Kings begins with the succession of David to Solomon. The succession is itself a crucial aspect of Solomon’s identity. David is depicted as confined to his bed- an image of a human life encompassed by death. Remember the visual language in which Nathan prophesied of David’s kingdom: “when you lie down with your fathers.” Here, David is literally “lying down.” A young woman is brought to him to warm his bed. It is remarkable here the image of death that we receive: it is the servantsw who take the initiative to warm David- David himself has lost his power of action. I don’t think we have an additional condemnation of David, here: we have an image of death.
The rebellion of Absalom happened in the preceding year (2 Samuel 15:7-8). The kingdom is not stable and the succession is unclear. Joab himself has ambitions for the throne, or to rule through a proxy. Joab had attempted to make Absalom his proxy, which backfired- Joab’s subsequent murder of Absalom confirmed in David’s mind what had to be done concerning him- but at this point, David is at the point of death and is unable to carry out his intentions himself. Joab almost certainly is aware of his dangerous position- he confers with Adonijah and conspires to place him on the throne.
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