◄ 1 Kings 2:18 ►
"Very well," Bathsheba replied. "I will speak to the king for you."
Study Bible
“Very well,” Bathsheba replied.

Adonijah had asked Bathsheba to request that Solomon give him Abishag the Shunammite as his wife. Although Abishag had cared for David in his old age, she remained closely associated with the former king’s household. In the ancient royal world, marrying a woman connected to a deceased king could be treated as a claim to his throne. Bathsheba did not openly challenge Adonijah’s request, but her answer moved the matter into Solomon’s court, where its political meaning would be judged.

Gen 24:58 They called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?”…
Rut 3:5 “I will do everything you say,” Ruth answered.
Est 4:16 Go and assemble all the Jews who can be found…

“I will speak to the king for you.”

Bathsheba held honored authority as Solomon’s mother and could approach him freely. Her willingness to carry Adonijah’s petition shows both her place within the royal court and Solomon’s respect for her. Yet the request exposed Adonijah’s continuing ambition after his earlier attempt to seize the kingdom. Solomon recognized that granting Abishag to Adonijah would strengthen a rival claim and threaten the kingdom God had established through David’s line.

1Ki 1:15-17 So Bathsheba went to see the king in his bedroom.…
2Sa 14:4-11 When the woman from Tekoa went to the king,…
Est 7:3-4 If I have found favor in your sight, O king,…

Persons / Places / Events
1. Bathsheba
The mother of King Solomon and widow of King David. She plays a significant role in the royal court and is approached by Adonijah to intercede on his behalf.

2. Adonijah
The son of King David who previously attempted to claim the throne before Solomon was anointed king. In this passage, he seeks Bathsheba's help to make a request to King Solomon.

3. King Solomon
The son of David and Bathsheba, who is now the reigning king of Israel. Known for his wisdom, Solomon's reign is marked by peace and prosperity.

4. The Royal Court
The setting of this event, where political and familial dynamics play out. It is a place of power, influence, and decision-making.

5. The Request
Adonijah's request, which Bathsheba agrees to present to Solomon, is a pivotal moment that reveals the underlying tensions and power struggles within the royal family.
Teaching Points
The Power of Intercession
Bathsheba's willingness to speak to the king on behalf of Adonijah highlights the importance of intercession. In our lives, we are called to intercede for others in prayer, bringing their needs before God.

Wisdom in Relationships
Bathsheba's role demonstrates the need for wisdom and discernment in navigating complex relationships, especially within families and communities. We should seek God's guidance in our interactions with others.

Understanding Authority
The dynamics between Bathsheba, Adonijah, and Solomon remind us of the importance of respecting authority and understanding the proper channels for making requests. As Christians, we are called to respect and pray for those in positions of leadership.

The Consequences of Ambition
Adonijah's actions serve as a cautionary tale about unchecked ambition and the potential consequences of seeking power for personal gain. We should examine our motives and ensure they align with God's will.

The Role of Women in God's Plan
Bathsheba's influence in the royal court underscores the significant role women play in God's plan. We should recognize and value the contributions of women in our faith communities.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does Bathsheba's role as an intercessor in 1 Kings 2:18 reflect the importance of intercessory prayer in our own lives?

2. In what ways can we apply the wisdom Bathsheba demonstrated in navigating complex family dynamics to our own relationships?

3. How does the account of Adonijah's ambition and its consequences challenge us to examine our own motives and ambitions?

4. What can we learn from Bathsheba's influence and authority about the role of women in leadership within the church and society?

5. How do the events in 1 Kings 2:18 connect to the broader account of God's plan for Israel, and what does this teach us about God's sovereignty in our lives?
Connections to Other Scriptures
1 Kings 1
Provides context for Adonijah's previous attempt to become king and the subsequent anointing of Solomon, setting the stage for the events in 1 Kings 2:18.

2 Samuel 11-12
Details the background of Bathsheba and David, including the circumstances of their relationship and the birth of Solomon, offering insight into Bathsheba's position and influence.

Proverbs 31
Traditionally attributed to Solomon, this passage describes the qualities of a virtuous woman, which can be seen as reflective of Bathsheba's role and wisdom in navigating court politics.
Sermons
Views of Life and DeathR. Venting.
People
Abiathar, Abishag, Abner, Absalom, Achish, Adonijah, Amasa, Anathoth, Barzillai, Bathsheba, Benaiah, David, Eli, Gera, Haggith, Jehoiada, Jether, Joab, Maacah, Maachah, Ner, Shimei, Solomon, Zadok, Zeruiah
Places
Anathoth, Bahurim, Gath, Hebron, Jerusalem, Jordan River, Kidron, Mahanaim, Shiloh
Topics
Alright, Bathsheba, Bath-sheba, Bathshe'ba, Replied, Request, Speak
Dictionary of Bible Themes
1 Kings 2:12-25

     5119   Solomon, life of

Library
The Horns of the Altar
WE MUST tell you the story. Solomon was to be the king after David, but his elder brother, Adonijah, was preferred by Joab, the captain of the host, and by Abiathar, the priest; and, therefore, they got together, and tried to steal a march upon dying David, and set up Adonijah. They utterly failed in this; and when Solomn came to the throne Adonijah was afraid for his life, and fled to the horns of the altar at the tabernacle for shelter. Solomn permitted him to find sanctuary there, and forgave …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 31: 1885

