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1 Kings 2
New English Translation

David’s Final Words to Solomon

2 When David was close to death,[a] he told[b] Solomon his son: 2 “I am about to die.[c] Be strong and become a man! 3 Do the job the Lord your God has assigned you[d] by following his instructions[e] and obeying[f] his rules, commandments, regulations, and laws as written in the law of Moses. Then you will succeed in all you do and seek to accomplish,[g] 4 and the Lord will fulfill his promise to me,[h] ‘If your descendants watch their step[i] and live faithfully in my presence[j] with all their heart and being,[k] then,’ he promised,[l] ‘you will not fail to have a successor on the throne of Israel.’[m]

5 “You know what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me—how he murdered two commanders of the Israelite armies, Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether.[n] During peacetime he struck them down as if in battle;[o] when he shed their blood, he stained the belt on his waist and the sandals on his feet.[p] 6 Do to him what you think is appropriate,[q] but don’t let him live long and die a peaceful death.[r]

7 “Treat fairly[s] the sons of Barzillai of Gilead and provide for their needs,[t] because they helped me[u] when I had to flee from your brother Absalom.

8 “Note well, you still have to contend with Shimei son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim,[v] who tried to call down upon me a horrible judgment when I went to Mahanaim.[w] He came down and met me at the Jordan, and I solemnly promised[x] him by the Lord, ‘I will not strike you down[y] with the sword.’ 9 But now[z] don’t treat him as if he were innocent. You are a wise man and you know how to handle him;[aa] make sure he has a bloody death.”[ab]

10 Then David passed away[ac] and was buried in the City of David.[ad] 11 David reigned over Israel forty years; he reigned in Hebron seven years, and in Jerusalem thirty-three years.

Solomon Secures the Throne

12 Solomon sat on his father David’s throne, and his royal authority[ae] was firmly solidified.

13 Haggith’s son Adonijah visited Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother. She asked, “Do you come in peace?” He answered, “Yes.”[af] 14 He added,[ag] “I have something to say to you.” She replied, “Speak.” 15 He said, “You know that the kingdom[ah] was mine and all Israel considered me king.[ai] But then the kingdom was given to my brother, for the Lord decided it should be his.[aj] 16 Now I’d like to ask you for just one thing. Please don’t refuse me.”[ak] She said, “Go ahead and ask.”[al] 17 He said, “Please ask King Solomon if he would give me Abishag the Shunammite as a wife, for he won’t refuse you.”[am] 18 Bathsheba replied, “That’s fine;[an] I’ll speak to the king on your behalf.”

19 So Bathsheba visited King Solomon to speak to him on Adonijah’s behalf. The king got up to greet[ao] her, bowed to her, and then sat on his throne. He ordered a throne to be brought for the king’s mother,[ap] and she sat at his right hand. 20 She said, “I would like to ask you for just one small favor.[aq] Please don’t refuse me.”[ar] He said,[as] “Go ahead and ask, my mother, for I would not refuse you.” 21 She said, “Allow Abishag the Shunammite to be given to your brother Adonijah as a wife.” 22 King Solomon answered his mother, “Why just request Abishag the Shunammite for him?[at] Since he is my older brother, you should also request the kingdom for him, for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab son of Zeruiah!”

23 King Solomon then swore an oath by the Lord, “May God judge me severely,[au] if Adonijah does not pay for this request with his life![av] 24 Now, as certainly as the Lord lives (he who made me secure, allowed me to sit on my father David’s throne, and established a dynasty[aw] for me as he promised), Adonijah will be executed today!” 25 King Solomon then sent[ax] Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and he killed Adonijah.[ay]

26 The king then told Abiathar the priest, “Go back to your property[az] in Anathoth. You deserve to die,[ba] but today I will not kill you because you did carry the ark of the Sovereign Lord before my father David and you suffered with my father through all his difficult times.”[bb] 27 Solomon removed Abiathar from being a priest for the Lord, fulfilling the Lord’s message that he had pronounced against the family of Eli in Shiloh.

