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1 Kings 1
Now king David was old and advanced in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he got no heat. 2 Therefore his servants said to him, Let there be sought for my sovereign the king a young virgin: and let her stand before the king, and cherish him; and let her lie in your bosom, that my sovereign the king may get heat. 3 So they sought for a fair damsel throughout all the borders of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4 And the damsel was very fair; and she cherished the king, and ministered to him; but the king did not know her.
5 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, I will be king: and he prepared himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. 6 And his father had not displeased him at any time in saying, Why have you done so? And he was also a very goodly man; and he was born after Absalom. 7 And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest: and they following Adonijah helped him. 8 But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men that belonged to David, were not with Adonijah. 9 And Adonijah killed sheep and oxen and fatlings by the stone of Zoheleth, which is beside En-rogel; and he called all his brethren, the king’s sons, and all the men of Judah, the king’s servants: 10 but Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he did not call.
11 Then Nathan spoke to Bath-sheba the mother of Solomon, saying, Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith reigns, and David our sovereign does not know it? 12 Now therefore come, let me, I pray you, give you counsel, that you may save your own life, and the life of your son Solomon. 13 Go and get yourself in to king David, and say to him, Did you not my sovereign O king, swear to your handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? Why then does Adonijah reign? 14 Behold, while you yet talk there with the king, I also will come in after you, and confirm your words.
15 And Bath-sheba went in to the king into the chamber: and the king was very old; and Abishag the Shunammite was ministering to the king. 16 And Bath-sheba bowed, and did obeisance to the king. And the king said, What is it you want? 17 And she said to him, My sovereign, you swore by Yahweh your Elohim to your handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne. 18 And now, behold, Adonijah reigns; and you, my sovereign the king, know it not: 19 and he has killed oxen and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and has called all the sons of the king, and Abiathar the priest, and Joab the captain of the army; but Solomon your servant he has not called. 20 And you, my sovereign the king, the eyes of all Israel are upon you, that you should tell them who shall sit on the throne of my sovereign the king after him. 21 Otherwise it will come to pass, when my sovereign the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders.
22 And, lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet came in. 23 And they told the king, saying, Behold, Nathan the prophet. And when he had come in before the king, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground. 24 And Nathan said, My sovereign, O king, have you said, Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? 25 For he has gone down this day, and has killed oxen and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and has called all the king’s sons, and the captains of the army, and Abiathar the priest; and, behold; they are eating and drinking before him, and say, Long live king Adonijah. 26 But me, even me your servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon, he has not called. 27 Is this thing done by my sovereign the king, and you have not showed to your servants who should sit on the throne of my sovereign the king after him?
28 Then king David answered and said, Call to me Bath-sheba. And she came into the king’s presence, and stood before the king. 29 And the king swore, and said, As Yahweh lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all adversity, 30 truly as I swore to you by Yahweh, the Elohim of Israel, saying, Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my place; truly so will I do this day. 31 Then Bath-sheba bowed with her face to the earth, and did obeisance to the king, and said, Let my sovereign king David live forever.
32 And king David said, Call to me Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the king. 33 And the king said to them, Take with you the servants of your sovereign, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon: 34 and let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there king over Israel; and blow the trumpet, and say, Long live king Solomon. 35 Then you shall come up after him, and he shall come and sit upon my throne; for he shall be king in my place; and I have appointed him to be prince over Israel and over Judah. 36 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, and said, Amen: Yahweh, the Elohim of my sovereign the king, says so too. 37 As Yahweh has been with my sovereign the King, even so shall he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my sovereign king David.
38 So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, went down, and caused Solomon to ride upon king David’s mule, and brought him to Gihon. 39 And Zadok the priest took the horn of oil out of the Tent, and anointed Solomon. And they blew the trumpet; and all the people said, Long live king Solomon. 40 And all the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth was torn with the sound of them.
