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Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - 1 Kings 1:19-20

1 Kings 1:19-20. Solomon thy servant She speaks very submissively, and calls herself his handmaid, and her son his servant. The eyes of all Israel are upon thee This she said that she might free him from all fear of such a rebellion as Absalom raised; the people not being yet joined to Adonijah, but continuing in suspense till the king had declared his mind about his successor. read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - 1 Kings 1:1-53

1:1-4:34 SOLOMON ESTABLISHES HIS KINGDOMSolomon becomes king (1:1-53)David was old and his health was failing. He needed a nurse with him continually, one of her duties being to lie with him in bed to give him warmth. Although this nurse, Abishag, was not David’s concubine, many people apparently thought she was (1:1-4; see note on 2:22).Adonijah, David’s oldest surviving son, decided to establish himself as king while David was still alive, and so prevent any possible claim to the throne by... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - 1 Kings 1:20

thou = thou therefore. Some codices, with three early printed editions, and Aramaean, read "And now". See note on 1 Kings 1:18 . read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - 1 Kings 1:21

sleep with his fathers. See note on Deuteronomy 31:16 . offenders. See App-44 . read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - 1 Kings 1:20

20. the eyes of all Israel are upon thee, that thou shouldest tell them who shall sit on the throne—When the kings died without declaring their will, then their oldest son succeeded. But frequently they designated long before their death which of their sons should inherit the throne. The kings of Persia, as well as of other Eastern countries, have exercised the same right in modern and even recent times. read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - 1 Kings 1:21

21. I and my son . . . shall be counted offenders—that is, slain, according to the barbarous usage of the East towards all who are rivals to the throne. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - 1 Kings 1:5-53

2. Adonijah’s attempt to seize the throne 1:5-53Adonijah ("Yahweh is lord") was David’s fourth son (2 Samuel 3:4) and the eldest one living at this time. Evidently he believed it was more important that the eldest son succeed David, as was customary in the Near East, than that the king of Yahweh’s anointing occupy that position. God had identified Solomon as David’s successor even before Solomon was born (1 Chronicles 22:9-10). Adonijah’s revolt was primarily against the revealed will of God,... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Kings 1:1-53

An Intrigue for the SuccessionThis chapter relates Adonijah’s attempt to obtain the succession, its defeat through the agency of Nathan, and the enthronement of Solomon. The history contained in it is omitted in 1 Ch, where, however, mention is made of Solomon’s having been crowned not once only but twice (1 Chronicles 29:22). Probably the second occasion corresponds to what is related in 1 Kings 1:39 (cp. 1 Chronicles 29:24 with 1 Kings 1:53).1. Now] better, ’and,’ connecting this book with... read more

Charles John Ellicott

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - 1 Kings 1:21

(21) Shall sleep with his fathers.—Here this phrase, so constantly used in the record of the death of the kings, occurs in these books for the first time. (It is also found in the message of promise by Nathan. 2 Samuel 7:12, relating to the succession of the son who should build the Temple.) We find corresponding expressions in Genesis 15:15; Deuteronomy 31:16. Without connecting with the use of this phrase anything like the fulness of meaning which in the New Testament attaches to “the sleep”... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Bible Commentary - 1 Kings 1:1-53

AN EASTERN COURT AND HOME1 Kings 1:1-53"Pride, fullness of bread, and abundance of idleness."Ezekiel 16:49A MAN does not choose his own destiny; it is ordained for higher ends than his own personal happiness. If David could have made his choice, he might, indeed, have been dazzled by the glittering lure of royalty; yet he would have been in all probability happier and nobler had he never risen above the simple life of his forefathers. Our saintly king in Shakespeare’s tragedy says:-"My crown is... read more

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