1 Kings 2
1 And when the days of David drew near that he should die, he charged Solomon his son, saying,
The time of David's death was approaching, so he gave his son Solomon these last instructions:
2 I am going the way of all the earth; but be thou strong, and become a man;
“I am about to go the way everybody on earth must go. Be brave, and act like a man.
3 And keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, his commandments, and his ordinances, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses; in order that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself;
Do what God orders you to do, follow his ways. Keep his rules, his commands, and his laws and regulations, as written in the Law of Moses, so you may be successful in everything you do, and in everything you give your attention to.
4 In order that the Lord may fulfill his word which he hath spoken concerning me, saying, If thy children take heed to their way, to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall never fail thee, said he, a man on the throne of Israel.
If so, then the Lord will keep his promise to me when he said: ‘If your descendants are to live right before me, faithfully and with complete commitment, then you will always have one of them on the throne of Israel.’
5 And thou also knowest well what Joab the son of Zeruyah hath done to me, what he did to the two captains of the armies of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner, and unto 'Amassa the son of Yether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins, and on his shoes that were on his feet.
In addition, you know what Joab, son of Zeruiah, did to me and what he did to Abner, son of Ner, and Amasa, son of Jether, the two army commanders of Israel. He murdered them, spilling the blood of war during a time of peace. He smeared the blood of war on his belt and on his sandals.
6 Do therefore according to thy wisdom, and let not his hoary head go down in peace to the grave. (Sheol h7585)
Do what you think is right, but don't let his gray head go down peacefully into the grave. (Sheol h7585)
7 But unto the sons of Barzillai the Gil'adite show thou kindness, and let them be of those that eat at thy table; for so they came near to me when I fled from before Abshalom thy brother.
But be kind to the sons of Barzillai of Gilead. Bring them into your royal court, for they helped me when I ran from your brother Absalom.
8 And, behold, thou hast with thee Shim'i the son of Gera, the Benjamite of Bachurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse on the day when I went to Machanayim; but who came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by the Lord, saying, I will not put thee to death with the sword.
Don't you forget Shimei, son of Gera, the Benjamite from Bahurim who cursed me with painful words when I went to Mahanaim. When he met me at the Jordan I swore to him by the Lord, ‘I will not kill you with the sword.’
9 But now leave him not unpunished; for thou art a wise man; know then what thou oughtest to do unto him, and bring thou down his hoary head with blood to the grave. (Sheol h7585)
So don't leave him unpunished. You're a wise man and you know what you have to do to him—send him down into the grave with blood on his gray head.” (Sheol h7585)
10 And David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David.
Then David died and his was buried in the City of David.
11 And the days that David reigned over Israel were forty years: in Hebron he reigned seven years, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty and three years.
His reign over Israel lasted forty years; seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
12 Then sat Solomon upon the throne of David his father; and his kingdom was established greatly.
Solomon took over as king, sitting on the throne of his father David, and his hold on his kingdom was secure.
13 And Adoniyah the son of Chaggith came to Bath-sheba' the mother of Solomon: and she said, Is thy coming for peace? And he said, For peace.
Adonijah, son of Haggith, went to see Bathsheba, Solomon's mother. She asked him, “Have you come here with good intentions?” He replied, “Yes, with good intentions.”
14 He said moreover, I have a word for thee. And she said, Speak.
“I have something I'd like to ask of you,” he continued. “Go on,” she said.
15 And he said, Thou well knowest that mine was the kingdom, and that on me all Israel had set their faces, that I should reign: nevertheless the kingdom was turned about, and became my brother's; for from the Lord was it [made] his.
“You know that the kingdom was mine,” he declared, “and everyone in Israel was looking forward to me being their next king. But everything was turned upside-down, and the kingdom passed to my brother, because that's what the Lord wanted.
16 And now there is one petition I am going to ask of thee, do not turn me away. And she said unto him, Speak.
Now I've just one request to ask of you—please don't say no.” “Tell me,” she said.
17 And he said, Speak, I pray thee, unto Solomon the king, [for he will not turn thee away, ] that he may give me Abishag the Shunammite for wife.
He went on, “Please talk to King Solomon for me because he won't turn you down. Ask him to give me Abishag from Shunem as my wife.”
