ESOCS Devotional 20 April 2025 – A Blessed Experience
MEMORY VERSE: “Solomon succeeded his father as King and his royal power was firmly established.” 1 Kings 2:12
TEXT: 1 KINGS 2:1-18
Now the days of David drew near that he should die, and he [a]charged Solomon his son, saying: 2 “I go the way of all the earth; be strong, therefore, and prove yourself a man. 3 And keep the charge of the Lord your God: to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His judgments, and His testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn; 4 that the Lord may fulfill His word which He spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons take heed to their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul,’ He said, ‘you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’
5 “Moreover you know also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two commanders of the armies of Israel, to Abner the son of Ner and Amasa the son of Jether, whom he killed. And he shed the blood of war in peacetime, and put the blood of war on his belt that was around his waist, and on his sandals that were on his feet. 6 Therefore do according to your wisdom, and do not let his gray hair go down to the grave in peace.
7 “But show kindness to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at your table, for so they came to me when I fled from Absalom your brother.
8 “And see, you have with you Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite from Bahurim, who cursed me with a malicious curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim. But he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by the Lord, saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’ 9 Now therefore, do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man and know what you ought to do to him; but bring his gray hair down to the grave with blood.”
10 So David rested with his fathers, and was buried in the City of David. 11 The period that David reigned over Israel was forty years; seven years he reigned in Hebron, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years. 12 Then Solomon sat on the throne of his father David; and his kingdom was firmly established.
13 Now Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. So she said, “Do you come peaceably?”
And he said, “Peaceably.” 14 Moreover he said, “I have something to say to you.”
And she said, “Say it.”
15 Then he said, “You know that the kingdom was mine, and all Israel had set their expectations on me, that I should reign. However, the kingdom has been turned over, and has become my brother’s; for it was his from the Lord. 16 Now I ask one petition of you; do not deny me.”
And she said to him, “Say it.”
17 Then he said, “Please speak to King Solomon, for he will not refuse you, that he may give me Abishag the Shunammite as wife.”
18 So Bathsheba said, “Very well, I will speak for you to the king.”
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It is indeed a blessed experience to have your descendant step into your shoe. But to be alive and see its manifestation is a higher blessing, which the Lord gives. Some parents die before their children start to reign in wealth and positions. Some are blessed to live and witness the height of God’s blessing upon their children. Today, we see King David live to install his son as a successor to his throne, according to the promise of God (1 Kings 2:1-4).
The secret of living this kind of a blessed life as David lived is in doing what God orders you to do as stipulated in the scriptures. David lived in this manner and advised Solomon to do so: “So that wherever you go you may prosper in everything you do.”
The word of God is also found in the counsel of the wise. It takes the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in gifted men and women to explain some biblical truths. When you find a father, mother or mentor who is spiritually gifted in wise counsel, don’t neglect them. It is a blessing of God to have such people. You will get blessed if you hearken to their counsel. David was such a father and Solomon got firmly established and blessed as long as he obeyed and practiced his father’s way of life and directives. In verses 5-9 are directives of some deeds, which David as a King was obliged to do according to the law but could not. Those deeds had burdens, which David endured but will not let his son continue with the evil of those burden. In verse 5, David directed death penalty for Joab who killed Abner and Amasa in time of peace as revenge for deaths they caused in time of war. David lamented thus “….. He killed innocent men, and now I bear the responsibility for what he did, and I suffer the consequences.”
It is indeed a blessing to have a father or mentor who will expose his faults to you in order that you do not suffer what he suffered. Not all fathers are so loving. But David was. His son Solomon reigned in Israel without suffering the guilt of what his father did. His father had him correct the errors and continue with the good works he did (1 Kings 2:7).
May we be known as parents who will have children that will be blessed, as a result of our impacts. Amen.
CHALLENGES
- Do you have a testimony of how blessed you have become as a result of the impact of a father or a mentor?
PRAYER POINT
- Father, may I encounter men and mentor whose impact will bless my life, in Jesus name. Amen.
FURTHER READING: 1 Kings 1:38-58; 1 Corinthians 5:1-13; 6:1-12
ESOCS Devotional 20 April 2025