41 And Adonijah and all the guests that were with him heard it as they had made an end of eating. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, Why is this noise of the city being in an uproar? 42 While 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 tidings. 43 And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, Truly our sovereign king David has made Solomon king: 44 and the king has sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they have caused him to ride upon the king’s mule; 45 and Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon; and they have come up from there rejoicing, so that the city rang again. This is the noise that you have heard. 46 And also Solomon sits on the throne of the kingdom. 47 And moreover the king’s servants come to bless our sovereign king David, saying, Your Elohim shall make the name of Solomon better than your name, and make his throne greater than your throne: and the king bowed himself upon the bed. 48 And also thus said the king, Blessed be Yahweh, the Elohim of Israel, who has given one to sit on my throne this day, my eyes even seeing it.
49 And all the guests of Adonijah were afraid, and rose up, and every man went his way. 50 And Adonijah feared because of Solomon; and he arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. 51 And it was told to Solomon, saying, Behold, Adonijah fears king Solomon; for, lo, he has laid hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear to me first that he will not kill his servant with the sword. 52 And Solomon said, If he shall show himself to be a worthy man, there shall not a hair of him fall to the earth; but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die. 53 So 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.
1 Kings 2
Now the days of David drew near that he should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying, 2 I am going the way of all the earth: be you strong therefore, and show yourself to be a man; 3 and keep the charge of Yahweh your Elohim, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his ordinances, and his testimonies, according to that which is written in the law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do, and wherever you turn yourself; 4 that Yahweh may establish his word which he spoke concerning me, saying, If your children take heed to their way, to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail you (said he) a man on the throne of Israel. 5 Moreover you know also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, even what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, to Abner the son of Ner, and to Amasa the son of Jether, whom he killed, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet. 6 Do therefore according to your wisdom, and do not let his gray hair go down to Sheol in peace. 7 But show kindness to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be of those that eat at your table; for so they came to me when I fled from Absalom your brother. 8 And, behold, there is with you Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite, of Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim; but he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by Yahweh, saying, I will not put you to death with the sword. 9 Now therefore do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man; and you will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his gray hair down to Sheol with blood.
10 And David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David. 11 And the days that David reigned over Israel were forty years: seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty-three years he reigned in Jerusalem. 12 And Solomon sat upon the throne of David his father; and his kingdom was established greatly.
13 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bath-sheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, Do you come in peace? And he said, Peaceably. 14 He said moreover, I have something to say to you. And she said, Say on. 15 And he said, You know that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel set their faces on me, that I should reign: however the kingdom has turned about, and has become my brother’s; for it was his from Yahweh. 16 And now I ask one petition of you; deny me not. And she said to him, Say on. 17 And he said Speak, I pray you, to Solomon the king, (for he will not say no to you,) that he shall give to me Abishag the Shunammite to wife. 18 And Bath-sheba said, Well; I will speak for you to the king.
19 Bath-sheba therefore went to king Solomon, to speak to him for Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet her, and bowed himself to her, and sat down on his throne, and caused a throne to be set for the king’s mother; and she sat on his right hand. 20 Then she said, I ask one small petition of you; deny me not. And the king said to her, Ask on, my mother; for I will not deny you. 21 And she said, Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother to wife. 22 And king Solomon answered and said to his mother, And why did you ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Ask for him the kingdom also; for he is my older brother; even for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah. 23 Then king Solomon swore by Yahweh saying, Elohim do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah has not spoken this word against his own life. 24 Now therefore as Yahweh lives, who has established me, and set me on the throne of David my father, and who has made me a house, as he promised, surely Adonijah shall be put to death this day. 25 And king Solomon sent by Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him, so that he died.
26 And to Abiathar the priest the king said, Go to Anathoth, to your own fields; for you are worthy of death: but I will not at this time put you to death, because you bore the ark of the sovereign Yahweh before David my father, and because you were afflicted in all in which my father was afflicted. 27 So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest to Yahweh, that he might fulfill the word of Yahweh, which he spoke concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.
28 And the tidings came to Joab; for Joab had turned after Adonijah, though he turned not after Absalom. And Joab fled to the Tent of Yahweh, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. 29 And it was told king Solomon, Joab has fled to the Tent of Yahweh, and, behold, he is by the altar. Then Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, Go, fall upon him. 30 And Benaiah came to the Tent of Yahweh, and said to him, In this manner says the king, Come forth. And he said, No; but I will die here. And Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, In this manner said Joab, and thus he answered me. 31 And the king said to him, Do as he has said, and fall upon him, and bury him; that you may take away the blood, which Joab shed without cause, from me and from my father’s house. 32 And Yahweh will return his blood upon his own head, because he fell upon two men more righteous and better than himself, and killed them with the sword, and my father David knew it not, namely, Abner the son of Ner, captain of the army of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, captain of the army of Judah. 33 So shall their blood return upon the head of Joab, and upon the head of his seed forever: but to David, and to his seed, and to his house, and to his throne, shall there be peace for ever from Yahweh. 34 Then Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon him, and killed him; and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness. 35 And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his room over the army; and Zadok the priest the king put in the room of Abiathar.
