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1 Kings 2
Legacy Standard Bible

David’s Command to Solomon

2 Then David’s [a](A)time to die drew near, so he commanded Solomon his son, saying, 2 “(B)I am going the way of all the earth. (C)So you shall be strong, and be a man. 3 And you shall keep the responsibility given by Yahweh your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His judgments, and His testimonies, (D)according to what is written in the Law of Moses, that (E)you may be prosperous in all that you do and wherever you turn, 4 so that (F)Yahweh may establish His promise which He spoke concerning me, saying, ‘(G)If your sons keep their way, (H)to walk before Me in [b]truth with all their heart and with all their soul, He said, [c](I)you shall not have a man cut off from the throne of Israel.’

5 “Now you also know what Joab the (J)son of Zeruiah did to me, what he did to the two commanders of the armies of Israel, to (K)Abner the son of Ner, and to (L)Amasa the son of Jether, whom he killed; he also [d]shed the blood of war in peace. And he put the blood of war on his belt [e]about his [f]waist, and on his sandals [g]on his feet. 6 (M)So act according to your wisdom, and do not let his gray hair go down to Sheol in peace. 7 But (N)show lovingkindness to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and (O)let them be among those who eat at your table; (P)for they [h]assisted me when I fled from Absalom your brother. 8 Behold, (Q)there is with you Shimei the son of Gera the Benjamite, of Bahurim; now it was he who cursed me with a [i]violent curse on the day I went to Mahanaim. But when (R)he came down to me at the Jordan, I swore to him by Yahweh, saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’ 9 So now, do not let him go unpunished, (S)for you are a wise man; and you will know what you ought to do to him, and you will bring his gray hair down to Sheol with blood.”

The Death of David

10 Then (T)David slept with his fathers and was buried in (U)the city of David. 11 (V)And the [j]time which David reigned over Israel was forty years; in Hebron he reigned (W)seven years and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years. 12 And (X)Solomon sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was firmly established.

Adonijah’s Request

13 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, “(Y)Do you come peacefully?” And he said, “Peacefully.” 14 Then he said, “I have something to say to you.” And she said, “Speak.” 15 So he said, “You know that (Z)the kingdom was mine and (AA)that all Israel [k]expected me to be king; (AB)however, the kingdom has turned about and become my brother’s, (AC)for it was his from Yahweh. 16 So now, I am making one request of you; do not [l]turn me away.” And she said to him, “Speak.” 17 Then he said, “Please speak to Solomon the king, for he will not [m]turn you away, that he may give me (AD)Abishag the Shunammite as a wife.” 18 And Bathsheba said, “Very well; I will speak to the king for you.”

Adonijah Put to Death

19 So Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah. And the king arose to meet her, bowed before her, and sat on his throne; then he (AE)had a throne set for the king’s mother, and (AF)she sat on his right. 20 Then she said, “I am making one small request of you; (AG)do not turn [n]me away.” And the king said to her, “Ask, my mother, for I will not turn [o]you away.” 21 So she said, “(AH)Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother as a wife.” 22 Then King Solomon answered and said to his mother, “And why are you asking Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? (AI)Ask for him also the kingdom—(AJ)for he is my older brother—even for him, for (AK)Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah!” 23 Then King Solomon swore by Yahweh, saying, “May God do so to me and more also, if Adonijah has (AL)not spoken this word against his own [p]life. 24 So now, as Yahweh lives, who has established me and set me on the throne of David my father and (AM)who has made me a house as He promised, surely Adonijah shall be put to death today.” 25 So King Solomon (AN)sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him so that he died.

26 Then to Abiathar the priest the king said, “(AO)Go to Anathoth to your own field, (AP)for you [q]deserve to die; but I will not put you to death at this time, because (AQ)you carried the ark of Lord Yahweh before my father David, and because (AR)you were afflicted in everything with which my father was afflicted.” 27 So Solomon drove Abiathar away from being priest to Yahweh, in order to fulfill (AS)the word of Yahweh, which He had spoken concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.

