1 Kings 1
International Children’s Bible
Adonijah Tries to Become King
1 At this time King David was very old. His servants covered him with blankets, but he could not keep warm. 2 So they said to him, “We will find a young woman to care for you. She will lie close to you and keep you warm.” 3 So the king’s servants looked everywhere in Israel for a beautiful young woman. They found a girl named Abishag from the Shunammite people. They brought her to the king. 4 The girl was very beautiful. She cared for the king and served him. But King David did not have physical relations with her.
5-6 Adonijah was King David and Haggith’s son. He was born next after Absalom. He was a very handsome man. He said, “I will be the king.” So he got chariots and horses for himself. And he got 50 men to run ahead of him. Now David had never interfered with him by questioning what he did.
7 Adonijah talked with Joab son of Zeruiah. He also talked with Abiathar the priest. They told him they would help him. 8 But several men did not join Adonijah. These men were Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei and King David’s special guard.
9 Then Adonijah killed some sheep, cows and fat calves for sacrifices. He made these sacrifices at the Stone of Zoheleth near the spring, En Rogel. He invited all his brothers, the other sons of King David, to come. He invited all the rulers and leaders of Judah also. 10 But Adonijah did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, his father’s special guard or his brother Solomon.
11 When Nathan heard about this, he went to Bathsheba. She was the mother of Solomon. Nathan asked her, “Have you heard what Adonijah, Haggith’s son, is doing? He has made himself king. And our real king, David, does not know it. 12 Your life and the life of your son Solomon may be in danger. But I will tell you how to save yourselves. 13 Go to King David and say to him, ‘My master and king, you made a promise to me. You promised that my son Solomon would be the king after you. You said he would rule on your throne. So why has Adonijah become king?’ 14 While you are still talking to him, I will come in. I will tell the king that what you have said about Adonijah is true.”
15 So Bathsheba went in to see the king in his bedroom. He was now very old. Abishag, the girl from Shunam, was caring for him there. 16 Bathsheba bowed down before the king.
He asked, “What do you want?”
17 She answered, “My master, you made a promise to me in the name of the Lord your God. You said, ‘Your son Solomon will become king after me. He will rule on my throne.’ 18 But now Adonijah has become king. And you did not know it. 19 Adonijah has killed many cows, fat calves and sheep for sacrifices. And he has invited all your sons. He also has invited Abiathar the priest and Joab the commander of your army. But he did not invite Solomon, your son who serves you. 20 My master and king, all the people of Israel are watching you. They are waiting for you to decide who will be king after you. 21 As soon as you die, Solomon and I will be treated as criminals.”
22 While Bathsheba was still talking with the king, Nathan the prophet arrived. 23 The servants told the king, “Nathan the prophet is here.” So Nathan went to the king and bowed facedown on the ground before him.
24 Then Nathan said, “My master and king, have you said that Adonijah will be the king after you? Have you decided he will rule on your throne after you? 25 Today he has sacrificed many cows, fat calves and sheep. And he has invited all your other sons, the commanders of the army and Abiathar the priest. Right now they are eating and drinking with him. They are saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ 26 But he did not invite me, Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada or your son Solomon. 27 Did you do this? We are your servants. Why didn’t you tell us whom you chose to be the king after you?”
David Makes Solomon King
28 Then King David said, “Tell Bathsheba to come in!” So she came in and stood before the king.
29 Then the king said, “The Lord has saved me from all trouble. As surely as he lives, I make this promise to you. 30 Today I will do what I promised you in the past. I made that promise in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. I promised that your son Solomon would be king after me. I promised he would rule on my throne after me.”
31 Then Bathsheba bowed facedown on the ground before the king. She said, “Long live my master King David!”
32 Then King David said, “Tell Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet and Benaiah son of Jehoiada to come in here.” So they came before the king. 33 Then the king said to them, “Take my servants with you and put my son Solomon on my own mule. Take him down to the spring called Gihon. 34 There Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet should pour olive oil on him and make him king over Israel. Blow the trumpet and shout, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ 35 Then come back here with him. He will sit on my throne and rule in my place. I have chosen him to be the ruler over Israel and Judah.”