18 And Bath-sheba' said, Well: I will speak for thee unto the king.
“Very well,” Bathsheba replied. “I will talk to the king for you.”
19 Bath-sheba' thereupon went unto king Solomon, to speak unto him for Adoniyah; and the king rose up to meet her, and bowed himself unto her, and then sat down on his throne, and placed a chair for the king's mother; and she sat on his right hand.
So Bathsheba went to talk to King Solomon for Adonijah. The king got up from his throne to meet her, and bowed before her. Then he sat back down and ordered another throne brought in for his mother. She sat to his right.
20 Then said she, There is one small petition I am going to ask of thee; do not turn me away. And the king said unto her, Ask on, my mother; for I will not turn thee away.
“I have just one small request to ask of you,” she said. “Please don't say no.” The king replied, “Ask away, dear mother. I won't say no to you.”
21 And she said, Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adoniyah thy brother for wife.
“Please give Abishag from Shunem to your brother Adonijah as his wife,” she replied.
22 And king Solomon answered and said unto his mother, And why dost thou ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adoniyah? rather ask for him the kingdom; for he is my elder brother; — even for him, and for Ebyathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruyah.
King Solomon answered his mother, “Why on earth are you asking me to give Abishag to Adonijah? You might as well ask me to give my brother the kingdom! He is my older brother, and Abiathar the priest and Joab, son of Zeruiah, are on his side!”
23 Then swore king Solomon by the Lord, saying, May God do so to me, and may he thus continue, if Adoniyah have not spoken this word against his own life.
Then King Solomon vowed before the Lord, “May God punish me, really punish me, if what Adonijah has asked for doesn't cost him his life.
24 And now, as the Lord liveth, who hath established me, and seated me on the throne of David my father, and who hath made me a house, as he hath spoken, this very day shall Adoniyah be put to death.
So I vow, as the Lord lives, who affirmed me as king and placed me on the throne of my father David, making me the head of a dynasty as he promised, Adonijah shall be executed today.”
25 And king Solomon sent by the hand of Benayahu the son of Yehoyada'; and he fell upon him so that he died.
King Solomon sent Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, who carried out the king's orders and executed Adonijah.
26 And unto Ebyathar the priest said the king, Go to 'Anathoth, unto thy own fields; for thou art a man worthy of death; but on this day will I not put thee to death; because thou hast borne the ark of the Lord Eternal before David my father, and because thou was afflicted in all wherein my father was afflicted.
In the case of Abiathar, the high priest, the king told him, “Go home and take care of your fields. You should be condemned to death, but I will not kill you right now because you carried the Ark of the Lord God ahead of my father David and went through all his hard times with him.”
27 So Solomon banished Ebyathar that he should not be priest unto the Lord, to fulfill the word of the Lord, which he had spoken concerning the house of 'Eli in Shiloh.
So Solomon dismissed Abiathar from his position as priest of the Lord, and so fulfilled what the Lord had said at Shiloh regarding the descendants of Eli.
28 And the report came to Joab; for Joab had turned after Adoniyah, though he had not turned after Abshalom. And Joab fled unto the tabernacle of the Lord, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.
When Joab heard the news he ran to the Lord's Tent and grabbed hold of the horns of the altar. (He had not supported Absalom's rebellion but he had supported Adonijah.)
29 And it was told to king Solomon that Joab had fled unto the tabernacle of the Lord; and that, behold, he was close by the altar. Then sent Solomon Benayahu the son of Yehoyada,' saying, Go, fall upon him.
When King Solomon was told that Joab was seeking sanctuary by the altar, he sent Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, to execute him.
30 And Benayahu came to the tabernacle of the Lord, and said unto him, Thus hath said the king, Come forth. And he said, No; but here will I die. And Benayahu brought the king word again, saying, Thus hath Joab spoken, and thus hath he answered me.
Benaiah went to the Lord's Tent and told called to Joab, “The king orders you to come out!” “No! I'll die here!” Joab replied. Benaiah went back to the king and told him what Joab had said.
31 Then said the king unto him, Do as he hath spoken, and fall upon him, and bury him; and remove [thus] the innocent blood, which Joab hath shed, from me, and from the house of my father.
“Do as he says,” the king told Benaiah. “Strike him down and bury him. In that way you will remove from me and my family the guilt of the innocent blood that Joab shed.
