Day 1 (Monday)
3 Kingdoms 1:41-53; 2:1-46 (Solomon as King; the Death of David)
Last time, we saw David’s oldest remaining son, Adonijah, attempt to seize the throne as David’s age and failing health left him weak. In the face of this, Nathan the prophet, together with other faithful members of David’s court, took action, urging Bathsheba to approach David and ask if it was his will that Adonijah should be king. David acted decisively, directing Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet to crown Solomon as king, and to set him upon David’s throne, and to hail him loudly as king, and to blow the trumpet proclaiming the coronation. We will pick up the story from there.
Solomon Begins to Reign
41 Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished feasting. When Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “Why is the city in an uproar?” 42 While he was still speaking, Jonathan son of the priest Abiathar arrived. Adonijah said, “Come in, for you are a worthy man and surely you bring good news.”
43 Jonathan answered Adonijah, “No, for our lord King David has made Solomon king; 44 the king has sent with him the priest Zadok, the prophet Nathan, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they had him ride on the king’s mule; 45 the priest Zadok and the prophet Nathan have anointed him king at Gihon; and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you heard.
46 Solomon now sits on the royal throne. 47 Moreover the king’s servants came to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘May God make the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater than your throne.’ The king bowed in worship on the bed 48 and went on to pray thus, ‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who today has granted one of my offspring[b] to sit on my throne and permitted me to witness it.’”
49 Then all the guests of Adonijah got up trembling and went their own ways. 50 Adonijah, fearing Solomon, got up and went to grasp the horns of the altar. 51 Solomon was informed, “Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon; see, he has laid hold of the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not kill his servant with the sword.’” 52 So Solomon responded, “If he proves to be a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the ground; but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.” 53 Then King Solomon sent to have him brought down from the altar. He came to do obeisance to King Solomon; and Solomon said to him, “Go home.”
David’s Instruction to Solomon
2 When David’s time to die drew near, he charged his son Solomon, saying: 2 “I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, be courageous, 3 and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his ordinances, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, so that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn. 4 Then the Lord will establish his word that he spoke concerning me: ‘If your heirs take heed to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail you a successor on the throne of Israel.’
5 “Moreover you know also what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me, how he dealt with the two commanders of the armies of Israel, Abner son of Ner, and Amasa son of Jether, whom he murdered, retaliating in time of peace for blood that had been shed in war, and putting the blood of war on the belt around his waist, and on the sandals on his feet. 6 Act therefore according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to Sheol in peace.
David gave other instructions regarding those who had been loyal and those who had been disloyal to him, directing Solomon to be just with both.
Death of David
10 Then David slept with his ancestors, and was buried in the city of David. 11 The time that David reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 12 So Solomon sat on the throne of his father David; and his kingdom was firmly established.
Solomon Consolidates His Reign
13 Then Adonijah son of Haggith came to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother. She asked, “Do you come peaceably?” He said, “Peaceably.” 14 Then he said, “May I have a word with you?” She said, “Go on.” 15 He said, “You know that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel expected me to reign; however, the kingdom has turned about and become my brother’s, for it was his from the Lord. 16 And now I have one request to make of you; do not refuse me.” She said to him, “Go on.” 17 He said, “Please ask King Solomon—he will not refuse you—to give me Abishag the Shunammite as my wife.” 18 Bathsheba said, “Very well; I will speak to the king on your behalf.”
19 So Bathsheba went to King Solomon, to speak to him on behalf of Adonijah. The king rose to meet her, and bowed down to her; then he sat on his throne, and had a throne brought for the king’s mother, and she sat on his right. 20 Then she said, “I have one small request to make of you; do not refuse me.” And the king said to her, “Make your request, my mother; for I will not refuse you.” 21 She said, “Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to your brother Adonijah as his wife.”
22 King Solomon answered his mother, “And why do you ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Ask for him the kingdom as well! For he is my elder brother; ask not only for him but also for the priest Abiathar and for Joab son of Zeruiah!” 23 Then King Solomon swore by the Lord, “So may God do to me, and more also, for Adonijah has devised this scheme at the risk of his life! 24 Now therefore as the Lord lives, who has established me and placed me on the throne of my father David, and who has made me a house as he promised, today Adonijah shall be put to death.” 25 So King Solomon sent Benaiah son of Jehoiada; he struck him down, and he died.
