1 & 2 Kings—Introduction
The books of 1 & 2 Kings originally formed one undivided work in the Hebrew Scriptures. It was the translators of the Greek Old Testament (the Septuagint) who divided the book into two. The collection of 1 & 2 Kings and 1 & 2 Samuel was considered the books of the “kings” or “Kingdoms”.
Jewish tradition (the Talmud) identifies Jeremiah as the author of both 1 & 2 Kings. The book of 1 Kings covers the reign of Solomon, the division of the kingdom, and the reigns of the kings of Judah and Israel up through Jehoshaphat and Ahaziah, respectively. The first ten chapters mark the glorious time under Solomon who had great wisdom and wealth, and appeared to be a king who feared and honored God, but the subsequent chapters show us how Solomon, who had it all, departed from his devotion to God and the consequences of his actions, including a divided kingdom.
1:1-4—David was Old
(1) Judging from 2 Samuel 5:4 and 1 Kings 2:11, how old was David at the time?
(2) Judging from the description of vv. 1-4 and the fact that he had to receive officials in his bed (1:47), how was David’s health condition?
(3) Judging from Solomon’s reaction to Adonijah’s subsequent request to take Abishag as his wife (2:19ff), do you think Abishag was the Shulammite in the Song of Songs? (see Cant. 6:13)
1:5-10—Adonijah’s Attempted Coup d’État
(4) Given what the prophet Nathan said in 1:13, shouldn’t Adonijah know about David’s choice of succession? (see Note below)
(5) He obviously openly declared himself as the future king and did exactly what his brother Absalom had done (see 2 Sam. 15:1).
a. What should David have done?
b. Why hadn’t he? (v. 6)
c. What kind of a message did he send to Adonijah and the people?
(6) Who was Joab? (see 2 Sam. 2:13ff; 8:16; and ch. 18)
(7) Who was Abiathar? (See 1 Sam. 14:3; 22:20-22; 2 Sam. 8:17)
(8) Why would these loyalists of David knowingly support a king not appointed by David?
a. How does it reflect the mistakes or weaknesses of David?
b. How does it speak to David’s relationship with them?
(9) In your opinion, how did David contribute to this situation? Was his poor health the major factor?
(10) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
Adonijah probably considered himself a legitimate successor of David because he was likely the oldest of his surviving sons. Ammon, Chileab and Absalom had died and he was David’s fourth son (born in Hebron) — as Chileab was never mentioned again, most commentators opine that he died as a child.
本週我們開始研讀舊約列王紀上。請慢慢細心讀每天指定的經文至少兩遍，然後反復思考問題。
列王紀上、下 — 引言
列王紀上、下在希伯來的聖經中原是一卷書，是舊約希臘文聖經(七十士譯本) 的繙譯者把它分為兩卷的，並與撒母耳記上、下同稱為「列王」、或「列王國」紀。
猶太的傳統(Talmud/聖法經傳) 以耶利米為列王紀上、下的作者。列王紀上記述的歷史由所羅門的登基、到分裂國時期，以約沙法和亞哈謝為止。首十章記載所羅門極榮耀的時代，他滿有智慧、財富，並敬畏神；但以後的日子就因他的心離棄神而導致種種的後患，包括國家的分裂。
1:1-4—大衛年紀老邁
(1) 請參閱撒母耳記下5:4和列王紀上2:11，看看大衛究竟年紀有多大？
(2) 從這段的描述和大衛是在床上會見臣僕(1:47) 的 ，他的身體狀況如何？
(3) 從所羅門對亞多尼雅及後要娶亞比煞的反應(2:19ff) ，你認為這書念的女子(Shunnammite) 是否就是雅歌中的書拉密女(Shulammite) 嗎？(歌6:13)
1:5-10—亞多尼雅謀竊王位
(4) 按先知拿單在1:13所言，你認為亞多尼雅是否知道大衛已揀選所羅門為王？(註：他在諸弟兄中，是沒有邀請所羅門到瑣希列的)
(5) 亞多尼雅現在是公然的自立為王，所作的正是他弟兄押沙龍背叛時的翻版(見撒下15:1)
a. 大衛早該如何處理？
b. 為何他沒有干預？(1:6)
c. 這樣，大衛給亞多尼雅和眾領袖什麼信息？
(6) 支持亞多尼雅其中的一個重要人物是約押。他是誰？(撒下2:13; 8:16; 和第18章)?