28 When the news reached Joab (for Joab had supported[bc] Adonijah, although he had not supported Absalom), he[bd] ran to the tent of the Lord and grabbed hold of the horns of the altar.[be] 29 When King Solomon heard[bf] that Joab had run to the tent of the Lord and was right there beside the altar, he ordered Benaiah son of Jehoiada,[bg] “Go, strike him down.” 30 When Benaiah arrived at the tent of the Lord, he said to him, “The king says, ‘Come out!’” But he replied, “No, I will die here!” So Benaiah sent word to the king and reported Joab’s reply.[bh] 31 The king told him, “Do as he said! Strike him down and bury him. Take away from me and from my father’s family[bi] the guilt of Joab’s murderous, bloody deeds.[bj] 32 May the Lord punish him for the blood he shed;[bk] behind my father David’s back he struck down and murdered with the sword two men who were more innocent and morally upright than he[bl]—Abner son of Ner, commander of Israel’s army, and Amasa son of Jether, commander of Judah’s army. 33 May Joab and his descendants be perpetually guilty of their shed blood, but may the Lord give perpetual peace to David, his descendants, his family,[bm] and his dynasty.”[bn] 34 So Benaiah son of Jehoiada went up and executed Joab;[bo] he was buried at his home in the wilderness. 35 The king appointed Benaiah son of Jehoiada to take his place at the head of[bp] the army, and the king appointed Zadok the priest to take Abiathar’s place.[bq]

36 Next the king summoned[br] Shimei and told him, “Build yourself a house in Jerusalem and live there, but you may not leave there to go anywhere.[bs] 37 If you ever do leave and cross the Kidron Valley, know for sure that you will certainly die. You will be responsible for your own death.”[bt] 38 Shimei said to the king, “My master the king’s proposal is acceptable.[bu] Your servant will do as you say.”[bv] So Shimei lived in Jerusalem for a long time.[bw]

39 Three years later two of Shimei’s servants ran away to King Achish son of Maacah of Gath. Shimei was told, “Look, your servants are in Gath.” 40 So Shimei got up, saddled his donkey, and went to Achish at Gath to find his servants; Shimei went and brought back his servants from Gath. 41 When Solomon was told that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and had then returned, 42 the king summoned[bx] Shimei and said to him, “You will recall[by] that I made you take an oath by the Lord, and I solemnly warned you, ‘If you ever leave and go anywhere,[bz] know for sure that you will certainly die.’ You said to me, ‘The proposal is acceptable; I agree to it.’[ca] 43 Why then have you broken the oath you made before the Lord and disobeyed the order I gave you?”[cb] 44 Then the king said to Shimei, “You are well aware of the way you mistreated my father David.[cc] The Lord will punish you for what you did.[cd] 45 But King Solomon will be empowered,[ce] and David’s dynasty[cf] will endure permanently before the Lord.” 46 The king then gave the order to Benaiah son of Jehoiada who went and executed Shimei.[cg]

So Solomon took firm control of the kingdom.[ch]

