THUS assured of the continuance of his kingdom, David began by a series of conquests to extend his power beyond the immediate boundaries of his own people, and to found an imperial dominion, which for the first time realized the prophetic description contained in the Promise made to his forefather Abraham (Gen. xv. 18–21).
As instrumental to these conquests the military organization286 of the Israelites was now materially developed, and David was enabled within ten years after the reduction of the fortress of Jebus to push his conquests far and wide, and get him a name like unto the name of the great men that are in the earth (2 Sam. vii. 9).
1. On the South-west he turned his arms against his old enemies the Philistines, and subdued them, capturing Gath with its daughter towns287 (1 Chr. xviii. 1).
2. On the South-east the Edomites felt the weight of his arms. Together with Joab he carried on a campaign of six months against them (Comp. 2 Sam. viii. 14 with 1 K. xi. 15), during which period he put vast numbers to the sword, established garrisons in the country, and thus became master of the Eastern arm of the Red sea, and the caravan-routes to the marts and harbours of Arabia288. (Comp. Gen. xxvii. 29, 37, 40; Ps. lx. 6–12.)
3. On the North-east the kingdom of Zobah had acquired considerable influence under Hadadezer, son of Rehob. David attacked him as he went to recover his border at the river Euphrates (2 Sam. viii. 3), and defeated him with a loss of 1,000 chariots, 700 cavalry, and 20,000 infantry. Hadadezer’s allies, the Syrians of Damascus, then marched to his assistance, but they were routed with a loss of 22,000 men, and became David’s vassals. The wealth of Zobah was considerable. Several of Hadadezer’s officers carried shields of gold (2 Sam. viii. 7), that is, probably, “iron or wooden frames overlaid with plates of the precious metal;” these David brought to Jerusalem, as also large stores of brass from other Syrian cities (1 Chr. xviii. 7, 8).
4. On the East of Jordan he had hitherto maintained the most amicable relations with the king of Moab289 (1 Sam. xxii. 3, 4), but now from some unexplained cause, he not only attacked and defeated, but well-nigh extirpated the nation. Two-thirds of the people were put to death, the rest were reduced to bondage, and paid regular tribute, while the spoils were treasured up in Jerusalem (2 Sam. viii. 2; 1 Chr. xi. 22). This campaign, in which the valiant Benaiah greatly distinguished himself (2 Sam. xxiii. 20), fulfilled the prophecy of Balaam; a Sceptre had risen out of Israel, and smitten through the princes of Moab, and destroyed the city of Ar, that is, Rabbath-Moab, the capital of the children of Lot (Num. xxiv. 17)290.
5. It was, however, from the kindred people of Ammon that the royal conquests experienced the greatest resistance. During the period of his wanderings David had received much kindness from Nahash the king of Ammon, and on his death he sent a royal embassy to offer his condolences to the new king Hanun. But Hanun’s courtiers persuaded him that this embassy was really dictated by a wish to spy out his land, and probably add it to the many others that David had conquered. Accordingly on the arrival of the ambassadors, Hanun treated them with the utmost indignity. He shaved off the one half of their beards, cut off their garments in the middle, and so sent them away (2 Sam. x. 1–3; 1 Chr. xix. 1–4).
As soon as David was informed of this aggravated insult, he bade his ambassadors remain at Jericho till the traces of the indignities they had suffered were removed, and then made preparations for sending Joab with the “Mighty Men” and the host to take summary vengeance on the Ammonites. Truly divining the consequences of their folly, the latter prepared for the impending war by raising a mercenary force of 32,000 men from the Syrians of Beth-rehob and Zoba, from those owning fealty to the king of Maacah, a region in the valley of the Jordan south of Zoba, and from the land of Tob291. Aided by these allies the Syrians awaited the onset of the Hebrews.
On his arrival Joab, perceiving that he was confronted by two very considerable armies, divided his forces, and assigned to his brother Abishai the task of assaulting the Ammonites, while he himself with a picked body of troops attacked the Syrians, situated a little to the south of Heshbon. At Medeba the latter were quickly routed, and the Ammonites, in alarm at their speedy defeat, fled to their capital, Rabbah292, now called Ammân, situated on a very advantageous position, and well supplied with water.
