210 THE BIBLE ON LEADERSHIP
ORDERLYSUCCESSION
The transition from Moses to Joshua was an orderly one. Moses hand-
picked Joshua, mentored him, and gave him challenging developmental
experiences. Apparently there was no rival for the leadership of the
organization, so there was none of the competition for the throne that
can result in dissension and internal weakness.
On the other hand, the transition from David to Solomon was disor-
derly and rancorous, definitely not the model for effective succession
planning. David, Solomon, and the nation were extremely fortunate
that Solomon was able to govern at all, and that the nation survived.
David had many sons by his many wives (which can make succession
planning in a ‘‘family business’’ very complicated). The first in line to
succeed David on the throne was Amnon. However, Amnon was not a
paragon of personal morality. Highly attracted to his half-sister, Tamar,
he feigned illness, asked her to tend to him, and raped her. King David
was furious, but failed to take any action in response.
Tamar’s brother, Absalom, fumed about this for two years. Finally,
he lured his half-brother Amnon to a sheep-shearing, where he had his
attendants kill him.
Where first we had an incestuous rapist about to ascend the throne,
we now have a murderer. But ruthless and ambitious executives some-
times make tactical errors. Absalom could not wait until his father David
had died, and so he challenged his authority. He gained the loyalty of a
group of tribal leaders, and he gathered them at Hebron to challenge
his father politically and militarily.
David was highly conflicted about the attempted early accession of
his own son, but he gathered his forces and put down the rebellion; in
the process he suffered the loss of a son whom he had loved. He next
designated Solomon (‘‘Shlomo’’ in Hebrew, derived from ‘‘Shalom,’’
the word for peace). He laid hands on Solomon, anointed him with oil,
and symbolically placed the cornerstone of the temple for him. He also
probably heaved a tremendous sigh of relief that after all the mayhem
he still had a few sons left and that this one seemed capable of ruling
with a kind and wise, yet firm, hand.