Kings III 2
1 And the days of David drew near that he should die: and he addressed his son Solomon, saying, I go the way of all the earth:
Now the time of David's death came near; and he gave orders to Solomon his son, saying,
2 but be thou strong, and shew thyself a man;
I am going the way of all the earth: so be strong and be a man;
3 and keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep the commandments and the ordinances and the judgments which are written in the law of Moses; that thou mayest understand what thou shalt do in all things that I command thee:
And keep the orders of the Lord your God, walking in his ways, keeping his laws and his orders and his rules and his words, as they are recorded in the law of Moses; so that you may do well in all you do and wherever you go,
4 that the Lord may confirm his word which he spoke, saying, If thy children shall take heed to their way to walk before me in truth with all their heart, [I promise thee], saying, there shall not fail thee a man on the throne of Israel.
So that the Lord may give effect to what he said of me, If your children give attention to their ways, living uprightly before me with all their heart and their soul, you will never be without a man to be king in Israel.
5 Moreover thou knowest all that Joab the son of Saruia did to me, what he did to the two captains of the forces of Israel, to Abenner the son of Ner, and to Amessai the son of Jether, that he slew them, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put innocent blood on his girdle that was about his loins, and on his sandal that was on his foot.
Now you have knowledge of what Joab, the son of Zeruiah, did to me, and to the two captains of the army of Israel, Abner, the son of Ner, and Amasa, the son of Jether, whom he put to death, taking payment for the blood of war in time of peace, and making the band of my clothing and the shoes on my feet red with the blood of one put to death without cause.
6 Therefore thou shalt deal [with him] according to thy wisdom, and thou shalt not bring down his grey hairs in peace to the grave. (Sheol h7585)
So be guided by your wisdom, and let not his white head go down to the underworld in peace. (Sheol h7585)
7 But thou shalt deal kindly with the sons of Berzelli the Galaadite, and they shall be among those that eat at thy table; for thus they drew nigh to me when I fled from the face of thy brother Abessalom.
But be good to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be guests at your table; for so they came to me when I went in flight from Absalom your brother.
8 And, behold, [there is] with thee Semei the son of Gera, a Benjamite of Baurim: and he cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went into the camp; and he came down to Jordan to meet me, and I swore to him by the Lord, saying, I will not put thee to death with the sword.
Now you have with you Shimei, the son of Gera the Benjamite of Bahurim, who put a bitter curse on me on the day when I went to Mahanaim; but he came down to see me at Jordan, and I gave him my oath by the Lord, saying, I will not put you to death by the sword.
9 But thou shalt by no means hold him guiltless, for thou art a wise man, and wilt know what thou shalt do to him, and shalt bring down his grey hairs with blood to the grave. (Sheol h7585)
But do not let him be free from punishment, for you are a wise man; and it will be clear to you what you have to do with him; see that his white head goes down to the underworld in blood. (Sheol h7585)
10 And David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David.
Then David went to rest with his fathers, and his body was put into the earth in the town of David.
11 And the days which David reigned over Israel [were] forty years; he reigned seven years in Chebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
David was king over Israel for forty years: for seven years he was king in Hebron and for thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
12 And Solomon sat on the throne of his father David, and his kingdom was established greatly.
And Solomon took his place on the seat of David his father, and his kingdom was made safe and strong.
13 And Adonias the son of Aggith came in to Bersabee the mother of Solomon, and did obeisance to her: and she said, Dost thou enter peaceably? and he said, Peaceably:
Then Adonijah, the son of Haggith, came to Bath-sheba, the mother of Solomon. And she said, Come you in peace? And he said, Yes, in peace.
14 I have business with thee. And she said to him, Say on.
Then he said, I have something to say to you. And she said, Say on.
15 And he said to her, Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine, and all Israel turned their face toward me for a king; but the kingdom was turned [from me] and became my brother's: for it was [appointed] to him from the Lord.