Meanwhile the Syrians beyond the Euphrates, under the command of Shophach or Shobach, a general of Hadadezer, assembled their forces with the intention of avenging the repulse sustained by their kindred, the allies of the Ammonites. Crossing the Euphrates they joined the Syrians at Helam, the site of which is unknown. The occasion was deemed of sufficient importance to justify the personal interference of David. Gathering all Israel and passing over Jordan, he attacked the Syrians, and defeated them with great slaughter. Shobach himself was slain, and the allied princes quitted the Syrian confederacy, and became the tributary vassals of the Hebrew monarch (2 Sam. xi. 15–19; 1 Chr. xix. 10–19).
Early in the following year the campaign against the Ammonites was resumed, and the command of the forces, including the royal body-guard (2 Sam. xi. 1), and the troops of Ephraim and Benjamin as well as Judah (2 Sam. xi. 11), was again entrusted to Joab, and the army was for the first time since the disastrous battle of Aphek accompanied by the Ark and its Levitical guard293 (2 Sam. xi. 11). On this occasion Rabbah was the main object of the attack, and after ravaging the country, Joab drove the Ammonites into their citadel, and commenced a regular siege, which lasted very nearly two years (2 Sam. xi. 1).
Meanwhile, critical as was the nature of the campaign, instead of accompanying the Ark, David lingered behind at Jerusalem, and there wrought that “deed of shame,” which has left so dark a blot upon his character, and which threw a gloom over all the rest of his life. One day on rising from his afternoon repose, he saw from the roof of his palace a woman of extraordinary beauty, for whom he instantly conceived a most violent passion. On making enquiry, he discovered that her name was Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam or Ammiel, and wife of Uriah the Hittite, who was at that time serving in the army against Rabbah, as one of the famous “Thirty” (2 Sam. xxiii. 39; 1 Chr. xi. 41). The fact that she was the wife of one of his most distinguished officers did not make David hesitate, he sent for her, and committed adultery with her. As time went on, he found it would be no longer possible to screen her from the death-punishment of an adulteress. Accordingly, after vainly trying other and most unworthy expedients to cover his own guilt, he sent a letter to Joab, bidding him expose this chivalrous and high-minded officer where the contest was hottest, so as to ensure his death. The unscrupulous Joab did as he was told, and Uriah fell happily unconscious of his wife’s dishonour. Joab then sent a trusty messenger to David to inform him that Uriah was dead, and the days of mourning for her husband were no sooner over, than the king sent for Bathsheba, and she became his wife (2 Sam. xi. 14–27).
But though David had done all this secretly, an all-seeing Eye had watched each step in this dreadful crime, and punishment quickly appeared at the door. The prophet Nathan was sent to him, and with wonderful tact roused the royal attention by the well-known Parable of the Rich man and the Poor man’s ewe lamb. Unsuspecting its purport, David’s wrath was kindled, and he denounced death as the penalty of the rich man, and the restoration of the property fourfold294. Then turning to the king the prophet sped his winged arrow, saying, Thou art the man, and announcing the awful penalty. As David had measured unto others, so should it be measured to him; evil was to rise up against him out of the bosom of his own family, and the sword should never depart from his house (2 Sam. xii. 10).
Unlike other kings of Israel and Judah, unlike any common Eastern despot, David did not slay or ill-treat the messenger of judgment, he acknowledged his sin and the justice of the sentence. On this Nathan went on to tell him that the Lord had put away his sin, and he himself was not to die. But an earnest of future judgments soon appeared. The Lord struck the child that Uriah’s wife bare unto him, and it died295. But in the midst of judgment God remembered mercy; and in the course of time a second son was born to Bathsheba, whom Nathan named Jedidiah, beloved of the Lord, but David himself called him Solomon, the peaceful one (2 Sam. xii. 15–25).