26 The king said to the priest Abiathar, “Go to Anathoth, to your estate; for you deserve death. But I will not at this time put you to death, because you carried the ark of the Lord God before my father David, and because you shared in all the hardships my father endured.” 27 So Solomon banished Abiathar from being priest to the Lord, thus fulfilling the word of the Lord that he had spoken concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.
28 When the news came to Joab—for Joab had supported Adonijah though he had not supported Absalom—Joab fled to the tent of the Lord and grasped the horns of the altar. 29 When it was told King Solomon, “Joab has fled to the tent of the Lord and now is beside the altar,” Solomon sent Benaiah son of Jehoiada, saying, “Go, strike him down.” 30 So Benaiah came to the tent of the Lord and said to him, “The king commands, ‘Come out.’” But he said, “No, I will die here.” Then Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, “Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me.”
31 The king replied to him, “Do as he has said, strike him down and bury him; and thus take away from me and from my father’s house the guilt for the blood that Joab shed without cause. 32 The Lord will bring back his bloody deeds on his own head, because, without the knowledge of my father David, he attacked and killed with the sword two men more righteous and better than himself, Abner son of Ner, commander of the army of Israel, and Amasa son of Jether, commander of the army of Judah. 33 So shall their blood come back on the head of Joab and on the head of his descendants forever; but to David, and to his descendants, and to his house, and to his throne, there shall be peace from the Lord forevermore.”
34 Then Benaiah son of Jehoiada went up and struck him down and killed him; and he was buried at his own house near the wilderness. 35 The king put Benaiah son of Jehoiada over the army in his place, and the king put the priest Zadok in the place of Abiathar.
…Then Solomon dealt out justice to others who had been faithless to David…
46b So the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should point out a few things here. First, the instructions that David leaves with Solomon are primarily that he should be faithful to God and follow the Law of Moses. David was far from perfect in this, and learned with great pain and sorrow the importance of true faithfulness; Solomon is succeeding him rather than Adonijah precisely and solely because David sees in him the possibility that he will do rightly. The other things that we see David direct him to do are to do justice where David failed to do so, especially with Joab (although there are other cases that we skip over because they have been secondary to the narrative, and we have not read them). The other thing we should understand is the significance of Abishag the Shunnamite; she is that rarest of things, a royal wife of King David who has not actually been sexually intimate with the king. Effectively, Adonijah, in asking for her as his wife, is trying to renew his claim to the kingship, to step into David’s role in the royal household and the royal bed, and to supersede Solomon on the throne. One commentator thinks that Bathsheba sees through this request, and brings it so willingly to Solomon because she knows Solomon will see through it as well, and this will bring a swift end to the threat that Adonijah continues to pose to Solomon’s rule. The other thing we should note is that this episode sees her set up as an authoritative and honored member of the household, with a throne next to the king. This honor would indicate that perhaps the commentator is right, and Solomon recognizes that his mother has enabled Adonijah to over-step and reveal his continued ambitions. Regardless, this role of the King’s Mother continues in the Royal House of Judah until the captivity, and persists even to the present day, as the Mother of the Christ/Messiah/Anointed One of the Lord continues to have a pivotal role in the Lord’s Council.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?
Day 2 (Wednesday)
Irenaeus – Against Heresies Book 3, Excerpts 1
Last time we read some additional excerpts from Book 2 of 5 from “Against Heresies,” in which Irenaeus spoke about the Incarnation of the Lord and His unity with the Father. This time, we will move on to Book 3, and will see him speak about the origin and history of the four Gospels and of the Church itself. We are drawing these selections from a recent condensation of this very substantial work by an academic named James Payton; anyone who would like to purchase this book can find it here: https://www.amazon.com/Irenaeus-Christian-Faith-Condensation-Heresies/dp/1608996247/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=
St. Irenaeus of Lyons – Against Heresies – Book 3 (excerpts 1)
We have learned the plan of our salvation from no one else than the ones through whom the gospel has come down to us. At first, they proclaimed it in public, but later on, in accordance with God’s will, they handed it down to us in the Scriptures, to be the ground and pillar of our faith [1 Tim 3:15]. It is unlawful to assert that they preached before they possessed “complete knowledge” [“gnosis”], as the heretics dare to say, who boast that they have improved on the apostles. After our Lord rose from the dead, the apostles received power from on high [Luke 24:49] when the Holy Spirit came down upon them [Acts 1:8], were filled with all his gifts, and thus received complete knowledge.
