1 Kings 1
1
1Now King David was old and advanced in years; and although they covered him with clothes, he could not get warm. 2Therefore his servants said to him, “Let a young maiden be sought for my lord the king, and let her wait upon the king, and be his nurse; let her lie in your bosom, that my lord the king may be warm.” 3So they sought for a beautiful maiden throughout all the territory of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4The maiden was very beautiful; and she became the king's nurse and ministered to him; but the king knew her not.
5Now Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king”; and he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. 6His father had never at any time displeased him by asking, “Why have you done thus and so?” He was also a very handsome man; and he was born next after Absalom. 7He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest; and they followed Adonijah and helped him. 8But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shime-i, and Rei, and David's mighty men were not with Adonijah.
9Adonijah sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fatlings by the Serpent's Stone, which is beside En-rogel, and he invited all his brothers, the king's sons, and all the royal officials of Judah, 10but he did not invite Nathan the prophet or Benaiah or the mighty men or Solomon his brother.
11Then Nathan said to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, “Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith has become king and David our lord does not know it? 12Now therefore come, let me give you counsel, that you may save your own life and the life of your son Solomon. 13Go in at once to King David, and say to him, ‘Did you not, my lord the king, swear to your maidservant, saying, “Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne”? Why then is Adonijah king?’ 14Then while you are still speaking with the king, I also will come in after you and confirm your words.”
15So Bathsheba went to the king into his chamber (now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was ministering to the king). 16Bathsheba bowed and did obeisance to the king, and the king said, “What do you desire?” 17She said to him, “My lord, you swore to your maidservant by the Lord your God, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne.’ 18And now, behold, Adonijah is king, although you, my lord the king, do not know it. 19He has sacrificed oxen, fatlings, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the sons of the king, Abiathar the priest, and Joab the commander of the army; but Solomon your servant he has not invited. 20And now, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are upon you, to tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. 21Otherwise it will come to pass, when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon will be counted offenders.”
22While she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in. 23And they told the king, “Here is Nathan the prophet.” And when he came in before the king, he bowed before the king, with his face to the ground. 24And Nathan said, “My lord the king, have you said, ‘Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne’? 25For he has gone down this day, and has sacrificed oxen, fatlings, and sheep in abundance, and has invited all the king's sons, Joab the commander#1.25 Gk: Heb commanders of the army, and Abiathar the priest; and behold, they are eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ 26But me, your servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon, he has not invited. 27Has this thing been brought about by my lord the king and you have not told your servants who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?”
28Then King David answered, “Call Bathsheba to me.” So she came into the king's presence, and stood before the king. 29And the king swore, saying, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my soul out of every adversity, 30as I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my stead’; even so will I do this day.” 31Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the ground, and did obeisance to the king, and said, “May my lord King David live for ever!”
32King David said, “Call to me Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada.” So they came before the king. 33And the king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon; 34and let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet there anoint him king over Israel; then blow the trumpet, and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ 35You shall then come up after him, and he shall come and sit upon my throne; for he shall be king in my stead; and I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.” 36And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, “Amen! May the Lord, the God of my lord the king, say so. 37As the Lord has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.”
38So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, went down and caused Solomon to ride on King David's mule, and brought him to Gihon. 39There Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the tent, and anointed Solomon. Then they blew the trumpet; and all the people said, “Long live King Solomon!” 40And all the people went up after him, playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy, so that the earth was split by their noise.
41Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they finished feasting. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “What does this uproar in the city mean?” 42While he was still speaking, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came; and Adonijah said, “Come in, for you are a worthy man and bring good news.” 43Jonathan answered Adonijah, “No, for our lord King David has made Solomon king; 44and the king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they have caused him to ride on the king's mule; 45and Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king at Gihon; and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you have heard. 46Solomon sits upon the royal throne. 47Moreover the king's servants came to congratulate our lord King David, saying, ‘Your God make the name of Solomon more famous than yours, and make his throne greater than your throne.’ And the king bowed himself upon the bed. 48And the king also said, ‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who has granted one of my offspring#1.48 Gk: Heb one to sit on my throne this day, my own eyes seeing it.’ ”
49Then all the guests of Adonijah trembled, and rose, and each went his own way. 50And Adonijah feared Solomon; and he arose, and went, and caught hold of the horns of the altar. 51And it was told Solomon, “Behold, Adonijah fears King Solomon; for lo, he has laid hold of the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not slay his servant with the sword.’ ” 52And Solomon said, “If he prove to be a worthy man, not one of his hairs shall fall to the earth; but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.” 53So King Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and did obeisance to King Solomon; and Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.”