Meanwhile Joab had been pushing forward the siege of Rabbah, and eventually succeeded in capturing the city of waters, that is, the lower town, which “contained the perennial stream, which rises in, and still flows through it296.” But the citadel, a place of great strength, still held out. The possession of the perennial stream was, however, the next step to the capture of the stronghold, and Joab sent messengers to David bidding him gather the rest of the people, and come himself, unless he wished him to have the honour of capturing the place, and calling it after his own name. Accordingly the king set out, and the fortress was speedily taken. Enraged, it is not improbable, at the obstinacy of the siege, he wreaked a terrible vengeance on the inhabitants, some were decapitated, others sawn asunder or crushed beneath iron instruments, others were passed through the fire in brick-kilns297 (2 Sam. xii. 31). The royal crown, “the crown of Milcom,” weighing a talent of gold with the precious stones, was then placed on David’s head, and he and his army returned in triumph to Jerusalem with abundant spoil.
THE reduction of Rabbah was the last of David’s conquests. His kingdom had reached the limits foretold to the patriarch Abraham, and vied in extent with some of the great empires of that age. But from this point dark clouds began to gather round his own personal history, and the doom denounced by the prophet found its fulfilment. The terrible secret of his adultery and murder may at first have been known only to a few, but its results were soon proclaimed upon the housetops. Out of the numerous harem which, in defiance of the law of the kingdom, he had multiplied to himself, out of his own household, came the instruments of his punishment. First, his daughter Tamar was outraged by her half-brother and his eldest son Amnon. Two years afterwards Amnon fell a victim to the wrath of Tamar’s own brother Absalom (father of peace), who caused him to be murdered at a sheep-shearing festival, and then, apprehensive of the resentment of David, fled to the court of Talmai his grandfather, the king of Geshur, a district on the east of the Jordan south of Mount Hermon (2 Sam. xiii. 36).
Here he remained secure in its rocky fastnesses for three years, during which time the soul of David was consumed (2 Sam. xiii. 39, margin) with longing for his favourite son. Perceiving this, Joab availed himself of the services of a wise woman of Tekoa298, who sought an interview with the king, and addressing him in an apologue similar to that which Nathan had employed, succeeded in obtaining permission for the exile’s return. Joab, therefore, went to the court of the king of Geshur, and thence brought back the young prince, who took up his abode at Jerusalem, but was not suffered to see his father’s face. Twice he sent a message to David’s general, begging him to intercede in his behalf with the king, but Joab deemed he had done enough, and would take no further steps in the matter. Thereupon Absalom caused a barley-field belonging to Joab, which was near his own estate, to be set on fire, and the latter, probably fearing further outrage, informed the king, who consented to see his son, and gave him the kiss of peace (2 Sam. xiv. 23–33).
But the ungrateful son was no sooner thus restored, than he began to form plots against his father. First he surrounded himself with a small body-guard, with chariots and horses, and fifty men to run before him. Then, to ingratiate himself with the people, he took his stand by “the way of the gate299,” a duty which David appears to have neglected, and conversed with suitors coming up to the city for judgment, lamented the delays they would encounter in obtaining a hearing of their causes (2 Sam. xv. 3), and insinuated how different would be the aspect of affairs if he was made judge in the land. Young, handsome beyond compare in Israel (2 Sam. xiv. 25), sprung from a royal house both on his father and his mother’s side (2 Sam. iii. 3), he made a deep impression on the people, and his insinuating manners and unusual condescension stole away their hearts (2 Sam. xv. 6). Since the dark sin of which he had been guilty, the hold of the king upon the nation appears to have been weakened, and he had become less fitted for the more personal and more energetic duties of his position. And now the powerful tribe of Judah, fretting, it has been suggested, under their absorption into one great kingdom, or looking for some greater degree of power under the supremacy of a prince like Absalom, showed signs of a want of confidence in their sovereign, and in the course of two years Absalom perceived that matters were ripe for a revolt300.
Under pretence, therefore, of a vow which he had vowed to the Lord (2 Sam. xv. 7–9), he succeeded in obtaining from David permission to go to Hebron, the old capital of the tribe of Judah, and repaired thither accompanied by 200 men from Jerusalem, probably of the chief families, who were, however, entirely ignorant of his designs. To the same place also he summoned Ahithophel the Gilonite, the familiar friend and counsellor of his father, whose advice was deemed to have the value of a Divine oracle301.
