1 Kings 1:5

“Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, etc.] This was his mother’s name, (<100304>2 Samuel 3:4); his father David being old and infirm, and not like to live long, notable to oppose him; and he being the eldest son, and a comely person, was inspired with ambition to set up for king: saying, I will be king; though he knew that Solomon was appointed of God, and promised by David, and expected by the people to be king, yet he was resolved to set up himself for king, and try if he could not get himself to the throne; on this he was bent and determined: and he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him; just as Absalom had done, when he had the same thing in…”

“ADONIJAH USURPS THE KINGDOM. (1Ki. 1:5-31) Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself--Nothing is said as to the origin or rank of Haggith, so that it is probable she was not distinguished by family descent. Adonijah, though David's fourth son (Sa2 3:4; Ch1 3:2), was now the oldest alive; and his personal attractions and manners (Sa1 9:2) not only recommended him to the leading men about court, but made him the favorite of his father, who, though seeing him assume an equipage becoming only the heir-presumptive to the throne (Sa2 15:1), said nothing; and his silence was considered by many, as well as by Adonijah, to be equivalent to an expression of consent. The sinking health of the…”

“The narrative concerning - Abishag, the Shunammite (see the margin reference “a”), is introduced as necessary for a proper understanding of Adonijah’s later history (see 1 Kings 2:13-25.) But even as it stands, it heightens considerably the picture drawn of the poor king’s weak and helpless condition, of which Adonijah was not ashamed to take advantage for his own aggrandizement. Adonijah was born while David reigned at Hebron, and was therefore now between thirty-three and forty years of age. He was David’s fourth son, but had probably become the eldest by the death of his three older brothers. He claimed the crown by right of primogeniture 1 Kings 2:15, and secretly to his partisans…”

“Then - Upon notice of the desperateness of the king's disease, and the approach of his death. Exalted - Entertained high thoughts and designs. I will - As the right of the kingdom is mine, Kg1 1:6, so I will now take possession of it. Prepared - As Absalom had done upon the like occasion, Sa2 15:1. 3 Kings (1 Kings) 1:6”

“1:5-6 Adonijah was David’s fourth son. Because his older brothers, Amnon, Daniel, and Absalom, were all dead, Adonijah assumed he would succeed his father. Yet, in keeping with ancient Near Eastern custom, Solomon—the son of David’s favored wife, Bathsheba—was to succeed him as king. David had already communicated this fact to Solomon (1:13, 17; 1 Chr 22:6-10). Adonijah’s self-seeking nature, likely encouraged by his father’s lax discipline, surfaced in his declaration, “I will make myself king.””

“Adonijah: Sa2 3:4; Ch1 3:2 exalted: Kg1 1:11, Kg1 2:24; Exo 9:17; Pro 16:18, Pro 18:12; Luk 14:11, Luk 18:14 I will: Deu 17:15; Jdg 9:2; Ch1 22:5-11, Ch1 28:5, Ch1 29:1 be king: Heb. reign and he: Deu 17:16; Sa2 15:1; Isa 2:7 3 Kings (1 Kings) 1:6”

“Adonijah seized the opportunity of David's decrepitude to make himself king. Although he was David's fourth son ( Sa2 3:4), yet after the death of Ammon and Absalom he was probably the eldest, as Chileab, David's second son, had most likely died when a child, since he is never mentioned again. Adonijah therefore thought that he had a claim to the throne (cf. Kg1 2:15), and wanted to secure it before his father's death. But in Israel, Jehovah, the God-King of His people, had reserved to Himself the choice of the earthly king ( Deu 17:15), and this right He exercised not only in the case of Saul and David, but in that of Solomon also. When He gave to David the promise that his seed should rule…”