Joab Put to Death

28 Now the news came to Joab, (AT)for Joab had followed Adonijah, (AU)although he had not followed Absalom. And Joab fled to the tent of Yahweh and (AV)took hold of the horns of the altar. 29 And it was told to King Solomon that Joab had fled to the tent of Yahweh, and behold, he is beside the altar. Then Solomon (AW)sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, “(AX)Go, fall upon him.” 30 So Benaiah came to the tent of Yahweh and said to him, “Thus the king has said, ‘Come out.’” But he said, “No, for I will die here.” And Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, “Thus spoke Joab, and thus he answered me.” 31 And the king said to him, “(AY)Do as he has spoken and fall upon him and bury him, (AZ)that you may remove from me and from my father’s house the blood which Joab shed without cause. 32 (BA)And Yahweh will return his blood on his own head, (BB)because he fell upon two men more righteous and better than he and killed them with the sword, but my father David did not know it: (BC)Abner the son of Ner, commander of the army of Israel, and (BD)Amasa the son of Jether, commander of the army of Judah. 33 (BE)So shall their blood return on the head of Joab and on the head of his seed forever; but to David and his seed and his house and his throne, may there be peace from Yahweh forever.” 34 Then (BF)Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up and fell upon him and put him to death, and he was buried at his own house (BG)in the wilderness. 35 (BH)And the king appointed Benaiah the son of Jehoiada over the army in his place, and the king appointed (BI)Zadok the priest (BJ)in the place of Abiathar.

Shimei Put to Death

36 Then the king sent and called for (BK)Shimei and said to him, “Build for yourself a house in Jerusalem and live there, and do not go out from there to any place. 37 Now it will be on the day you go out and (BL)cross over the [r]brook Kidron, that you will know for certain that you shall surely die; (BM)your blood shall be on your own head.” 38 Shimei then said to the king, “The word is good. As my lord the king has said, so your servant will do.” So Shimei lived in Jerusalem many days.

39 But it happened at the end of three years, that two of the slaves of Shimei ran away (BN)to Achish son of Maacah, king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying, “Behold, your slaves are in Gath.” 40 Then Shimei arose and saddled his donkey, and went to Gath to Achish to search for his slaves. And Shimei went and brought his slaves from Gath. 41 And it was told to Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and had returned. 42 So the king sent and called for Shimei and said to him, “Did I not make you swear by Yahweh and solemnly warn you, saying, ‘You will know for certain that on the day you go out and go anywhere, you shall surely die’? And you said to me, ‘The word which I have heard is good.’ 43 Why then have you not kept the oath of Yahweh, and the command which I have commanded you?” 44 The king also said to Shimei, “(BO)You know all the evil which [s]you acknowledge in your heart, which you did to my father David; therefore (BP)Yahweh shall return your evil on your own head. 45 But King Solomon shall be blessed, and (BQ)the throne of David shall be established before Yahweh forever.” 46 (BR)So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he went out and fell upon him so that he died.

(BS)Thus the kingdom was established in the hands of Solomon.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 2:1 Lit days
  2. 1 Kings 2:4 Or faithfulness
  3. 1 Kings 2:4 Lit there shall not be cast off to you a man from before Me
  4. 1 Kings 2:5 Lit made
  5. 1 Kings 2:5 Lit that was about
  6. 1 Kings 2:5 Lit loins
  7. 1 Kings 2:5 Lit that were on
  8. 1 Kings 2:7 Lit came near to
  9. 1 Kings 2:8 Or grievous
  10. 1 Kings 2:11 Lit days
  11. 1 Kings 2:15 Lit set their faces on me
  12. 1 Kings 2:16 Lit turn away my face
  13. 1 Kings 2:17 Lit turn away your face
  14. 1 Kings 2:20 Lit my face
  15. 1 Kings 2:20 Lit your face
  16. 1 Kings 2:23 Lit soul
  17. 1 Kings 2:26 Lit are a man of death
  18. 1 Kings 2:37 Or wadi
  19. 1 Kings 2:44 Lit your heart acknowledges
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1 Kings 2
Lexham English Bible

