David’s fourth son. Haggith gave birth to him at Hebron (2 Samuel 3:4). After his three older brothers (Amnon, Chileab, and Absalom) died, Adonijah was next to become king after David. According to 1 Kings, David promised his wife Bathsheba that their son Solomon would be the next king (1 Kings 1:17).
When David seemed to be dying, Adonijah began to prepare to become king (1 Kings 1:1–10). Before this could happen, David named Solomon as the next king (1 Kings 1:11–40). Adonijah avoided Solomon at first (1 Kings 1:41–53), but eventually, he asked King Solomon for permission to marry Abishag. Abishag was the woman from Shunem who was caring for David during his last days. In the ancient Near East, taking the concubine of a deceased king was the same as claiming the throne. This made Solomon angry and he ordered Adonijah to be killed (1 Kings 2:13–25).
→ View encyclopedia entryA Levite sent by King Jehoshaphat of Judah to teach the people the law of the Lord (2 Chronicles 17:8).
→ View encyclopedia entryA political leader who signed Ezra’s promise to be faithful to God with Nehemiah and others after the exile in Babylon (Nehemiah 10:16).
Adonijah
This term has multiple meanings in the Bible:
From Tyndale Bible Dictionary, adapted by Mission Mutual. CC BY-SA 4.0.