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His servants; his physicians.
A young virgin; whose natural heat is fresh and wholesome, and not impaired with bearing or breeding of children. The same counsel doth Galen give for the cure of some cold and dry distempers.
Let her stand before the king, i.e. minister unto him, or wait upon him, (as this phrase is oft used,) in his sickness, as occasion requires. Let her lie in thy bosom, as his wife or concubine; for that she was so may appear by divers arguments. First, Otherwise this had been a wicked counsel and course; which therefore neither his servants durst have prescribed, nor would David have used, especially being now in a dying condition. And seeing this was easily prevented by his taking her for his concubine, which then was esteemed allowable, it is absurd to think that he would not choose the safer way. Secondly, That passage, 1Ki_1:4,
but the king knew her not, implies that the king might have had carnal knowledge of her without sin or scandal. Thirdly, it appears from this phrase of
lying in his bosom, which is every where in Scripture mentioned as the privilege of a wife and concubine, as Gen_16:5 Deu_13:6 2Sa_12:8 Mic_7:5. Fourthly, This made Adonijah’s crime, in desiring her to wife, so heinous in Solomon’s account, because he wisely saw, that by marrying the king’s wife he designed to revive his pretence to the kingdom, at least in case of Solomon’s death; which pretence had been ridiculous, if she had been only the king’s handmaid.