In his commentary, American writer D Ralph Davis begins his analysis of 2 Kings 2 by telling the sad story of Officer Reinhold, a story from The Washington Times.Officer Reinhold, as he was called, sat in his patrol car at various locations in the Maryland village where he served as a deterrent to speeding motorists. Officer Reinhold was, however, a mere mannequin, dressed as a police patrolman and plonked behind the wheel of a departmental cruiser. After he had been sitting in the same location for two days (he was usually moved every 12 hours), someone smashed his car window and pilfered him. Ultimately police work cannot be done passively (i.e., with dummies); it takes, as people say today, a pro-active approach.
The point of the story is that, like police-work, the work of God’s kingdom cannot be approached passively. That indeed is the lesson of this chapter. As we move from 1 Kings 1 ro 1 Kings 2 we move from the succession to the establishment of that succession. There should be no difficulty in spotting that theme – it is repeated several times. See the following verses
12 So Solomon sat on the throne of his father David, and his rule was firmly established.
24 As surely as the LORD lives - he who has established me securely on the throne of my father David and has founded a dynasty for me as he promised
45, 46 King Solomon will be blessed, and David’s throne will remain secure (established) before the LORD for ever. Then the king gave the order to Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and he went out and struck Shimei down and killed him. The kingdom was now firmly established in Solomon’s hands.
24 As surely as the LORD lives - he who has established me securely on the throne of my father David and has founded a dynasty for me as he promised
45, 46 King Solomon will be blessed, and David’s throne will remain secure (established) before the LORD for ever. Then the king gave the order to Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and he went out and struck Shimei down and killed him. The kingdom was now firmly established in Solomon’s hands.
Notice too that death is a rather prominent feature here. A certain ruthlessness is necessary in the work of the kingdom. Our subject then is establishing or securing a throne – how the kingdom can be made safe, which involves a certain measure of sanctified viciousness. We consider two things – David’s words and Solomon’s actions.
David’s words on establishing the kingdom
David is close to death and so he uses his last reserves of strength to speak to his successor, his son Solomon, and to exhort him. We read that ‘When the time drew near for David to die, he gave a charge to Solomon his son.’ Transitions like this are often given prominence in Scripture – Jacob to Joseph, Moses to Joshua, etc. That is a lesson in itself. Such changes are important.
David begins (2) ‘I am about to go the way of all the earth.’ All men die and after that comes judgement. Every day there are obituaries in the national newspapers and death announcements in the local ones. Death bears thinking about.
We can divide what David says into two parts.
David is close to death and so he uses his last reserves of strength to speak to his successor, his son Solomon, and to exhort him. We read that ‘When the time drew near for David to die, he gave a charge to Solomon his son.’ Transitions like this are often given prominence in Scripture – Jacob to Joseph, Moses to Joshua, etc. That is a lesson in itself. Such changes are important.
David begins (2) ‘I am about to go the way of all the earth.’ All men die and after that comes judgement. Every day there are obituaries in the national newspapers and death announcements in the local ones. Death bears thinking about.
We can divide what David says into two parts.
1. His exhortations to obedience to establish the kingdom
He begins ‘So be strong, show yourself a man.’ Securing the kingdom calls for courage, for manliness; it cannot be done by wimps.
How is Solomon going to secure the kingdom? David goes on (3) ‘and observe what the LORD your God requires’.
And what does God require?
'Walk in his ways, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and requirements, as written in the Law of Moses.'
All of the law is to be kept.
Why must it be kept? See the end of verse 3 and verse 4
'So that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go, and that the LORD may keep his promise to me: If your descendants watch how they live, and if they walk faithfully before me with all their heart and soul, you will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.'
As ever, obedience to the law and enjoyment of the promise are linked together. The promise to David and the Law of Moses go together. They are perfectly compatible. God’s promise to David cannot fail but there is no way that Solomon is going to enjoy God’s blessing if he fails to take seriously the Law of God.
So what will secure the kingdom? Not advantageous trade treaties or wise alliances with other nations or a well-equipped and mobile army. No, the great need is for obedience to the holy law of God. Is that not what the New Testament teaches too? Think of the end of the Sermon on the Mount. Who is the blessed man? The man who not only hears the message but also obeys it. The same lesson is in Jesus’ parable of the sower.
So here is a lesson for nations, churches, families and individuals. What will establish a church? It is not a matter of tailoring the services to fit the clientele or learning the best evangelism techniques. It does not depend on Alpha courses or star guest speakers or money raising events. No, the key thing, firstly, is obedience. How far are we conforming to what is laid down in God’s Word? Are we walking in God’s ways? Do we ‘keep his decrees and commands, his laws and requirements, as written in the Law?’
On the individual level this is the first question too, surely. We cannot be saved by such means. God demands a perfect obedience and we cannot give that. We must look to the Lord Jesus for forgiveness. However, what is our aim? What are our aspirations? By what rule are we guided? Are we taking God’s Word seriously? Are we endeavouring to be conformed to the perfect image of Christ, the one who has kept the law in every way?
He begins ‘So be strong, show yourself a man.’ Securing the kingdom calls for courage, for manliness; it cannot be done by wimps.
How is Solomon going to secure the kingdom? David goes on (3) ‘and observe what the LORD your God requires’.
And what does God require?
'Walk in his ways, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and requirements, as written in the Law of Moses.'
All of the law is to be kept.
Why must it be kept? See the end of verse 3 and verse 4
'So that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go, and that the LORD may keep his promise to me: If your descendants watch how they live, and if they walk faithfully before me with all their heart and soul, you will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.'
As ever, obedience to the law and enjoyment of the promise are linked together. The promise to David and the Law of Moses go together. They are perfectly compatible. God’s promise to David cannot fail but there is no way that Solomon is going to enjoy God’s blessing if he fails to take seriously the Law of God.
