1 Kings 1
1 Now king David had become elderly, and he had many days in his lifetime. And though he was covered with clothes, he was not warmed.
Now King David was old and far on in years; and though they put covers over him, his body was cold.
2 Therefore, his servants said to him: “Let us seek, for our lord the king, a young virgin. And let her stand before the king, and warm him, and sleep in his bosom, and provide warmth for our lord the king.”
So his servants said to him, Let search be made for a young virgin for my lord the king, to take care of him and be waiting on him; and you may take her in your arms, and so my lord the king will be warm.
3 And so they sought a beautiful young woman in all the parts of Israel. And they found Abishag, a Shunammite, and they led her to the king.
So after searching through all the land of Israel for a fair young girl, they saw Abishag the Shunammite, and took her to the king.
4 Now the girl was exceedingly beautiful. And she slept with the king, and she ministered to him. Yet truly, the king did not know her.
Now she was very beautiful; and she took care of the king, waiting on him at all times; but the king had no connection with her.
5 Then Adonijah, the son of Haggith, exalted himself, saying, “I shall reign!” And he appointed for himself chariots and horsemen, with fifty men who would run before him.
Then Adonijah, the son of Haggith, lifting himself up in pride, said, I will become king; and he made ready his carriages of war and his horsemen, with fifty runners to go before him.
6 Neither did his father chastise him at any time, saying, “Why have you done this?” Now he, too, was very beautiful, the second in birth, after Absalom.
Now all his life his father had never gone against him or said to him, Why have you done so? and he was a very good-looking man, and younger than Absalom.
7 And he conferred with Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar, the priest, who gave assistance to the side of Adonijah.
And he had talk with Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest; and they were on his side and gave him their support.
8 Yet truly, Zadok, the priest, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan, the prophet, and Shimei and Rei, and the mature men of the army of David were not with Adonijah.
But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei, and David's men of war did not take the side of Adonijah.
9 Then Adonijah, having immolated rams and calves and every kind of fat cattle beside the Stone of the Serpent, which was in the vicinity of the fountain Rogel, summoned all his brothers, the sons of the king, and all the men of Judah, the servants of the king.
Then Adonijah put to death sheep and oxen and fat beasts by the stone of Zoheleth, by En-rogel; and he sent for all his brothers, the king's sons, and all the men of Judah, the king's servants, to come to him:
10 But he did not summon Nathan, the prophet, and Benaiah, and all the mature men, and Solomon, his brother.
But he did not send for Nathan the prophet and Benaiah and the other men of war and Solomon his brother.
11 And so Nathan said to Bathsheba, the mother of Solomon: “Have you not heard that Adonijah, the son of Haggith, has begun to reign, and that our lord David is ignorant of this?
Then Nathan said to Bath-sheba, the mother of Solomon, Has it not come to your ears that Adonijah, the son of Haggith, has made himself king without the knowledge of David our lord?
12 Now then, come, accept my counsel, and save your life and the life of your son Solomon.
So now, let me make a suggestion, so that you may keep your life safe and the life of your son Solomon.
13 Go and enter to king David, and say to him: ‘Did you not, my lord the king, swear to me, your handmaid, saying: “Your son Solomon shall reign after me, and he himself shall sit on my throne?” Then why does Adonijah reign?’
Come now, go to King David and say to him, Did you not, O my lord, take an oath to me, your servant, saying, Truly Solomon your son will be king after me, seated on the seat of my kingdom? why then is Adonijah acting as king?
14 And while you are still speaking with the king there, I will enter after you, and I will complete your words.”
And while you are still talking there with the king, see, I will come in after you and say that your story is true.
15 And so Bathsheba entered to the king in the bedroom. Now the king was very old, and Abishag, the Shunammite, was ministering to him.
Then Bath-sheba went into the king's room; now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was waiting on him.
16 Bathsheba bowed herself, and she reverenced the king. And the king said to her, “What do you wish?”
And Bath-sheba went down on her face on the earth before the king giving him honour. And he said, What is your desire?
17 And responding, she said: “My lord, you swore to your handmaid, by the Lord your God: ‘your son Solomon will reign after me, and he himself shall sit upon my throne.’
And she said to him, My lord, you took an oath by the Lord your God and gave your word to your servant, saying, Truly, Solomon your son will be king after me, seated on the seat of my kingdom.
