1 Kings 2:2

Contextual Overview

¹When the time drew near for David to die, he gave a charge to Solomon his son. ¹ When the time drew near for David to die, he gave a charge to Solomon his son. ¹Then David's time to die drew near, so he commanded Solomon his son, saying, ¹ As David's time to die drew near, he charged Solomon his son, saying, ¹ The dayes of Dauid drew nie that he should dye, & he charged Solomon his sonne, saying: ¹ And the days of David drew near for him to die. And he commanded his son Solomon, saying, ¹ The time came for David to die, so he gave these commands to Solomon, ¹ When David's time to die drew near, he charged Solomon his son, saying, ¹ Now the days of David drew near that he should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying, ¹ Now the dayes of Dauid drew nigh, that he should die, and he charged Solomon his sonne, saying;

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

I go: Joshua 23:14, Job 16:22, Job 30:23, Psalms 89:48, Hebrews 9:27

be thou: Deuteronomy 17:19, Deuteronomy 17:20, Deuteronomy 31:6, Joshua 1:6, Joshua 1:7, 1 Chronicles 28:20, Ephesians 6:10, 2 Timothy 2:1

and show: 1 Kings 3:7, 2 Samuel 10:12, Ecclesiastes 12:13, 1 Corinthians 16:13, 1 Timothy 4:12

Reciprocal: Genesis 48:21 - Behold 1 Chronicles 28:7 - constant 1 Timothy 3:15 - know 2 Peter 1:14 - shortly

Cross-References

Genesis 1:31
God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning-the sixth day.

Genesis 1:31
God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

Genesis 1:31
And God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Genesis 1:31
God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Genesis 1:31
And God sawe euery thyng that he had made: and beholde, it was exceedyng good. And the euenyng & the mornyng were the sixth day.

Genesis 1:31
God looked at everything he had made. And he saw that everything was very good. There was evening, and then there was morning. This was the sixth day.

Genesis 1:31
And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, a sixth day.

Genesis 1:31
And God seiy alle thingis whiche he made, and tho weren ful goode. And the euentid and morwetid was maad, the sixte day.

Genesis 1:31
And God saw euery thing that hee had made: and behold, it was very good. And the euening and the morning were the sixth day.

Genesis 1:31
And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

I go the way of all the earth,.... A path which is the path of death o, which all pass in, kings and peasants, high and low, rich and poor, great and small, good and bad; none are exempted, all must die, and do; it is the appointment of God, a decree which can never be reversed; all experience confirms it: this same phrase is used by Joshua, from whom David seems to have borrowed it, and shows that that book was written in his days, Joshua 23:14;

be thou strong therefore; not discouraged at my death, being a common thing, and to be expected; nor at being left alone, the Lord can give thee wisdom and counsel, assistance and strength, protection, and defence; take heart therefore, and be of good courage:

and show thyself a man; in wisdom and understanding, and in fortitude of mind, though so young a man; which were necessary for the government of so great a people, and to guard against the secret intrigues of some, and the open flatteries of others, and the fear of attempts against his person and government, and the temptations he might be liable to, to do wrong things; and especially they were necessary to enable him to keep the commands of God, as follows; which required great strength of mind and of grace, considering the corruptions of nature, the temptations of Satan, and the snares of men; see Joshua 1:7.

o "------ omnes una manet nox, Et calcanda semel via lethi". Horat. Carmin. l. 1. ode 28. ver. 15, 16.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

David appears to have in his thoughts the divine address to Joshua. Without following it servilely, he reproduces several of its leading expressions and sentiments (compare the margin reference). Solomon’s youth clearly constituted one of the chief difficulties of his position. If he was about nineteen or twenty, and known to be of a pacific disposition 1 Chronicles 22:9, then to have to rule over the warlike and turbulent Hebrew nation, with a strong party opposed to him, and brothers of full age ready to lead it, was evidently a most difficult task. Hence, he is exhorted, though in years a boy, to show himself in Spirit “a man.”

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 1 Kings 2:2. I go the way of all the earth — I am dying. All the inhabitants of the earth must come to the dust. In life, some follow one occupation, some another; but all must, sooner or later, come to the grave. Death is no respecter of persons; he visits the palace of the king as well as the cottage of the peasant.

Pallida mors aequo pulsat pede pauperum tabernas,

Regumque turres.

- HOR. Odar. lib. i., od. iv., ver. 13.

"With equal pace, impartial fate

Knocks at the palace as the cottage gate."

FRANCIS.

_________ Sed omnes una manet nox,

Et calcanda semel via lethi.

- Ib. od. xxviii., ver. 15.

"One dreary night for all mankind remains,

And once we all must tread the shadowy plains."

Ibid.

There is no respect to age or youth more than to station or external circumstance: -

Mixta senum ac juvenum densantur funera: nullum

Saeva caput Proserpina fugit.

- Ib. od. xxviii., ver. 19.

Thus age and youth promiscuous crowd the tomb;

No mortal head can shun the impending doom."

Ibid.

And it is not merely man that is subjected to this necessity; all that have in them the breath of life must lose it; it is the way of all the earth, both of men and inferior animals.

__________ Terrestria quando

Mortales animas vivunt sortita, neque ulla est

Aut parvo aut magno lethi fuga.

Vive memor quam sis aevi brevis.

HOR. Sat. l. ii., s. vi., ver. 93.

"All that tread the earth are subject to mortality; neither great nor small can avoid death. Live therefore conscious that your time is short."

It is painful to the pride of the great and mighty that, however decorated their tombs may be, they must undergo the same dissolution and corruption with the vulgar dead; for the grave is the house appointed for all living: man is born to die.

Omnium idem exitus est, sed et idem domicilium.

"For all have the same end, and are huddled together in the same narrow house."

Here emperors, kings, statesmen, warriors, heroes, and butchers of all kinds, with peasants and beggars, meet; however various their routes, they terminate in the same point. This and all other kindred sentiments on the subject are well expressed in that excellent little poem of Mr. Blair, entitled THE GRAVE, which opens with the following lines: -

While some affect the sun, and some the shade;

Some flee the city, some the hermitage;

Their aims as various as the roads they take

In journeying through life; the task be mine

To paint the gloomy horrors of the tomb,

The appointed place of rendezvous, where all

These travellers meet.

Show thyself a man — Act like a rational being, and not like a brute; and remember, that he acts most like a man who is most devoted to his GOD.