Although Kings presents readers with a coherent history of Israel, the work contains enough shifts in literary style and point of view to make scholars suspect that it has had a complex literary history. Some specialists maintain that Kings is basically the work of a single author and attribute the shifts to the various sources that were employed in the composition; others have suggested that a preliminary version of Kings was produced and later revised one or more times. There is still much disagreement about the details of the book’s editorial history. Some scholars advocate an original edition in the time of Hezekiah (ca. 715–687/6 BCE) or Josiah (ca. 640–609), with final editing taking place sometime early in the exile (586–539), but others argue that the book was created in exilic or postexilic times and revised even later.
In addition to creating an impression of literary unity by presenting events in rough chronological sequence, Kings also uses other devices to give a coherent structure to the whole work. The most obvious of these devices are the formulaic introductions and conclusions used to frame the stories of individual rulers. The reign of each king is introduced with a note on the date of his accession, calculated according to the regnal year of the king in the neighboring kingdom (e.g., 1 Kings 15.1, 25). This system of correlative dating creates insoluble chronological problems within the whole work, but it has the effect of stressing the fundamental unity of Israel and Judah, even though the two kingdoms were technically separate political entities throughout much of their history. (On the problems of chronology in 1 and 2 Kings, see the table, “Chronology of the Kings of the Divided Monarchy,” on 1 Samuel.) The note of the king’s ac cession is followed by an indication of the length of his reign (1 Kings 15.2, 25) and, in the case of Judean kings, by a record of his age at accession and the name of his mother (1 Kings 15.2; 22.42). The king’s reign is then evaluated by the historian, and sometimes additional information is provided (1 Kings 15.3–5, 26). At the end of the account, readers are referred to other literary works for additional data. The king’s death, burial, and successor are then recorded (1 Kings 15.8, 27–28). Another feature of the literary structure of Kings is the use of the motif of prophecy and fulfillment, particularly in the history of the Northern Kingdom (1 Kings 13–2 Kings 17). Whenever the narrative records a prophet’s words concerning the fate of a king or dynasty, the fulfillment of that prophecy is usually noted (e.g., 1 Kings 14.7–11; 15.29–30).
Message
ALTHOUGH THE BOOKS OF KINGS in fact contain much historical information, their overall interest is religious rather than historiographic in the modern sense. Kings clearly reflects the theological concerns of Deuteronomy, although there is no unambiguous literary relationship between the two. The theology of Kings is most obvious in the evaluations made of each king and in the occasional comments on crucial historical events, such as the fall of the Northern Kingdom (2 Kings 17.1–23). Underlying this theology is the Deuteronomic principle that the Lord is Israel’s only God (Deut 6.4). The worship of other gods is forbidden, and all of the Lord’s covenant laws must be obeyed, including the requirement that the Lord may legitimately be worshiped in only one place (Deut 12). According to Kings, all of the Northern kings followed the evil example of their ancestor Jeroboam, who violated divine law by setting up rival sanctuaries outside of Jerusalem and by encouraging the people to worship the bull images he had set up in them (1 Kings 12.25–33). Later Northern kings, with the exception of Jehu, continued to worship other gods, particularly the Canaanite god Baal, and refused prophetic demands for re form. For these crimes the Northern Kingdom was eventually destroyed (2 Kings 17.1–23). In Judah Solomon’s willingness to allow the worship of other gods was punished by the loss of the Northern tribes (1 Kings 11). Yet God’s promise that David would have an eternal dynasty remained firm (2 Sam 7.1–17), in spite of the fact that Judean kings allowed irregular worship at sanctuaries outside of Jerusalem until the time of Hezekiah. Eventually, however, Judah too followed the evil ways of the Northern Kingdom and was punished. Jerusalem was destroyed, its inhabitants were exiled, and the monarchy came to an end. [ROBERT R. WILSON]
1 KINGS 1
The Struggle for the Succession
1King David was old and advanced in years; and although they covered him with clothes, he could not get warm. 2So his servants said to him, “Let a young virgin be sought for my lord the king, and let her wait on the king, and be his attendant; let her lie in your bosom, so that my lord the king may be warm.” 3So they searched for a beautiful girl throughout all the territory of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4The girl was very beautiful. She became the king’s attendant and served him, but the king did not know her sexually.
5Now Adonijah son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king” he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. 6His father had never at any time displeased him by asking, “Why have you done thus and so?” He was also a very handsome man, and he was born next after Absalom. 7He conferred with Joab son of Zeruiah and with the priest Abiathar, and they supported Adonijah. 8But the priest Zadok, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the prophet Nathan, and Shimei, and Rei, and David’s own warriors did not side with Adonijah.
9Adonijah sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fatted cattle by the stone Zoheleth, which is beside En-rogel, and he invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the royal officials of Judah, 10but he did not invite the prophet Nathan or Benaiah or the warriors or his brother Solomon.