18 And now behold, Adonijah reigns, while you, my lord the king, are ignorant of it.
And now, see, Adonijah has made himself king without my lord's knowledge;
19 He has slain oxen, and every kind of fattened cattle, and many rams. And he has summoned all the sons of the king, as well as Abiathar, the priest, and Joab, the leader of the military. But Solomon, your servant, he did not summon.
And has put to death oxen and fat beasts and sheep in great numbers, and has sent for all the sons of the king, and Abiathar the priest, and Joab, the captain of the army; but he has not sent for Solomon your servant.
20 Truly now, my lord the king, the eyes of all of Israel look with favor upon you, that you may indicate to them who ought to sit upon your throne, my lord the king, after you.
And now, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you, waiting for you to say who is to take the place of my lord the king after him.
21 Otherwise, this will be: when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, I and my son Solomon will be as sinners.”
For as things are, it will come about, when my lord the king is sleeping with his fathers, that I and Solomon my son will be made outlaws.
22 And while she was still speaking with the king, Nathan, the prophet, arrived.
And while she was still talking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in.
23 And they announced to the king, saying, “Nathan, the prophet, is here.” And when he had entered in the sight of the king, and he had reverenced prone on the ground,
And they said to the king, Here is Nathan the prophet. And when he came in before the king, he went down on his face on the earth.
24 Nathan said: “My lord the king, did you say, ‘Let Adonijah reign after me, and let him sit upon my throne?’
And Nathan said, O my lord king, have you said, Adonijah is to be king after me, seated on the seat of my kingdom?
25 For today, he descended, and he immolated oxen, and fattened cattle, and many rams. And he summoned all the sons of the king, and the leaders of the army, along with Abiathar, the priest. And they are eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘As king Adonijah lives.’
Because today he has gone down and has put to death oxen and fat beasts and sheep in great numbers, and has sent for all the king's sons to come to him, with the captains of the army and Abiathar the priest; and they are feasting before him and crying, Long life to King Adonijah!
26 But he did not summon me, your servant, and Zadok, the priest, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and Solomon, your lowly servant.
But me, your servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon, he has not sent for.
27 Could this word have gone out from my lord the king, and could you not have revealed it to me, your servant, as to who would be seated upon the throne of my lord the king after him?”
Has this thing been done by my lord the king, without giving word to your servants who was to be placed on my lord the king's seat after him?
28 And king David responded, saying, “Summon to me Bathsheba.” And when she had entered before the king, and she had stood before him,
Then King David in answer said, Send for Bath-sheba to come to me. And she came in and took her place before the king.
29 the king swore and said: “As the Lord lives, who has rescued my soul from all distress,
And the king took an oath, and said, By the living Lord, who has been my saviour from all my troubles,
30 just as I swore to you by the Lord God of Israel, saying: ‘Your son Solomon shall reign after me, and he himself shall sit upon my throne in my place,’ so shall I do this day.”
As I took an oath to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, saying, Certainly Solomon your son will become king after me, seated on my seat in my place; so will I do this day.
31 And Bathsheba, having lowered her face to the ground, reverenced the king, saying, “May my lord David live forever.”
Then Bath-sheba went down on her face on the earth before the king giving him honour, and said, May my lord King David go on living for ever.
32 And king David said, “Summon to me Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada.” And when they had entered before the king,
And King David said, Send for Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the king.
33 he said to them: “Take with you the servants of your lord, and place my son Solomon upon my mule. And lead him to Gihon.
And the king said to them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and put Solomon my son on my beast, yes, mine, and take him down to Gihon;
34 And let Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, anoint him in that place as the king over Israel. And you shall sound the trumpet, and you shall say, ‘As king Solomon lives.’
And there let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet put the holy oil on him to make him king over Israel; and sounding the horn say, Long life to King Solomon!
35 And you shall ascend after him, and he shall arrive and shall sit upon my throne. And he himself shall reign in my place. And I will command that he be the ruler over Israel and over Judah.”
Then come up after him and he will come in and take his place on the seat of my kingdom; for he is to be king in my place, and I have given orders that he is to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.
36 And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, responded to the king, saying: “Amen. So says the Lord, the God of my lord the king.