(7) 亞比亞他又是誰？(參撒上14:3; 22:20-22; 撒下 8:17)
(8) 為何這些忠於大衛的臣僕會支持大衛沒有揀選的後人？
a. 這顯出大衛犯了什麼錯誤？
b. 這亦顯示大衛與他們的關係出了什麼問題？
(9) 總括而言，大衛對這事情要負上什麼責任？這與他的健康有關嗎？
(10) 今日你得到的主要提醒是什麼？你會怎樣應用在你的生命中?
註：相信亞多尼雅以為自己是王位的當然承繼人，因為他是大衛尚存的兒子中最年長的。暗嫩和押沙龍已被殺，基利押在撒母耳記下3:3提過後就再沒有出現；一般相信他是早逝。
“(His father had never rebuked him by asking, 'Why do you behave as you do?' He was also very handsome and was born next after Absalom.)” (1 Ki. 1:6)
David was certainly not a perfect man. His yielding to lust cost him dearly, not only in terms of losing the son born out of adultery (2 Sam. 12:14), but losing other sons as well.
His unwillingness to rebuke his first born, Amnon who raped his sister (2 Sam. 13:21); his lack of decisive dealing with Absalom who took revenge on Ammon with his own hand and rebelled against him (2 Sam. 18:5) and now the refusal to rebuke Adonijah—all indirectly led to their eventual deaths.
I do not believe that just because he had committed adultery, he had lost his moral authority to rebuke unethical behavior in his children. On the one hand, his genuine repentance has led to complete forgiveness from the Lord, to the point that peace was restored between him and God as evidenced by God naming Solomon through the prophet Nathan (Solomon means peace). It was also why Nathan approached Bathsheba to make sure Solomon was anointed king, because he had come to forgive David’s affair as God had.
Of course, with the many wives and children that David had, he would not have given the time needed to mentor each of his children. However, David’s problem in child-rearing appeared to be one of “doting”, whether it was Amnon, Absalom or Adonijah. As much as he was displeased with their behavior or even became angry (1 Sam. 13:21), he was not willing to confront his children directly, perhaps for fear that they would not love him or that they would distance themselves from him.
In the case of Adonijah, the Bible implies that it was because Adonijah “was born next after Absalom” (1 Ki. 1:6). In other words, the death of Absalom was still fresh in his mind and the way he mourned for Absalom was well documented (2 Sam. 18: 31ff). David was afraid to lose another son.
As it turned out, his reluctance to rebuke Adonijah backfired on him, and Proverbs 13:24 encapsulates his mistake with these words, “Whoever spares the rod hates their children, but the one who loves their children is careful to discipline them.”
