Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Adonijah Wants to Be King

1 King David was very old and could not keep warm. His servants covered him with blankets, but he was still cold. ² So they said to him, “We will find a young woman to care for you. She will lie next to you and keep you warm.” ³ So the king’s servants began looking everywhere in the country of Israel for a beautiful young woman to keep the king warm. They found a young woman named Abishag, from the town of Shunem, and brought her to the king. ⁴ She was very beautiful. She cared for the king and served him, but King David did not have sexual relations with her.

^5-6 Adonijah was the son of King David and his wife Haggith. He was born after Absalom. Adonijah was a very handsome man. King David never corrected his son Adonijah, and he never made him explain his actions. Adonijah became very proud and decided that he would be the next king. He wanted very much to be the king, so he got himself a chariot, horses, and 50 men to run ahead of him.

⁷ Adonijah talked with Joab son of Zeruiah and Abiathar the priest. They decided to help make him the new king, ⁸ but several important men did not join Adonijah. They were Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and King David’s special guard.^[a]

⁹ One day, at Zoheleth Rock near En Rogel,^[b] Adonijah sacrificed some sheep, cattle, and fat calves as a fellowship offering. He invited his brothers (the other sons of King David) and all the officers from Judah. ¹⁰ But he did not invite his brother Solomon, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, or the men in the king’s special guard.

Nathan Advises Bathsheba

¹¹ When Nathan heard about this, he went to Solomon’s mother Bathsheba and asked her, “Have you heard what Haggith’s son, Adonijah, is doing? He is making himself king. And our master, King David, knows nothing about it. ¹² You and your son Solomon are in danger, but I will tell you what to do to save yourself. ¹³ Go to King David and tell him, ‘My lord and king, you promised me that my son Solomon would be the next king after you. So why is Adonijah becoming the new king?’ ¹⁴ Then while you are still talking with him, I will come in. After you leave I will tell the king what has happened. This will show that what you said is true.”

¹⁵ So Bathsheba went in to see the king in his bedroom. The king was very old. Abishag, the girl from Shunem, was caring for him there. ¹⁶ Bathsheba bowed down before the king. The king asked, “What can I do for you?”

¹⁷ Bathsheba answered, “Sir, you used the name of the Lord your God and made a promise to me. You said, ‘Your son Solomon will be the next king after me. He will sit on my throne.’ ¹⁸ Now, you don’t know this, but Adonijah is making himself king. ¹⁹ He is giving a big fellowship meal. He has killed many cattle and the best sheep, and he has invited all of your sons to the meal. He also invited Abiathar the priest and Joab, the commander of your army, but he did not invite your faithful son Solomon. ²⁰ Now, my lord and king, all the Israelites are watching you. They are waiting for you to decide who will be the next king after you. ²¹ If you don’t decide, then after you are buried, these men will say that Solomon and I are criminals.”

²² While Bathsheba was still talking with the king, Nathan the prophet came to see him. ²³ The servants told the king, “Nathan the prophet is here.” Nathan went in to speak to the king. He bowed down before the king ²⁴ and said, “My lord and king, did you announce that Adonijah will be the new king after you? Have you decided that he will rule the people now? ²⁵ Today he went down into the valley to offer many cattle and the best sheep as fellowship offerings. He invited all your other sons, the commanders of the army, and Abiathar the priest. They are now eating and drinking with him. And they are saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ ²⁶ But he did not invite me, or Zadok the priest, or Benaiah son of Jehoiada, or your son Solomon. ²⁷ My lord and king, did you do this without telling us? Please tell us, who will be the next king after you?”

²⁸ Then King David said, “Tell Bathsheba to come in!” So she came in and stood before the king.

²⁹ Then the king made a promise: “The Lord has saved me from every danger. 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 by the power of the Lord, the God of Israel. I promised that your son Solomon would be the next king after me. I promised that he would take my place on my throne, and I will keep my promise!”

Some Jews Against Stephen

⁸ Stephen received a great blessing. God gave him power to do great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. ⁹ But some of the Jews there were from the synagogue of Free Men, as it was called. The group included Jews from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia, and Asia. They started arguing with Stephen. ¹⁰ But the Spirit was helping him speak with wisdom. His words were so strong that these Jews could not argue with him.

¹¹ So they told some men to say, “We heard Stephen say bad things against Moses and against God!” ¹² By doing this, these Jews upset the people, the older Jewish leaders, and the teachers of the law. They became so angry that they came and grabbed Stephen and took him to a meeting of the high council.

¹³ The Jews brought some men into the meeting to tell lies about Stephen. These men said, “This man is always saying things against this holy place and against the Law of Moses. ¹⁴ We heard him say that Jesus from Nazareth will destroy this place and change what Moses told us to do.” ¹⁵ Everyone there in the council meeting was staring at Stephen. They saw that his face looked like the face of an angel.