While Absalom was taking these measures, news of the conspiracy and of the popular feeling reached the royal palace. Instantly, without offering any resistance, or striking a single blow in defence of his crown, David resolved on flight. Accompanied by the royal body-guard and the 600 Gittites, and a vast concourse of people, he left Jerusalem, and early in the morning crossed the brook Kidron. As far as the city boundaries he was also followed by the Levites, and the high-priests Zadok and Abiathar with the Ark. But David had no wish to expose the sacred symbol to any risk, and the two chiefs of the Levitical tribe might do him better service at Jerusalem; accordingly they were bidden to turn back. Then crossing the ravine of the Kidron, with head covered and unsandalled feet, his retinue manifesting every sign of profound sorrow, the king ascended the slopes of Olivet, and as he went received intelligence that his privy counsellor Ahithophel had gone over to the ranks of his rebellious son. In the defection of this man, his equal302, his guide, his own familiar friend, he instantly saw his danger, and prayed that the counsel of Ahithophel might be turned into foolishness (2 Sam. xv. 31).
Reaching the summit of the hill, he encountered Hushai the Archite303, the king’s friend, with torn robe and dust upon his head. In him David saw a fitting instrument for counteracting the influence of Ahithophel, and persuaded him to return to Jerusalem, and undertake the dangerous task of pretending a devotion to the cause of Absalom, while really, in conjunction with Zadok and Abiathar and their two sons, he kept a strict watch over all that occurred. Hushai accordingly turned back, and David descended the further slopes of Olivet. Here he met Ziba, the wily servant of Mephibosheth, the son of his old friend Jonathan, with welcome supplies of wine, bread, and fruit. Ziba represented that his master was staying behind at Jerusalem, awaiting any change in his fortunes which the rebellion might bring, and, as a reward for his services, obtained a ready grant of his estates. At Bahurim, a little further down the hill, David encountered Shimei, a Benjamite of the house of Saul, who flung stones at the royal retinue, and imprecated on them the most furious curses, in which he perhaps expressed the long pent-up hatred of the family of Saul, as well as the popular feeling against the author of Uriah’s death. The impetuous Abishai would have instantly cut off his head, but David stayed his hand, Let him curse, said he, for the Lord hath bidden him (2 Sam. xvi. 10–12). The way now led into the Jordan valley, and for the first time the weary retinue halted, and refreshed themselves with Ziba’s welcome supplies.
Meanwhile Absalom, with Ahithophel and a numerous retinue, had reached Jerusalem. There he met Hushai, who saluted him with the words, Long live the king. Even Absalom was startled, and reproached him for his apparent treachery, but kept him by him. The first step of the usurper, suggested by Ahithophel, was to take possession of his father’s harem304, and so render all reconciliation impossible (Comp. 2 Sam. iii. 7, 8).
The course to be next taken was anxiously debated. Ahithophel was for instant measures, and offered with 12,000 men to head a pursuit after David that very night, while he was weary and weak-handed. If he smote the king, he felt sure the whole people would side with Absalom, and his triumph would be complete. The advice found favour with the usurper, and the elders about him. But first he resolved to call in Hushai, and ascertain his opinion. Hushai pronounced the plan imprudent in the extreme. To attack the king while surrounded by his mighty men, all chafing in their minds, as a she bear robbed of her whelps, was very dangerous. From a partial defeat the prince had everything to fear, and the king everything to gain. He counselled, therefore, delay, and the mustering of the entire national forces from Dan to Beer-sheba. Absalom approved of this plan, and Ahithophel, probably seeing the certain effects of such delay, and chagrined at the adoption of another’s counsel in preference to his own, retired to Giloh, put his household in order, and hanged himself (2 Sam. xvii. 23).
Without a moment’s delay Hushai now sought out Zadok and Abiathar, related all that had occurred in the council, and urged that a messenger should be instantly sent to David, to bid him not linger in the Jordan valley, but cross the river with all speed. The two sons of the high-priests were in concealment at the fountain of En-rogel, ready for such an errand. A female slave was sent thither to bid them instantly carry the message to David. They forthwith started, but narrowly escaped detection. At Bahurim a lad saw them and conveyed the news to Absalom, and it was only by hiding in a well that they escaped the vigilance of their pursuers, and announced their errand to David. Though it must have been midnight, the king instantly crossed the river, and before the dawn of the following day not one of his retinue remained on the western side of the Jordan305. Mahanaim, the former capital of Ishbosheth, now became his head-quarters, and here he mustered his forces, and placed them under the command of Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, and received a welcome supply of provisions from Shobi, the son of his old friend Nahash of Rabbah, from Machir of Lodebar, and Barzillai a wealthy Gileadite.