36 Benaiah son of Jehoiada answered the king, “This is good! And may your God make it happen. 37 The Lord has always helped you, our king. Let the Lord also help Solomon. And let King Solomon be an even greater king than you.”
38 So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet and Benaiah son of Jehoiada went down. The Kerethites and Pelethites, the king’s bodyguards, went with them. They put Solomon on King David’s mule and went with him to the spring called Gihon. 39 Zadok the priest took with him the container of olive oil from the Holy Tent. He poured the olive oil on Solomon’s head to show he was the king. Then they blew the trumpet. And all the people shouted, “Long live King Solomon!” 40 All the people followed Solomon into the city. They were playing flutes and shouting for joy. They made so much noise the ground shook.
41 At this time Adonijah and all the guests with him were finishing their meal. They heard the sound from the trumpet. Joab asked, “What does all that noise from the city mean?”
42 While Joab was speaking, Jonathan son of Abiathar the priest arrived. Adonijah said, “Come in! You are an important man. So you must be bringing good news.”
43 But Jonathan answered, “No! Our master King David has made Solomon the new king. 44 King David sent Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah son of Jehoiada and all the king’s bodyguards with him. They put Solomon on the king’s own mule. 45 And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet poured olive oil on Solomon at Gihon to make him king. Then they went into the city, shouting with joy. Now the whole city is excited. That is the noise you hear. 46 Solomon has now become the king. 47 All the king’s officers have come to tell King David that he has done a good thing. They are saying, ‘May your God make Solomon even more famous than you. And may your God make Solomon an even greater king than you.’” Jonathan continued, “And King David bowed down on his bed to worship God. 48 He said, ‘Praise the Lord, the God of Israel. Today he has made one of my sons the king and allowed me to see it.’”
49 Then all of Adonijah’s guests were afraid, and they left quickly. 50 Adonijah was also afraid of Solomon. So he went and took hold of the corners of the altar.[a] 51 Then someone told Solomon, “Adonijah is afraid of you. He is at the altar, holding on to its corners. He says, ‘Tell King Solomon to promise me today that he will not kill me.’”
52 So Solomon answered, “Adonijah must show that he is a man of honor. If he does, I promise that he will not lose even a hair from his head. But if he does anything wrong, he will die.” 53 Then King Solomon sent some men to get Adonijah. They brought him to King Solomon. So Adonijah came before King Solomon and bowed down. Then Solomon said, “Go home.”
Footnotes
- 1:50 corners of the altar If a person were innocent of a crime, he could run into the Holy Place. If he held on to the corners of the altar there, he would not be punished. The corners looked like horns.
1 Kings 1
Modern English Version
Adonijah Seeks Kingship
1 Now King David was old and advanced in years, and they covered him with clothes, but he could not get warm. 2 Therefore his servants said to him, “Let a young virgin be found for my lord the king, and let her stand before the king and care for him, and let her lie by your side so that my lord the king may keep warm.”
3 So they searched for a beautiful young woman throughout the land of Israel and found Abishag, a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4 She was very beautiful and cared for the king and ministered to him, but the king did not know her intimately.
5 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, “I will be king,” and he assembled chariots and horsemen and fifty men to run before him. 6 His father had not confronted him at any time by asking, “Why have you done this?” He also was a very attractive man, and he was born next after Absalom.
7 He conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest, and they agreed to help him. 8 But Zadok the priest and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei and David’s mighty men did not join Adonijah.
9 Adonijah slaughtered sheep and oxen and fat cattle by the Stone of Zoheleth, which is by En Rogel, and 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 his brother Solomon.
11 Therefore Nathan spoke to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, “Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith reigns and David our lord does not know it? 12 Now please come and let me give you some advice, so that you may save your own life as well as that of your son Solomon. 13 Go to King David and say to him, ‘Did not you, my lord, O king, swear to your handmaid, saying: Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? Why then does Adonijah reign?’ 14 Then while you are still there talking with the king, I will come in and confirm your words.”