11Then Nathan said to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, “Have you not heard that Adonijah son of Haggith has become king and our lord David does not know it? 12Now therefore come, let me give you advice, so that you may save your own life and the life of your son Solomon. 13Go in at once to King David, and say to him, ‘Did you not, my lord the king, swear to your servant, saying: Your son Solomon shall succeed me as king, and he shall sit on my throne? Why then is Adonijah king?’ 14Then while you are still there speaking with the king, I will come in after you and confirm your words.”
15So Bathsheba went to the king in his room. The king was very old; Abishag the Shunammite was attending the king. 16Bathsheba bowed and did obeisance to the king, and the king said, “What do you wish?” 17She said to him, “My lord, you swore to your servant by the LORD your God, saying: Your son Solomon shall succeed me as king, and he shall sit on my throne. 18But now suddenly Adonijah has become king, though you, my lord the king, do not know it. 19He has sacrificed oxen, fatted cattle, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the children of the king, the priest Abiathar, and Joab the commander of the army; but your servant Solomon he has not invited. 20But you, my lord the king—the eyes of all Israel are on you to tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. 21Otherwise it will come to pass, when my lord the king sleeps with his ancestors, that my son Solomon and I will be counted offenders.”
22While she was still speaking with the king, the prophet Nathan came in. 23The king was told, “Here is the prophet Nathan.” When he came in before the king, he did obeisance to the king, with his face to the ground. 24Nathan said, “My lord the king, have you said, ‘Adonijah shall succeed me as king, and he shall sit on my throne’? 25For today he has gone down and has sacrificed oxen, fatted cattle, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the king’s children, Joab the commandera of the army, and the priest Abiathar, who are now eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ 26But he did not invite me, your servant, and the priest Zadok, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon. 27Has this thing been brought about by my lord the king and you have not let your servants know who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?”
The Accession of Solomon
28King David answered, “Summon Bathsheba to me.” So she came into the king’s presence, and stood before the king. 29The king swore, saying, “As the LORD lives, who has saved my life from every adversity, 30as I swore to you by the LO
RD, the God of Israel, ‘Your son Solomon shall succeed me as king, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,’ so will I do this day.” 31Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the ground, and did obeisance to the king, and said, “May my lord King David live forever!”
32King David said, “Summon to me the priest Zadok, the prophet Nathan, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada.” When they came before the king, 33the king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord, and have my son Solomon ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon. 34There let the priest Zadok and the prophet Nathan anoint him king over Israel; then blow the trumpet, and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ 35You shall go up following him. Let him enter and sit on my throne; he shall be king in my place; for I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.” 36Benaiah son of Jehoiada answered the king, “Amen! May the LORD, the God of my lord the king, so ordain. 37As the LORD has been with my lord the king, so may he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.”
38So the priest Zadok, the prophet Nathan, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, went down and had Solomon ride on King David’s mule, and led him to Gihon. 39There the priest Zadok 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!” 40And all the people went up following him, playing on pipes and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth quaked at their noise.
41Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished feasting. When Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “Why is the city in an uproar?” 42While he was still speaking, Jonathan son of the priest Abiathar arrived. Adonijah said, “Come in, for you are a worthy man and surely you bring good news.” 43Jonathan answered Adonijah, “No, for our lord King David has made Solomon king; 44the king has sent with him the priest Zadok, the prophet Nathan, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they had him ride on the king’s mule; 45the priest Zadok and the prophet Nathan have anointed him king at Gihon; and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you heard. 46Solomon now sits on the royal throne. 47Moreover the king’s servants came to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘May God make the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater than your throne.’ The king bowed in worship on the bed 48and went on to pray thus, ‘Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who today has granted one of my off-springb to sit on my throne and permitted me to witness it.’”
49Then all the guests of Adonijah got up trembling and went their own ways. 50Adonijah, fearing Solomon, got up and went to grasp the horns of the altar. 51Solomon was informed, “Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon; see, he has laid hold of the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not kill his servant with the sword.’” 52So Solomon responded, “If he proves to be a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the ground; but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.” 53Then King Solomon sent to have him brought down from the altar. He came to do obeisance to King Solomon; and Solomon said to him, “Go home.”
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a Gk: Heb the commanders
b Gk: Heb one
1.1–53 1 Kings opens with an account of the political intrigue that finally led to the accession of Solomon, whose reign claims a large share of the narrator’s attention (chs. 1–11). The first two chapters of the book are actually the conclusion of the “throne succession narrative” (2 Sam 9–20), perhaps an originally independent literary work that some scholars ascribe to an eyewitness to the events being described. As a whole, the narrative shows that in spite of David’s character flaws and the self-destructive tendencies within the royal family itself, God was nevertheless willing to honor the promise that David’s dynasty would be eternal (2 Sam 7.1–17). For the narrator the accession of Solomon is a definitive sign of the promise’s fulfillment.
