Barnes, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The events related in 1 Chronicles 28-29 had occurred in the interval which separates the last and this present chapter.’
Just before David passes away, he charges Solomon to live in obedience to God’s will, 1 Kings 2:1-3 / Exodus 20:1-17, which in turn would encourage Solomon to live a holy life, Exodus 30:21 / Leviticus 10:13-15.
The laws are those cases which aren’t defined in the law, but cases which were guided by wisdom from God’s Word, Exodus 21:1-Exodus 23:5. The regulations would be any principle that would give witness to the wisdom that came from God, Psalm 19:7-8 / Psalm 119:88.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following concerning what Solomon is charged with.
1. Walk in his ways.
Not in thine own, nor in the ways of a wicked, perishing world.
2. Keep his statutes.
Consider all his appointments to be holy, just, and good; receive them as such, and conscientiously observe them.
3. Keep his commandments.
Whatever he has bidden thee to do, perform; what he has forbidden thee to do, omit.
4. Keep his judgments.
What he has determined to be right is essentially and inherently right; what he has determined to be wrong or evil is inherently and essentially so. A thing is not good because God has commanded it; a thing is not evil because he has forbidden it.
He has commanded the good, because it is in its own nature good and useful; he has forbidden the evil, because it is in its own nature bad and hurtful. Keep therefore his judgments.
5. Keep his testimonies.
Bear witness to all to which he has borne witness. His testimonies are true; there is no deceit or falsity in them. His testimonies refer also to future good things and good times, they are the significators of coming blessedness: as such, respect them.’
If Solomon follows God’s way and is obedient to Him, then God promises that his descendants will continue to reign on the throne, 1 Kings 2:4. In 2 Samuel 7:11-17, we find two things prophesied.
1. The Messiah would reign on David’s throne forever.
2. David’s dynasty would continue.
We also notice that the promise of the Messiah was unconditional, but the continuation of David’s dynasty was conditional.
During David’s reign as king of Israel, he failed to carry out some judgments; here, he asks Solomon to carry out those judgments for him. One possible reason David didn’t carry these judgments out was because of the guilt he carried after ordering Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband, to be killed on the battlefield, 2 Samuel 11:14-16.
Joab, 1 Kings 2:5, had earlier murdered Abner, 2 Samuel 3:27, and he also murdered Amasa, 2 Samuel 20:8-10. It’s clear that David felt he was responsible for the safety of these two men whom Joab had murdered, and so, he judges that Joab should be put to death, 1 Kings 2:6, and asks Solomon to judge him according to the crimes he’s committed.
Barnes, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Joab’s chief offence against David, besides his two murders, was no doubt his killing Absalom, 2 Samuel 18:14. Another serious crime was his support of the treasonable attempt of Adonijah, 1 Kings 1:7. But besides these flagrant misdemeanours, he seems to have offended David by a number of little acts. He was a constant thorn in his side. He treated him with scant respect, taking important steps without his orders, 2 Samuel 3:26, remonstrating with him roughly and rudely, 2 Samuel 2:24-25, almost betraying his secrets, 2 Samuel 11:19-21, and, where he disliked the orders given him, disobeying them, 1 Chronicles 21:6.’
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following.
‘It would have been an insult to justice not to have taken the life of Joab. David was culpable in delaying it so long, but probably the circumstances of his government would not admit of his doing it sooner. According to the law of God, Joab, having murdered Abner and Amasa, should die. And had not David commanded Solomon to perform this act of justice, he could not have died in the approbation of his Maker.’
There was a time when Barzillai, 1 Kings 2:7, had helped David out during the rebellion of Absalom, 2 Samuel 17:27-29. Barzillai is now dead but David wants Solomon to bring his sons to eat with Solomon to show that he can show kindness to them because of the help their father gave David, 1 Kings 2:7.
There was a time when Shimei, 1 Kings 2:8, had shown great contempt towards David, 2 Samuel 16:5-13, but during that time David didn’t punish him for his crime, 2 Samuel 19:18-23. David here asks Solomon to pass judgment upon Shimei for his total disrespect for David as king, 1 Kings 2:9.
Some commentators believe that David was completely right in passing these judgments on Joab and Shimei because the law says that murderers must be put to death, Genesis 9:6 / Numbers 35:33.