Meanwhile Absalom also had mustered his forces, and having entrusted the command to Amasa, the son of Ithra or Jether by Abigail David’s sister (2 Sam. xvii. 25), he too crossed the Jordan. The decisive engagement, which was not long delayed, took place not far from Mahanaim, in the dense forest of Ephraim, a region still “covered with thick oaks, and tangled bushes, and thorny creepers growing over rugged rocks and ruinous precipices306.” Here the army of Absalom was utterly routed. Entangled in the thick undergrowth, crushing each other in remediless ruin, upwards of 20,000 perished in that fatal wood, which devoured more people that day than the sword devoured (2 Sam. xviii. 8). Amidst the crowd of fugitives Absalom also fled, and as he rode on his mule where “the strong arms of the trees spread out so near the ground that one cannot walk erect beneath them307,” his long hair caught in an oak, and he hung suspended from the tree. A man chanced to see him, and forthwith told Joab. He himself had forborne to touch the prince, having heard the strict injunctions of the loving David to his three captains before the battle to deal tenderly with the young man. But Joab had no such scruples; with three darts in his hand he went to the spot and transfixed him while yet alive. A great pit was then dug, and into it the corpse was flung, and covered with a great heap of stones. With the death of the usurper Joab knew the rebellion was at an end, he therefore sounded the signal of recall, and the battle closed.
Meanwhile David, who had been sitting at the gate of Mahanaim anxiously awaiting tidings of the battle, no sooner heard that his son was dead, than he gave way to the most violent grief. Joab alone dared to confront him, bidding him bestir himself if he would not see another popular revolt. Roused at last, the king consented to present himself at “the gate.” But he could not forget who had given the death-blow to his favourite son, and even vowed to transfer the chieftaincy of the troops to Amasa, though he had led the forces on the other side, and “in this was laid the lasting breach between himself and his powerful nephew, which neither the one nor the other ever forgave.” The rebellion ended, the rightful monarch could return to his kingdom. With a self-control rare in Western no less than Eastern history, every step in his progress was marked by forgiveness. Shimei was forgiven, Mephibosheth, proved to have been faithful, was partially reinstated, and Barzillai rewarded with ample gifts (2 Sam. xix. 16–43).
But the danger was not yet over. In bringing about the king’s return, his own tribe of Judah had the largest share. This provoked the old jealousy of the other tribes308 (Comp. Judg. viii. 1; xii. 1), while the Benjamites even took up arms, and placed themselves under the leadership of Sheba, son of Bichri, a man of Mount Ephraim. Many others also rallied round him, and when Amasa, the new general-in-chief failed within three days to muster the forces of Judah, David was afraid lest more harm should come of this fresh rising than had come from that of Absalom. Accordingly Abishai with the “Mighty Men” was dispatched to quell the insurrection, and to pursue after Sheba before he reached any fortified towns. Taking with him the royal body-guard, Abishai, accompanied by Joab, set out, and at the great stone of Gibeon encountered Amasa. Joab’s robe was girded round his waist, and in the folds was a sword, which “by accident or design protruded from the sheath.” Art thou in health, my brother? he saluted Amasa, and took him by the beard as if to kiss him. The other rushed into his embrace, and was instantly stabbed to the heart, his blood spirting out upon his cousin’s girdle and sandals. Leaving the body in the road, Joab hurried on after Sheba, who, rousing the tribes as he passed, had made for Abel Beth-Maachah309, a town of some importance far up in the north by the waters of Merom. Thither Joab rushed in pursuit, threw up an embankment, and battered the walls. A wise woman saved the town from destruction. Approaching the wall, she gained a parley with the angry general, who promised to leave the place, if Sheba was put to death. Thereupon she returned to her people, and the head of the rebel was soon flung into Joab’s camp, who straightway sounded a trumpet, and with his troops returned to Jerusalem (2 Sam. xx. 22).
