CRITICAL AND EXPLANATORY NOTES.—
1 Kings 1:16. Bowed and did obeisance—The latter word denoting the prostrate attitude customary in the East before kings.
1 Kings 1:21. Shall be counted offenders—Counted is not in the Hebrew, though implied in the connexion; they will be חַטָּאִים—i.e., guilty of a capital crime, treated as traitors deserving death.
HOMILETICS OF 1 Kings 1:15-21
THE PERSUASIVE PLEADING OF AN ANXIOUS MOTHER
I. Is profoundly deferential. Bathsheba hesitates not to venture at once into the inner chamber of the aged and dying king. Her maternal instincts and concern for her son’s future render her courageous. Her presence pleaded eloquently, but her speech, tremulous with the conflicting emotions of the wife and mother, was overwhelming. “Bathsheba bowed and did obeisance unto the king” (1 Kings 1:16). She paid every respect due to David as her prince and husband. If we would find favour with superiors, we must show them becoming respect. We should cherish a dutiful regard towards those from whom we expect kindness. Nothing is ever lost by sincere politeness. It evidences a refined and gentle spirit. It propitiates the most morose, and often wins a favourable reception in the most difficult suit. It succeeds where an unmannerly brusqueness fails. It is irresistible in a true woman. Life is not so short but there is always time enough for courtesy.
II. Urges the religious obligation of an oath. 1 Kings 1:17, “Thou swarest by the Lord thy God.” A conscientious man is morally bound by his promised word; but an oath is inviolable. We are engaged if we have promised; if we have sworn, we are bound. Neither heaven nor earth has any gyves for that man who can recklessly shake off the fetters of an oath. Such a man has no regard for that God whose awful name he dare invoke to a falsehood. He who cares not for God will not care for man. It is a powerful leverage to move a man to right action when we can remind him of his solemnly pledged word. An oath should be religiously remembered and conscientiously fulfilled. It is a duty we owe to both God and man. Even the highest in authority should be faithfully reminded of this duty, and warned as to the consequences of a careless repudiation of trust. A faithful friend in a palace is rare.
III. Graphically depicts the distraction of rebellion (1 Kings 1:18-19).
1. The throne is seized by an ungrateful son. “Adonijah reigneth.” Without waiting for the death of his father, or seeking his sanction, and even without his knowledge, the presumptuous son assumes all the authority and external display of royalty. Had his right to the succession been ever so good, such conduct was undutiful and treasonable. An unprincipled ambition corrupts natural affection: it acknowledges obedience to none but its own imperious will.
2. Excessive festivity prevails. Indulgence is often provocative of vain boasting, extravagant designs, and riotous conduct. It leads to cruelty and disaster.
3. The members of the royal family and the true friends of the aged king are seduced from their allegiance. There was disorder in the household. The children of David repaid his paternal kindness with unfaithfulness and wild rebellion. The ingratitude of children, for whom so much has been sacrificed and endured, is one of the sharpest pangs of a disappointed parent’s heart. Polygamy, in however limited a degree, is a prolific source of domestic trouble. Any violation of the moral order carries with it its own Nemesis. The infidelity of Abiathar and Joab—men with whom he had repeatedly trusted his life—was a severe blow to David. Little does the renegade friend think of the anguish caused by his treachery. Confidence in human nature is shattered.
4. The king-designate is ignored. “But Solomon thy servant”—not thy sovereign, as Adonijah affects to be—“hath he not called.” He is evidently regarded as a rival, and every attempt is made to prevent his gaining the throne. It is not an oversight, but a contempt of the act of settlement, which had been made sufficiently public, that Solomon is neglected. All the fondly cherished plans of David are threatened with a rude and ignominious overthrow. The scene of confusion created by the rebels, thus graphically presented, was calculated to deeply affect the dying monarch—as the husband, the father, and the king.
