And God stirred him up another adversary ,.... One from the north, as the other was from the south: Rezon, the son of Eliadah, which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah : when David fought with him; and this man seeing the battle go against his master, and that he was like to be worsted, deserted him and fled, see 2 Samuel 8:3 . read more
And he gathered men unto him ,.... Perhaps some of the scattered forces of his master: and became captain over a band, when David slew them of Zobah ; some that escaped enlisted under this man, and lived by plunder the remainder of David's reign, and so in the reign of Solomon unto his old age, when his heart was turned away from God to idols, by his wives: and they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus ; Rezon and his men went thither, not in David's time, for... read more
And he was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon ,.... Not all the days of his life, see 1 Kings 5:4 , but all his days, from his first going into idolatry, to the end of his life: beside the mischief that Hadad did ; and which, whatever it was, was not done till this time; for either, when he got leave from Pharaoh to go into his country, he lay hid there, waiting an opportunity to seize upon it; or by means of Pharaoh he got himself to be king of it, through the permission... read more
Rezon the son of Eliadah - Thus God fulfilled his threatening by the prophet Nathan: If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men; 2 Samuel 7:14 . read more
And reigned in Damascus - Rezon was one of the captains of Hadadezer, whom David defeated. It seems that at this time Rezon escaped with his men; and; having lived, as is supposed, some time by plunder, he seized on Damascus, and reigned there till David took Damascus, when he subdued Syria, and drove out Rezon. But after Solomon's defection from God, Rezon, finding that God had departed from Israel, recovered Damascus; and joining with Hadad, harassed Solomon during the remaining part... 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
And God stirred him up another adversary [almost identical with 1 Kings 11:14 ], Rezon the son of Eliadah [Often identified with the Hezion of 1 Kings 15:18 , but on insufficient grounds. Whether he was a usurper, who had dethroned Hadad (see Jos; Ant; 6.5. 2), or an officer of Hadadezer's, who escaped either before or after the battle of 2 Samuel 8:3-5 , is uncertain. The following words agree equally well with either supposition], which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah ... read more
And he gathered men unto him and became captain over a band [either of rebels before or of fugitives after the defeat], when David slew them of Zobah [ Of Zobah, not in Hebrews "Them" must mean the Syrian army]: and they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein [As David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus ( 2 Samuel 8:6 ), this must have been some time after the defeat of the Syrians. But Keil argues that it cannot have been in the middle or later part of Solomon's reign, inasmuch as... 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