Unfolding God’s Will: The Power of Prayers and Blessings in Solomon’s Ascension to the Throne
She 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.”
“…as I swore to you by the LORD, 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.” Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the ground, and did obeisance to the king, and said, “May my lord King David live forever!”
Benaiah son of Jehoiada answered the king, “Amen! May the LORD, the God of my lord the king, so ordain. As 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.”
Moreover 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 and went on to pray thus, ‘Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who today has granted one of my offspring to sit on my throne and permitted me to witness it.’”
Background
This story takes place near the end of David’s life and concerns his successor as king. Prayers and references to prayer are woven throughout: there are two prayer-vows and four blessings. The story itself is about some trouble among David’s sons and David’s failure to act quickly—a problem throughout his life. This one ends better than the others.
The prayers show that He is still acting through his people to resolve difficulties and fulfill His will.
The story opens with David as old, weak, sickly, and unable to perform sexually. For ancient people, the latter issue shows that his virility and power have left him as a leader. The oldest son is David’s fourth, Adonijah. The first, Amnon, had been murdered by the third, and the third, Absalom, had been killed by Joab for his actions against the king). We can presume that the second son is also dead because he is never mentioned. There is a younger son, Solomon, the one promised the kingship (as we learn in the story). But in that culture, Adonijah is the oldest and therefore the presumed heir.
Adonijah is described in glowing terms (from a popular perspective). He has a gathering of followers and has assembled some military men who are loyal to him. As he goes about the city, these soldiers run before his chariot. (If this sounds familiar, it stands in parallel with the description of Absalom before his rebellion, and the writer intends us to see that parallel.)
Just as David had failed to address Absalom’s growing power, so he fails to address Adonijah’s aspirations. We might forgive Adonijah for assuming this status belonged to him if it were not for the vow about Solomon. We might wonder if he knew about the promise about Solomon. But he gathers his followers—minus the priests and Solomon—and has himself anointed king without David’s knowledge. So it seems he did know. Besides that, David was not dead yet and had not sanctioned the anointing. So here we are again, with a serious leadership problem in Israel because David cannot confront the bad behavior of his own sons.
At this point in the story, there have been no prayers by Adonijah or those around him. The prophet Nathan tells Bathsheba (the mother of Solomon) of the anointing. She goes to David and reminds him of the prayer-vow he made to God that Solomon would be king after him (the first mention of a prayer in this story). Nathan then arrives and asks if David has changed his mind about his successor. (Nathan appears to be playing dumb in deference to the King.) David summons Bathsheba and restates the prayer-vow he made (a second mention of prayer in this story), asserting that he will keep that vow. She responds by offering a blessing upon him: ”May my lord King David live forever!” (The third prayer).
David is roused to action and makes an order that Solomon is to be crowned king immediately. The priests, military leaders, and people are called to attendance, as is fitting for a proper coronation. Solomon is proclaimed king and sits on the throne. When David’s pronouncement is made that there will be a new king, Benaiah offers the fourth prayer—another blessing—upon Solomon. These ceremonies stand in contrast to Adonijah’s ceremony, where only a few leaders were in attendance, no priests presided over it, and there are no prayers. Jonathan, the son of one of the priests, tells Adonijah what has happened. In the telling, he repeats the blessing said upon Solomon (in different words) and then tells of a blessing offered to God by David (the fifth and sixth prayers).
When Adonijah’s supporters hear the news, they abandon him. Adonijah fears that Solomon will kill him for his attempted usurpation. He runs to the altar and claims asylum. Solomon steps forward decisively, forgives Adonijah, and tells him to go home; he is safe.
Meaning
This is a brief story, but it contains six prayers. Some commentators note God is hardly mentioned in this story, except in the prayers. This story is about human actions, plots, and schemes. But it is in the prayers that we see God’s actions:
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