seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
2 Samuel 3:3 The war between the house of Saul and the house of David lasted a long time. David grew stronger and stronger, while the house of Saul grew weaker and weaker.
2 Sons were born to David in Hebron:
His firstborn was Amnon the son of Ahinoam of Jezreel;
3 his second, Kileab the son of Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel;
the third, Absalom the son of Maakah daughter of Talmai king of Geshur;
4 the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith;
the fifth, Shephatiah the son of Abital;
5 and the sixth, Ithream the son of David’s wife Eglah.
These were born to David in Hebron.
His firstborn was Amnon the son of Ahinoam of Jezreel;
3 his second, Kileab the son of Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel;
the third, Absalom the son of Maakah daughter of Talmai king of Geshur;
4 the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith;
the fifth, Shephatiah the son of Abital;
5 and the sixth, Ithream the son of David’s wife Eglah.
These were born to David in Hebron.
I was going to shoot right past this.... until I started reading the commentaries.
This is from blueletterbible.org.
Sons were born to David: During David's seven-year reign in Hebron, his six different wives gave birth to six sons. This shows that David went against God's commandment that Israel's king should not multiply wives to himself.
These were born to David in Hebron: We must say that God used and blessed David despite his many wives. Yet his family life and these sons were obviously not blessed. "By six wives he had but six sons. God was not pleased with his polygamy." (Trapp)
Amnon raped his half-sister and was murdered by his half-brother.
Chileab is also known as Daniel in 1 Chronicles 3:1. The few mentions of this son indicate that perhaps he died young or that he was an ungodly, unworthy man.
Absalom murdered his half-brother and led a civil war against his father David, attempting to murder David.
Adonijah tried to seize the throne from David and David's appointed successor - then he tried to take one of David's concubines and was executed for his arrogance.
We can fairly assume that Shephatiah and Ithream either died young or were ungodly and unworthy men, mentioned only once again in the Scriptures - in a generic listing of David's sons (1 Chronicles 3:1-4).
David was wrong to have more than one wife. His many wives went against God's command to kings (Deuteronomy 17:17) and against God's heart for marriage (Genesis 2:24, Matthew 19:4-6).
David's many wives were common. Adding many wives was one of the ways great men and especially kings expressed their power and status.
David was troubled because of his many wives. Some wonder why the Bible doesn't expressly condemn David's polygamy here, but as is often the case here the Scripture simply states the fact, and later records how David reaped the penalty for this sort of sin in regard to his family.
David's many wives were common. Adding many wives was one of the ways great men and especially kings expressed their power and status.
David was troubled because of his many wives. Some wonder why the Bible doesn't expressly condemn David's polygamy here, but as is often the case here the Scripture simply states the fact, and later records how David reaped the penalty for this sort of sin in regard to his family.
These were born to David in Hebron: We must say that God used and blessed David despite his many wives. Yet his family life and these sons were obviously not blessed. "By six wives he had but six sons. God was not pleased with his polygamy." (Trapp)
Amnon raped his half-sister and was murdered by his half-brother.
Chileab is also known as Daniel in 1 Chronicles 3:1. The few mentions of this son indicate that perhaps he died young or that he was an ungodly, unworthy man.
Absalom murdered his half-brother and led a civil war against his father David, attempting to murder David.
Adonijah tried to seize the throne from David and David's appointed successor - then he tried to take one of David's concubines and was executed for his arrogance.
We can fairly assume that Shephatiah and Ithream either died young or were ungodly and unworthy men, mentioned only once again in the Scriptures - in a generic listing of David's sons (1 Chronicles 3:1-4).
This is from the easy English site.
David went to Hebron with two wives. While he was there, he married 4 more wives. Later, when he moved to Jerusalem, he had more wives and children (5:13-16). At that time, some men had more than one wife. This showed that they were important men. Kings often had many wives. This was the custom in many nations round Israel. Genesis 2 shows that God wants a man to have only one wife. But the Israelites probably copied the other nations.
The most important son in an Israelite family was the oldest son. The oldest son of the king usually became the next king. Verses 2-5 name the first son of each of David’s 6 wives. 1 Chronicles 3:1-3 repeats these verses. But it says that the name of David’s second son was Daniel. David’s wives may have had other sons and daughters during this time. For example, 2 Samuel 13:1 says that Tamar was the sister of Absalom. But we do not know when she was born. The Bible does not mention Kileab (or Daniel), Shephatiah or Ithream again. They may have died when they were young. In 2 Samuel 13:23-29, Absalom killed Amnon. In 2 Samuel 18:1-17, Joab and his men killed Absalom. In 1 Kings 1:1 to 2:25, Adonijah tried to become king when King David was an old man. Later King Solomon killed Adonijah.
The most important son in an Israelite family was the oldest son. The oldest son of the king usually became the next king. Verses 2-5 name the first son of each of David’s 6 wives. 1 Chronicles 3:1-3 repeats these verses. But it says that the name of David’s second son was Daniel. David’s wives may have had other sons and daughters during this time. For example, 2 Samuel 13:1 says that Tamar was the sister of Absalom. But we do not know when she was born. The Bible does not mention Kileab (or Daniel), Shephatiah or Ithream again. They may have died when they were young. In 2 Samuel 13:23-29, Absalom killed Amnon. In 2 Samuel 18:1-17, Joab and his men killed Absalom. In 1 Kings 1:1 to 2:25, Adonijah tried to become king when King David was an old man. Later King Solomon killed Adonijah.
One thing for sure.... I probably don't want to skip the family tree listings. Every single time I try... I find that by missing the family trees I'll miss the family drama... and the family drama is a huge part of the Bible. It seems to me... the way humans deal with drama is really a learning tool for me.
