NOTE: To all my readers…FINALLY I AM IN AFRICA! Thank you all for your prayers! Grace and I appreciate them very much. God bless all of you and thanks for your faithful readership and comments. In Christ, Mark
Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they were finishing their feast. On hearing the sound of the trumpet, Joab asked, "What's the meaning of all the noise in the city?"
Even as he was speaking, Jonathan son of Abiathar the priest arrived. Adonijah said, "Come in. A worthy man like you must be bringing good news."
"Not at all!" Jonathan answered. "Our lord King David has made Solomon king. The king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, the Kerethites and the Pelethites, and they have put him on the king's mule, and Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king at Gihon. From there they have gone up cheering, and the city resounds with it. That's the noise you hear.”
“Moreover, Solomon has taken his seat on the royal throne. Also, the royal officials have come to congratulate our lord King David, saying, 'May your God make Solomon's name more famous than yours and his throne greater than yours!' And the king bowed in worship on his bed and said, 'Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who has allowed my eyes to see a successor on my throne today.' "
At this, all Adonijah's guests rose in alarm and dispersed. But Adonijah, in fear of Solomon, went and took hold of the horns of the altar. 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.' "
Solomon replied, "If he shows himself to be a worthy man, not a hair of his head will fall to the ground; but if evil is found in him, he will die." Then King Solomon sent men, and they brought him down from the altar. And Adonijah came and bowed down to King Solomon, and Solomon said, "Go to your home."
1 Kings 1:41-53
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As David’s death drew near, little did he know that he would have to take sudden, decisive actions to ensure his throne went to who he (and God) desired…his son Solomon. But the actions of a different son, Adonijah…who schemed behind David’s back to assume the throne…led to David sending Solomon with Zadok the priest, the prophet Nathan, Benaiah, the Kerethites and the Pelethites to Gihon where Zadok anointed him as the new king of Israel. The coronation brought great celebration as the trumpets sounded and people cheered so loudly that the ground shook…and drew the attention of Adonijah and his conspirators as they feasted.
We read that just as Joab had asked about the reason for the loud trumpeting, Jonathan, son of the priest Abiathar, arrived and delivered the news of what had just happened…that David had appointed and anointed Solomon as the new king of Israel, receiving praises from his royal officials afterwards.
Well, the news was not received well because scripture tells us that “all Adonijah's guests rose in alarm and dispersed”, showing just how little allegiance they had to him as they left him to fend for himself. And in his sudden predicament, we read where Adonijah “took hold of the horns of the altar” as he was afraid of his fate now that his brother was king and was aware of his actions.
Why did Adonijah cling to the horns of the altar?
Because the vertical projections from the altar corners were believed to be symbols of hope and refuge…both needed by Adonijah at that very moment. The horns had a secondary symbology…one of atonement…as during sacrifices, the law called for some of the blood to be placed on the horns of the altar to atone for sin. And thus another reason why Adonijah clung to the horns…for he also needed atonement for his devious scheming.
The actions of Adonijah as he realized that his sin had been exposed got me thinking about myself and how I have had and continue to have my sins laid bare by a God who sees everything in, through and around me and exposes my evil ways just as he did Adonijah…driving me to the altar…to the place where I seek atonement and refuge and hope…hope that once again God would exercise mercy upon me and help teach me how to be more like the man He wants me to be.
Maybe you can relate.
So what happened in the case of Adonijah?
Back to the scriptures where we see that word got back to Solomon, the new king of Israel…word that Adonijah was afraid and “clinging to the horns of the altar”. His words quoted to Solomon were ones of a man seeking mercy…and not just any man but Solomon’s own brother.
So what did Solomon do?
He very well could have just ordered Adonijah killed. Such was the severity of the treasonous intentions Adonijah had. But Solomon, who would gain a reputation for his wisdom, allowed Adonijah to dictate his own fate. For if Adonijah would show “himself to be a worthy man” then he would not be harmed…or as Solomon put it, “not a hair of his head will fall to the ground”. However if Adonijah returned to his evil ways, then Solomon promised that he would be put to death.
So the pardon was in place. Adonijah would live to see another day, at least in the short term, and as he came down from the altar and bowed before his brother king…saved by Solomon’s grace and mercy and forgiveness but expected to change and turn from his sin.
This is exactly what happens to us as well as we confess and repent from our own evil ways. We come to the altar and throw ourselves at the mercy and grace of God…hoping to receive His pardon. And pardon is exactly what we receive through our belief and trust in Jesus who shed the atoning blood we need to be made clean at the altar of pardon and hope and refuge.
Friends, this is why our calling to bring the gospel to those who don’t know Jesus is so critical. Because without Jesus, there is no pardon…no full forgiveness…no pardon…and no cleansing of sin. Instead, one remains fully sin-stained and facing condemnation and damnation…without hope or salvation.
Question: Do you or someone you know need to come to the altar of God today?
The Lord awaits with hope, refuge and redemption through His only Son Jesus…the Savior of us all.
Amen.
** Perhaps you have a testimony of when you came to the altar and what you found there when you came before the Lord through Christ Jesus. Feel free to comment and share your testimony of you like.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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