Parallel Bible results for "1 kings 2"

1 Kings 2

Third Millennium Bible TMB

1 Now the days of David drew nigh that he should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying,

2 "I go the way of all the earth. Be thou strong therefore, and show thyself a man;

3 and keep the charge of the LORD thy God to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, and His commandments, and His judgments, and His testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest and whithersoever thou turnest thyself,

4 that the LORD may continue His word which He spoke concerning me, saying, `If thy children take heed to their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail thee,' said He, `a man on the throne of Israel.'

5 "Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins and in his shoes that were on his feet.

6 Do therefore according to thy wisdom, and let not his hoary head go down to the grave in peace.

7 But show kindness unto the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at thy table; for so they came to me when I fled because of Absalom thy brother.

8 And behold, thou hast with thee Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite of Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim; but he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by the LORD, saying, `I will not put thee to death with the sword.'

9 Now therefore hold him not guiltless, for thou art a wise man and knowest what thou oughtest to do unto him; but his hoary head bring thou down to the grave with blood."

10 So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the City of David.

11 And the days that David reigned over Israel were forty years: seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty and three years reigned he in Jerusalem.

12 Then sat Solomon upon the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was established greatly.

13 And Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, "Comest thou peaceably?" And he said, "Peaceably."

14 He said moreover, "I have something to say unto thee." And she said, "Say on."

15 And he said, "Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel set their faces on me, that I should reign. However the kingdom is turned about and has become my brother's, for it was his from the LORD.

16 And now I ask one petition of thee; deny me not." And she said unto him, "Say on."

17 And he said, "Speak, I pray thee, unto Solomon the king (for he will not say `nay' to thee), that he give me Abishag the Shunammite for a wife."

18 And Bathsheba said, "Well; I will speak for thee unto the king."

19 Bathsheba therefore went unto King Solomon to speak unto him for Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet her and bowed himself unto her, and sat down on his throne and caused a seat to be set for the king's mother; and she sat on his right hand.

20 Then she said, "I desire one small petition of thee; I pray thee, say not `nay' to me." And the king said unto her, "Ask on, my mother, for I will not say to thee `nay.'"

21 And she said, "Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah thy brother for a wife."

22 And King Solomon answered and said unto his mother, "And why dost thou ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Ask for him the kingdom also, for he is mine elder brother -- even for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah."

23 Then King Solomon swore by the LORD, saying, "God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah have not spoken this word against his own life.

24 Now therefore, as the LORD liveth, who hath established me and set me on the throne of David my father, and who hath made me a house, as He promised, Adonijah shall be put to death this day."

25 And King Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him so that he died.

26 And unto Abiathar the priest said the king, "Get thee to Anathoth, unto thine own fields, for thou art worthy of death; but I will not at this time put thee to death, because thou didst bear the ark of the Lord GOD before David my father, and because thou hast been afflicted in all wherein my father was afflicted."

27 So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest unto the LORD, that he might fulfill the word of the LORD which He spoke concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.

28 Then tidings came to Joab; for Joab had turned after Adonijah, though he turned not after Absalom. And Joab fled unto the tabernacle of the LORD, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.

29 And it was told King Solomon that Joab had fled unto the tabernacle of the LORD; and behold, he is by the altar. Then Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, "Go, fall upon him."

30 And Benaiah came to the tabernacle of the LORD, and said unto him, "Thus saith the king, `Come forth!'" And he said, "Nay, but I will die here." And Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, "Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me."

31 And the king said unto him, "Do as he hath said, and fall upon him and bury him, that thou mayest take away the innocent blood which Joab shed from me and from the house of my father.

32 And the LORD shall return his blood upon his own head, who fell upon two men more righteous and better than he and slew them with the sword -- to wit, Abner the son of Ner, captain of the host of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, captain of the host of Judah -- my father David not knowing thereof.

33 Their blood shall therefore return upon the head of Joab and upon the head of his seed for ever; but upon David, and upon his seed, and upon his house, and upon his throne, shall there be peace for ever from the LORD."