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 2:1 tn Heb “and the days of David approached to die.”
  2. 1 Kings 2:1 tn Or “commanded.”
  3. 1 Kings 2:2 tn Heb “going the way of all the earth.”
  4. 1 Kings 2:3 tn Heb “keep the charge of the Lord your God.”
  5. 1 Kings 2:3 tn Heb “by walking in his ways.”
  6. 1 Kings 2:3 tn Or “keeping.”
  7. 1 Kings 2:3 tn Heb “then you will cause to succeed all which you do and all which you turn there.”
  8. 1 Kings 2:4 tn Heb “then the Lord will establish his word which he spoke to me, saying.”
  9. 1 Kings 2:4 tn Heb “guard their way.”
  10. 1 Kings 2:4 tn Heb “by walking before me in faithfulness.”
  11. 1 Kings 2:4 tn Or “soul.”
  12. 1 Kings 2:4 tn Heb “saying.”
  13. 1 Kings 2:4 tn Heb “there will not be cut off from you a man from upon the throne of Israel.”
  14. 1 Kings 2:5 tn Heb “what he did to the two commanders…and he killed them.”
  15. 1 Kings 2:5 tn Heb “he shed the blood of battle in peace.”
  16. 1 Kings 2:5 tn Heb “and he shed the blood of battle on his belt which is on his waist and on his sandal[s] which are on his feet.” That is, he covered himself with guilt and his guilt was obvious to all who saw him.
  17. 1 Kings 2:6 tn Heb “according to your wisdom.”
  18. 1 Kings 2:6 tn Heb “and do not bring down his grey hair in peace [to] Sheol.”
  19. 1 Kings 2:7 tn Heb “do loyalty with”; or “act faithfully toward.”
  20. 1 Kings 2:7 tn Heb “and let them be among the ones who eat [at] your table.”
  21. 1 Kings 2:7 tn Heb “thus drew near to.”
  22. 1 Kings 2:8 tn Heb “Look, with you is Shimei….”
  23. 1 Kings 2:8 tn Heb “and he cursed me with a horrible curse on the day I went to Mahanaim.”
  24. 1 Kings 2:8 tn Or “swore an oath to.”
  25. 1 Kings 2:8 tn Heb “kill you.”
  26. 1 Kings 2:9 tc The Lucianic recension of the Old Greek and the Vulgate have here “you” rather than “now.” The two words are homonyms in Hebrew.
  27. 1 Kings 2:9 tn Heb “what you should do to him.”
  28. 1 Kings 2:9 tn Heb “bring his grey hair down in blood [to] Sheol.”
  29. 1 Kings 2:10 tn Heb “and David lay down with his fathers.”
  30. 1 Kings 2:10 sn The phrase the City of David refers here to the fortress of Zion in Jerusalem, not to Bethlehem. See 2 Sam 5:7.
  31. 1 Kings 2:12 tn Or “kingship.”
  32. 1 Kings 2:13 tn Heb “[in] peace.”
  33. 1 Kings 2:14 tn Heb “and he said.”
  34. 1 Kings 2:15 tn Or “kingship.”
  35. 1 Kings 2:15 tn Heb “set their face to me to be king.”
  36. 1 Kings 2:15 tn Heb “and the kingdom turned about and became my brother’s, for from the Lord it became his.”
  37. 1 Kings 2:16 tn Heb “Do not turn back my face.”
  38. 1 Kings 2:16 tn Heb “She said, ‘Speak!’”
  39. 1 Kings 2:17 tn Heb “Say to Solomon the king, for he will not turn back your face, that he might give to me Abishag the Shunammite for a wife.”
  40. 1 Kings 2:18 tn Heb “[It is] good!”
  41. 1 Kings 2:19 tn Or “meet.”
  42. 1 Kings 2:19 tn Heb “he set up a throne for the mother of the king.”
  43. 1 Kings 2:20 tn Or “I’d like to make just one request of you.”
  44. 1 Kings 2:20 tn Heb “Do not turn back my face.”
  45. 1 Kings 2:20 tn Heb “and the king said to her.”
  46. 1 Kings 2:22 tn Heb “for Adonijah.”
