernacle of God.
And so the word gets back to Solomon that Joab has fled to the tabernacle and he is there by the altar. And Solomon says go strike him down. And Benaiah who is in charge of the mission goes to the tabernacle. But notice that Benaiah does not really carry out what Solomon had told him to do. The king says come out. He had not said come out. The king has said strike him down. But Benaiah does not want to. He hesitates to execute Joab right there by the altar of God. And Joab says no I am not coming out. He is going to die right here. And Benaiah goes back and says he will not come out.
And did you notice how Solomon said oh boy this is a real problem. We cannot get him out of the tabernacle and he needs to die because he is guilty of murder. And what in the world shall I do? Once again no hesitation on the part of King Solomon. And Solomon says go go do what he has said strike him down right there. And that is what Benaiah did.
Did Solomon know what he was doing? Of course he knew what he was doing. Remember the verse we read from Exodus that if a man is guilty of deliberate murder he is to be taken even from God’s altar. The altar itself cannot be a protection. And notice that in giving these final instructions to Benaiah that Solomon says to him I want you to take away from me and from the house of my father the guilt of this innocent blood because he killed two men who were better than he. He killed Amasa and he killed Abner. And he says I want the blood that he has shed to return upon his own head so that my house and my father’s house will be free of that guilt forever.
Remember the verse we read also from Numbers which said that the land cannot be cleansed of the innocent blood which is shed in the land except by the blood of the one who shed it. Solomon was here acting in accordance with the Word of God. He knew that Joab deserved to be executed. He knew that was the only way for the innocent blood to be put away. And he ordered Benaiah to go back and carry it out which is exactly what Benaiah did.
He was not just deterred from his decision by any superstitious reverence for the altar or even for the tabernacle of God. That sometimes am I not correct and say there sometimes we have a kind of a weird reluctance to do some things because it seems to cross something that a place an object a person that we consider holy to be interfered with in some way. And sometimes we may draw back from a necessary decision because of some superstitious reverence for something. Notice that it is Benaiah that worries about shedding his blood in the tabernacle not Solomon. He said go go do it. It has to be done. Benaiah this was the most delicate of all of the problems that David had left.
Because you remember that Shimei was the man when David was fleeing from Absalom. Shimei was the man who cursed him and had thrown rocks at him. And Abishai had invited David to order him to go kill Shimei. And David had refused. And then when David comes back as a victor and Absalom is dead Shimei comes and throws himself down to David’s feet and begs for forgiveness. And David says according to the book of Samuel “You shall not die.” Remember that the last time we looked at Kings we noticed that David has kind of pulled back from this as he is just about to die. He tells Solomon he said you know I I swore to him by the Lord that I will not kill you with the sword. That is not quite what David had said. And he says put your wise bring his gray hair down with blood. The gray hair shall fall I will not do this. It is a touchy tricky problem all right.
I think Solomon understands that he cannot execute Shimei for the crime he committed against David because David has already sworn to give him forgiveness. So that he cannot do even if that is what David wanted him to do. So he is not going to be influenced by the wishes of his father. He is trying to handle this properly. So he calls Shimei and he says listen you build yourself a house in Jerusalem but you stay in Jerusalem. That is my commandment. He takes an oath of the Lord from Shimei that Shimei will do that. He says the day you leave Jerusalem the day you cross the Brook Kidron that is your last day or you are going to die. Shimei actually that is fine good. And apparently he swears this oath. For three years everything is fine.
And please notice that if Shimei had kept this agreement he would never die by the hand of Solomon. So Solomon is not going to do this thing just because his dad wanted him to do it. Not right to do it in the way that his dad had asked him to do it. But now something happens. It is very ironical it seems to me. Remember that Shimei had met David when David was a fugitive and running away from Absalom. And he had no mercy on the fugitive right. He cursed him and threw stones at him.
Well the next thing you know after three years there are some fugitives from Shimei’s house. Two of his slaves run away to the city of Gath under the control of the Philistines. Does Shimei think to himself I should give these guys a break because maybe they did not like it? You are obviously they ran away. They did not much like being Shimei’s slaves. And furthermore I am not supposed to go out of Jerusalem anyway. So this is an opportunity for me to show mercy to these two fugitives of mine. Sorry sorry same old Shimei. No mercy on fugitive. He saddled his donkey goes to Gath gets his slaves back brings them home.
And he gets an invitation to appear before Solomon. And Solomon said did not I did not I tell you the oath that you would not leave Jerusalem? And you have done it. Why did you not keep my commandment? Did you not eat the oath of the Lord? But now he says you are going to die for this. And he says the wickedness that your heart knows which you showed toward my father David is this way coming back upon your head.
Notice the skill with which Solomon handles it. Shimei is actually executed for his disobedience to the king’s command for his breach of his oath to God. For this is God’s way of bringing back upon Shimei the guilt and punishment that he deserved. Notice that King Solomon says in verse 45 “But King Solomon shall be blessed and the throne of David shall be established before the Lord forever.” Notice the writer agrees with this. Verse 46 “Thus the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.”
Take away the wicked from before the king and his throne shall be established in righteousness.
That basically is the bottom line to this passage. That through a series of very excellent decisions Solomon has rid his kingdom of some wicked people people who had done wrong. And he has executed the judgment which as the king he had a right to execute upon them. And God establishes his throne because Solomon has begun with appropriate and wise decisions that he made before God.
Now none of us rule a kingdom of course. So the application of this is very obvious to us. One of the decisions that we have to make in our homes and our working life and our relationships with other people which we know we have to make. Not all of our decisions are easy or clear-cut. We understand that. And when the decision is doubtful we need to pray about it and study the Word. But if we know that a decision is right for us to make it is inappropriate for us to dance around it to avoid it to try to push it off to shove it off hope it will take care of itself. But we need to learn to do is to make the right appropriate decision based on the Word of God.
Notice that Solomon’s actions are based on a promise. He mentions the promise that God made. It is based on a prophecy. It is based on principles that are found in the Word of God. And our actions when they are based on God’s promises upon His predictions upon His principles which He shared with us in the Scripture that is when we can know that we have the mind and will of God for our decisions.
Some of you will recognize the name of Beverly Shea who went to a Bible college in Canada. And even at that time had a very very beautiful beautiful voice. Took training at Bible college. Then he took additional training in New York City. After he had received all of this training he was offered a contract with a radio station in New York City. And he requested that he might be able to sing gospel hymns which he loved to sing on the radio in New York City. But the people who were in charge of the radio program said that well maybe he could sing one of them once in a while but he really needed to sing the popular hit parade that was current. That is what they wanted him to sing.
And so he did not immediately accept the contract. His mother meanwhile was praying for him. And one Saturday night she put the words of a poem on the piano which Beverly Shea often played. And he sat down at the piano the next morning and he wrote a hymn that was based on these words. “I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold. I’d rather have Him than riches untold. I’d rather have Jesus than worldwide fame. I’d rather be true to His holy name.” He wrote that song which is now a very famous song. And he turned down the contract in New York City.
Now long after that he got an offer from a Chicago radio station. And the Chicago radio station was willing to give him permission to sing gospel songs. And he took that position in Chicago. And it was finally in Chicago that he met Billy Graham. As most of you already know Beverly Shea became the chief soloist and singer for the Billy Graham Crusades in ministry with Billy Graham. Why? Because he had his priorities straight in how to make a good decision.
And I think it is not inappropriate to say that the portion direction and nature of our lives will be determined by the decisions that we make whether good or bad. So if you have a decision before you ask God to give you the grace to do it His way and decide for Him.