1 Kings 1:15-21

B. BATHSHEBA'S IMPASSIONED PLEA 1:15-21

TRANSLATION

(15) Then Bathsheba went unto the king to the chamber (now the king was very old and Abishag the Shunammite was ministering unto the king). (16) And Bathsheba bowed, and did homage unto the king. And the king said, What is your concern? (17) And she said to him, O my lord, you surely swore by the LORD your God to your handmaid, surely Solomon your son shall rule after me, and shall sit upon my throne! (18) But now, behold, Adonijah reigns; and now, my lord the king, you do not know it! (19) And he has slam oxen, fatlings and sheep in abundance, and he has summoned all the sons of the king, Abiathar the priest and Joab the captain of the host; but Solomon your servant he has not summoned. (20) And as for you, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are upon you that you might declare to them who shall sit upon the throne of my lord the king after him. (21) For it shall come to pass when my lord the king lies down with his fathers, that surely I and my son Solomon will become transgressors.

COMMENTS

Bathsheba was more than willing to cooperate with Nathan. She went immediately to the bedchamber of her husband, the only place where the feeble king could hold audience. There, in the presence of his nurse and constant attendant (1 Kings 1:15), Bathsheba bowed herself and received David's permission to state her business (1 Kings 1:16). Abandoning the rhetorical question technique suggested by Nathan, Bathsheba by direct affirmation reminded David of the oath he had given to her that Solomon would succeed him on the throne (1 Kings 1:17). She then informed him that Adonijah had proclaimed himself King (1 Kings 1:18). In support of her charge against Adonijah, she described the feast which he had prepared, listed the guests he had invited, (Joab and Abiathar were there) and, most important, the person he had not invited, viz., Solomon (1 Kings 1:19). That Adonijah would invite all the sons of the king except Solomon clearly showed that his banquet was something more than a fellowship supper!

Bathsheba's appeal reached its climax in the carefully chosen words recorded in 1 Kings 1:20-21. She says in effect, Adonijah has made his move; but it is you (the Hebrew emphasizes the pronoun), O king, who must make the decision as to your successor. Bathsheba was not requesting David's abdication, but rather she was suggesting that it was imperative that he appoint a coregent, or at least designate a successor. That all Israel was looking to the king suggests that the majority of the people had not yet attached themselves to the cause of Adonijah. It would appear from 1 Kings 1:20 that an Israelite king could nominate his successor. Only when the dead king's wishes were unknown could the eldest son claim the right of succession.[92] If David took no action, the throne would go to Adonijah by default upon his death.[93] Then, Bathsheba reminded David, both she and Solomon would be regarded as political offenders, i.e., traitors (1 Kings 1:21). Bathsheba left to David's imagination what she and her son might expect as offenders at the hands of the usurper.

[92] Slotki, SBB, p. 5.
[93] The phrase lie down with his fathers in the case of David cannot mean that he was to be buried in his family tomb. These words suggest the belief that one joins his ancestors when he dies. The expression normally points to a peaceful death, being only once used otherwise (1 Kings 22:39 f.).