And he said, You saw how the kingdom was mine, and all Israel had the idea that I would be their king; but now the kingdom is turned about, and has become my brother's, for it was given to him by the Lord.
16 And now I make one request of thee, do not turn away thy face. And Bersabee said to him, Speak [on].
Now I have one request to make to you, and do not say, No, to me. And she said to him, Say on.
17 And he said to her, Speak, I pray thee, to king Solomon, for he will not turn away his face from thee, and let him give me Abisag the Somanite for a wife.
Then he said, Will you go to Solomon the king (for he will not say, No, to you) and put before him my request that he will give me Abishag the Shunammite for a wife?
18 And Bersabee said, Well; I will speak for thee to the king.
And Bath-sheba said, Good! I will make your request to the king.
19 And Bersabee went in to king Solomon to speak to him concerning Adonias; and the king rose up to meet her, and kissed her, and sat on the throne, and a throne was set for the mother of the king, and she sat on his right hand.
So Bath-sheba went to King Solomon to have talk with him on Adonijah's account. And the king got up to come to her, and went down low to the earth before her; then he took his place on the king's seat and had a seat made ready for the king's mother and she took her place at his right hand.
20 And she said to him, I ask of thee one little request; turn not away my face from thee. And the king said to her, Ask, my mother, and I will not reject thee.
Then she said, I have one small request to make to you; do not say, No, to me. And the king said, Say on, my mother, for I will not say, No, to you.
21 And she said, Let, I pray thee, Abisag the Somanite be given to Adonias thy brother to wife.
And she said, Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother for a wife.
22 And king Solomon answered and said to his mother, And why hast thou asked Abisag for Adonias? ask for him the kingdom also; for he [is] my elder brother, and he has for his companion Abiathar the priest, and Joab the son of Saruia the commander-in-chief.
Then King Solomon made answer and said to his mother, Why are you requesting me to give Abishag the Shunammite to Adonijah? Take the kingdom for him in addition, for he is my older brother, and Abiathar the priest and Joab, the son of Zeruiah, are on his side.
23 And king Solomon swore by the Lord, saying, God do so to me, and more also, [if it be not] that Adonias has spoken this word against his own life.
Then King Solomon took an oath by the Lord, saying, May God's punishment be on me if Adonijah does not give payment for these words with his life.
24 And now [as] the Lord lives who has established me, and set me on the throne of my father David, and he has made me a house, as the Lord spoke, this day shall Adonias be put to death.
Now by the living Lord, who has given me my place on the seat of David my father, and made me one of a line of kings, as he gave me his word, truly Adonijah will be put to death this day.
25 So king Solomon sent by the hand of Banaeas the son of Jodae, and he slew him, and Adonias died in that day.
And King Solomon sent Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and he made an attack on him and put him to death.
26 And the king said to Abiathar the priest, Depart thou quickly to Anathoth to thy farm, for thou art worthy of death this day; but I will not slay thee, because thou hast borne the ark of the covenant of the Lord before my father, and because thou was afflicted in all things wherein my father was afflicted.
And to Abiathar the priest the king said, Go to Anathoth, to your fields; for death would be your right reward; but I will not put you to death now, because you took up the ark of the Lord God before David my father, and you were with him in all his troubles.
27 And Solomon removed Abiathar from being a priest of the Lord, that the word of the Lord might be fulfilled, which he spoke concerning the house of Heli in Selom.
So Solomon let Abiathar be priest no longer, so that he might make the word of the Lord come true which he said about the sons of Eli in Shiloh.
28 And the report came to Joab son of Saruia; for Joab had turned after Adonias, and he went not after Solomon: and Joab fled to the tabernacle of the Lord, and caught hold of the horns of the altar.
And news of this came to Joab; for Joab had been one of Adonijah's supporters, though he had not been on Absalom's side. Then Joab went in flight to the Tent of the Lord, and put his hands on the horns of the altar.