"He Ascended into Heaven:" Believe. "He Sitteth at the Right Hand of the Father...
11. "He ascended into heaven:" believe. "He sitteth at the right hand of the Father:" believe. By sitting, understand dwelling: as [in Latin] we say of any person, "In that country he dwelt (sedit) three years." The Scripture also has that expression, that such an one dwelt (sedisse) in a city for such a time. [1791] Not meaning that he sat and never rose up? On this account the dwellings of men are called seats (sedes). [1792] Where people are seated (in this sense), are they always sitting? Is …
St. Augustine—On the Creeds

Whether Curiosity Can be About Intellective Knowledge?
Objection 1: It would seem that curiosity cannot be about intellective knowledge. Because, according to the Philosopher (Ethic. ii, 6), there can be no mean and extremes in things which are essentially good. Now intellective knowledge is essentially good: because man's perfection would seem to consist in his intellect being reduced from potentiality to act, and this is done by the knowledge of truth. For Dionysius says (Div. Nom. iv) that "the good of the human soul is to be in accordance with reason," …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

Whether the Angels have Bodies Naturally United to Them?
Objection 1: It would seem that angels have bodies naturally united to them. For Origen says (Peri Archon i): "It is God's attribute alone---that is, it belongs to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, as a property of nature, that He is understood to exist without any material substance and without any companionship of corporeal addition." Bernard likewise says (Hom. vi. super Cant.): "Let us assign incorporeity to God alone even as we do immortality, whose nature alone, neither for its own sake …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

Whether the Natural Law Can be Changed?
Objection 1: It would seem that the natural law can be changed. Because on Ecclus. 17:9, "He gave them instructions, and the law of life," the gloss says: "He wished the law of the letter to be written, in order to correct the law of nature." But that which is corrected is changed. Therefore the natural law can be changed. Objection 2: Further, the slaying of the innocent, adultery, and theft are against the natural law. But we find these things changed by God: as when God commanded Abraham to slay …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

The Whole Heart
LET me give the principal passages in which the words "the whole heart," "all the heart," are used. A careful study of them will show how wholehearted love and service is what God has always asked, because He can, in the very nature of things, ask nothing less. The prayerful and believing acceptance of the words will waken the assurance that such wholehearted love and service is exactly the blessing the New Covenant was meant to make possible. That assurance will prepare us for turning to the Omnipotence …
Andrew Murray—The Two Covenants

"The King Kissed Barzillai. " 2 Sam. xix. 39
And no wonder, for David could appreciate a real man when he saw him, and so does David's Lord. I.--LOYALTY IS PRECIOUS TO THE KING OF KINGS. In the days when the son of Jesse had but few friends, it was a precious thing to be treated in the style Barzillai and his neighbours entertained him (see 2 Sam. xvii. 27-29). They were rich farmers, and had land which brought forth with abundance, so were able to act with princely hospitality to the fugitive monarch. But plenty may live with avarice, and …
Thomas Champness—Broken Bread

What Manner of Man Ought not to Come to Rule.
Wherefore let every one measure himself wisely, lest he venture to assume a place of rule, while in himself vice still reigns unto condemnation; lest one whom his own guilt depraves desire to become an intercessor for the faults of others. For on this account it is said to Moses by the supernal voice, Speak unto Aaron; Whosoever he be of thy seed throughout their generations that hath a blemish, he shall not offer loaves of bread to the Lord his God (Lev. xxi. 17). And it is also immediately subjoined; …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

Authorship of the Pentateuch.
The term Pentateuch is composed of the two Greek words, pente, five, and teuchos, which in later Alexandrine usage signified book. It denotes, therefore, the collection of five books; or, the five books of the law considered as a whole. 1. In our inquiries respecting the authorship of the Pentateuch, we begin with the undisputed fact that it existed in its present form in the days of Christ and his apostles, and had so existed from the time of Ezra. When the translators of the Greek version, …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

Barzillai
BY REV. GEORGE MILLIGAN, M.A., D.D. "There is nothing," says Socrates to Cephalus in the Republic, "I like better than conversing with aged men. For I regard them as travellers who have gone a journey which I too may have to go, and of whom it is right to learn the character of the way, whether it is rugged or difficult, or smooth and easy" (p. 328 E.). It is to such an aged traveller that we are introduced in the person of Barzillai the Gileadite. And though he is one of the lesser-known characters …
George Milligan—Men of the Bible; Some Lesser-Known

Fifth Sunday after Trinity Exhortation to the Fruits of Faith.
Text: 1 Peter 3, 8-15. 8 Finally, be ye all like-minded, compassionate, loving as brethren, tender-hearted, humble-minded: 9 not rendering evil for evil, or reviling for reviling; but contrariwise blessing; for hereunto were ye called, that ye should inherit a blessing. 10 For, He that would love life, And see good days, Let him refrain his tongue from evil, And his lips that they speak no guile: 11 And let him turn away from evil, and do good; Let him seek peace, and pursue it. 12 For the eyes of …
Martin Luther—Epistle Sermons, Vol. III

Kings
The book[1] of Kings is strikingly unlike any modern historical narrative. Its comparative brevity, its curious perspective, and-with some brilliant exceptions--its relative monotony, are obvious to the most cursory perusal, and to understand these things is, in large measure, to understand the book. It covers a period of no less than four centuries. Beginning with the death of David and the accession of Solomon (1 Kings i., ii.) it traverses his reign with considerable fulness (1 Kings iii.-xi.), …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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