King David is the favorite of many people because of his passionate character and his only too human qualities. He had numerous strengths that led him to become his nation’s greatest king. But he also possessed some spectacular weaknesses. One of his most acute shortcomings lay in his parenting. He could command a band of the mightiest warriors in the land, he could organize the top worship leaders of his day, but he could not guide his own children.
David’s great weakness came in his unwillingness to rebuke inappropriate behavior. He was far too long-suffering. Perhaps he wished for the best in people. Maybe he was only too aware of his own shortcomings to be pointing them out in others. Maybe he was so overwhelmed by God’s grace in his own life that he erred in granting it indiscriminately to others. Or, perhaps he was so engaged in his work that he chose to be a passive observer in his home. Whatever his motivation, David erred greatly by not rebuking ungodly behavior in his children.
Adonijah was the younger brother of Absalom. Absalom had been a good-looking, ambitious, neglected child of the king who had ultimately thrown the entire kingdom into civil war. Certainly King David ought to have been discerning when Absalom’s younger brother came of age. But David did nothing. And rarely is doing nothing the best strategy in volatile times.
It takes courage to address inappropriate behavior. It can appear to be much easier to look the other way and hope it goes away. But, too often, neglect simply magnifies the problems when they inevitably come.