David’s Instructions for Solomon

2 The days of David came near for him to die, and he charged Solomon his son, saying, 2 “I am about to go the way of all the world. Be strong and be courageous.[a] 3 You shall keep the charge of Yahweh your God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, his commandments, his judgments, and his testimonies, as are written in the law of Moses, so that you may prosper in all that you do and everywhere you turn, 4 so that Yahweh may establish his word which he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons take heed of their way, to walk before me in faithfulness, with all their heart and with all their soul, no man of yours will be cut off from the throne of Israel.’”

5 “Moreover, you also know what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me when he dealt with the two commanders of the armies of Israel, to Abner son of Ner and to Amasa son of Jether, and he murdered them and put the blood of war in a time of peace. He put the blood of war on the leather belt that was on his waist and on the sandals which were on his feet. 6 You must act according to your wisdom, but you must not let his gray hair go down to Sheol in peace. 7 Regarding the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, you shall do loyal love and let them be among those who eat at your table, because they met me when I fled from Absalom your brother. 8 And look, Shimei the son of Gera the son of the Benjaminite from Bahurim is with you. Now he cursed me severely[b] when I went to Mahanaim, but he came down to meet me at the Jordan, so I swore to him by Yahweh, ‘I surely will not kill you with the sword.’ 9 So then, do not leave him unpunished, for you are a wise man, and you will know what you must do to him. You must bring his grey hair down to Sheol with blood.”

10 Then David slept with his ancestors[c] and was buried in the city of David. 11 The days that David reigned over Israel were forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 12 Then Solomon sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was firmly established.

Adonijah’s Persistence

13 Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, and she said, “Are you coming in peace?”[d] He said, “Peace.” 14 Then he said, “May I have a word with you?”[e] Then she said, “Go on.” 15 He said, “You know that the kingship was mine and that all Israel had set their face toward me as king, but the kingship turned around and became my brother’s, for it was from Yahweh for him to have it. 16 Now one request I am asking from you, and you must not refuse me.”[f] Then she said to him, “Go on.” 17 He said, “Please speak to King Solomon, for he will not refuse you, so that he will give to me Abishag the Shunnamite as wife.” 18 Then Bathsheba said, “Very well, I will speak to the king concerning you.”

Solomon’s Responses to Adonijah, Joab, and Shimei

19 Bathsheba came to King Solomon to speak to him concerning Adonijah, and the king got up to meet her, bowed down to her, and then sat on his throne. Then he set up a throne for the king’s mother, and she sat on his right. 20 She said, “I have one small request I am asking from you. Do not refuse me.”[g] The king said to her, “Ask, my mother, for I will not refuse you.”[h] 21 Then she said, “Let Abishag the Shunnamite be given to Adonijah your brother as wife.” 22 King Solomon answered and said to his mother, “Why are you asking Abishag the Shunnamite for Adonijah? Ask for him also the kingdom, for he is my brother, older than I; and ask for him also Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah.” 23 Then King Solomon swore by Yahweh, saying, “Thus may God do to me and thus may he add, if Adonijah hasn’t spoken this thing at the expense of his life. 24 So then, as Yahweh lives,[i] who has established me and seated me on the throne of my father David and who has established for me a dynasty as he promised, then surely Adonijah will be put to death today.” 25 King Solomon sent through the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, so he struck him, and he died.

26 To Abiathar the priest, the king said, “Go to Anathoth, to your field, for you deserve to die,[j] but on this day I will not kill you, for you carried the ark of the Lord Yahweh before David my father, and because you endured hardship in all the hardship that my father endured.” 27 So Solomon banished Abiathar from being priest to Yahweh, thus fulfilling the word which Yahweh had spoken concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.