  47. 1 Kings 2:23 tn Heb “So may God do to me, and so may he add.”
  48. 1 Kings 2:23 tn Heb “if with his life Adonijah has not spoken this word.”
  49. 1 Kings 2:24 tn Heb “house.”
  50. 1 Kings 2:25 tn The Hebrew text adds, “by the hand of.”
  51. 1 Kings 2:25 tn Heb “and he struck him and he died.”
  52. 1 Kings 2:26 tn Or “field.”
  53. 1 Kings 2:26 tn Heb “you are a man of death,” an idiom.
  54. 1 Kings 2:26 tn Heb “and because you suffered through all which my father suffered.”
  55. 1 Kings 2:28 tn Heb “turned after” (also later in this verse).
  56. 1 Kings 2:28 tn Heb “Joab.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
  57. 1 Kings 2:28 sn Grabbed hold of the horns of the altar. The “horns” of the altar were the horn-shaped projections on the four corners of the altar (see Exod 27:2). By going to the holy place and grabbing hold of the horns of the altar, Joab was seeking asylum from Solomon.
  58. 1 Kings 2:29 tn Heb “and it was related to King Solomon.”
  59. 1 Kings 2:29 tn Heb “so Solomon sent Benaiah son of Jehoiada, saying.”
  60. 1 Kings 2:30 tn Heb “saying, “In this way Joab spoke and in this way he answered me.”
  61. 1 Kings 2:31 tn Heb “house.”
  62. 1 Kings 2:31 tn Heb “take away the undeserved bloodshed which Joab spilled from upon me and from upon the house of my father.”
  63. 1 Kings 2:32 tn Heb “The Lord will cause his blood to return upon his head.”
  64. 1 Kings 2:32 tn Heb “because he struck down two men more innocent and better than he and he killed them with the sword, and my father David did not know.”
  65. 1 Kings 2:33 tn Heb “house.”
  66. 1 Kings 2:33 tn Heb “his throne.”
  67. 1 Kings 2:34 tn Heb “struck him and killed him.” The referent (Joab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  68. 1 Kings 2:35 tn Heb “over.”
  69. 1 Kings 2:35 tc The Old Greek translation includes after v. 35 some fourteen verses that are absent from the MT.
  70. 1 Kings 2:36 tn Heb “sent and summoned.”
  71. 1 Kings 2:36 tn Heb “and you may not go out from there here or there.”
  72. 1 Kings 2:37 tn Heb “your blood will be upon your head.”
  73. 1 Kings 2:38 tn Heb “Good is the word, as my master the king has spoken.”
  74. 1 Kings 2:38 tn Heb “so your servant will do.”
  75. 1 Kings 2:38 tn Heb “many days.”
  76. 1 Kings 2:42 tn Heb “sent and summoned.”
  77. 1 Kings 2:42 tn Heb “Is it not [true]…?” In the Hebrew text the statement is interrogative; the rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course it is.”
  78. 1 Kings 2:42 tn Heb “here or there.”
  79. 1 Kings 2:42 tn Heb “good is the word; I have heard.”
  80. 1 Kings 2:43 tn Heb “Why have you not kept the oath [to] the Lord and the commandment I commanded you?”
  81. 1 Kings 2:44 tn Heb “You know all the evil, for your heart knows, which you did to David my father.”
  82. 1 Kings 2:44 tn Heb “The Lord will cause your evil to return upon your head.”
  83. 1 Kings 2:45 tn Or “blessed.”
  84. 1 Kings 2:45 tn Heb “throne.”
  85. 1 Kings 2:46 tn “The king commanded Benaiah son of Jehoiada and he went out and struck him down and he died.”
  86. 1 Kings 2:46 tn “And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.”
Close DNB1930

