And the Lord stirred up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite ,.... Though he did not take his kingdom from him for his sin, he chastised him with the rod of men, as he said he would; suffering one, and then another, to rise up and disturb his peace in his old age, see 2 Samuel 7:14 . he was of the king's seed in Edom ; of the blood royal. read more
The Lord stirred up an adversary - A satan, שטן . When he sent to Hiram to assist him in building the temple of the Lord, he could say, There was no satan, see 1 Kings 5:4 ; and all his kingdom was in peace and security, - every man dwelt under his vine, and under his fig tree, 1 Kings 4:25 ; : but now that he had turned away from God, three satans rise up against him at once, Hadad, Rezon, and Jeroboam. read more
EXPOSITION SOLOMON 'S ADVERSARIES .—As the historian has collected together in 1 Kings 6:1-38 ; 1 Kings 7:1-51 ; 1 Kings 8:1-66 , all the information he can convey respecting the temple, and in 1 Kings 9:1-28 ; 1 Kings 10:1-29 . all the scattered notices respecting Solomon's power and greatness, so here he arranges in one section the history of Solomon's adversaries . It must not be supposed that the following records stand in due chronological order. The... read more
Premonitions of Wrath. Though the full weight of the judgment of God upon the sin of Solomon was not to come upon him in his lifetime, yet did he not, in this world, go altogether without punishment. The foreknowledge of the evils to come upon his family and people was in itself a heavy affliction. But in addition to this, the evening of his days was doomed to be disturbed. To this end— I. GOD STIRRED UP ADVERSARIES AGAINST HIM . 1 . In themselves these were... read more
The Divine Chastisements. I. CHASTISEMENT IS MERCY . Though the judgment was kept back, Solomon was meanwhile made to feel the rod of correction. We may be forgiven and yet chastised—yea, chastised because we are forgiven. "Whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth," etc. This, too, was mercy, for— 1 . It was fitted to lead him to seek God in truth . It is easier to feel and confess our folly and sin in adversity than when all is well with us, 2 . It revealed to... read more
The writer has reserved for this place the various troubles of Solomon’s reign, not allowing them to interrupt his previous narrative. He has, consequently, not followed chronological order. Hadad’s 1 Kings 11:23 and Rezon’s opposition belong to the early years of Solomon’s reign.Hadad was a royal title (perhaps, the Syriac name for “the Sun”) both in Syria and in Idumaea (compare Genesis 36:35; 1 Chronicles 1:51). read more
1 Kings 11:14. The Lord stirred up an adversary to Solomon All his glory, and riches, and human wisdom availed nothing to preserve his kingdom entire to his posterity, when he turned away from keeping God’s covenant, and fell into idolatry. Hadad the Edomite A young prince of the royal family of Idumea, who fled into Egypt when David conquered that country; and, finding favour with the king, settled there. read more
Solomon’s idolatry (11:1-43)Although some of Solomon’s marriages were for political purposes, most of his wives and concubines were probably given to him as gifts. These women usually brought their gods into Israel, and Solomon’s weakness in worshipping these gods led finally to his downfall (11:1-8). God’s judgment on Solomon and Israel was to bring the long-standing friction between northerners and southerners to a climax in the division of the kingdom. Only Solomon’s tribe Judah (which had... read more
an adversary = a Satan. read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Kings 11:14-25
While Solomon kept closely to God and to his duty there was no adversary nor evil occurrent (1 Kgs. 5:4), nothing to create him any disturbance or uneasiness in the least; but here we have an account of two adversaries that appeared against him, inconsiderable, and that could not have done any thing worth taking notice of if Solomon had not first made God his enemy. What hurt could Hadad or Rezon have done to so great and powerful a king as Solomon was if he had not, by sin, made himself mean... read more