ROOTED - Wednesday, March 11, 2026

1Kings 1:5-6; 50-52

5 Now
Adonijah, whose mother was Haggith, put himself forward and said, “I will
be king.” So he got chariots and horses ready, with fifty men to run
ahead of him. 6 (His father had never
rebuked him by asking, “Why do you behave as you do?”

50 But Adonijah,
in fear of Solomon, went and took hold of the horns of the altar. 51 Then
Solomon was told, “Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon and is clinging to the
horns of the altar. He says, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me today that he will
not put his servant to death with the sword.’”

52 Solomon
replied, “If he shows himself to be worthy, not a hair of his head will
fall to the ground; but if evil is found in him, he will die.”

Reflection: Adonijah, A Sad Lesson

Written By: Pastor Jesse Caro

I don’t know about you, but when I read the story of Adonijah, I
become unsettled. King David, his father, is on his death bed. Adonijah, being
the eldest son, is in the rightful line to be the king and he begins to make
plans consistent with his rights. He makes those plans, evidently, in full view
of his father, who never tells him to stop (1 Kings 1:5, 6). Wisely, he
includes people in his plan that support him and like him (particular priests,
leaders and advisors). However, the main prophet, Nathan, undermines these
efforts by plotting with Bathsheba. He says, “if Adonijah becomes king, he will
try to remove all other possible claimants of the throne, so your son, Solomon,
will be killed.” So, they plan to, essentially, manipulate King David to have
Solomon become the heir to the throne. The plan succeeds and Adonijah fears for
his life… pleading with Solomon to not kill him (1:52-52). Solomon spares him.

Now, I am trying to avoid reading heart motives into Adonijah’s
initial desire to be king in the first chapter. Chapter one, in my opinion, does
not show me that Adonijah had a wicked desire and plot. Here is how I see it:
Adonijah, in fact, was the rightful heir, 2) King David knew his plans and did
not stop them, and 3) Nathan and Bathsheba seem to be the manipulative
plotters! For these reasons, I really feel bad for Adonijah and think he was unjustly
treated.

We have all been in the place of Adonijah. Often, we do what seems
right and good. We proceed with a course of action that is reasonable, wise,
and just. And yet, like Adonijah, it does not seem like God is blessing us.
Others that don’t deserve it get blessed, while we are made to look like the
bad guy! Sincerely that is how I read this sad story! But the story simply
reminds me that God’s ways are not my ways. God does not owe me anything. I
need only trust God and allow him to fight my battles. God is in control, even
when it looks like I am being dealt an unjust hand. However, Adonijah, in
chapter 2, plots for marital advantage (presumably to undermine Solomon) and is
killed. He should have trusted God with his circumstances, but instead he takes
matters into his own hand. We should learn from this tragic story. Trust God. Don’t
take matters into your hands. Be passive. Allow things to unfold. Appeal to God
to right injustices and then rest in God’s sovereign hand.

Prayer

Lord, may we trust you in matters when there is injustice put on
us. Fight our battles and help us to leave the matter in your care.