1 Kongebok 2
Det Norsk Bibelselskap 1930

2 Da det led mot den tid at David skulde dø, bød han sin sønn Salomo og sa:

2 Jeg går all jordens vei; så vær du sterk og vær en mann!

3 Og ta vare på hvad Herren din Gud vil ha varetatt, så du vandrer på hans veier og holder hans forskrifter, hans bud og hans lover og hans vidnesbyrd, som der er skrevet i Mose lov, så du kan gå viselig frem i alt det du gjør og i alt du gir dig i ferd med,

4 forat Herren må opfylle sitt ord, det som han talte om mig da han sa: Dersom dine sønner akter vel på sin vei så de vandrer for mitt åsyn i sannhet, av hele sitt hjerte og av hele sin sjel, så skal det - sa han - aldri fattes en mann av din ætt på Israels trone.

5 Du vet og hvad Joab, Serujas sønn, har gjort mot mig - hvad han gjorde mot begge Israels hærførere, Abner, Ners sønn, og Amasa, Jeters sønn, hvorledes han drepte dem og utøste blod i fredstid som om det var krig, og lot det komme blod på beltet han hadde om sine lender, og på skoene han hadde på sine føtter, som om det var krig.

6 Gjør derfor som din visdom lærer dig, og la ikke hans grå hår fare med fred ned i dødsriket.

7 Men gileaditten Barsillais sønner skal du gjøre vel imot, og de skal være blandt dem som eter ved ditt bord; for på samme måte kom de mig i møte da jeg flyktet for din bror Absalom.

8 Så har du og benjaminitten Sime'i fra Bahurim, sønn av Gera, hos dig; det var han som bante mig så stygt den dag jeg drog til Mahana'im; men siden kom han mig i møte ned til Jordan, og jeg tilsvor ham ved Herren og sa: Jeg skal ikke la dig dø for sverdet.

9 Men la ham nu ikke bli ustraffet! Du er en vis mann og vil nok vite hvad du skal gjøre med ham, så du lar hans grå hår fare med blod ned i dødsriket.

10 Så la David sig til hvile hos sine fedre og blev begravet i Davids stad.

11 Den tid David var konge over Israel, var firti år; i Hebron regjerte han i syv år og i Jerusalem i tre og tretti år.

12 Og Salomo satt på sin far Davids trone, og hans kongedømme blev meget sterkt.

13 Men Adonja, Haggits sønn, kom inn til Batseba, Salomos mor. Hun spurte: Kommer du med fred? Han svarte: Ja!

14 Så sa han: Jeg har noget å tale med dig om. Hun sa: Tal!

15 Da sa han: Du vet at riket var mitt, og at hele Israel hadde festet sine øine på mig og ventet at jeg skulde bli konge; men kongedømmet gikk fra mig og over til min bror; det var Herren som gav ham det.

16 Og nu er det en ting jeg vil be dig om; du må ikke vise mig bort! Hun svarte: Tal!

17 Da sa han: Bed kong Salomo - for dig viser han ikke bort - at han vil gi mig Abisag fra Sunem til hustru!

18 Batseba svarte: Godt, jeg skal tale til kongen for dig.

19 Så gikk Batseba inn til kong Salomo for å tale til ham for Adonja, og kongen stod op og gikk henne i møte og bøide sig dypt for henne. Derefter satte han sig på sin trone, og det blev satt frem en trone for kongens mor, og hun satte sig ved hans høire side.

20 Hun sa: Det er bare en eneste liten ting jeg vil be dig om; du må ikke vise mig bort! Kongen svarte: Kom du med din bønn, mor! Jeg skal ikke vise dig bort.

21 Da sa hun: La din bror Adonja få Abisag fra Sunem til hustru!

22 Men kong Salomo svarte sin mor: Hvorfor ber du om Abisag fra Sunem for Adonja? Bed da like så godt om riket for ham - han er jo min eldre bror - ja både for ham og for presten Abjatar og for Joab, Serujas sønn!

23 Og kong Salomo svor ved Herren og sa: Herren la det gå mig ille både nu og siden om ikke dette ord skal koste Adonja hans liv.

24 Så sant Herren lever, han som har gitt mig denne makt og satt mig på min far Davids trone, og som har bygget mig et hus, således som han har talt: Adonja skal late livet idag!

25 Så sendte kong Salomo Benaja, Jojadas sønn, avsted, og han hugg ham ned så han døde.

26 Og til presten Abjatar sa kongen: Gå til Anatot, til din gård, for du har fortjent døden; men idag vil jeg ikke la dig dø, fordi du har båret Herrens, Israels Guds ark foran min far David, og fordi du har lidt med i alt hvad min far måtte lide.

