1 Now KingDavid was old, advanced in age; and they covered him with clothes, but he could not keepwarm.
2
So his servantssaid to him, "Let them seek a youngvirgin for my lord the king, and let her [a]attend* the king and become his nurse; and let her lie in your bosom, that my lord the king may keepwarm."
3
So they searched for a beautifulgirl throughout all the territory of Israel, and foundAbishag the 1Shunammite, and brought her to the king.
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The girl was verybeautiful; and she became the king'snurse and served him, but the king did not [b]cohabit with her.
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Now 2Adonijah the son of Haggithexalted himself, saying, "I will be king." So 3he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen with fiftymen to runbefore him.
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His father had never[c]crossed him at anytime by asking, "Why have you doneso?" And he was also a veryhandsome*man, and [d]4he was bornafterAbsalom.
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[e]He had conferred with 5Joab the son of Zeruiah and with 6Abiathar the priest; and following7Adonijah they helped him.
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But 8Zadok the priest, 9Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, 10Nathan the prophet, 11Shimei, Rei, and 12the mightymenwho belonged to David, were not with Adonijah.
9
Adonijahsacrificedsheep and oxen and fatlings by the [f]stone of Zoheleth, which is beside13En-rogel; and he invitedall his brothers, the king'ssons, and all the men of Judah, the king'sservants.
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But he did not inviteNathan the prophet, Benaiah, the mightymen, and 14Solomon his brother.
Nathan and Bathsheba
11 Then Nathanspoke to 15Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, "Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith has becomeking, and David our lord does not know it?
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"So nowcome, please let me 16give you counsel and save your life and the life of your sonSolomon.
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"Go[g]at once to KingDavid and say to him, 'Have you not, my lord, O king, sworn to your maidservant, saying, "17SurelySolomon your son shall be kingafter me, and he shall sit on my throne "? Why then has Adonijahbecomeking?'
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"Behold, while you are stilltherespeaking with the king, I will come in after you and confirm your words."
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So Bathshebawent in to the king in the bedroom. Now 18the king was veryold, and Abishag the Shunammite was ministering to the king.
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Then Bathshebabowed and prostrated herself [h]before the king. And the kingsaid, "What[i]do you wish?"
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She said to him, "My lord, you swore to your maidservant by the LORD your God, saying, '19Surely your sonSolomon shall be kingafter me and he shall sit on my throne.'
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"Now, behold, Adonijah is king; and now, my lord the king, you do not know it.
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"20He has sacrificedoxen and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and has invitedall the sons of the king and Abiathar the priest and Joab the commander of the army, but he has not invitedSolomon your servant.
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"As for you now, my lord the king, the eyes of allIsrael are on you, to tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the kingafter him.
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"Otherwise it will come about, 21as soon as my lord the kingsleeps with his fathers, that I and my sonSolomon will be considered [j]offenders."
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Behold, while she was stillspeaking with the king, Nathan the prophetcame in.
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They told the king, saying, "Here is Nathan the prophet." And when he came in before the king, he prostrated himself [k]before the king with his face to the ground.
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Then Nathansaid, "My lord the king, have you said, 'Adonijah shall be kingafter me, and he shall sit on my throne '?
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"22For he has gonedowntoday and has sacrificedoxen and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and has invitedall the king'ssons and the commanders of the army and Abiathar the priest, and behold, they are eating and drinkingbefore him; and they say, '23Long liveKingAdonijah!'
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"24But me, even me your servant, and Zadok the priest and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and your servantSolomon, he has not invited.
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"Has thisthingbeendone by my lord the king, and you have not shown to your [l]servantswho should sit on the throne of my lord the kingafter him?"
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Then KingDavidsaid, "CallBathsheba to me." And she came into the king'spresence and stoodbefore the king.
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The kingvowed and said, "25As the LORDlives, who has redeemed my life from alldistress,
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surely as 26I vowed to you by the LORD the God of Israel, saying, 'Your sonSolomon shall be kingafter me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place '; I will indeeddosothisday."
31
Then Bathshebabowed with her face to the ground, and prostrated herself [m]before the king and said, "27May my lordKingDavidliveforever."
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Then KingDavidsaid, "Call to me 28Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada." And they came into the king'spresence.
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The kingsaid to them, "Take with you 29the servants of your lord, and have my sonSolomonride on my own mule, and bring him down to 30Gihon.
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"Let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet31anoint him there as kingoverIsrael, and 32blow the trumpet and say, '33Long liveKingSolomon!'
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"Then you shall come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne and be king in my place; for I have appointed him to be ruleroverIsrael and Judah."
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Benaiah the son of Jehoiadaanswered the king and said, "Amen! Thus may the LORD, the God of my lord the king, say.
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"34As the LORD has been with my lord the king, so may He be with Solomon, and 35make his thronegreaterthan the throne of my lordKingDavid!"
Solomon Anointed King
38 So 36Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, 37the Cherethites, and the Pelethiteswentdown and had Solomonride on KingDavid'smule, and brought him to 38Gihon.
39
Zadok the priest then 39took the horn of oil from the tent and 40anointedSolomon. Then they 41blew the trumpet, and all the peoplesaid, "42Long liveKingSolomon!"
40
All the peoplewent up after him, and the people[n]were playing on flutes and rejoicing with greatjoy, so that the earth[o]shook at their noise.
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Now Adonijah and all the guestswho were with him heard it as they finishedeating. When Joabheard the sound of the trumpet, he said, "Why[p]is the citymaking such an uproar?"
42
While he was stillspeaking, behold, 43Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priestcame. Then Adonijahsaid, "Come in, for 44you are a valiantman and bringgoodnews."
43
But Jonathanreplied to Adonijah, "No! Our lordKingDavid has madeSolomonking.
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"The king has also sent with him Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the Cherethites, and the Pelethites; and they have made him ride on the king'smule.
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"Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon, and they have come up from thererejoicing, 45so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noisewhich you have heard.
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"Besides, 46Solomon has eventaken his seat on the throne of the kingdom.
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"Moreover, the king'sservantscame to bless our lordKingDavid, saying, 'May 47your Godmake the name of Solomonbetterthan your name and his thronegreaterthan your throne!' And 48the kingbowed himself on the bed.
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"The king has alsosaidthus, 'Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who49has granted one to sit on my thronetoday while my own eyessee it."'
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Then all the guests of Adonijah were terrified; and they arose and eachwent on his way.
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And Adonijah was afraid of Solomon, and he arose, went and 50tookhold of the horns of the altar.
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Now it was toldSolomon, saying, "Behold, Adonijah is afraid of KingSolomon, for behold, he has takenhold of the horns of the altar, saying, 'Let KingSolomonswear to me today that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.' "
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Solomonsaid, "If he is a worthyman, 51not one of his hairs will fall to the ground; but ifwickedness is found in him, he will die."
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So KingSolomonsent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and prostrated himself [q]before KingSolomon, and Solomonsaid to him, "Go to your house."