The Honor of a Mother
I Kings 2.19
When Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah, the king stood up to meet her, bowed down to her and sat down on his throne. He had a throne brought for the king's mother, and she sat down at his right hand.
On Mother's Day we honor those who have given birth and brought up each one of us. While generally conceived as a western convention, the honor of the mother is widely held throughout the world, and is especially evident in the Bible. Solomon and Christ are two figures widely seen to hold great love and admiration for their mothers. In I Kings we read that, "When Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him, the king stood up to meet her, bowed down to her and sat on his throne." Solomon honored his mother by lavishing on her the gifts worthy only of the kingship, and in this notable act we see him regarding his mother as higher even than himself by bowing down to her and "[having] a throne brought for [his] mother."
Solomon's act teaches us something fundamental concerning mothers: that God has charged us with honoring, respecting, and loving them. In some pagan religions, the woman is seen as superior to the man, as is evident by the incredible power and honor bestowed on the goddesses. This is because the woman is seen as the giver of life--she who births and protects all the world.
God has provided all of us, me especially, with wonderful mothers. They deserve their own thrones, and we should honor them every day. Have you thanked your mother today for all that she does?
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