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(ה) וּמִכָּל בָּנַי כִּי רַבִּים בָּנִים נָתַן לִי יְהוָה וַיִּבְחַר בִּשְׁלֹמֹה בְנִי לָשֶׁבֶת עַל כִּסֵּא מַלְכוּת יְהוָה עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל.
Which is it? Did Hashem say it, or David?
David is sick and bedridden when Shlomo is chosen as heir.
Or is he?
Adoniah is edited out of the story. Why?
(26) Now David the son of Jesse reigned over all Israel. (27) And the time that he reigned over Israel was forty years: seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty and three years reigned he in Jerusalem. (28) And he died in a good old age, full of days, riches, and honour; and Solomon his son reigned in his stead. (29) Now the acts of David the king, first and last, behold, they are written in the words of Samuel the seer, and in the words of Nathan the prophet, and in the words of Gad the seer; (30) with all his reign and his might, and the times that went over him, and over Israel, and over all the kingdoms of the countries.
There are clear differences in the stories. Why?
Answer 1: Melachim was written against the backdrop of Hurban Habayit. It discusses mainly the sins of Bnai Yisrael. Divrei Hayamim, in contrast, was written right after Shivat Tzion. It portrays a bright, cheery history full of national pride. As such, we can expect Divrei Hayamim to smooth out the rough edges, while Melachim will magnify the low points.
Answer 2: Let's look at a verse from the Divrei Hayamim story:
Notice how it says, "The second time." This may be referring to the fact that Shlomo is crowned twice in Melachim (Once in Perk Aleph, once in Perek Bet). Additional proof can be found, in that we are talking about the second coronation here. This is when Tzadok was already chosen as priest, and he is given this title in our pasuk right here.
Answer 3: Do you have an answer for the discrepancy in the parallel stories? Please, add it here!