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I will give you what you have not asked for—both wealth and honor—so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings. (I Kings 3:13) |
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| Archived Manna: | |
Dear
Friend,
If you do not already have a habit of gathering daily manna the first thing in the morning (we can look at the example given to us in Exodus 16 and find the pattern for make it a habit. Establish your life and your schedule to allow you the necessary time to do your daily collection first thing every morning to give you the strength to make it through the day. And remember that today’s manna will not be sufficient for tomorrow; tomorrow’s manna must be collected tomorrow morning. Thursday, March 13, 2025
Today's Passage : Today's Passage :The Story of Solomon (3)3] Bible Verse:1 Kings 1:28-53(ESV) "Then King David swore, saying, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my soul out of every adversity, as I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,’ even so will I do this day. Call to me Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet.” And the king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord and have Solomon my son ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon. And there anoint him king over Israel. Then blow the trumpet and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ So they went down and had Solomon ride on King David's mule and brought him to Gihon. There Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the tent and anointed Solomon. Then they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, “Long live King Solomon!” And all the people went up after him, playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth was split by their noise. Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished feasting. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “What does this uproar in the city mean?” Jonathan (the son of Abiathar) answered, “Our lord King David has made Solomon king, and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you have heard. Solomon sits on the royal throne. And the king bowed himself on the bed.” Then all the guests of Adonijah trembled and rose, and each went his own way. And Adonijah feared Solomon. So he arose and went and took hold of the horns of the altar, saying, “Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.” And Solomon said, “If he will show himself a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the earth, but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.” So King Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and paid homage to King Solomon, and Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.”" Message:
Nothing spoils a good coronation feast like finding out you're not actually the king; David really sucks the fun out of Adonijah’s day.
There is not much to comment upon here, as the drama is straightforward. It does speak to the reverence towards YHWH in the time of David, that Adonijah would simply fold his cards. In most places and most times, this would have meant civil war, because Adonijah was not just popular; he had a legitimate claim to the throne (as David's oldest living son) and a powerful group backing him.
Mephibosheth kneeling before David
David the King
But David was the anointed king, chosen by God; and the anointing of Solomon and proclamation of his accession represents a triumph of godliness over the realpolitik. Both David and the priests of the tabernacle held such huge respect and influence at the end of David's reign, that David's proclamation and actions were guaranteed to prevail, no matter how much popular support Adonijah might have gained.
David faced the same sort of situation in his day. He twice refused to kill Saul when he had the chance, even when Saul was trying to hunt down David and murder him, because Saul had been anointed by God. (1 Sam. 24:4-22; 1 Sam. 26)
Adonijah’s taking hold of the horns of the altar, which sounds impressive, was probably symbolic rather than legal. That is, it was a dramatic means for Adonijah to plead for mercy in the name of God, not binding on David or Solomon. There is no Scripture making the horns of any altar a place of sanctuary, and no other instance in the Bible of a person's life being spared because he grabbed onto them. In fact, we will soon see someone in that very position killed on the spot, by Solomon’s order.
The only real sanctuary provision in the law was the establishment of six cities of refuge, to which men could flee after killing another; this prevented immediate retaliation by the victim’s relatives. But even there, the congregation would have a trial, and if the man had committed an intentional murder, he would not be allowed continued refuge. (E.g. Numbers 35:9-21)
Meditation : Prayer : Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen. |
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