Solomon’s Coronation was a Political Thriller

Yesterday we visited Ir David in the ancient City of David. This area includes a number of excavated structures plus a walk through Hezekiah’s Tunnel and a visit to the Pool of Siloam.

Solomon’s coronation is one of many biblical stories that occurred in this area. Though Solomon was known as a “Man of Peace” his reign began with a high-stakes plot from within the royal house. David’s then-oldest son, Adonijah, worked with Joab and a number of other officials to seize the throne before the aged, isolated, bed-ridden David could finalize his plans for the young Solomon’s succession.

Looking south along the eastern slope of the ancient City of David (Jerusalem). En-rogel, the site of Adonijah’s celebratory feast, is in the distant valley below the hill. Solomon was coronated by the Gihon spring, down the slope around the buildings in the lower left of the photo. (Photo by Luke Chandler)

The story is found in 1 Kings 1. The short video below summarizes the story and shows where it all happened.

About LukeChandler

Luke holds an M.A. in Ancient and Classical History and has been an adjunct professor at Florida College in Temple Terrace, Florida. Luke and his wife Melanie have five children. He serves as a minister with the North Terrace Church of Christ and has participated in multiple archaeological excavations in Israel. Luke leads informative, meaningful tours to Europe and the Bible Lands.

View all posts by LukeChandler →

Posted on July 14, 2012 by LukeChandler

This entry was posted in Bible comments, Israel, Jerusalem, Short videos and tagged 1 Kings, Adonijah, Bathsheba, City of David, David, En-rogel, Gihon, Jerusalem, Joab, Nathan, Solomon. Bookmark the permalink.