And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, answering the king, said, So be it: and may the Lord, the God of my lord the king, say so.
37 In the same way that the Lord has been with my lord the king, so may he be with Solomon. And may he make his throne more sublime than the throne of my lord, king David.”
As the Lord has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon and make the seat of his authority greater than that of my lord King David.
38 Then Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, descended, with Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and Pelethites. And they placed Solomon on the mule of king David, and they led him to Gihon.
So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, went down and put Solomon on King David's beast and took him to Gihon.
39 And Zadok, the priest, took the horn of oil from the tabernacle, and he anointed Solomon. And they sounded the trumpet. And all the people said, “As king Solomon lives.”
And Zadok the priest took the vessel of oil out of the Tent, and put the holy oil on Solomon. And when the horn was sounded, all the people said, Long life to King Solomon!
40 And the entire multitude ascended after him. And the people were playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy. And the earth resounded before the noise of them.
And all the people came up after him, piping with pipes, and they were glad with great joy, so that the earth was shaking with the sound.
41 Then Adonijah, and all who had been summoned by him, heard it. And now the feast had ended. Then, too, Joab, hearing the voice of the trumpet, said, “What is the meaning of this clamor from the tumultuous city?”
And it came to the ears of Adonijah and all the guests who were with him, when their meal was ended. And Joab, hearing the sound of the horn, said, What is the reason of this noise as if the town was worked up?
42 While he was still speaking, Jonathan, the son of Abiathar the priest, arrived. And Adonijah said to him, “Enter, for you are a valiant man, and you report good news.”
And while the words were on his lips, Jonathan, the son of Abiathar the priest, came; and Adonijah said, Come in; for you are a man of good faith and the news which you have for us will be good.
43 And Jonathan answered Adonijah: “By no means. For our lord king David has appointed Solomon as king.
And Jonathan, answering, said to Adonijah, Not so, but our lord King David has made Solomon king:
44 And he has sent with him Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and Pelethites. And they have placed him on the mule of the king.
And he sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they put him on the king's beast:
45 And Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, have anointed him king, at Gihon. And they are ascending from there, rejoicing, and so the city resounds. This is the noise that you have heard.
And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet put the holy oil on him and made him king in Gihon; and they came back from there with joy, and the town was all worked up. This is the noise which has come to your ears.
46 But also, Solomon sits upon the throne of the kingdom.
And now Solomon is seated on the seat of the kingdom.
47 And the servants of the king, entering, have blessed our lord king David, saying: ‘May God amplify the name of Solomon above your name, and may he magnify his throne above your throne.’ And the king reverenced from his bed.
And the king's servants came to our lord King David, blessing him and saying, May God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and the seat of his authority greater than your seat; and the king was bent low in worship on his bed.
48 And he said: ‘Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, who today has bestowed someone to sit upon my throne, while my eyes may see it.’”
Then the king said, May the God of Israel be praised, who has given one of my seed to be king in my place this day and has let my eyes see it.
49 Therefore, all those who had been summoned by Adonijah were terrified. And they all rose up, and each one went his own way.
And all the guests of Adonijah got up in fear and went away, every man to his place.
50 Then Adonijah, fearing Solomon, rose up and went away. And he took hold of the horn of the altar.
And Adonijah himself was full of fear because of Solomon; and he got up and went to the altar, and put his hands on its horns.
51 And they reported to Solomon, saying: “Behold, Adonijah, fearing king Solomon, has taken hold of the horn of the altar, saying: ‘May king Solomon swear to me this day that he will not put to death his servant with the sword.’”
And they gave Solomon word of it, saying, See, Adonijah goes in such fear of King Solomon, that he has put his hands on the horns of the altar, saying, Let King Solomon first give me his oath that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.
52 And Solomon said: “If he is a good man, not so much as one hair of his head shall fall to the ground. But if evil is found in him, he shall die.”
And Solomon said, If he is seen to be a man of good faith, not a hair of him will be touched; but if any wrongdoing is seen in him, he is to be put to death.
53 Therefore, king Solomon sent and brought him from the altar. And entering, he reverenced king Solomon. And Solomon said to him, “Go to your own house.”
So King Solomon sent, and they took him down from the altar. And he came and gave honour to King Solomon; and Solomon said to him, Go to your house.