They departed to the ends of the earth, preaching the glad tidings of the good things sent from God to us, and proclaiming the peace of heaven toward humankind [Luke 2:14]. They all equally and individually possessed the gospel of God. Matthew produced a written gospel for the Hebrews in their own language, while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome, laying the foundations of the church there. After their departure, Mark, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, handed down to us in writing what Peter had preached. Luke also, the companion of Paul, recorded in a book the gospel Paul preached. Afterwards, John, the disciple of the Lord, who had leaned upon his breast [John 13:23], also published a gospel while he was living at Ephesus in Asia. (3:1,1)
These have all declared to us that there is one God, the creator of heaven and earth, announced by the law and the prophets, and one Christ the Son of God. If anyone does not agree to these truths, that person despises the companions of the Lord. Even more, that person despises Christ himself the Lord. Beyond even that, such a person also despises the Father and so stands self-condemned, resisting and opposing his own salvation—as is the case with all heretics. (3:1,2)
…
Everyone who wants to see the truth can behold the tradition of the apostles in any church anywhere in the world. We can list all those whom the apostles instituted as bishops in the churches, and the succession from them down to our own times. None of them taught or knew of anything like what these heretics rave about. If the apostles had known “hidden mysteries” which they were going to impart to “the perfect” apart and privately from the rest, the apostles would undoubtedly have delivered them to those to whom they were committing the churches. After all, they wanted these men whom they were leaving behind as their successors, to whom they were committing the leading role in governing the Church, to be perfect and blameless in all things.… (3:3,1)
However, it would be tedious to list the successions of all the churches in a volume like this. Even so, we can answer the heretics and their adherents by … pointing to that tradition derived from the apostles which is found in the very great, very ancient, and universally known church founded and organized at Rome by the two most glorious apostles, Peter and Paul. The faith they preached to humanity has come down to our time through the successions of bishops. It is necessary for every church to agree with this church because of its significance: many faithful have traveled to Rome from all places and found there the apostolic tradition which has been preserved everywhere else also. (3:3,2)
Having founded and built up the church in Rome, the blessed apostles committed the office of bishop there into the hands of Linus. Paul mentions this Linus in his letters to Timothy [2 Tim 4:21]. Anacletus succeeded him; and next, in the third place from the apostles, Clement received the bishopric. He had seen the blessed apostles and conversed with them, so he might be said to have the preaching of the apostles still echoing in his ears and their traditions before his eyes. He was not alone in this: many were still alive who had been taught by the apostles.
…
After Clement came Evaristus; Alexander followed Evaristus. Then, sixth from the apostles, Sixtus was appointed; after him, Telephorus, who was gloriously martyred; then Hyginus; after him, Pius; then after him, Anicetus. Soter having succeeded Anicetus, Eleutherus—in the twelfth place from the apostles—now has the inheritance of the episcopate. In this order and via this succession, the ecclesiastical tradition from the apostles, the preaching of the genuine truth, has come down to us. This is most abundant proof that there is one and the same life-giving faith, which has been handed down and faithfully preserved in the Church from the apostles until now. (3:3,3)
Further, Polycarp was instructed by apostles and conversed with many who had seen Christ; the apostles in Asia appointed him bishop of the church in Smyrna. I saw him in my early youth, for he lived a long time. As a very old man, he endured a glorious and noble martyrdom and departed this life. He had always taught what he had learned from the apostles—which is what the Church has handed down, and which alone is true. All the Asiatic churches testify to these things, as do those who have succeeded Polycarp down to the present time. They are leaders of much greater significance and are more steadfast witnesses of truth than Valentinus, Marcion, and the rest of the heretics. Indeed, Polycarp came to Rome in the time of Anicetus and turned many people away from these heretics to the Church of God. He declared that he had received only one truth from the apostles—the one handed down by the Church.