29 And it was told Solomon, saying, Joab has fled to the tabernacle of the Lord, and lo! he has hold of the horns of the altar. And king Solomon sent to Joab, saying, What ails thee, that thou hast fled to the altar? and Joab said, Because I was afraid of thee, and fled for refuge to the Lord. And Solomon sent Banaeas son of Jodae, saying, Go and slay him, and bury him.
And they said to King Solomon, Joab has gone in flight to the Tent of the Lord and is by the altar. Then Solomon sent Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, saying, Go, make an attack on him.
30 And Banaeas son of Jodae came to Joab to the tabernacle of the Lord, and said to him, Thus says the king, Come forth. And Joab said, I will not come forth, for I will die here. And Banaeas son of Jodae returned and spoke to the king, saying, Thus has Joab spoken, and thus has he answered me.
And Benaiah came to the Tent of the Lord and said to him, The king says, Come out. And he said, No; but let death come to me here. And Benaiah went back to the king and gave him word of the answer which Joab had given.
31 And the king said to him, Go, and do to him as he has spoken, and kill him: and thou shalt bury him, and thou shalt remove this day the blood which he shed without cause, from me and from the house of my father.
And the king said, Do as he has said and make an attack on him there, and put his body into the earth; so that you may take away from me and from my family the blood of one put to death by Joab without cause.
32 And the Lord has returned upon his own head the blood of his unrighteousness, inasmuch as he attacked two men more righteous and better than himself, and slew them with the sword, and my father David knew not of their blood, [even] Abenner the son of Ner the commander-in-chief of Israel, and Amessa the son of Jether the commander-in-chief of Juda.
And the Lord will send back his blood on his head, because of the attack he made on two men more upright and better than himself, putting them to the sword without my father's knowledge; even Abner, the son of Ner, captain of the army of Israel, and Amasa, the son of Jether, captain of the army of Judah.
33 And their blood is returned upon his head, and upon the head of his seed for ever: but to David, and his seed, and his house, and his throne, may there be peace for ever from the Lord.
So their blood will be on the head of Joab, and on the head of his seed for ever; but for David and his seed and his family and the seat of his kingdom, there will be peace for ever from the Lord.
34 So Banaeas son of Jodae went up, and attacked him, and slew him, and buried him in his house in the wilderness.
So Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, went up, and falling on him, put him to death; and his body was put to rest in his house in the waste land.
35 And the king appointed Banaeas son of Jodae in his place over the host; and the kingdom was established in Jerusalem; and [as for] Sadoc the priest, the king appointed him to be high priest in the room of Abiathar. And Solomon son of David reigned over Israel and Juda in Jerusalem: and the Lord gave understanding to Solomon, and very much wisdom, and largeness of heart, as the sand by the sea-shore.
And the king put Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, in his place over the army; and Zadok the priest he put in the place of Abiathar.
Then the king sent for Shimei, and said to him, Make a house for yourself in Jerusalem and keep there and go to no other place.
For be certain that on the day when you go out and go over the stream Kidron, death will overtake you: and your blood will be on your head.
And Shimei said to the king, Very well! as my lord the king has said, so will your servant do. And for a long time Shimei went on living in Jerusalem.
But after three years, two of the servants of Shimei went in flight to Achish, son of Maacah, king of Gath. And word was given to Shimei that his servants had gone to Gath.
Then Shimei got up, and making ready his ass, he went to Gath, to Achish, in search of his servants; and he sent and got them from Gath.
And news was given to Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and had come back again.
Then the king sent for Shimei, and said to him, Did I not make you take an oath by the Lord, protesting to you and saying, Be certain that on the day when you go out from here, wherever you go, death will overtake you? and you said to me, Very well!
Why then have you not kept the oath of the Lord and the order which I gave you?
And the king said to Shimei, You have knowledge of all the evil which you did to David my father; and now the Lord has sent back your evil on yourself.
But a blessing will be on King Solomon, and the kingdom of David will keep its place before the Lord for ever.
So the king gave orders to Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada; and he went out and, falling on him, put him to death. And Solomon's authority over the kingdom was complete.
