By Rebecca Tankersley
This week, we’ll read the penultimate lesson in our summer journey through the rise of the monarchy in ancient Israel. Our passage from 1 Kings this weekend opens with David’s death. He’s recovered from that little incident with Bathsheba and ruled God’s people for 40 years.
Problem is – David’s sons are a mess! It’s probably for the best our lectionary editors don’t have us read their stories. Here’s what’s gone on over the course of David’s life. David’s oldest son was Amnon. He fell in lust for his half-sister, Tamar, and instead of asking David to allow him to marry her, he raped her. Tamar’s brother was Absalom, David’s long-time favorite child. When he learned that his half-brother had raped his sister, he bided his time for two years, then threw a huge feast for all of David’s sons, got Amnon drunk, and then had his servants murder Amnon. In addition to avenging his sister’s rape, Absalom is now David’s oldest and heir-apparent. Not content to wait for his father’s death to become king, Absalom begins a smear campaign against his father and, four years later, declares himself king and marches on Jerusalem. David has to flee for his life, a battle ensues, and eventually David’s commander, Joab, finds Absalom and kills him. David is dejected.
With Amnon and Absalom out of the way, Adonijah is David’s eldest living son. As David’s death draws nearer, Adonijah begins to gather followers in preparation for succeeding his father on the throne. He’s not as bold as Absalom – David is clearly elderly at this time and Adonijah doesn’t try to stage a coup. Nevertheless, when the prophet Nathan learns of Adonijah’s actions, he and Bathsheba convince David to publicly signal that Solomon, not Adonijah, is his chosen successor. David commissions Nathan and Zadok the priest to parade Solomon throughout the area on David’s mule and then to anoint him king over Israel. “Blow the trumpet,” David tells them. “Shout, ‘Long live King Solomon!’” Then David has Solomon sit on the throne – just to get the message out.
When David knows that his time is drawing near, he calls Solomon to his bedside to give him some final fatherly advice. He sounds almost prophetic as he says to his son:
Be strong, be courageous, and 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. Then 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.
Of course, then the whole scene becomes like an ancient prelude to the Godfather as David gives Solomon a list of enemies to be killed and loyalists to be rewarded. But, at least David started on the right track as he was handing over the kingdom. “Then David slept with his ancestors, and was buried in the city of David” (1 Kings 2:10).
With these words, we enter the story this week. Look closely at your bulletin this week. We’ll read 1 Kings 2:10-12; 3:3-14. Notice the semicolon. What’s omitted is a description of Solomon carrying out his father’s instructions, settling old scores one by one. First, he has Adonijah executed so that no one can threaten his claim to the throne. Then he banishes Abiathar the priest for his part in helping Adonijah. He executes Joab and Shimei on David’s orders. Chapter 2 of 1 Kings concludes: “So the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.” But we won’t read any of this in worship this week.
Instead, we’ll skip straight from David’s death to this verse: “Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of his father David; only he sacrificed and offered incense at the high places.” This sets up a pattern that will repeat throughout the rest of the account of the monarchy in ancient Israel. With that one little word – “only” – we learn that Solomon did not keep all of God’s commandments. He kept them, except … only he sacrificed and offered incense at high places associated with other gods. Right here, our story through the rise of the monarchy in ancient Israel becomes a story of the rise and fall of the monarchy in ancient Israel.
The rest of our reading this week will be able God offering Solomon the opportunity to ask for anything he wants – anything at all. Humbly, admirably, Solomon responds by asking for “an understanding mind to govern [God’s] people” for the ability to discern between good and evil. Solomon asks for wisdom. And God is so blown away that God gives Solomon both wisdom and wealth.
If we leave the story here, it seems that all is well. Solomon is king, and he’s clearly going to be a good king. God’s promise to David – that if his descendants would walk in God’s ways and follow God’s laws there would be a descendant of David on the throne forever and ever – seems secure.
Remember back where we started? That the role of the king is to meditate on God’s law, day and night? Remember there are three things God says any king of Israel must not acquire – many horses, many wives, or amass silver and gold? Remember how we understood that this meant kings were not to amass armies, conclude treaties with other nations, or establish treasuries?
Read the rest of 1 Kings, friends. Keep in mind these requirements for kings as you do. Solomon will violate each and every commandment of God. He’ll be the final king of a united Israel. As Fr. Michael recently pointed out, it’s all downhill from here. Until, that is, until one day in the distant future an angel will visit a maiden and say, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.”