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Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America
1 Kings 1
1
1Now King David was old and advanced in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he couldn’t keep warm. 2Therefore his servants said to him, “Let a young virgin be sought for my lord the king. Let her stand before the king, and cherish him; and let her lie in your bosom, that my lord the king may keep warm.” 3So they sought for a beautiful young lady throughout all the borders of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4The young lady was very beautiful; and she cherished the king, and served him; but the king didn’t know her intimately.
5Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king.” Then he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. 6His father had not displeased him at any time in saying, “Why have you done so?” and he was also a very handsome man; and he was born after Absalom. 7He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest; and they followed Adonijah and helped him. 8But Zadok the priest, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and the mighty men who belonged to David, were not with Adonijah.
9Adonijah killed sheep, cattle, and fatlings by the stone of Zoheleth, which is beside En Rogel; and he called all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the men of Judah, the king’s servants; 10but he didn’t call Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother.
11Then Nathan spoke to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, “Haven’t you heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith reigns, and David our lord doesn’t know it? 12Now therefore come, please let me give you counsel, that you may save your own life and your son Solomon’s life. 13Go in to King David, and tell him, ‘Didn’t you, my lord the king, swear to your servant, saying, “Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne”? Why then does Adonijah reign?’ 14Behold,#1:14 “Behold”, from “הִנֵּה”, means look at, take notice, observe, see, or gaze at. It is often used as an interjection. while you are still talking there with the king, I will also come in after you and confirm your words.”
15Bathsheba went in to the king in his room. The king was very old; and Abishag the Shunammite was serving the king. 16Bathsheba bowed and showed respect to the king. The king said, “What would you like?”
17She said to him, “My lord, you swore by Yahweh#1:17 “Yahweh” is God’s proper Name, sometimes rendered “Lord” (all caps) in other translations. your God#1:17 The Hebrew word rendered “God” is “אֱלֹהִ֑ים” (Elohim). to your servant, ‘Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.’ 18Now, behold, Adonijah reigns; and you, my lord the king, don’t know it. 19He has slain cattle and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and has called all the sons of the king, Abiathar the priest, and Joab the captain of the army; but he hasn’t called Solomon your servant. 20You, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you, that you should tell them who will sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. 21Otherwise it will happen, when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon will be considered criminals.”
22Behold, while she was still talking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in. 23They told the king, saying, “Behold, Nathan the prophet!”
When he had come in before the king, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground. 24Nathan said, “My lord, King, have you said, ‘Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne’? 25For he has gone down today, and has slain cattle, fatlings, and sheep in abundance, and has called all the king’s sons, the captains of the army, and Abiathar the priest. Behold, they are eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ 26But he hasn’t called me, even me your servant, Zadok the priest, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon. 27Was this thing done by my lord the king, and you haven’t shown to your servants who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?”
28Then King David answered, “Call Bathsheba in to me.” She came into the king’s presence and stood before the king. 29The king vowed and said, “As Yahweh lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all adversity, 30most certainly as I swore to you by Yahweh, the God of Israel, saying, ‘Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place;’ I will most certainly do this today.”
31Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the earth and showed respect to the king, and said, “Let my lord King David live forever!”
32King David said, “Call to me Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada.” They came before the king. 33The king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon. 34Let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there king over Israel. Blow the trumpet, and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ 35Then come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne; for he shall be king in my place. I have appointed him to be prince over Israel and over Judah.”
36Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, and said, “Amen. May Yahweh, the God of my lord the king, say so. 37As Yahweh has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.”
38So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites went down and had Solomon ride on King David’s mule, and brought him to Gihon. 39Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the Tent, and anointed Solomon. They blew the trumpet; and all the people said, “Long live King Solomon!”
40All the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth shook with their sound. 41Adonijah and all the guests who were with him heard it as they had finished eating. When Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “Why is this noise of the city being in an uproar?”
42While he yet spoke, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came; and Adonijah said, “Come in; for you are a worthy man, and bring good news.”
43Jonathan answered Adonijah, “Most certainly our lord King David has made Solomon king. 44The king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they have caused him to ride on the king’s mule. 45Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon. They have come up from there rejoicing, so that the city rang again. This is the noise that you have heard. 46Also, Solomon sits on the throne of the kingdom. 47Moreover the king’s servants came to bless our lord King David, saying, ‘May your God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and make his throne greater than your throne;’ and the king bowed himself on the bed. 48Also thus said the king, ‘Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, who has given one to sit on my throne today, my eyes even seeing it.’”
49All the guests of Adonijah were afraid, and rose up, and each man went his way. 50Adonijah was afraid because of Solomon; and he arose, and went, and hung onto the horns of the altar. 51Solomon was told, “Behold, Adonijah fears King Solomon; for, behold, he is hanging onto the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me first that he will not kill his servant with the sword.’”
52Solomon said, “If he shows himself a worthy man, not a hair of his shall fall to the earth; but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.”
53So King Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. He came and bowed down to King Solomon; and Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.”
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