³ So they sought for a lovely young woman throughout all the territory of Israel, and found ^(A)Abishag the ^(B)Shunammite, and brought her to the king. ⁴ The young woman was very lovely; and she cared for the king, and served him; but the king did not know her.

⁵ Then ^(C)Adonijah the ^[a]son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will ^[b]be king”; and ^(D)he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. ⁶ (And his father had not ^[c]rebuked him at any time by saying, “Why have you done so?” He was also very good-looking. ^(E)His mother had borne him after Absalom.) ⁷ Then he conferred with ^(F)Joab the son of Zeruiah and with ^(G)Abiathar the priest, and ^(H)they followed and helped Adonijah. ⁸ But ^(I)Zadok the priest, ^(J)Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, ^(K)Nathan the prophet, ^(L)Shimei, Rei, and ^(M)the mighty men who belonged to David were not with Adonijah.

⁹ And Adonijah sacrificed sheep and oxen and fattened cattle by the stone of ^[d]Zoheleth, which is by ^(N)En Rogel;^[e] he also invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the men of Judah, the king’s servants. ¹⁰ But he did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the mighty men, or ^(O)Solomon his brother.

¹¹ So Nathan spoke to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, “Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of ^(P)Haggith has become king, and David our lord does not know it? ¹² Come, please, let me now give you advice, that you may save your own life and the life of your son Solomon. ¹³ Go immediately to King David and say to him, ‘Did you not, my lord, O king, swear to your maidservant, saying, ^(Q)“Assuredly your son Solomon shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne”? Why then has Adonijah become king?’ ¹⁴ Then, while you are still talking there with the king, I also will come in after you and confirm your words.”

¹⁵ So Bathsheba went into the chamber to the king. (Now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was serving the king.) ¹⁶ And Bathsheba bowed and did homage to the king. Then the king said, “What is your wish?”

¹⁷ Then she said to him, “My lord, ^(R)you swore by the Lord your God to your maidservant, saying, ‘Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.’