The fact that there was to be a delay in the execution of the threatened division of the kingdom did not mean that there were not to be negative consequences that Solomon and the kingdom would begin to experience. God raised up adversaries against Solomon in some of those nations that were within Israel’s sphere of influence, that is, among those that paid tribute to Solomon.
Before we go on with the enumeration of these adversaries,
it is well to say something about the word itself. The Hebrew word translated in this verse as adversary
is satan. The term is lowercased because here it is not a personal name. It is a description of anyone who opposes another person or persons. It was later in the history of Israel that the word Satan
was used to make reference to the chief adversary of God and his people, the one who is also called the devil or Lucifer.
The first of these adversaries was Hadad the Edomite. Edom was the nation established by the descendants of Esau, Jacob’s elder brother. This was, therefore, a nation related to Israel by the ties of blood. Nevertheless, there was a certain amount of animosity between the two nations that reached back to the struggle of the two brothers.
At the time of the exodus, the Lord refused to let his people occupy any portion of Edom. This, he said, was designed for Esau’s descendants. They were not to go to war with Edom, even after the Edomites refused to let Israel pass through their territory.
14 And the LORD raised up an adversary against Solomon, Hadad the Edomite. He was of the royal house in Edom.