SHORTLY after David’s restoration, his kingdom was visited for three years with a grievous famine. Enquiry was made of the Divine Oracle, and it was discovered to be a punishment for an act of faithlessness on the part of Saul, who had broken the solemn covenant made by Joshua with the Gibeonites (Josh. ix. 3–27). In a fit of sudden zeal for the children of Israel and Judah he had killed some of them, and devised a general massacre of the rest (2 Sam. xxi. 2, 5). The Gibeonites were now asked what atonement they were willing to receive for the wrongs they had suffered. In reply, they demanded neither silver nor gold. Blood had been spilt, and blood they would have, and nothing would satisfy them but permission to take seven of Saul’s sons and hang, or rather crucify, them at Gibeah. Accordingly the two sons of Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah, and the five sons of Michal, whom they had borne to Saul, were delivered up, and the Gibeonites crucified them on the hill of Gibeah. This was done in April, at the beginning of barley-harvest310 (2 Sam. xxii. 9), and there the bodies remained till the periodical rains in October dropped upon them out of heaven (2 Sam. xxii. 10). All this while, spreading on the rock a coarse sackcloth robe, Rizpah watched over the blackening corpses, and suffered neither the birds of the air to rest on them by day, nor the beasts of the field by night. The tale of her devoted love at length was conveyed to David, who had the remains removed, and at the same time directed that the bones of Saul also and of Jonathan should be taken from Jabesh-Gilead, and buried in the ancestral sepulchre of Kish, after which God was intreated for the land (2 Sam. xxi. 14).
Meanwhile, in consequence probably of the intestine feuds of the Israelites, the Philistines had recovered sufficient strength to venture on once more attacking them. David himself went with the host to battle, and in mortal combat with another descendant of the giant race was near falling a victim to his rashness, when he was succoured by the valiant Abishai, and the people, fearful lest the light of Israel should be quenched (2 Sam. xxi. 17), prevailed upon him to desist from accompanying them to battle in future. Other attempts were afterwards made by the Philistines, but the valour of David’s captains served to keep them in check (2 Sam. xxi. 18–22).
The Hebrew kingdom had now attained its farthest limits, even those which God had revealed many centuries before in vision to Abraham (Gen. xv. 18). Not only had David given a capital to his people, but he had conquered all the nations on the immediate frontier of his realm. His kingdom had become like one of the kingdoms of the world311. It had its court, its palace, its splendour, its tributaries. In this hour of his prosperity the monarch was tempted (1 Chr. xxi. 1) to yield to pride and self-exaltation, and gave directions to Joab to carry out a general census of the people from Dan even to Beer-sheba. His object, it has been supposed, was either the levying of a poll-tax or the formation of a standing army with a view to foreign conquests312. Whatever was his precise motive, it excited the repugnance of the captains of the host, and even of Joab himself, who not only warned the king against being the cause of a trespass in Israel, but regarded the royal proposition as actually abominable (1 Chr. xxi. 6). When, however, he found that nothing would turn the king from his fixed purpose, he set out, and after the lapse of 9 months and 20 days reported 800,000 in Israel as fit for military service, and 500,000 in Judah. But before he had numbered Benjamin or Levi (2 Sam. xxiv. 10) David’s heart smote him, and Gad, the seer, was commissioned to offer him the choice of 7 years’ famine, or 3 months’ defeat before his enemies, or a 3 days’ pestilence. David chose to fall into the hands of God rather than into the hands of man. Thereupon the plague began, and during three days swept off upwards of 70,000. But when the hand of the destroying angel was uplifted over Jerusalem, the Lord, whose mercies are great (2 Sam. xxiv. 14), repented of the evil, and on the intercession of the king the angel desisted, when he was by the threshing-floor of Ornan or Araunah, a wealthy Jebusite. By the advice of Gad David now bought the site of the threshing-floor and a yoke of oxen, erected there an altar, and offered thereon burnt-offerings and peace-offerings. Fire descended in testimony of the acceptance of the sacrifice, and with the cessation of the plague consecrated the rocky site of the future altar of Solomon’s Temple on Mount Moriah (2 Chr. iii. 1).