1.1 A considerable number of years seems to have elapsed between the events recounted in 2 Sam 20 and those recorded here, for David’s health has deteriorated drastically enough to trigger various plots to ensure the continued operation of the government.
1.3 The zeal of David’s servants to find a beautiful maiden leads them as far as Shunem (modern Solem), a site slightly to the north of the town of Jezreel, at the western end of the Jezreel Valley.
1.5–6 With the death of Amnon (2 Sam 13.28–29) and Absalom (2 Sam 18.14–15) and the apparent death of Chileab (2 Sam 3.2–5), Adonijah is David’s oldest son and therefore a logical choice to be the ailing king’s successor. However, the principle of primogeniture was not yet established in Israel, and the pro-Solomonic narrative hints that Adonijah’s actions are treasonous, describing them in the same language used earlier to describe Absalom’s failed attempt to seize the throne from his father (2 Sam 14.25; 15.1).
1.7–8 Joab, the veteran commander of David’s regular army, and Abiathar, one of David’s high priests, support Adonijah, but Zadok, the other high priest, Benaiah, the commander of David’s private mercenary forces, and Nathan, the prophet, along with two otherwise unknown officials, are excluded from Adonijah’s plans and ultimately support the accession of Solomon.
1.9 En-rogel, a spring a short distance south of Jerusalem, where the stone Zoheleth (“Serpent’s Stone”) marked a sacred spot.
1.11–27 Nathan’s plan to obtain the throne for Solomon involves reminding David of an oath not otherwise mentioned in Samuel or Kings. The prophet’s reasons for pressing Solomon’s case are never stated, but the narrative is careful to exclude Solomon himself from the plots that lead to his enthronement.
1.28 In the dialogues with David the narrator assumes that only one person at a time has an audience with the king.
1.33 In Davidic Israel horses were not yet used for riding, and the mule was a mode of transportation reserved for royalty (2 Sam 13.29; 18.9; Zech 9.9). Gihon, a spring located south of Jerusalem on the western side of the Kidron Valley and slightly to the north of En-rogel, well within the hearing of Adonijah and his party.
1.34–35 Solomon is appointed both David’s successor and his coregent. The practice of having a king anointed by a prophet recalls the earlier consecration of Saul (1 Sam 10.1) and David (1 Sam 16.1–13) and probably represents God’s direct choice of the king (cf. 1 Kings 19.15–16; 2 Kings 9.1–10). Solomon is called both king and ruler, the latter title being one also given to Saul (1 Sam 9.16; 10.1) and David (1 Sam 25.30).
1.38 Cherethites, Pelethites, units in David’s private mercenary army (2 Sam 8.18; 20.23).
1.48 David here recalls Nathan’s earlier oracle promising the king an eternal dynasty (2 Sam 7.12).
1.49–53 Horns of the altar, projections attached to each of the altar’s four corners (Ex 29.12; 30.10; Lev 4.7). Because of the sanctity of the altar, a person who had inadvertently committed a crime could touch the altar and claim sanctuary, but this right was not given to willful criminals (Ex 21.14; 1 Kings 2.28–35).
1 KINGS 2
David’s Instruction to Solomon
1When David’s time to die drew near, he charged his son Solomon, saying: 2“I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, be courageous, 3and keep the charge of the LORD your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his ordinances, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, so that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn. 4Then the LORD will establish his word that he spoke concerning me: ‘If your heirs take heed to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail you a successor on the throne of Israel.’
5“Moreover you know also what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me, how he dealt with the two commanders of the armies of Israel, Abner son of Ner, and Amasa son of Jether, whom he murdered, retaliating in time of peace for blood that had been shed in war, and putting the
blood of war on the belt around his waist, and on the sandals on his feet. 6Act therefore according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to Sheol in peace. 7Deal loyally, however, with the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at your table; for with such loyalty they met me when I fled from your brother Absalom. 8There is also with you Shimei son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim, who cursed me with a terrible curse on the day when I went to Mahanaim; but when he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the LORD, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’ 9Therefore do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man; you will know what you ought to do to him, and you must bring his gray head down with blood to Sheol.”
Death of David
10Then David slept with his ancestors, and was buried in the city of David. 11The time that David reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 12So Solomon sat on the throne of his father David; and his kingdom was firmly established.
Solomon Consolidates His Reign
13Then Adonijah son of Haggith came to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother. She asked, “Do you come peaceably?” He said, “Peaceably.” 14Then he said, “May I have a word with you?” She said, “Go on.” 15He said, “You know that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel expected me to reign; however, the kingdom has turned about and become my brother’s, for it was his from the LORD. 16And now I have one request to make of you; do not refuse me.” She said to him, “Go on.” 17He said, “Please ask King Solomon—he will not refuse you—to give me Abishag the Shunammite as my wife.” 18Bathsheba said, “Very well; I will speak to the king on your behalf.”
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