DAILY READINGS FOR “INTO THE WORD”….. (please scroll down for August)

July Into The Word – 2010

Who’s who in the Bible?

Date Who Scripture reading

July 1 Amnon and Tamar 2Samuel 13:1-20

July 2 Absalom and Amnon 2Samuel 13:21-39

July 3 Absalom’s Return 2Samuel 14:1-33

July 4 Absalom’s Conspiracy 2Samuel 15:1-18

July 5 Absalom and David 2Samuel 15:19-37

July 6 David, Ziba and Shimei 2Samuel 16:1-14

July 7 Absalom and Ahithophel 2Samuel 16:15-23

And 2Samuel 17:1-6

July 8 Absalom and David 2Samuel 17:7-29

July 9 David and Absalom 2Samuel 18:1-18

July 10 David Mourns 2Samuel 18:19-33

And 2Samuel 19:1-8 *

July 11 Sheba the Son of Bicri 2Samuel 20:1-22

July 12 David and the Gibeonites 2Samuel 21:1-14

July 13 David’s Song of Praise 2Samuel 22:1-25

July 14 David’s Song (continued) 2Samuel 22:26-51 *

July 15 David’s Mighty Men 2Samuel 23:8-39

July 16 David, Joab and the Prophet, Gad 2Samuel 24:1-25

July 17 Adonijah 1Kings 1:1-27

July 18 Solomon becomes King 1Kings 1:28-53

July 19 David’s Charge to Solomon 1Kings 2:1-12

July 20 Solomon Establishes His Kingdom 1Kings 2:13-46

July 21 Solomon Asks For Wisdom 1Kings 3:1-15

July 22 A Wise Ruling 1Kings 3:16-28

July 23 Solomon Rules with wisdom 1Kings 4:20-34

July 24 Solomon and Hiram 1Kings 5:1-18 *

July 25 The Queen of Sheba 1Kings 10:1-13

July 26 Solomon’s riches 1Kings 10:14-29

July 27 Solomon’s Wives and other Adversaries 1Kings 11:1-25

July 28 Jeroboam 1Kings 11:26-43

July 29 Rehoboam and Jeroboam 1kings 12:1-24

July 30 Jeroboam and the Man of God 1Kings 13:1-10

July 31 The Old Prophet and the Man of God 1Kings 13:11-34

* see below

* See also: Psalms 3. A Psalm of David as He fled from his son Absalom.

* See also: David’s last words; 2Samuel 23:1-7

* See also: Building The temple, the Palace and the Arc; 1Kings 6 thru 1Kings 9.

THE STRUGGLE FOR THE CROWN
We know much more about Solomon than about the other kings of Israel and Judah for two reasons: he seized the throne by force of arms, and then took pains to justify this to later generations; and he was the only king, after his father David, who was shrewd and clever enough to hold the twelve tribes of Israel together in one nation.

Solomon was the son of King David, born to a commoner who was seduced by David – David adopted the ‘I came, I saw, I conquered’ approach to Solomon’s mother Bathsheba, even though she was married to one of his top soldiers at the time. Solomon may or may not have had an elder brother – there were always whispers about his legitimacy, and the story of an elder brother who died as an infant may have been an attempt to scotch this rumor.

The practice of primogeniture, where the eldest son automatically gained the throne after the death of the king, was not firmly established, and Solomon grew up in a highly competitive court. Each woman vied to have her son gain precedence over the other sons of the king. Several sons older than Solomon had already died under violent circumstances by the time he reached his teens – Absalom, Amnon – but most people expected Adonijah, the eldest remaining son, to succeed David.

The power bloc behind Solomon had other ideas. Led by Bathsheba and Nathan, they gained the backing of sections of the priesthood and, more importantly, King David’s mercenary troops. When David lost his authority and Adonijah sought to take over the throne, Solomon’s political backers made a counter-move.

First they placed Solomon on the throne, and then they executed Adonijah . Supporters of Adonijah were liquidated.