The remaining years of David’s life were spent in amassing treasures and materials, and making preparations for the erection of the Temple (1 Chr. xxii. 5, 14). But even now the truth of the prophet’s words was forced upon him, that his foes should be those of his own household. The three eldest of his sons, Amnon, Chileab, and Absalom being dead, the fourth—Adonijah—resolved to put forth his pretensions to the kingdom. Like Absalom, whom he resembled in personal beauty, he began by surrounding himself with chariots and horsemen, and succeeded in drawing over to his side not only the high-priest Abiathar, but even Joab, the commander-in-chief, whose loyalty at last wavered. Confident in the support of such old servants of the king, the pretender proclaimed a great sacrificial festival at the Stone of Zoheleth, south of Jerusalem, near the fountain of En-rogel, and invited to it all the royal princes, except Solomon, and not a few of the captains of the royal army (1 K. i. 5–9).
While they assembled at Zoheleth, Nathan the prophet persuaded Bath-sheba to seek an interview with the king, and inform him of what was going on. Bath-sheba did so, and had hardly concluded her tale, when Nathan himself entered, confirmed her account, and demanded to know whether Adonijah’s actions had the royal approval. Though old and feeble, David had sufficient energy to rise to the present emergency, and solemnly assured Bath-sheba of his unalterable determination that Solomon should succeed to the throne. Then summoning Zadok and Benaiah he bade them, together with Nathan, convey Solomon in state down to Gihon, and there formally anoint and proclaim him king. Accordingly these officers, accompanied by the royal guards, escorted Solomon thither, mounted on the royal mule (1 K. i. 38), and there Zadok anointed him with oil from the sacred horn of the Tabernacle, amidst the sound of trumpets and loud shouts of God save the King. Thence the new monarch was escorted in triumph back through the city, and sat on the royal throne amidst general applause, in the sight of his aged father, who blessed God that during his own lifetime he had been permitted to behold his successor (1 K. i. 45–48). Intelligence of these transactions was conveyed to the conspirators, in the midst of their festivities at En-rogel, by Jonathan the son of Abiathar. They had already heard the noise of the people shouting as Solomon passed in procession through the city, and no sooner learnt the cause than, seized with alarm, they instantly dispersed, and every man went his way (1 K. i. 49). Dreading the vengeance of the new king, Adonijah now fled to the Tabernacle, put himself in sanctuary by grasping the horns of the altar, and refused to quit the spot till Solomon had promised with an oath to spare his life. The young and politic monarch, on being informed of this, abstained from binding himself by any oath, and simply assured Adonijah of safety so long as he shewed himself a worthy man, but threatened him with death, if wickedness should be found in him (1 K. i. 49–52). On these conditions he quitted his place of refuge, and, having made obeisance to the new king, returned to the privacy of his own house (1 K. i. 53).
The days of David were now rapidly drawing to a close. He therefore convened a solemn assembly of all the chiefs and elders of his people, the royal princes, the captains of his army, and his public officers, and standing up, aged as he was, gave them his last charge, and exhorted his son to constancy in the service of Jehovah. He then solemnly delegated to him the accomplishment of the desire of his life, the erection of the Temple, and committed to him in trust the abundant materials he had amassed for this purpose, as well as a pattern of the building, and of everything belonging to it. This address, confirmed as it was by the sight of the gold and silver, the brass and iron and precious stones, which the royal prudence had collected, had a great effect upon the people, and they also joyfully contributed to the execution of their sovereign’s design. Then, in language of unequalled pathos and beauty, the aged monarch solemnly thanked God for all His goodness, and prayed that He would bestow upon his son “a perfect heart,” enabling him to keep His testimonies and statutes, and build the Temple for which he had made provision. Amidst sacrifices of unusual abundance and great feastings and rejoicings, Solomon was then for the second time anointed king, and received the formal submission of all the royal princes, and the chiefs of the nation. In another and more secret interview David gave his son his last counsels, not only concerning his own deportment as ruler, but also respecting Joab and Shimei, who were committed to his vigilance, and Barzillai the Gileadite, who was entrusted to his regard. Then after a reign of 7½ years at Hebron, and of 33 years at Jerusalem, in a good old age, full of years, riches, and honour, the son of Jesse, the Shepherd, the Warrior, the King, the Psalmist, was gathered to his fathers, and buried in the city which had been once the fortress of the heathen Jebusites, but was now the capital of an empire that realised the loftiest ideal of prophecy, stretching from the “river of Egypt” to the Euphrates, and from the range of Lebanon to the gulf of Akaba313.