1 Kings 2
2
David’s Last Instructions and Death. 1When the time of David’s death drew near, he gave these instructions to Solomon his son: 2“I am going the way of all the earth. Be strong and be a man! 3#Dt 17:18–19. Keep the mandate of the Lord, your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, commands, ordinances, and decrees as they are written in the law of Moses, that you may succeed in whatever you do, and wherever you turn, 4#2 Sm 7:11–16; Ps 132:11–12. and that the Lord may fulfill the word he spoke concerning me: If your sons so conduct themselves that they walk before me in faithfulness with their whole heart and soul, there shall never be wanting someone of your line on the throne of Israel.
5#David urges Solomon to purge Joab and Shimei and supplies him with justification for doing so. Joab had killed Abner (2 Sm 3:22–30) and Amasa (2 Sm 20:4–12), thereby bringing blood guilt upon himself and perhaps upon his master David. Shimei had cursed David (2 Sm 16:5–8), though David pledged that Shimei would not be killed for it (2 Sm 19:16–24). David’s motives, however, may have been more personal. Joab also killed David’s son Absalom and chided David for his untimely public display of grief (2 Sm 18:9–19:8), and David may have felt himself free of the promise he made to Shimei because that promise was coerced by the presence of Shimei’s thousand partisans backing him at the time. #2 Sm 3:22–30; 20:8–10. “You yourself know what Joab, son of Zeruiah, did to me—what he did to the two commanders of Israel’s armies, Abner, son of Ner, and Amasa, son of Jether: he killed them and brought the blood of war into a time of peace, and put the blood of war on the belt about his waist and the sandal on his foot. 6Act with all the wisdom you possess; do not let his gray head go down to Sheol in peace. 7#2 Sm 17:27–29; 19:32–41. But be true to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and have them among those who eat at your table. For they were loyal to me when I was fleeing from your brother Absalom. 8#2 Sm 16:5–13; 19:17–24. You also have with you Shimei, son of Gera, the Benjaminite of Bahurim, who cursed me bitterly the day I was going to Mahanaim. When he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the Lord: ‘I will not kill you by the sword.’ 9But you must not let him go unpunished. You are wise; you will know what to do to send his gray head down to Sheol in blood.”
10#Acts 2:29. David rested with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. 11#2 Sm 2:1–4; 5:1–5. David was king over Israel for forty years: he was king seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
The Kingdom Made Secure.#The second major unit of the Solomon story shows how Solomon eliminated people he considered threats to the security of his throne. It is marked by a device called “inclusion,” where the text repeats a word, phrase, or idea at the beginning and end of a literary unit (see vv. 12b, 46b). Compare 11:14–25, where Solomon is unable to eliminate other threats to his security. 12Then Solomon sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingship was established.
13Adonijah, son of Haggith, came to Bathsheba, the mother of Solomon. “Do you come in peace?” she asked. “In peace,” he answered, 14and he added, “I have something to say to you.” She replied, “Speak.” 15So he said: “You know that the kingship was mine, and all Israel expected me to be king. But the kingship passed me by and went to my brother; by the Lord’s will it went to him. 16But now there is one favor I would ask of you. Do not refuse me.” And she said, “Speak on.” 17#Abishag had belonged to David’s harem (1:3–4), which Solomon inherited. Adonijah’s request could imply a challenge to Solomon’s accession and so exposes Adonijah to the suspicion of insurrection that will cost him his life; cf. 2 Sm 3:6–11; 16:21–22. He said, “Please ask King Solomon, who will not refuse you, to give me Abishag the Shunamite to be my wife.” 18Bathsheba replied, “Very well, I will speak to the king for you.”
19Then Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah, and the king stood up to meet her and paid her homage. Then he sat down upon his throne, and a throne was provided for the king’s mother, who sat at his right. 20She said, “There is one small favor I would ask of you. Do not refuse me.” The king said to her, “Ask it, my mother, for I will not refuse you.” 21So she said, “Let Abishag the Shunamite be given to your brother Adonijah to be his wife.” 22King Solomon answered his mother, “And why do you ask that Abishag the Shunamite be given to Adonijah? Ask the kingship for him as well, for he is my older brother! Ask for him, for Abiathar the priest, for Joab, son of Zeruiah!” 23And King Solomon swore by the Lord: “May God do thus to me and more, if Adonijah has not spoken this word at the cost of his life. 24#2 Sm 7:11–16. And now, as the Lord lives, who has established me and set me on the throne of David my father and made for me a house as he promised, this day shall Adonijah be put to death.” 25Then King Solomon sent Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, who struck him dead.