So what will secure the kingdom? Not advantageous trade treaties or wise alliances with other nations or a well-equipped and mobile army. No, the great need is for obedience to the holy law of God. Is that not what the New Testament teaches too? Think of the end of the Sermon on the Mount. Who is the blessed man? The man who not only hears the message but also obeys it. The same lesson is in Jesus’ parable of the sower.
So here is a lesson for nations, churches, families and individuals. What will establish a church? It is not a matter of tailoring the services to fit the clientele or learning the best evangelism techniques. It does not depend on Alpha courses or star guest speakers or money raising events. No, the key thing, firstly, is obedience. How far are we conforming to what is laid down in God’s Word? Are we walking in God’s ways? Do we ‘keep his decrees and commands, his laws and requirements, as written in the Law?’
On the individual level this is the first question too, surely. We cannot be saved by such means. God demands a perfect obedience and we cannot give that. We must look to the Lord Jesus for forgiveness. However, what is our aim? What are our aspirations? By what rule are we guided? Are we taking God’s Word seriously? Are we endeavouring to be conformed to the perfect image of Christ, the one who has kept the law in every way?
2. His exhortations to eliminate enemies and be kind to friends to establish the kingdom
That is not all that David has to say. He goes on to tell Solomon that there are enemies that have to be dealt with (and friends too). In fact he names three different individuals and tells Solomon what to do in each case.
That is not all that David has to say. He goes on to tell Solomon that there are enemies that have to be dealt with (and friends too). In fact he names three different individuals and tells Solomon what to do in each case.
What to do about treacherous ones like Joab
5 'Now you yourself know what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me - what he did to the two commanders of Israel’s armies, Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether. He killed them, shedding their blood in peacetime as if in battle, and with that blood stained the belt round his waist and the sandals on his feet.'
He had also recently sided with Adonijah. Why David had not felt able to deal with Joab we cannot be sure but it is clear what Solomon must do. David says 'Deal with him according to your wisdom, but do not let his grey head go down to the grave in peace.'
There are times then when we must act ruthlessly. David knew how treacherous Joab was, a law to himself. The kingdom was in jeopardy. He could not be allowed to live. Similarly, for the sake of the kingdom we need to develop a ruthless side that treats sin with contempt. We must not get sucked in by it. We must be willing to remove from fellowship those who are unworthy and take a firm stand against what is false. We will say more about this below.
5 'Now you yourself know what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me - what he did to the two commanders of Israel’s armies, Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether. He killed them, shedding their blood in peacetime as if in battle, and with that blood stained the belt round his waist and the sandals on his feet.'
He had also recently sided with Adonijah. Why David had not felt able to deal with Joab we cannot be sure but it is clear what Solomon must do. David says 'Deal with him according to your wisdom, but do not let his grey head go down to the grave in peace.'
There are times then when we must act ruthlessly. David knew how treacherous Joab was, a law to himself. The kingdom was in jeopardy. He could not be allowed to live. Similarly, for the sake of the kingdom we need to develop a ruthless side that treats sin with contempt. We must not get sucked in by it. We must be willing to remove from fellowship those who are unworthy and take a firm stand against what is false. We will say more about this below.
What to do about loyal ones like Barzillai’s sons
On the other hand, says David (7) 'show kindness to the sons of Barzillai of Gilead and let them be among those who eat at your table. They stood by me when I fled from your brother Absalom.' David does not forget Barzillai’s act of kindness and as ruthless as we need to be with some we must never so harden ourselves that we forget to show kindness to those who are worthy of it. It is shameful when faithful servants are forgotten and treated as though they were nobodies. We must not let that happen. Prov 27:10 ‘Do not forsake your friend and the friend of your father.’
On the other hand, says David (7) 'show kindness to the sons of Barzillai of Gilead and let them be among those who eat at your table. They stood by me when I fled from your brother Absalom.' David does not forget Barzillai’s act of kindness and as ruthless as we need to be with some we must never so harden ourselves that we forget to show kindness to those who are worthy of it. It is shameful when faithful servants are forgotten and treated as though they were nobodies. We must not let that happen. Prov 27:10 ‘Do not forsake your friend and the friend of your father.’
What to do about difficult cases like that of Shimei
Finally, David mentions ‘Shimei son of Gera, the Benjamite from Bahurim.’ David recalls how he called down bitter curses on me the day I went to Mahanaim. When he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the LORD: I will not put you to death by the sword. But now, do not consider him innocent. You are a man of wisdom; you will know what to do to him. Bring his grey head down to the grave in blood.
Again David urges ruthlessness. Shimei was loyal to Solomon at this present time and, as we shall see, Solomon tried to ignore David’s advice at first. David was right, however. He saw what a threat Shimei was. There are things in our lives, things in the life of the church, things that can seem so innocent. We need to be very wary indeed about such things. Take care. Some of us do not want to be so ruthless but at times that is the best policy.
Finally, David mentions ‘Shimei son of Gera, the Benjamite from Bahurim.’ David recalls how he called down bitter curses on me the day I went to Mahanaim. When he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the LORD: I will not put you to death by the sword. But now, do not consider him innocent. You are a man of wisdom; you will know what to do to him. Bring his grey head down to the grave in blood.
Again David urges ruthlessness. Shimei was loyal to Solomon at this present time and, as we shall see, Solomon tried to ignore David’s advice at first. David was right, however. He saw what a threat Shimei was. There are things in our lives, things in the life of the church, things that can seem so innocent. We need to be very wary indeed about such things. Take care. Some of us do not want to be so ruthless but at times that is the best policy.
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