36 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said to him, Build yourself a house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and do not go out from there anywhere. 37 For on the day you go out, and pass over the brook Kidron, know you for certain that you shall surely die: your blood shall be upon your own head. 38 And Shimei said to the king, The saying is good: as my sovereign the king has said, so will your servant do. And Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem many days.
39 And it came to pass at the end of three years, that two of the servants of Shimei ran away to Achish, son of Maacah, king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying, Behold, your servants are in Gath. 40 And Shimei arose, and saddled his ass, and went to Gath to Achish, to seek his servants; and Shimei went, and brought his servants from Gath. 41 And it was told to Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and had returned. 42 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said to him, Did I not make you swear by Yahweh, and testify to you, saying, Know for certain, that on the day you go out, and walk abroad any where, you shall surely die? And you said to me, The saying that I have heard is good. 43 Why then have you not kept the oath of Yahweh, and the commandment that I have charged you with? 44 The king said moreover to Shimei, You know all the wickedness which your heart has known, that you did to David my father: therefore Yahweh shall return your wickedness upon your own head. 45 But king Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before Yahweh forever. 46 So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he went out, and fell upon him, so that he died. And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.
1 Kings 3
And Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh’s daughter, and brought her into the city of David, until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of Yahweh, and the wall of Jerusalem all around. 2 Only the people sacrificed in the high places, because there was no house built for the name of Yahweh until those days. 3 And Solomon loved Yahweh, walking in the statutes of David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places.
4 And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt-offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar. 5 In Gibeon Yahweh appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and Elohim said, Ask what I shall give you. 6 And Solomon said, You have showed to your servant David my father great lovingkindness, according as he walked before you in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with you; and you have kept for him this great lovingkindness, that you have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. 7 And now, O Yahweh my Elohim, you have made your servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. 8 And your servant is among your people which you have chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. 9 Give your servant therefore an understanding heart to judge your people, that I may discern between good and evil; for who is able to judge this your great people?
10 And the speech pleased Yahweh, that Solomon had asked this thing. 11 And Elohim said to him, Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked for yourself long life, neither have asked riches for yourself, nor have asked the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern justice; 12 Behold, I have done according to your word: lo, I have given you a wise and an understanding heart; so that there has been none like you before you, neither after you shall any arise like you. 13 And I have also given you that which you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that there shall not be any among the kings like you, all your days. 14 And if you will walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days. 15 And Solomon awoke; and, behold, it was a dream: and he came to Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of Yahweh, and offered up burnt-offerings and offered peace-offerings, and made a feast to all his servants.
16 Then there came two women, that were harlots, to the king, and stood before him. 17 And the one woman said, Oh, my sovereign, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house. 18 And it came to pass the third day after I had delivered, that this woman delivered also; and we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house, only the two of us in the house. 19 And this woman’s child died in the night, because she lay upon it. 20 And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while your handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom. 21 And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead; but when I had looked at it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, whom I bore. 22 And the other woman said, No; but the living is my son, and the dead is your son. And this said, No; but the dead is your son, and the living is my son. In this manner they spoke before the king.
23 Then the king said, The one says, This is my son that lives, and your son is the dead: and the other says, No; but your son is dead, and my son is the living. 24 And the king said, Bring me a sword. And they brought a sword before the king. 25 And the king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other. 26 Then the woman whose the living child was spoke to the king, for her heart yearned over her son, and she said, Oh, my sovereign, give her the living child, and in no wise kill it. But the other said, It shall be neither mine nor yours; divide it. 27 Then the king answered and said, Give her the living child, and in no wise kill it: she is the mother of it. 28 And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of Elohim was in him, to do justice.
