I Kings 11:23
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And God raised up against Solomon another adversary, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer king of Zobah,
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
This chapter begins with as melancholy a "but" as almost any we find in all the Bible. Hitherto we have read nothing of Solomon but what was great and good; but the lustre both of his goodness and of his greatness is here sullied and eclipsed, and his sun sets under a cloud. I. The glory of his piety is stained by his departure from God and his duty, in his latter days, marrying strange wives and worshipping strange gods (Kg1 11:4-8). II. The glory of his prosperity is stained by God's displeasure against him and the fruits of that displeasure. 1. He sent him an angry message (Kg1 11:9-13). 2. He stirred up enemies, who gave him disturbance, Hadad (Kg1 11:14-22), Rezon (Kg1 11:23-25). 3. He gave away ten tribes of his twelve, from his posterity after him, to Jeroboam, whom therefore he sought in vain to slay (Kg1 11:26-40), and this is all that remains here to be told concerning Solomon, except his death and burial (Kg1 11:41-43), for there is nothing perfect under the sun, but all is so above the sun.
Open source ↗11:23-25 Solomon’s second adversary was Rezon, an Aramean who had served under King Hadadezer of Aram-zobah. When David had defeated Hadadezer (2 Sam 8:3-7), Rezon escaped, gained a group of followers, and went to Damascus. He maintained himself there when Solomon campaigned in Hamath-zobah (2 Chr 8:3-4) and eventually became king of Damascus. Like Hadad, Rezon remained a bitter enemy of Israel and was troublesome to Solomon.
Open source ↗Original language
The Hebrew and Greek words behind this passage, with Strong's numbers — from openscriptures (CC BY-SA).
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David also defeated Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah, who had marched out to restore his dominion along the Euphrates River.
Then the LORD raised up against Solomon an adversary, Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom.
When the Ammonites realized that they had become a stench to David, Hanun and the Ammonites sent a thousand talents of silver to hire for themselves chariots and horsemen from Aram-naharaim, Aram-maacah, and Zobah.
The Ammonites marched out and arrayed themselves for battle at the entrance of the city gate, while the Arameans of Zobah and Rehob and the men of Tob and Maacah were by themselves in the open country.
Behold, I will stir up against them the Medes, who have no regard for silver and no desire for gold.
In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken through Jeremiah, the LORD stirred the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia to send a proclamation throughout his kingdom and to put it in writing as follows:
You have rejected us, O God; You have broken us; You have been angry; restore us!
Then David said to Abishai and to all his servants, “Behold, my own son, my own flesh and blood, seeks my life. How much more, then, this Benjamite! Leave him alone and let him curse me, for the LORD has told him so.
I am the LORD, and there is no other; there is no God but Me. I will equip you for battle, though you have not known Me,
You will advance against My people Israel like a cloud covering the land. It will happen in the latter days, O Gog, that I will bring you against My land, so that the nations may know Me when I show Myself holy in you before their eyes.