32 And may the Lord bring back his blood-guiltiness upon his own head, because he fell upon two men more righteous and better than he, and slew them with the sword, while my father David knew it not, Abner the son of Ner, the captain of the army of Israel, and 'Amassa the son of Yether, the captain of the army of Judah.
The Lord will pay him back for the blood he shed, for without my father David's knowledge, he killed two good men who were better than he was. With his sword he killed Abner, son of Ner, commander of Israel's army, and Amasa, son of Jether, commander of Judah's army.
33 And their blood shall return upon the head of Joab, and upon the head of his seed for ever; but unto David, and unto his seed, and unto his house, and unto his throne, may there be peace for ever from the Lord.
May the responsibility for shedding their blood come back on Joab and his descendants forever; but may the Lord give peace and prosperity to David, his descendants, his family, and his dynasty forever.”
34 So Benayahu the son of Yehoyada' went up, and fell upon him, and slew him: and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness.
So Benaiah son of Jehoiada returned and killed Joab. He was buried at his home in the wilderness.
35 And the king appointed Benayahu the son of Yehoyada' in his place over the army; and Zadok the priest did the king appoint in the place of Ebyathar.
The king appointed Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, to take over Joab's role as army commander, and replaced Abiathar with Zadok the priest.
36 And the king sent and called for Shim'i, and said unto him, Build thee a house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and thou shalt not go forth from there hither or thither.
Then the king summoned Shimei and told him, “Go and build yourself a house in Jerusalem and stay there, but don't leave and go anywhere else.
37 And it shall be, that on the day thou goest out, and passest over the brook Kidron, thou shalt know for certain that thou shalt surely die: thy blood shall be upon thy own head.
You should know for certain that the day you leave and cross the Kidron Valley you will die. Your death will be your own responsibility.”
38 And Shim'i said unto the king, It is well: as my Lord the king hath spoken, so will thy servant do. And Shim'i dwelt in Jerusalem many days.
“What Your Majesty says is fair,” Shimei replied. “Your servant will do as my lord the king has ordered.” Shimei lived in Jerusalem for a long time.
39 And it came to pass at the end of three years, that two servants of Shim'i ran away unto Achish the son of Ma'achah the king of Gath: and they told unto Shim'i, saying, Behold, thy servants are in Gath.
But three years later, two of Shimei's slaves escaped to Achish, son of Maacah, king of Gath. Shimei was told, “Look, your slaves are in Gath.”
40 And Shim'i arose, and saddled his ass, and went to Gath to Achish to seek his servants; and Shim'i went, and brought his servants from Gath.
So Shimei saddled up his donkey and went to Achish in Gath to look for his slaves. He found them and brought them back from Gath.
41 And it was told to Solomon that Shim'i had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and had returned.
Solomon was informed that Shimei had left Jerusalem to go to Gath, and had then returned.
42 And the king sent and called for Shim'i, and said unto him, Did I not make thee swear by the Lord, and warned thee, saying, On that day thou goest out, and walkest abroad hither or thither, know for certain that thou shalt surely die? and thou saidst unto me, It is well, I have heard?
The king summoned Shimei and asked him, “Didn't I vow to you by the Lord, didn't I warn you that the day you left and went somewhere else that you should know for certain that you would die? Didn't you reply to me, ‘What Your Majesty says is fair; I'll do as you ordered’?
43 Why then hast thou not kept the oath of the Lord, and the commandment with which I charged thee?
So why haven't you kept your vow to the Lord, and obeyed my orders?”
44 The king said moreover to Shim'i, Thou well knowest all the wickedness of which thy heart is conscious, that thou hast done to David my father: and the Lord bringeth back thy wickedness upon thy own head;
The king also told Shimei, “Deep down you know all the evil things you did to my father David. That's why the Lord will repay you for your evil.
45 But king Solomon will be blessed, and the throne of David will be established before the Lord for ever.
But I, King Solomon, will be blessed and David's dynasty will be kept safe in the presence of the Lord forever.”
46 So the king commanded Benayahu the son of Yehoyada', who went out, and fell upon him, so that he died. And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.
The king ordered Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, to execute Shimei, so he went and killed Shimei. In this way Solomon's hold on the kingdom was made secure.
