1 Kings 2:10-25

a Foolish and Fatal Petition

1 Kings 2:10

So David's troubled life came to a close, but he has never ceased to lead the praises of the saints.

At the very beginning of his reign Solomon was confronted by a difficult problem. There was so close a connection in public opinion between the title to the crown and the possession of a deceased monarch's harem, that it would have been impossible to grant Adonijah's request without giving strong encouragement to his pretensions. Solomon treated Bathsheba with profound respect, but his love for her did not blind him to his duty to his realm, Proverbs 20:26.

Notice that solemn declaration, “As Jehovah liveth,” 1 Kings 2:24. It was common to the godly of those days. See 1 Kings 17:1. They would not use the phrase lightly nor flippantly, but with a profound realization of standing in the presence of God. Let us recall those words of our Lord, “As the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father,” John 6:57, and let us draw daily on His life, so that we may live-yet not we, but he in us and we in Him, Galatians 2:20.