27 Så drev Salomo Abjatar bort og lot ham ikke få være Herrens prest lenger, forat Herrens ord skulde bli opfylt, det som han hadde talt mot Elis hus i Silo.

28 Da Joab fikk høre om dette, flyktet han til Herrens telt og grep fatt i alterets horn; for Joab hadde holdt med Adonja, om han enn ikke hadde holdt med Absalom.

29 Men det blev meldt kong Salomo at Joab var flyktet til Herrens telt og stod ved alteret. Da sendte Salomo Benaja, Jojadas sønn, avsted og sa: Gå og hugg ham ned!

30 Da Benaja kom til Herrens telt, sa han til ham: Så sier kongen: Gå bort herfra! Men han sa: Nei, her vil jeg dø. Og Benaja bar bud tilbake til kongen og sa: Så sa Joab, og så svarte han mig.

31 Da sa kongen til ham: Gjør som han sier, og hugg ham ned og begrav ham! Så frir du mig og min fars hus fra det uskyldige blod som Joab har utøst.

32 Og Herren skal la hans blod[a] komme tilbake på hans hode fordi han hugg ned to menn som var rettferdigere og bedre enn han, og drepte dem med sverdet, så min far David ikke visste om det, Abner, Ners sønn, Israels hærfører, og Amasa, Jeters sønn, Judas hærfører.

33 Deres blod skal komme tilbake på Joabs hode og på hans efterkommeres hode til evig tid; men David og hans efterkommere og hans hus og hans trone skal Herren gi lykke til evig tid.

34 Så gikk Benaja, Jojadas sønn, op og hugg ham ned og drepte ham, og han blev begravet ved sitt hus i ørkenen.

35 Og kongen satte Benaja, Jojadas sønn, over hæren i hans sted, og presten Sadok satte kongen i Abjatars sted.

36 Så sendte kongen bud efter Sime'i og sa til ham: Bygg dig et hus i Jerusalem og bo der og gå ikke ut derfra, hverken til det ene sted eller det annet.

37 For det skal du vite for visst, at den dag du går ut og går over bekken Kidron, skal du dø; ditt blod skal komme på ditt eget hode.

38 Da sa Sime'i til kongen: Det er rett det du sier; som min herre kongen har sagt, så skal din tjener gjøre. Og Sime'i blev boende i Jerusalem en lang tid.

39 Men da tre år var gått, hendte det at to av Sime'is tjenere rømte til kongen i Gat, Akis. sønn av Ma'aka. og det blev meldt Sime'i: Dine tjenere er i Gat.

40 Da gjorde Sime'i sig rede og salte sitt asen og drog til Akis i Gat for å lete efter sine tjenere; Sime'i drog da dit og hadde sine tjenere med sig tilbake fra Gat.

41 Men Salomo fikk vite at Sime'i var reist fra Jerusalem til Gat og var kommet tilbake.

42 Da sendte kongen bud efter Sime'i og sa til ham: Har jeg ikke svoret ved Herren og høitidelig sagt dig: Det skal du vite for visst at den dag du går ut og drar til noget annet sted, skal du dø? Og du svarte: Det er rett det du sier; jeg har hørt det.

43 Hvorfor har du da ikke holdt dig efter den ed som var svoret ved Herren, og det bud jeg gav dig?

44 Og kongen sa til Sime'i: Du kjenner selv alt det onde som ditt hjerte vet om at du har gjort mot min far David, og Herren lar nu din ondskap komme tilbake på ditt eget hode.

45 Men kong Salomo skal være velsignet, og Davids trone skal stå fast for Herrens åsyn til evig tid.

46 Så gav kongen Benaja, Jojadas sønn, sin befaling, og han gikk ut og hugg ham ned så han døde. Og kongedømmet lå trygt og fast i Salomos hånd.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kongebok 2:32 det av ham utøste blod.
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Det Norsk Bibelselskap 1930 (DNB1930)

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