Overview of 1 Kings 1:1–11:43

The opening chapters of 1 Kings focus almost entirely on Solomon, the son born to David and Bathsheba who rose to power and became perhaps the single most significant king that God’s OT people ever had. However, the Solomon narrative begins with a whimper rather than a fanfare. The great King David is in bed, seemingly oblivious to the fact that his kingdom is under threat, beyond caring about the fulfillment of the promises received in 2 Samuel 7. When David is finally roused to action, it is scarcely his finest hour, as he charges his son Solomon to deal with his unfinished business in brutal style, “according to your wisdom” (1 Kings 2:4–9). This immediately casts in a dark light the narratives that follow. Despite the glowing account of Solomon’s reign, his initial marriage to Pharaoh’s daughter (3:1), the relative dimensions of his palaces (7:1–12), and the narrator’s summaries of his extravagant lifestyle (9:10–28 and 11:1–8 in particular) make it very clear that this part of the Bible is not a straightforward account of an admirable great king. The message, rather like that of the end of 2 Kings, is that the ultimate King who will lead his people to the fulfillment of God’s covenant promises has not yet arrived.