「他父親素來沒有使他憂悶，說：你是做甚麼呢？他甚俊美，生在押沙龍之後。」(王上1:6)
大衛誠然非完全人。他因犯姦淫，導致不但立時喪掉在淫亂所生的兒子（撒下12:14），其實也導致他在日後一個一個的失去其他的兒子。
當長子暗嫩強姦了妹妹之後，大衛雖然是甚怒（撒下13:21），卻沒有責備、也沒有責罰兒子。他這姑息，直接迫使押沙龍要動手為妹妹報仇。結果暗嫩被押沙龍所殺、繼而叛變的押沙龍也繼而死掉。
是否因為大衛自己曾犯姦淫，失去了管教兒子在德行和靈性方面的權柄呢？不是的。一方面，他真誠的悔過已獲得神完全的赦免；以至神藉著賜名給他與拔示巴繼而所生的兒子為「所羅門」—是平安之意—來表明他與神的關係的和好。原是首先責備他犯罪的先知拿單，現在起來支持所羅門，也是證明他知道神已完全赦免了大衛。
當然，大衛之多妻妾、多兒女明顯叫他未能使用足夠的時間去盡父親的責任。大衛在教養兒女方面，似乎最大的問題是出於「縱容」。不論是暗嫩、是亞多尼雅，大衛就是不喜悅他們的行徑，甚至感到憤怒，卻連開聲責備也沒有；原來是因不願「使他（們）憂悶」(王上1:6) ！其實，更是不想兒子們不喜歡他、與他生疏！
在亞多尼雅這事上，聖經就指出，他是「生在押沙龍之後」，意思似是：大衛已失去了押沙龍這兒子—他如何哀悼押沙龍是眾所周知的（見撒下13:21）—他不願也失去亞多尼雅！
可惜，就是因為這原故，他不願及早阻止亞多尼雅的叛變，結果也失去了他！箴言13:24說得對：“不忍用杖打兒子的，是恨惡他；疼愛兒子的，隨時管教。”
1:11-14—Nathan Decided to Interfere
(1) Why did Nathan decide to take the matter in his own hand? Should he?
(2) Why did he have to use Bathsheba? Could he not confront David directly?
(3) Didn’t he rebuke David’s affair with Bathsheba? What had changed? (see 2 Sam. 12:24-25)
1:15-21—Bathsheba Confronting David
(4) On what basis did Bathsheba appeal to David to act?
(5) David had already known about Adonijah’s declaring himself as king (1:5), but he had chosen not to do anything about it. With what other factors did Bathsheba confront him in order to force him to take action?
1:22-27—Nathan’s words of confirmation
(6) Apart from confirming the words of Bathsheba, what other factors did he introduce to influence David’s decision?
(7) How important was Nathan’s confirmation?
1:28-40—David made Solomon the King
(8) What do you think had caused David to take action at this time? (vv. 28-31)
(9) Why did David refer to the Lord as the one “who has delivered me out of every trouble”?
(10) The choice of Gihon over Jerusalem as the anointing site might have to do with the fact that it was “located in the Kidron Valley in opposition to Adonijah at En-rogel” (NEBC, 1 and 2 Kings, 99):
a. What risk might David be taking to anoint Solomon in opposition to Adonijah and his supporters?
b. What could have been the result, had this been done after the death of David?
(11) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
請慢慢細心讀每天指定的經文至少兩遍，然後反復思考問題。
1:11-14—拿單的干預
(1) 為何拿單要干預？他應該這樣做嗎？
(2) 他為何不直接去見大衛，而要借用拔示巴？
(3) 他以前是怎樣看大衛和拔示巴的關係(撒下12:24-25) ？為何現卻有所改變？
1:15-21—拔示拔見大衛
(4) 拔示巴以什麼為根據來質問大衛？
(5) 拔示巴也用什麼其他的因素來要求大衛表態，不再把頭藏在沙裡？
1:22-27—拿單進言
(6) 除印證拔示巴的說話外，拿單亦以什麼要王表態？
(7) 拿單之言是否對大衛有更大的影響？為什麼？
1:28-40—大衛立所羅門為王
(8) 你認為至終是什麼驅使大衛採取行動呢？(1:28-31)
(9) 為何在此大衛特別提到神是「救我性命脫離一切苦難、永生的耶和華」？(1:29)
(10) 大衛揀選在基訓立所羅門為王，相信是因那地「位於汲淪溪，正與亞多尼雅(歡宴)的隱羅結相對」(NEBC, 1 and 2 Kings, 99):
a. 大衛這樣行要冒什麼風險？
b. 如果此時不採取行動，他死後會帶來什麼結果？
(11) 今日你得到的主要提醒是什麼？你會怎樣應用在你的生命中？
“The king then took an oath: ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who has delivered me out of every trouble, I will surely carry out this very day what I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel: Solomon your son shall be king after me, and he will sit on my throne in my place’.” (1 Ki. 1:29-30)
When confronted with the news that Adonijah had declared himself king and that many of David’s former loyalists were supporting this rebellion, David really had a hard decision before him. If he decided to anoint Solomon as he had sworn to Bathsheba, he might face another rebellion, and this time the rebellion had significant support both from the military (Joab was his commander) and from the priesthood (Abiathar came from the priestly family of Eli at Shiloh and had escaped to David from Nob—see 1 Sam. 14:3, 22:20-22). The last time he did something to Absalom, he ended up having to run for his own life (2 Sam. 15:13ff). Now he was “very old” and frail. He would not be able to run. What should he do?
