ואדני' בן חגית מתנשא לאמר אני אמלך ... (מלכים א' א-ה)
The general theme of the Haftorah is succession. As Dovid HaMelech neared his end, his son Adoniyahu attempted to usurp him and crown himself as king. He then led a coup against his father and younger brother which ended in defeat. Chazal note that Adoniyahu had the audacity to challenge his father because his father had “failed to reprimand him.” But if the great tzaddik, Dovid HaMelech, could not discipline his children correctly, how can we expect to do any better?
R’ Avraham HaKohen Pam zt”l answers that obviously Dovid raised his children on the path of Torah and mitzvos, but somehow Adoniyahu, like his older brother Avshalom before him, lost his way and required realignment. There are two basic ways to deal with a rebellious child - either parents cut off all ties and hope that their rejection forces their child to see the folly of his ways causing him to return to the proper path. Or, parents can choose to surround their child with love and concern - with a healthy dose of reprimanding as well - and their nurturing will hopefully convince the child to stop his rebellion. Dovid HaMelech chose the first course. He cut off ties with Avshalom and “failed to reprimand” Adoniyahu. Unfortunately, that led to a terrible end.
Concludes Rav Pam, Chazal are telling us of Dovid’s parenting method so we can learn from it and raise our children differently. Hopefully, with the right amount of nurturing and prayers - and a great deal of Siyata D’shmaya - we can all merit children who will grow up as G-d-fearing, Torah Jews.