26#1 Sm 22:20–23. The king said to Abiathar the priest: “Go to your estate in Anathoth. Though you deserve to die, I will not put you to death at this time, because you carried the ark of the Lord God before David my father and shared in all the hardships my father endured.”#The narrator indulges in a subtle wordplay: Abiathar’s exile to Anathoth (‘anatot) continues the series of hardships he has endured (hit‘annita). 27#1 Sm 2:27–33. So Solomon dismissed Abiathar from the office of priest of the Lord, thus fulfilling the word the Lord had spoken in Shiloh against the house of Eli.
28When the news came to Joab, since he had sided with Adonijah, though not with Absalom, he fled to the tent of the Lord and clung to the horns of the altar. 29King Solomon was told, “Joab has fled to the tent of the Lord and is by the altar.” He sent Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, with the order, “Go, strike him down.” 30Benaiah went to the tent of the Lord and said to him, “The king says, ‘Come out.’” But he answered, “No! I will die here.” Benaiah reported to the king, “This is what Joab said to me in reply.” 31The king answered him: “Do as he has said. Strike him down and bury him, and remove from me and from my father’s house the blood which Joab shed without provocation. 32#2 Sm 3:22–30; 20:8–10. The Lord will bring blood upon his own head, because he struck down two men better and more just than himself, and slew them with the sword without my father David’s knowledge: Abner, son of Ner, commander of Israel’s army, and Amasa, son of Jether, commander of Judah’s army. 33Their blood will be upon the head of Joab and his descendants. But upon David and his descendants, upon his house and his throne, there shall be peace forever from the Lord.” 34Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, went back, struck him down and killed him; he was buried in his house in the wilderness. 35The king appointed Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, over the army in his place; Zadok the priest the king put in place of Abiathar.
36Then the king summoned Shimei and said to him: “Build yourself a house in Jerusalem and stay there. Do not go anywhere else. 37For the day you leave, and cross the Wadi Kidron, be certain you shall surely die. Your blood shall be upon your own head.” 38Shimei answered the king: “I accept. Your servant will do just as my lord the king has said.” So Shimei stayed in Jerusalem for a long time. 39But three years later, two of Shimei’s servants ran away to Achish, son of Maacah, king of Gath, and Shimei was told, “Your servants are in Gath.” 40So Shimei rose, saddled his donkey, and went to Achish in Gath in search of his servants; and Shimei returned from Gath with his servants. 41When Solomon was told that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and had returned, 42the king summoned Shimei and said to him: “Did I not have you swear by the Lord and warn you clearly, ‘The day you leave and go anywhere else, be certain you shall surely die’? And you answered, ‘I accept and obey.’#In his charge against Shimei, Solomon misrepresents the truth in two ways. He did not make Shimei take an oath. And he imposed capital punishment only on crossing the Wadi Kidron, to the east of Jerusalem. This was presumably to prevent Shimei from returning to his home, Bahurim, which lay in that direction; Gath, however, is southwest of Jerusalem. Solomon’s next words to Shimei reveal that he is really being punished for cursing David, not for violating Solomon’s command. 43Why, then, have you not kept the oath of the Lord and the command that I gave you?” 44#2 Sm 16:5–13; 19:17–24. And the king said to Shimei: “In your heart you know very well the evil that you did to David my father. Now the Lord is bringing your own evil upon your head. 45But King Solomon shall be blessed, and David’s throne shall be established before the Lord forever.” 46The king then gave the order to Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, who went out and struck him dead.
And the royal power was established in Solomon’s hand.
Currently Selected:
1 Kings 2: NABRE
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc
1 Kings 2
2
David’s Advice to Solomon
(1 Chronicles 29:26–30)
1When David was about to die, he instructed his son Solomon, 2“I’m about to leave this world. Be strong and mature. 3Fulfill your duty to the Lord your God. Obey his directions, laws, commands, rules, and written instructions as they are recorded in Moses’ Teachings. Then you’ll succeed in everything you do wherever you may go. 4⌞You’ll succeed⌟ because the Lord will keep the promise he made to me: ‘If your descendants are faithful to me with all their hearts and lives, you will never fail to have an heir on the throne of Israel.’
5“You know what Joab (Zeruiah’s son) did to me and to the two commanders of Israel’s army—Abner, son of Ner, and Amasa, son of Jether. Joab killed them. When there was peace, he shed blood as if it were wartime. With their blood he stained the belt around his waist and the shoes on his feet. 6Use your wisdom. Don’t let that gray-haired, old man go to his grave peacefully.
7“Be kind to the sons of Barzillai from Gilead. Let them eat at your table. They helped me when I was fleeing from your brother Absalom.
8“Shimei, son of Gera from Bahurim in Benjamin, is still with you. He cursed me repeatedly when I went to Mahanaim. But when he came to meet me at the Jordan River, I took an oath by the Lord and said, ‘As long as I’m king, I won’t have you killed.’ 9Now, don’t let him go unpunished. You are wise and know what to do to him: Put that gray-haired, old man into his grave by slaughtering him.”