IV. Earnestly advocates the pressing claims of the nation (1 Kings 1:20). The rebellion had not gone so far as that of Absalom’s in stealing away the hearts of the people. There was a grave pause in the kingdom. The people hesitated what to do, until the royal intention was publicly proclaimed. David was too firmly seated in the affections of his subjects to allow them to act without the knowledge of his declared will. This ominous silence of the national voice was Nathan’s opportunity and Adonijah’s doom. In troublous times the nation looks to the king. In him is vested supreme authority. He is the guide and defender of the empire. The interests of all are in his keeping; and his power should ever be exercised on the side of justice, equity, and peace. A divine sentence is in the lips of the king. “That thou shouldest tell them who shall sit on the throne.” This some princes love not to do—Queen Elizabeth, for instance. A false Jesuit wrote that she wished she might, after her death, hang awhile in the air, to see what scuffling there would be for her kingdom. Men should use whatever power or influence they possess, not in compassing their own selfish ends, but in advancing the kingdom of the Messiah.
V. Is full of genuine pathos.
1. A mournful contingency is referred to (1 Kings 1:21). “When my Lord shall sleep with his fathers.” Here the heart of the wife speaks out. It was evident David’s end was near; and Bathsheba could not contemplate that event without deep emotion. Death is compared to a sleep. Beautiful simile! Such a view robs death of its terror, and soothes the sorrow of the bereaved. Death is but the gentle sinking of the tired and spent body into the lap of rest. Silently it reposes among the hallowed dust of bye-gone generations, until the last great trumpet shall wake it into newness of life.
2. A tender allusion is made to threatened personal peril. “I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders.” Here the heart of the mother speaks out. It is suggested by some commentators that, probably, Adonijah had spoken slightingly of Bathsheba as an adultress and of Solomon as illegitimate, and, therefore, not fit to be king. The reputation of mother and son was in danger, and must be protected. Not only so: if Adonijah succeeded, they would both be reckoned traitors and public enemies, and their lives sacrificed. Adonijah would not have dealt so mercifully with Solomon as Solomon did with him. He who usurps a throne will stop at no cruelty to secure himself in it. If anything will rouse the soul into earnest concern, it is the peril to which those dear to it are exposed.
LESSONS:—
1. The mother exerts a powerful influence on the destiny of the family.
2. It is an unspeakable advantage for a youthful prince to have a wise and capable mother.
3. The eloquence of a mother’s heart is irresistible.
GERM NOTES ON THE VERSES
1 Kings 1:15-21. Bathsheba before the king. She reminds him of his duty—
1. Towards God, before whom he had sworn. What one has vowed before God, according to God’s will, one must hold to under all circumstances; of this one must remind kings and princes.
2. Towards the people, whose well-being and whose woe were in his keeping. The great responsibility of him towards whom all eyes are directed.
3. Towards the wife and son, whose happiness and life were at stake. Woe to the father through whose guilt wife and children, after his death, fall into contempt and wretchedness.—Lange.
1 Kings 1:16. “What wouldest thou?” A question the King of Heaven is ever asking—
1. The perplexed enquirer.
2. The penitent suppliant.
3. The complaining sufferer.
4. The solitary mourner.
5. The ambitious self-seeker.
1 Kings 1:18. “Thou knowest it not. The isolation of the aged and infirm—
1. Presents a melancholy contrast to the joyous excitement of an active life.
2. Renders them oblivious of the most important events of the outside world.
3. Ignorant of the calamities that threaten their dearest interests.
4. Familiarizes their minds with suffering and approaching death.
5. Calls for the kindly attention and sympathy of loving hearts.
1 Kings 1:20. The grave responsibilities of the monarch. 1. All eyes are turned to him in times of national distress.
2. He is expected to promptly and effectually crush rebellion.
3. The best interests of his subjects should be his chief concern.
4. He should make the wisest arrangements for the future peace and stability of the kingdom.
5. He is accountable to God, from whom he derives his authority.