Adonijah and friends are still celebrating his self-appointment as king. Bathsheba and Nathan have just warned David what was taking place. David reacted immediately:
“‘Call Bathsheba!’ So she came back in and stood before the king. And the king repeated his vow: ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who has rescued me from every danger, your son Solomon will be the next king and will sit on my throne this very day, just as I vowed to you before the Lord, the God of Israel” (I Kings 1:28-30, NLT).
“Then Bathsheba bowed down with her face to the ground before the king and exclaimed, ‘May my lord King David live forever!’ Then King David ordered, ‘Call Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada.’ When they came into the king’s presence, the king said to them, ‘Take Solomon and my officials down to Gihon Spring. Solomon is to ride on my own mule. There Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet are to anoint him king over Israel. Blow the ram’s horn and shout, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ Then escort him back here, and he will sit on my throne. He will succeed me as king, for I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and Judah’” (I Kings 1:31-35).
Unable to make the journey himself, David arranged for Solomon to ride the king’s personal mount. Then he instructed Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet to anoint Solomon. This alone is so cool: prophet, priest and king. The anointing of Solomon points us to the coming of the One who fulfills all three roles, Jesus Christ.
What else did David tell them to do? “Blow the ram’s horn and shout, ‘Long live King Solomon!’” They were to make Solomon’s coronation as public as possible. And afterwards? Solomon was to be escorted back to David’s palace to sit on the throne. Couldn’t make it more official than that!
“‘Amen!’ Benaiah son of Jehoiada replied. ‘May the Lord, the God of my lord the king, decree that it happen. And may the Lord be with Solomon as he has been with you, my lord the king, and may he make Solomon’s reign even greater than yours!’ So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the king’s bodyguard took Solomon down to Gihon Spring, with Solomon riding on King David’s own mule. There Zadok the priest took the flask of olive oil from the sacred tent and anointed Solomon with the oil. Then they sounded the ram’s horn and all the people shouted, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ And all the people followed Solomon into Jerusalem, playing flutes and shouting for joy. The celebration was so joyous and noisy that the earth shook with the sound” (I Kings 1:36-40).
“Adonijah and his guests heard the celebrating and shouting just as they were finishing their banquet. When Joab heard the sound of the ram’s horn, he asked, ‘What’s going on? Why is the city in such an uproar?’” (I Kings 1:41).
Adonijah may have already been wrapping up his banquet, but party time for him was about to be over in more ways than one.
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