10David lay down in death with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. 11He ruled as king of Israel for 40 years. He ruled for 7 years in Hebron and for 33 years in Jerusalem.
Solomon Establishes His Authority
12Solomon sat on his father David’s throne, and his power was firmly established.
13Then Adonijah, son of Haggith, went to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother. “Is this a friendly visit?” she asked.
“Yes,” he answered. 14Then he added, “I have a matter ⌞to discuss⌟ with you.”
“What is it?” she asked.
15He said, “You know the kingship was mine. All Israel expected me to be their king. But the kingship has been turned over to my brother because the Lord gave it to him. 16Now I want to ask you for one thing. Don’t refuse me.”
“What is it?” she asked.
17He said, “Please ask King Solomon to give me Abishag from Shunem as my wife. He will not refuse you.”
18“Very well,” Bathsheba answered. “I will talk to the king for you.”
19Bathsheba went to King Solomon to talk to him on Adonijah’s behalf. The king got up to meet her and bowed down in front of her. Then he sat on his throne. He had a throne brought for his mother, and she sat at his right side.
20“I’m asking you for one little thing,” she said. “Don’t refuse me.”
“Ask, Mother,” the king told her. “I won’t refuse you.”
21She replied, “Let Abishag from Shunem be given to your brother Adonijah as his wife.”
22King Solomon then said, “Why do you ask that Abishag from Shunem be given to Adonijah? That would be the same as giving him the kingship. After all, he is my older brother. The priest Abiathar and Joab (Zeruiah’s son) are supporting him.”
23King Solomon took an oath by the Lord and said, “May God strike me dead if Adonijah doesn’t pay with his life for this request! 24The Lord set me on my father David’s throne and gave me a dynasty as he promised. So I solemnly swear, as the Lord who has established me lives, that Adonijah will be put to death today.” 25King Solomon gave this task to Benaiah, son of Jehoiada. Benaiah attacked and killed Adonijah.
26The king told the priest Abiathar, “Go to your land in Anathoth. You deserve to die, but I won’t kill you at this time because you carried the ark of the Almighty Lord ahead of my father David and because you shared all my father’s sufferings.” 27So Solomon removed Abiathar as the Lord’s priest and fulfilled the Lord’s word spoken at Shiloh about Eli’s family.
28The news reached Joab. (He had supported Adonijah, although he hadn’t supported Absalom.) So Joab fled to the Lord’s tent and clung to the horns of the altar. 29After King Solomon heard that Joab had fled to the altar in the tent of the Lord, Solomon sent Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, to kill Joab.
30When Benaiah came to the tent of the Lord, he told Joab, “The king says, ‘Come out.’ ”
“No,” Joab answered, “I’ll die here.”
So Benaiah reported to the king what Joab had said and how he had answered.
31The king answered, “Do as he said. Kill him, and bury him. You can remove the innocent blood—the blood which Joab shed—from me and my father’s family. 32The Lord will repay him for the slaughter he caused. Joab killed two honorable men who were better than he was. He used his sword to kill Abner (who was the son of Ner and the commander of Israel’s army) and Amasa (who was the son of Jether and the commander of Judah’s army). Joab did this without my father’s knowledge. 33The responsibility for their blood will fall on Joab and his descendants forever. But may David, his descendants, family, and throne always receive peace from the Lord.”
34Then Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, went and attacked Joab, killed him, and buried him at his home in the desert. 35The king then appointed Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, to replace Joab as commander of the army. King Solomon also replaced Abiathar with the priest Zadok.
36The king summoned Shimei and said to him, “Build a house for yourself in Jerusalem, and stay there. Don’t leave ⌞the city⌟ to go anywhere else. 37But the day you leave and cross the brook in the Kidron Valley, you can be certain that you will die. You will be responsible for your own death.”
38“Very well,” Shimei answered. “I’ll do just what Your Majesty said.”
So Shimei stayed in Jerusalem for a long time. 39But after three years, two of Shimei’s slaves fled to Gath’s King Achish, son of Maacah. Shimei was told that his slaves were in Gath, 40so he saddled his donkey and went to Achish in Gath to search for his slaves. Shimei went to Gath and got his slaves.
41After Solomon heard that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and back, 42he summoned Shimei. Solomon asked him, “Didn’t I make you take an oath by the Lord? Didn’t I warn you that if you left ⌞the city⌟ to go anywhere, you could be certain that you would die? Didn’t you say to me, ‘Very well. I’ll do just what you said’? 43Why didn’t you keep your oath to the Lord and obey the command I gave you? 44Shimei, you know in your heart all the evil that you did to my father David. The Lord is going to pay you back for the evil you have done. 45But King Solomon is blessed, and David’s dynasty will always be firmly established by the Lord.”
46Then the king gave orders to Benaiah, son of Jehoiada. He went to attack and kill Shimei.
Solomon’s power as king was now firmly established.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.