Verses 1-4
David’s Condition In Old Age (1 Kings 1:1-4 ).
The importance of this initial passage lies in the fact, firstly that it indicates the king’s poor state of health, and secondly that it introduces Abishag who will play an important part in what follows. It makes clear exactly what her position was. She was there mainly to keep the king warm, and to look after him, but did not have sexual relations with him. She was, however, seen as his concubine (common wife) as is evident from 1 Kings 2:22. She would probably not have been expected to take up the position otherwise, for her later position would have been untenable.
Analysis.
a Now king David was old and stricken in years, and they covered him with clothes, but he generated no warmth (1 Kings 1:1).
b For which reason his servants said to him, “Let there be sought for my lord the king a young woman, and let her stand before the king, and cherish him” (1 Kings 1:2 a).
c “And let her lie in your bosom, that my lord the king may obtain warmth” (1 Kings 1:2 b).
b So they sought for a beautiful young maiden throughout all the borders of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king (1 Kings 1:3).
a And the damsel was very beautiful, and she cherished the king, and ministered to him, but the king knew her not (had no sexual relations with her) (1 Kings 1:4).
Note that in ‘a’ David needed to be ‘cherished’ (made warm), and in the parallel Abishag did cherish him. In ‘b’ they stated their intent to seek out a young unmarried woman, and in the parallel they sought her out and that young unmarried woman is described. Centrally in ‘c’ her duties are laid out.
‘ Now king David was old and coming in of days (reaching the end of his life, stricken in years), and they covered him with clothes (or ‘covers, sheets, blankets’), but he generated no warmth.’
The sad state to which David had come is made clear, and while partly due to old age, must surely also have resulted from some illness. For him to have been feeling cold when we consider the heat of the climate must have had some medical condition at the back of it as its cause. He was after all only about seventy years of age. His state, and no doubt his shivering, naturally perturbed his faithful ‘servants’.
‘ For which reason his servants said to him, “Let there be sought for my lord the king a young woman, and let her stand before the king, and cherish him, and let her lie in your bosom, that my lord the king may obtain warmth.’
His ‘servants’ therefore determined to find for him a young woman to lie close to him and warm him. ‘Bethulah’ does not technically mean a virgin, and for that reason often need to be qualified by the phrase ‘and had not known a man’ where virginity is in mind. (Anath, the sister of Baal, was a bethulah, but could by no means be seen as a virgin. She was a fertility goddess. Compare also the ‘virgin daughter of Babylon’ who was also a widow (Isaiah 47:1; Isaiah 47:9) and see Joel 1:8). Here no doubt a young unmarried woman is indicated, one who was therefore reputedly a virgin as any reputable young unmarried woman in Israel would be expected to be. Her purpose was to be to be in the king’s presence, to serve his needs, and to lie with him in order to warm him. She was thus more than an attendant. She was a concubine wife.
To ‘obtain warmth’ may well have included the thought of sexual relations if the king wished for it (the Old Testament regularly uses similar euphemisms), but a more physical warmth was undoubtedly the main factor in mind. The king simply could not get warm. This was probably seen as a standard method of keeping the wealthy, who could afford another ‘wife’, warm when they grew old. It is testified to elsewhere, and was experimented with by the famous physician Galen. In fact the poor also no doubt regularly ‘cuddled up’ with other members of the family so as to keep warm on cold nights, while preserving decency. It was only more unusual for kings, for they usually had other means of keeping warm.
“His servants.” This is a term which can have a wide variety of meaning from signifying high court officials, to signifying king’s physicians, personal servants, the common people, or bondslaves, depending on the context All were servants to the king. Here it is probably high court officials who are in mind, although the king’s personal servants may be included.
‘ So they sought for a beautiful young maiden throughout all the borders of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king.’
They sought throughout the kingdom for a suitable beautiful young woman, and chose a Shunammite named Abishag. There is no indication anywhere that she was connected with the Shunammite in the Song of Solomon, but the parallel may suggest that the Shunammites were well known for their beauty, as well as being the kind who could keep a king warm. Shunem was eleven kilometres (seven miles) south east of Nazareth in the territory of Issachar.
‘ And the damsel was very beautiful, and she cherished the king, and ministered to him, but the king knew her not (had no sexual relations with her).’
Note how the beauty of the young woman is stressed, which appears to be in contrast to the fact that ‘the king knew her not’ (had no sexual relations with her). It certainly stresses how ill the king was, and some have suggested that it was a virility test in order to indicate his state of health. In other countries failure in such a test could result in the king being deposed, or replaced by a regent, but there is no hint of that in this case. There is no suggestion that Solomon was crowned because David had failed a virility test. He was crowned in order to counteract Adonijah’s attempted coup. Thus his lack of sexual activity was simply an indication of his failing condition. But it does possibly explain why Adonijah saw Abishag as still available to be his wife on the grounds that David had not had sexual relations with her (although David’s sons do not appear to have been too fussy about such things).
The main importance of all this was firstly in order to emphasise the king’s poor health, and secondly in order to prepare for Abishag’s part in what was coming. But it is also a reminder to us that even in such a situation God looks after His own servants in His own way and makes provision for each of them according to their need.
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