I believe what David said in his reply to Nathan and Bathsheba was not accidental as he called God the one “who has delivered me out of every trouble” (1 Ki. 1:29-30). As much as he might have directly contributed to the present dilemma, deep in his heart, he probably knew that God had chosen Solomon, plus the fact that he had sworn to Bathsheba as well for that matter. The only right thing to do was to follow through with his promise and trust God for the outcome.
As he recalled the Lord as the one who has delivered him out of every trouble, it certainly reflected his prayer to the Lord; and God answered his prayer, preventing another bloodshed and “delivered him out of” yet another trouble.
Indeed, as much as we often contribute to our own plight, it is never too late to do what is right before the Lord and we can leave the result to Him.
「王起誓說：我指著救我性命脫離一切苦難、永生的耶和華起誓。我既然指著耶和華─以色列的神向你起誓說：你兒子所羅門必接續我作王，坐在我的位上。我今日就必照這話而行。」(王上1:29-30)
得知兒子亞多尼雅自立為王，且得自己不少忠臣的擁立，大衛面對的選擇實在不容易。如果他按對拔示巴的誓言膏立所羅門為王，可能會招至另一場的叛亂。上一次，他自己要逃命，就是因兒子押沙龍的叛變。這一次，亞尼多雅似乎所得的支持更厲害，包括軍長約押，更有祭司亞比亞他（他是示羅以利大祭司的後人，從掃羅手中逃走投誠大衛的—見撒下14:3; 22:20-22）。況且，現在他年紀老邁、身體衰殘，何來力量奔逃！
我相信大衛在回答拿單和拔示巴時，怎樣稱呼神的話，並非是偶然的。他說：“我指著救我性命脫離一切苦難、永生的耶和華起誓” (王上1:29-30) 。雖然他心知這次同樣是自己弄出來的禍患，但他心中更明白神對所羅門的揀選，何況他自己也曾向拔示巴許過誓言。故此，他知道其實他是沒有選擇的，惟有再一次完全的倚靠神！他說的那句話，其實不單是向人說的，乃是他向神的禱告—意思是說：我現在按祢旨意作當作的，求祢像以往一樣救我的性命！結果，神應允他。
是的，雖然我們遭遇的患難，常常是自作孽；但只要我們倚靠神，作當作的，把後果全交在祂手中。祂總不離棄屬於祂的人！
(1) With David being in poor health and close to dying, what do you think Joab (the loyal commander of David) and Abiathar (the priest who must have presided over the sacrifice at this occasion) must be thinking at this “illegal” coronation of Adonijah?
(2) Why did Adonijah think that the sound of the trumpet “must be…good news”?
(3) How did the words of Jonathan validate the “legitimacy” of the anointing of Solomon as king as compared to the “illegitimate” crowning of Adonijah? (see vv. 43-46, and note that the Kerethites and Pelehites “refer to David’s personal bodyguard” — NEBC, 1 and 2 Kings, 102)
(4) Where and how did David receive the royal officials? What does his worship on his bed remind you of? (Gen. 47:31)
(5) Why did these important and powerful supporters rise in alarm and disperse?
(6) What was Adonijah’s purpose in holding on to the horns of the altar? Why didn’t he flee for his life? (See Exod. 21:14)
(7) On what condition did Solomon spare the life of Adonijah? Why should he?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
請慢慢細心讀每天指定的經文至少兩遍，然後反復思考問題。
(1) 約押和亞比亞他都曾冒死效忠於大衛的，他們為何會支持亞多尼雅？(1:9的宰牛羊是指獻祭，相信是祭司亞比亞他主持的。)
(2) 為何亞多尼雅以為角聲是「好信息」呢？
(3) 約拿單的回答怎樣指出所羅門的被立為王與亞多尼雅這裡的被立相比，是「堂堂正正」的呢？(註：基利提人和比利提人是大衛的私人護衛—見NEBC, 1 and 2 Kings, 102)
(4) 大衛是怎樣接見他的臣僕？王在牀上向誰屈身下拜？(參創47:31)
(5) 為何這些有相當權勢的支持者要四散？
(6) 為何亞多尼雅不立即逃亡，而要抓著祭壇的角？(參出21:14)
(7) 所羅門定什麼條件來饒亞多尼雅的命？為何不立時殺他以絕後患？
(8) 今日你得到的主要提醒是什麼？你會怎樣應用在你的生命中?
“At this, all Adonijah’s guests rose in alarm and dispersed. But Adonijah, in fear of Solomon, went and took hold of the horns of the altar.” (1 Ki. 1:49-50)
We might wonder why Adonijah went and took hold of the horns of the altar. Allow me to share with you the explanation by Keil and Delitzsch as follows:
“The news spread terror. All the guests of Adonijah fled, every man his way. Adonijah himself sought refuge from Solomon at the horns of the altar. The altar was regarded from time immemorial and among all nations as a place of refuge for criminals deserving death; but according to Exod. 21:14, in Israel it was only allowed to afford protection in cases of unintentional slaying, and for these special cities of refuge were afterwards provided (Num. 35). In the horns of the altar, as symbols of power and strength, there was concentrated the true significance of the altar as a divine place, from which there emanated both life and health (see Exod. 27:1-8). By grasping the horns of the altar the culprit placed himself under the protection of the saving and helping grace of God, which wipes away sin and thereby abolishes punishment…The question to what altar Adonijah fled, whether to the altar at the ark of the covenant in Zion, or to the one at the tabernacle at Gibeon, or to the one built by David on the threshing floor of Araunah, cannot be determined with certainty.” (K&D, p. 19)
In my opinion, the last question is really a moot point, because Adonijah did not commit an unintentional crime, but one of rebellion and in fact, a usurpation of the throne while David was still alive. He was simply trying to manipulate God and His Law for his own purpose. It was not an act of repentance or even remorse. As it turned out, God cannot be manipulated; he was only delaying the inevitable and he subsequently gave Solomon another reason to put him to death (1 Ki. 2:25).
「亞多尼雅懼怕所羅門，就起來，去抓住祭壇的角。」(王上1:50)
讀到亞多尼雅在眾擁護他的人四散時，甚麼王者的風範也全失，懼怕到去抓住祭壇的角，心中覺得可笑！解經家Keil and Delitzsch就對這事作出以下的評論：
“消息傳來叫人人自危。亞多尼雅的客人都只顧自己、逃跑了。亞多尼雅懼怕所羅門，就起來，去抓住祭壇的角。從極古的年代，在眾多的民族中，祭壇都是那些犯了死罪的犯人投奔避難之處。但按以色列人的律法，祭壇只能給予誤殺者作庇護（出21:14）；及後加上逃城作庇護所(民 35) 。壇的角是能力的象徵，刻劃著祭壇是聖地、是生命和健康的源頭（出27:1-8）。藉著抓著壇角，犯罪的把自己放在神的拯救和恩典手中，（希望）要得到罪的洗淨和免去刑罰……至於亞多尼雅是抓住那一個祭壇的角—是約櫃所在的錫安、是會幕所在的基遍、還是大衛在亞勞拿禾場所建的—就不得而知了。” (K&D, p.19)
其實，K&D所提的最後一個問題是多餘的。亞多尼雅所犯的並非誤殺罪、乃是叛國罪；是在大衛尚生存、作王之時，他要篡位。他抓著壇角無非是想利用神和祂的律例。這並非是悔改的行為，甚至連悔意也不是。當然神是不能被利用的，亞多尼雅只不過把他的死期稍作延遲，至終仍給所羅門機會把他殺掉！(王上 2:25)