Ahithophel spoke in a voice strong with suppressed emotion. “It was King Saul who committed this great sin and not my son? Why, then, Gad, did my son die?”
Gad closed his eyes and spoke as though reading from a scroll: “When kings go wrong they carry down to destruction whole nations, not just themselves.”
With that he turned and walked from the court, leaving it shaken as though God, Himself, had spoken. Only Ahithophel was unmoved. He followed Gad to the street and shouted after him.
“My son did no wrong! It is not fair that he should die when he did nothing wrong.”
Angrily Ahithophel returned to his family. He ignored the comfort of Reba and turned to Machir and Bathsheba. Placing his hands on their shoulders he looked into their eyes with a commanding challenge. “Never forget this night,” he said. “You are all that is left of your father’s line. Never forget his blood runs in your veins. Be proud. Be strong and see that you are a credit to his dead name.”
* * *
Several days later when he held his first court, Ishbosheth awarded Ahithophel and the refugees from Giloh the nearby Canaanite village of Lodebar: “… until the Philistines are defeated and you can return to Giloh.” Though some of the Canaanites still lived in Lodebar, most of them had fled north to Syria months before, at the outbreak of the hostilities between Israel and the Philistines. “Until Giloh is retaken, Lodebar is yours,” the young king said, glancing for confirmation to Abner, his general, who stood beside him directing all that he did.
Next morning before dawn, Ahithophel, his family and the other villagers rose and packed, then rode through the still, dark streets of Mahanaim toward the gate that led out to the Lodebar road. Bathsheba sat behind her mother on a small sleepy donkey.
Suddenly Noha pulled the animal to a stop and pointed to a lighted window in the wall just above their heads. “That’s Rizpah’s house, King Saul’s concubine. Now they say she’s taken up with General Abner. Look! She’s still up, entertaining him.”
“You can’t be sure,” Reba whispered, reining her own donkey beside them. “It’s more likely she can’t sleep with her husband so recently dead.”
But at that moment a man’s head appeared in the window. It was indeed Abner, drawn by the sound of the people passing below.
At the town gate Noha waited for Reba. “Did you see? I told you it was Abner. That should be proof enough of the evil that is going on within the king’s house.”
Bathsheba could tell by the way her grandmother answered that Reba was upset. “Trouble is not over for the house of Saul,” she agreed, “but let it not be the house of Ahithophel that sets fire to the dry brands of gossip. I wish to God I had not seen it.” With that Reba prodded her donkey forward into the morning mist.
The doves Bathsheba had tied in her scarf fluttered, and she grabbed hold of her mother’s waist to keep from falling. She was tired of riding on donkeys. It would be good to have a home again. She hoped with all her heart that they would be happy in Lodebar.
* * *
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Here’s what others have to say about Queen of Sheba:
In Queen of Sheba, Dorr explores in grand detail the relationship of Solomon and Bilqis, the wise queen who shared Solomon’s vast wisdom and riches. Dorr’s powerful account offers insights into Bilqis’s search for truth, love, and faith in a foreign kingdom. In each of these novels, Dorr exercises her considerable skill to unveil the mysteries and passions of the biblical narratives. Highly recommended. –Library Journal
Introduction
Though the story of the Queen of Sheba’s visit to Solomon has captured the imagination of artists, poets, and historians from time immemorial, there is little factual information available. Most of the story has to be drawn from the few lines in the Bible, the Jewish historian, Josephus, the Ethiopian history of its kings (Kebra Negast), the Qur’an, and from the Arab historian Ibn Ishaq, from which al Tabari gathered his information.
In both Yemen and Ethiopia there are numerous legends, some of which appear to be rather bizarre until one begins to peel away the fantasies to find the kernel of truth they undoubtedly hold. It is by putting together these legends with the factual information available and the customs of the people that I have attempted to discover this fascinating queen’s story.
For instance, the Hoopoe bird mentioned in the Qur’an that carried messages back and forth from Marib to Jerusalem, must have been the nickname of a trader. Also in the Qur’an we are told that the queen worshiped idols, used the power of Jinns (demons) to work magic, and had her palace at Marib in Yemen.