Concerning Shimei, some believe his execution is justified because the king had no power to forgive him of his offence in blaspheming the Lord’s anointed, Leviticus 24:14-23, and that David on his death bed then realised that he was a law-breaker in forgiving Shimei.
With regard to David’s forgiveness of Shimei, David’s remembrance of his oath to Shimei doesn’t correspond with what David was reported to have said in 1 Samuel 19:23, where we find David saying to Shimei, ‘You will not die’.
It appears that David changed his mind on his deathbed. Other commentators believe that David was completely unjustified by his actions here; they point out that David himself had received forgiveness for murdering Uriah, who was innocent, 2 Samuel 12:13, but here David refuses to extend that same forgiveness to Joab for committing the same crime.
When David died, he was buried in the City of David, Acts 2:29, and he left behind a great legacy in Israel, 1 Kings 2:10-11. He was the only king who recognised his own weaknesses, whilst trying to live to please God completely.
All the way through the Scriptures, including the New Testament, time and time again, King David is mentioned and referred to as one who keeps the Lord’s commands, 1 Kings 15:5 / Acts 13:22.
Barnes, in his commentary, says the following concerning the years of the reign of David.
‘In all forty years and six months, 2 Samuel 5:5 / 1 Chronicles 3:4. The Jewish writers almost universally omit the fractions of a year.’
After David passed away, the throne went to Solomon, and he became Israel’s new king, 1 Kings 2:12 / 1 Chronicles 28:6. Now his rule is firmly established, which means all of Israel recognised and accepted him as their new king, 1 Chronicles 29:26-28.
However, unlike David, who left a great legacy, Solomon would leave a legacy of idolatry, which set the example for all the other kings who would follow after him.
Adonijah goes to Bathsheba and when he does she ask him if he comes in peace to which he said ‘yes’, 1 Kings 2:13. He tells her he has something to say to her and she gives him permission to speak, 1 Kings 2:14.
He tells her that the kingdom was his and all of Israel looked to him as their king, but things changed, and the kingdom has gone to his brother because it came to him from the LORD, 1 Kings 2:15. He requests that Solomon give him Abishag the Shunammite to be his wife, 1 Kings 2:16-17. He possibly does this for one or two reasons.
1. He may have been very naive and ignorant of the political implications of his request, perhaps being blinded by a passionate infatuation with the beautiful Abishag.
2. He may be working together with Abiathar and Joab, who were involved in a conspiracy to take the throne away from Solomon.
Bathsheba, oblivious to the consequences of such a request agrees to speak to Solomon about his request, 1 Kings 2:18, and when she goes to Solomon, notice he stood up to meet her, bowed down to her and sat down on his throne, 1 Kings 2:19.
He had a throne brought for the king’s mother, and she sat down at his right hand, 1 Kings 2:19. Bathsheba goes ahead and makes Adonijah’s request known to Solomon, 1 Kings 2:20-21.
Solomon tells his mother that this request is crazy for obvious reasons, 1 Kings 2:22. Earlier, Solomon showed mercy to Adonijah, 1 Kings 1:51-53, but Adonijah now acts in arrogance with his request to have Abishag as his wife.
By doing this, he was trying to squeeze himself into becoming king because Abishag was a part of David’s harem. This may appear strange to us today, but during those days, it was customary if someone took ownership of a king’s harem, this meant they were claiming authority to be king, 2 Samuel 3:6-11 / 2 Samuel 16:20-23.
Solomon was a bit wiser than Bathsheba at this point; he knew exactly what Adonijah was up to, and he knew that Adonijah deserved to be put to death for treason, 1 Kings 2:23-24 / 1 Kings 1:52. Solomon doesn’t waste any time in ordering the execution of Adonijah, who apparently was waiting near the throne for an answer, 1 Kings 2:25.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Benaiah seems to have been the public state executioner, and yet he was generalissimo of all the forces. See him employed in a similar work, 1 Kings 2:34 / 1 Kings 2:46.’
Abiathar was of the priestly lineage of Ithamar and was a loyal priest during David’s reign. Solomon sends him away to Anathoth, 1 Kings 2:26, which was a city for the Levites, Joshua 21:8 / Joshua 21:18 / Jeremiah 1:1.
He was shown mercy by Solomon, because he carried the ark of the LORD before David and shared all of David’s hardships, 1 Kings 2:26. His exile meant the end of the lineage of Eli’s heritage from being high priests in Israel, 1 Kings 2:27 / 1 Samuel 2:27-36.
