David was about 70 years old at this time, which was the average life expectancy according to Psalm 90, and in very poor health. Abishag was brought in to be a nurse to him in a manner very unconventional to us today. But the Bible is clear that this was not a sexual arrangement, albeit an awkward one for a young girl to be cuddling an elderly king! In his infirmity, David's oldest son Adonijah makes a run at the throne but is thwarted by Solomon's mother Bathsheba as well as David's loyal advisers. Though Solomon had already been named as David's successor, the proclamation was made again during Adonijah's self-propelled inauguration banquet. That successfully squelched Adonijah's plans and sent his supporters fleeing. Adonijah himself ran to the tent of meeting to grab onto the horns of the altar. Evidently, this was a practice used by people accused of a crime. The horns provided safety until a judgement could be rendered. If the accused were found guilty of their crime, they would be removed from the altar to serve out the appropriate punishment. Adonijah was essentially pardoned by Solomon for his act of treason.
Tomorrow's reading: 1 Kings 2:1-12; 2 Samuel 23:1-7; 1 Chron. 29:26-30; Psalm 4,5,6,8,9,11
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment