Who Are You Promoting? - Adonijah

David’s son Adonijah, whose mother was Haggith, began boasting, “I will make myself king.” So he provided himself with chariots and charioteers and recruited fifty men to run in front of him.

1 Kings 1:5

For the past quarter century or so, Jude Werra has spent much of his time documenting résumé fraud, credentials inflation, and the misrepresentation of executive educational backgrounds. Werra and others have found that far too many managers and executives allow their desire for self-promotion to get the best of them. They include false and misleading information in their résumés.

Sadly, many people have no compunction about promoting themselves ahead of others. That is nothing new, of course, as the story of Adonijah, King David’s fourth son, demonstrates.

As David’s days drew to an end, Adonijah made an incredible boast that he would make himself king. Adonijah didn’t hide his selfish ambition or shameless self-promotion. He invited Judah’s royal officials and his brothers to join him as he performed animal sacrifices.

Tellingly enough, Adonijah left out Solomon, whom David had already named as his successor. He also failed to invite the prophet Nathan.

Nathan and Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, knew what Adonijah was up to and asked David to give orders at once that Solomon be proclaimed king. When Adonijah heard what had happened, he went to the altar, and Solomon pardoned him. The pardon would last only as long as he showed himself loyal to Solomon (see 1 Kings 1:52-53).

Sadly, Adonijah just couldn’t let it go.

In his craving for power and position, Adonijah made a second attempt to take the throne. In the end, his stubbornness and self-promotion cost him his life (see 1 Kings 2:13-25).

Though self-promotion can give you some of what you desire for a time, in the end, only humbly assuming your part in God’s plans will lead to blessing. There’s nothing wrong with striving for bigger and better things, but remember that it is God’s place to promote you, not yours.