1 Kings 2:1-11
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.
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- 1 Kings 2:1 tn Heb “and the days of David approached to die.”
- 1 Kings 2:1 tn Or “commanded.”
- 1 Kings 2:2 tn Heb “going the way of all the earth.”
- 1 Kings 2:3 tn Heb “keep the charge of the Lord your God.”
- 1 Kings 2:3 tn Heb “by walking in his ways.”
- 1 Kings 2:3 tn Or “keeping.”
- 1 Kings 2:3 tn Heb “then you will cause to succeed all which you do and all which you turn there.”
- 1 Kings 2:4 tn Heb “then the Lord will establish his word which he spoke to me, saying.”
- 1 Kings 2:4 tn Heb “guard their way.”
- 1 Kings 2:4 tn Heb “by walking before me in faithfulness.”
- 1 Kings 2:4 tn Or “soul.”
- 1 Kings 2:4 tn Heb “saying.”
- 1 Kings 2:4 tn Heb “there will not be cut off from you a man from upon the throne of Israel.”
- 1 Kings 2:5 tn Heb “what he did to the two commanders…and he killed them.”
- 1 Kings 2:5 tn Heb “he shed the blood of battle in peace.”
- 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.
- 1 Kings 2:6 tn Heb “according to your wisdom.”
- 1 Kings 2:6 tn Heb “and do not bring down his grey hair in peace [to] Sheol.”
- 1 Kings 2:7 tn Heb “do loyalty with”; or “act faithfully toward.”
- 1 Kings 2:7 tn Heb “and let them be among the ones who eat [at] your table.”
- 1 Kings 2:7 tn Heb “thus drew near to.”
- 1 Kings 2:8 tn Heb “Look, with you is Shimei….”
- 1 Kings 2:8 tn Heb “and he cursed me with a horrible curse on the day I went to Mahanaim.”
- 1 Kings 2:8 tn Or “swore an oath to.”
- 1 Kings 2:8 tn Heb “kill you.”
- 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.
- 1 Kings 2:9 tn Heb “what you should do to him.”
- 1 Kings 2:9 tn Heb “bring his grey hair down in blood [to] Sheol.”
- 1 Kings 2:10 tn Heb “and David lay down with his fathers.”
- 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.
1 Kings 2:1-11
Amplified Bible
David’s Charge to Solomon
2 When David’s time to die approached, he gave instructions to Solomon his son, saying, 2 “I am going the way of all the earth [as dust to dust]. Be strong and prove yourself a man. 3 Keep the charge of the Lord your God, [that is, fulfill your obligation to] walk in His ways, keep His statutes, His commandments, His precepts, and His testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, so that you may succeed in everything that you do and wherever you turn, 4 so that the Lord may fulfill His [a]promise concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons are careful regarding their way [of life], to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and mind and with all their soul, you shall not fail to have a man (descendant) on the throne of Israel.’
5 Now you also know what Joab the son of Zeruiah [my sister] did to me, and what he did to the two commanders of the armies of Israel, to Abner the son of Ner and to Amasa the son of Jether, [both of] whom he murdered; [b]avenging the blood of war in [a time of] peace. And he put the [innocent] blood of war [of Abner and Amasa] on his [c]belt that was around his [d]waist, and on his sandals on his feet. 6 So act in accordance with your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to Sheol (the place of the dead) in peace. 7 But be gracious and kind to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who [have the honor to] eat at your table; for they met me [with kindness] when I fled from your brother Absalom.(A) 8 And look, you have with you Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite of Bahurim; he is the one who cursed me with a sinister curse the day I went to Mahanaim. But he came down to meet me at the Jordan [on my return], and I swore to him by the Lord, saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’ 9 But now do not let him go unpunished, for you are a wise man; and you will know what to do to him, and you will bring his gray head down to Sheol [covered] with blood.”
Death of David
10 So David lay down with his fathers [in death] and was buried in the [e]City of David. 11 The time that David reigned over Israel was forty years: he reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
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- 1 Kings 2:4 Lit His word which He spoke.
- 1 Kings 2:5 Lit he also shed.
- 1 Kings 2:5 Lit girdle. The girdle was a band about six inches wide that had clasps or fasteners in front. It was worn around the loins (the midsection of the body between the lower ribs and the hips) and was normally made of leather. Expensive or embroidered girdles were also worn and were made of cotton, flax or silk. The girdle also served as a kind of pocket or pouch and was used to carry personal items such as a dagger, money, or other necessary things.
- 1 Kings 2:5 Lit loins.
- 1 Kings 2:10 Not the walled city today called “Old Jerusalem” but a peninsula of land extending south from the “old city.”
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