Barnes, in his commentary, says the following.
‘We need not understand this as stating that the fulfilment of the old prophecy was Solomon’s motive, or even one of his motives. The reference is to the overruling providence of God, which thus brought about the fulfilment of the prophecy, Matthew 1:22 / Matthew 2:15 / Matthew 27:35, etc. The deposition of Abiathar involved the rejection of the house of Ithamar, 1 Chronicles 24:3, to which Eli belonged, and the reestablishment of the high priesthood in the line of Eleazar.’
Before David died, he gave specific instructions to Solomon to carry out some judgments on certain individuals, 1 Kings 2:5-9. In these verses, we read about how Solomon carried out those judgments, which will let all of Israel know that Solomon has begun his reign as king.
Solomon passes judgment upon Joab because of his murderous actions in the past, having murdered Abner, 2 Samuel 3:27, and he also murdered Amasa, 2 Samuel 20:8-10. If Solomon didn’t punish Joab, then David’s guilt for not having him put to death would be passed on to Solomon.
Joab clings on to ‘the horns of the altar’, 1 Kings 2:28, thinking this action would bring him mercy, but just like Adonijah, 1 Kings 1:52, he was shown no mercy but put to death, 1 Kings 2:29.
Benaiah goes to the tent of the LORD which was now at Gibeon, 1 Kings 3:4 / 1 Chronicles 16:39, and commands Joab to come out, but he refuses and wants to die inside the tent, and so, Benaiah reports this to Solomon, 1 Kings 2:30.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The altars were so sacred among all the people that, in general, even the vilest wretch found safety, if he once reached the altar. This led to many abuses, and the perversion of public justice and at last it became a maxim that the guilty should be punished, should they even have taken refuge at the altars. God decreed that the presumptuous murderer who had taken refuge at the altar should be dragged thence, and put to death, Exodus 21:14.’
Solomon tells Benaiah to do what Job requested, to kill him, and bury him so that Solomon and his whole family will be cleared of the guilt of the innocent blood that Joab shed, 1 Kings 2:31. Solomon says the LORD will repay him for the blood he shed, because without David knowing it he attacked two men and killed them with the sword.
Both of them, Abner son of Ner, commander of Israel’s army, and Amasa son of Jether, commander of Judah’s army, were better men and more upright than he, 1 Kings 2:32.
Solomon continues and says may the guilt of their blood rest on the head of Joab and his descendants forever but on David and his descendants, his house, and his throne, may there be the LORD’s peace forever, 1 Kings 2:33. Benaiah did as Solomon commanded, he kills Joab, 2 Samuel 20:8-10, and we are told that he was buried at his home out in the country, 1 Kings 2:34.
Whenever there’s a change of reign, it usually means some people will lose their leadership jobs, and others will be promoted. Here we find Solomon changing his military leader and changing the high priesthood, 1 Kings 2:35. Benaiah replaced Joab as the commander of the military, and Zadok replaced Abiathar as a priest, 2 Samuel 20:25.
The only reason Shimei was still alive was that David felt guilty about reaping what Nathan, the prophet, told him would happen because he killed Uriah, 2 Samuel 12:1-14.
When David was on the run from Absalom, it was Shimei who cursed David, 2 Samuel 16:5. When he cursed David, he was living in Bahurim, but here he is in Jerusalem, under house arrest away from his family, 1 Kings 2:36. The good news is that as long as Shimei remained in Jerusalem, he would be safe from the penalty of death, 1 Kings 2:36-37.
Barnes, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The object, apparently, was to keep Shimei under the immediate eye of the government. Shimei’s old home, Bahurim, lay east of Jerusalem, on the road to Jericho, 2 Samuel 17:18, and could only be reached by crossing the Kedron valley. Solomon assumes that, if he quits the city, it will probably be in this direction, 1 Kings 2:37.’
The bad news is that if Shimei didn’t stay there, he went and tracked down two of his slaves, 1 Kings 2:39-40. As a result of his disobedience and because of his past sins, Solomon had him put to death, 1 Kings 2:41-46.
Solomon’s reign is now established because he exercised wise judgments on those who committed murderous sins, and his authority is now recognised by everyone in Israel, 1 Kings 2:46. Although Israel rejoiced in having a new king, the beginning of Solomon’s reign was a world apart from how David began his reign, 1 Samuel 11:11-15.