…
There is also a very powerful letter of Polycarp written to the Philippians, from which those who are eager to learn about salvation can get to know the character of his faith and the preaching of the truth. Furthermore, the church in Ephesus, founded by Paul, among whom John remained until the times of Trajan, is a faithful witness of the tradition of the apostles. (3:3,4)
Since we have such proofs, we do not need to seek from others the truth which is easy to get from the Church: the apostles, like a rich man depositing his wealth in a bank, placed everything related to the truth in her hands, so that whoever wants to can draw the water of life out of her [Rev 22:17]. She is the door to life; all others are thieves and robbers [John 10:7–8]. Consequently, we should turn away from the heretics and be sure to turn to the Church, so that we may lay hold of the tradition of the truth.…
What would we do if the apostles had not left us writings? Would it not be necessary, in that case, to follow the course of the tradition which they handed down to those to whom they committed the churches? (3:4,1)
This is what the numerous barbarian nations who believe in Christ do. Salvation has been written in their hearts by the Spirit, without paper or ink, but they carefully preserve the ancient tradition—believing in one God, the creator of heaven and earth, and everything in them, through Christ Jesus, the Son of God; who, because of his surpassing love towards his creation, condescended to be born of the virgin, thus uniting humanity in himself to God; having suffered under Pontius Pilate, and rising again, and having been received up in splendor, he will come again in glory as the savior of those who are saved and the judge of those who are judged, and will send into eternal fire those who pervert the truth and despise his Father and his advent.
As regards our language, those who have believed this faith without recourse to written documents are barbarians, but as regards doctrine, manner, and tenor of life, they are very wise indeed because of faith: they please God, living their lives in all righteousness, chastity, and wisdom. If anyone were to preach to them in their own language what the heretics have dreamed up, they would immediately stop their ears and run as far away as possible, unwilling even to listen to such blasphemy. Rooted in the ancient tradition of the apostles, they do not accept any of the instruction offered in the elegant diction of these teachers, among whom neither Church nor doctrine has ever taken root. (3:4,2)
Before Valentinus, none embraced his views; no one held notions like Marcion’s before him; indeed, none of these perversely-minded heretics had a forerunner for his particular teaching.… All of them brought forward their apostasy much later, after the Church had already long been in existence. (3:4,3)
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should point out how this portion of Irenaeus’ writing gives us two assurances of the legitimacy of the Church’s teaching, both of which remain with us today. The first is the confirmation of the validity of the eyewitness testimony of the Lord’s life and teachings in the four gospel accounts, and even a little bit of the history of each book. The second is the continuity of teaching in each local church, with Rome as one example, and his own experience with Polycarp in Asia Minor as another. These two points remain lynchpins of the Church’s continued fidelity to the Apostolic tradition.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?
Day 3 (Friday)
John 12:1-19 (Mary Anoints Jesus, Plot to Kill Lazarus, Palm Sunday)
Last time, we saw the Lord raise Lazarus from the dead, and the immediate response of the religious leaders, which was to plot to kill him, lest the Romans bring down extreme force and violence upon Jerusalem and all of Judaea to prevent what would surely look to them like a nascent revolt. We saw that nonetheless, all of Jerusalem was filled with excitement, wondering whether this Jesus, who had even raised the dead Lazarus back to life, would come to Jerusalem for the Passover. This time, we will Jesus do just that.
Mary Anoints Jesus
12 Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 2 There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. 3 Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
4 But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, 5 “Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?” 6 (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) 7 Jesus said, “Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. 8 You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.”
The Plot to Kill Lazarus
9 When the great crowd of the Jews learned that he was there, they came not only because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 10 So the chief priests planned to put Lazarus to death as well, 11 since it was on account of him that many of the Jews were deserting and were believing in Jesus.
Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem
12 The next day the great crowd that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, shouting,
“Hosanna!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord— the King of Israel!”
14 Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it; as it is written:
15 “Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion.
Look, your king is coming,
sitting on a donkey’s colt!”
16 His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written of him and had been done to him. 17 So the crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to testify. 18 It was also because they heard that he had performed this sign that the crowd went to meet him. 19 The Pharisees then said to one another, “You see, you can do nothing. Look, the world has gone after him!”
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should point out how quickly things are moving. We suddenly see explicit mention made of an imminent preparation for the Lord’s burial, we see Judas find his excuse for betrayal, and we see the people at large hailing Jesus as the Messiah, the long-promised one, and the Evangelist confirms that they are correct in identifying Jesus in this way with the quotation from Zechariah 9:9. We should also note, of course, St. John’s editorial comment; he and the others didn’t understand what was happening at the time, but after the Lord’s Resurrection, then they remembered and understood, and indeed, the connections were probably taught to them by the Lord Himself, as perhaps on the road to Emmaus.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?