28 When the message came to Joab (now Joab had supported[k] Adonijah but had not supported[l] Absalom), he fled to the tent of Yahweh and grasped the horns of the altar. 29 It was told to King Solomon that Joab had fled to the tent of Yahweh and was beside the altar. So Solomon sent word to Benaiah son of Jehoiada, saying, “Go and fall upon him.” 30 So Benaiah went to the tent of Yahweh, and he said to him, “Thus says the king: ‘Come out.’” And he said, “No, for I want to die here.” So Benaiah returned a word to the king, saying, “Thus Joab spoke, and thus he answered me.” 31 Then the king said to him, “Do as he spoke; fall upon him and bury him, and so you shall remove the innocent blood that Joab shed from on me and from on the house of my father. 32 Yahweh will return his blood on his head, because he fell upon two men, more righteous and better than he, and he killed them with the sword, even though my father did not know it; namely Abner son of Ner, commander of the army of Israel, and Amasa son of Jether, commander of the army of Judah. 33 And their blood will return on the head of Joab and on the head of his descendants forever, but for David and his descendants and for his house and his throne, there will be peace forever from Yahweh.” 34 So Benaiah son of Jehoiada went up, and he fell on him and killed him, and he was buried in his house in the wilderness. 35 Then the king appointed Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his place over the army, and the king appointed Zadok the priest in place of Abiathar.

36 Then the king sent and summoned Shimei, and he said to him, “Build yourself a house in Jerusalem and live there, but you must not go out anywhere whatsoever[m] from there. 37 It shall happen that on the day you go out and cross over the Wadi[n] Kidron, know for certain that you will surely die.[o] Your blood will be on your head.” 38 Shimei said to the king, “The word is good that my lord the king has spoken to me; thus will your servant do.” So Shimei lived in Jerusalem many days.

39 It happened that at the end of three years, two of Shimei’s slaves fled to Achish, son of Maacah, the king of Gath. They told Shimei, saying, “Your slaves are here in Gath.” 40 So Shimei got up and saddled his donkey, and he went to Gath, to Achish, to search for his slaves. So Shimei went and brought his slaves from Gath. 41 When Solomon was told that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and had returned, 42 the king sent and summoned Shimei, and he said to him, “Did I not make you swear by Yahweh? I warned you, saying, ‘On the day you go out and you go anywhere whatsoever,[p] know for certain that you will surely die.’[q] And you said to me, ‘The word is good; I accept.’ 43 Why have you not kept the oath of Yahweh and the command which I commanded you?” 44 Then the king said to Shimei, “You know all the evil which your heart knows, what you did to David my father. Now Yahweh will return the evil on your head, 45 but King Solomon will be blessed and the throne of David will be established before Yahweh forever.” 46 Then the king commanded Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and he went out and fell upon him, and he died. So the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 2:2 Literally “as a man”
  2. 1 Kings 2:8 Literally “cursed me with a curse”
  3. 1 Kings 2:10 Or “fathers”
  4. 1 Kings 2:13 Literally “Is peace your coming?”
  5. 1 Kings 2:14 Literally “A word is for me to you”
  6. 1 Kings 2:16 Literally “not turn my face”
  7. 1 Kings 2:20 Literally “not turn my face”
  8. 1 Kings 2:20 Literally “not turn your face”
  9. 1 Kings 2:24 Literally “the life of Yahweh”
  10. 1 Kings 2:26 Literally “you are a man of death”
  11. 1 Kings 2:28 Literally “had turned after”
  12. 1 Kings 2:28 Literally “had not turned after”
  13. 1 Kings 2:36 Literally “where and where”
  14. 1 Kings 2:37 A valley that is dry most of the year, but contains a stream during the rainy season
  15. 1 Kings 2:37 Literally “dying you will die”
  16. 1 Kings 2:42 Literally “where and where”
  17. 1 Kings 2:42 Literally “dying you will die”
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