15 So Bathsheba went to the king’s chamber. Now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite ministered to him. 16 Bathsheba bowed and prostrated herself before the king.
And the king said, “What do you want?”
17 And she said to him, “My lord, you swore by the Lord your God to your handmaid, saying: Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne. 18 But Adonijah reigns, and now, my lord, O king, you are unaware. 19 He has slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance and has invited all the sons of the king and Abiathar the priest and Joab the commander of the army, but he has not invited your servant Solomon. 20 And you, my lord, O king, all the eyes of Israel are upon you that you should tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. 21 Otherwise it shall be that when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, I and my son Solomon shall be considered offenders.”
22 While she was still talking with the king, Nathan the prophet also came in. 23 The king was told, “Nathan the prophet is here,” and when he entered the king’s presence, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground.
24 Nathan said, “My lord, O king, have you said, ‘Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne’? 25 For he has gone down this day and has slain oxen, fat cattle, and sheep in abundance and has invited all the king’s sons, the commanders of the guard, and Abiathar the priest, and they eat and drink with him, saying, ‘God save King Adonijah!’ 26 But he has not invited me, your servant, or Zadok the priest or Benaiah the son of Jehoiada or your servant Solomon. 27 Is this thing done by my lord the king, and you have not let your servants know who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?”
Solomon Becomes King(A)
28 Then King David answered and said, “Call Bathsheba to me.” And she came into the king’s presence and stood before the king.
29 The king vowed, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all distress, 30 even as I swore to you by the Lord God of Israel, saying, ‘Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my stead,’ even so will I certainly do this day.”
31 Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the ground in reverence to the king and said, “Let my lord King David live forever.”
32 King David said, “Call Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada for me.” So they came before the king. 33 And the king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon. 34 And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet there anoint him king over Israel, and blow the trumpet and say, ‘God save King Solomon!’ 35 Then you shall come up after him. And he shall come and sit on my throne, for he will be king in my place as I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.”
36 Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king and said, “Amen! May the Lord, the God of my lord the king, also say so! 37 As the Lord has been with my lord the king, may He also be with Solomon and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.”
38 So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Kerethites and the Pelethites went down and had Solomon ride on King David’s mule and brought him to Gihon. 39 Zadok the priest took a horn of oil out of the tabernacle and anointed Solomon. Then they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, “God save King Solomon!” 40 All the people came up to see him and played flutes and greatly rejoiced, so that the earth shook at the sound.
41 Adonijah and all the guests that were with him heard the commotion as they were finishing their meal, and when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “Why is the city so loud and in an uproar?”
42 While he was speaking, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came. Adonijah said to him, “Come in, for you are a valiant man and bring good tidings.”
43 Jonathan answered Adonijah, saying, “Surely our lord King David has made Solomon king. 44 The king has sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Kerethites, and the Pelethites. And they had him ride on the king’s mule. 45 And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon, and they have come up from their rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that you heard. 46 Also Solomon sits on the throne of the kingdom. 47 Moreover, the king’s servants came to bless our lord King David, saying, ‘May God make the name of Solomon better than your name and make his throne greater than your throne.’ And the king bowed himself upon the bed. 48 The king also said, ‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who has given one to sit on my throne this day so that I could see with my own eyes.’ ”
49 All the guests that were with Adonijah were afraid and rose up and went on their way. 50 Adonijah feared Solomon. So he got up and went to the altar and held on to its horns. 51 Then Solomon was told, “Adonijah fears King Solomon, for he has caught hold of the horns on the altar, saying ‘Let King Solomon swear to me today that he will not slay his servant with the sword.’ ”
52 And Solomon said, “If he will show himself a worthy man, not one of his hairs will fall to the ground, but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.” 53 So King Solomon sent for him, and they brought him down from the altar, and he came and bowed himself to King Solomon. And Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.”
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.