34 So Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon him and slew him; and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness.

35 And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his place over the host, and Zadok the priest did the king put in the place of Abiathar.

36 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said unto him, "Build thee a house in Jerusalem and dwell there, and go not forth from thence anywhere.

37 For it shall be that on the day thou goest out and passest over the Brook Kidron, thou shalt know for certain that thou shalt surely die; thy blood shall be upon thine own head."

38 And Shimei said unto the king, "The saying is good. As my lord the king hath said, so will thy servant do." And Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem many days.

39 And it came to pass, at the end of three years, that two of the servants of Shimei ran away unto Achish son of Maachah, king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying, "Behold, thy servants are in Gath."

40 And Shimei arose and saddled his ass, and went to Gath to Achish to seek his servants; and Shimei went and brought his servants from Gath.

41 And it was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and had come back.

42 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said unto him, "Did I not make thee to swear by the LORD, and protested unto thee, saying, `Know for certain, on the day thou goest out and walkest abroad anywhere, that thou shalt surely die'? And thou said unto me, `The word that I have heard is good.'

43 Why then hast thou not kept the oath of the LORD and the commandment that I have charged thee with?"

44 The king said moreover to Shimei, "Thou knowest all the wickedness which thine heart is privy to, that thou did to David my father. Therefore the LORD shall return thy wickedness upon thine own head;

45 and King Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before the LORD for ever."

46 So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, who went out and fell upon him so that he died. And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.

GOD'S WORD Translation GW

1 When David was about to die, he instructed his son Solomon,

2 "I'm about to leave this world. Be strong and mature.

3 Fulfill your duty to the LORD your God. Obey his directions, laws, commands, rules, and written instructions as they are recorded in Moses' Teachings. Then you'll succeed in everything you do wherever you may go.

4 [You'll succeed] because the LORD will keep the promise he made to me: 'If your descendants are faithful to me with all their hearts and lives, you will never fail to have an heir on the throne of Israel.'

5 "You know what Joab (Zeruiah's son) did to me and to the two commanders of Israel's army--Abner, son of Ner, and Amasa, son of Jether. Joab killed them. When there was peace, he shed blood as if it were wartime. With their blood he stained the belt around his waist and the shoes on his feet.

6 Use your wisdom. Don't let that gray-haired, old man go to his grave peacefully.

7 "Be kind to the sons of Barzillai from Gilead. Let them eat at your table. They helped me when I was fleeing from your brother Absalom.

8 "Shimei, son of Gera from Bahurim in Benjamin, is still with you. He cursed me repeatedly when I went to Mahanaim. But when he came to meet me at the Jordan River, I took an oath by the LORD and said, 'As long as I'm king, I won't have you killed.'

9 Now, don't let him go unpunished. You are wise and know what to do to him: Put that gray-haired, old man into his grave by slaughtering him."

10 David lay down in death with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David.

11 He ruled as king of Israel for 40 years. He ruled for 7 years in Hebron and for 33 years in Jerusalem.

12 Solomon sat on his father David's throne, and his power was firmly established.

13 Then Adonijah, son of Haggith, went to Bathsheba, Solomon's mother. "Is this a friendly visit?" she asked. "Yes," he answered.

14 Then he added, "I have a matter [to discuss] with you." "What is it?" she asked.

15 He said, "You know the kingship was mine. All Israel expected me to be their king. But the kingship has been turned over to my brother because the LORD gave it to him.

16 Now I want to ask you for one thing. Don't refuse me." "What is it?" she asked.

17 He said, "Please ask King Solomon to give me Abishag from Shunem as my wife. He will not refuse you."

18 "Very well," Bathsheba answered. "I will talk to the king for you."

19 Bathsheba went to King Solomon to talk to him on Adonijah's behalf. The king got up to meet her and bowed down in front of her. Then he sat on his throne. He had a throne brought for his mother, and she sat at his right side.

20 "I'm asking you for one little thing," she said. "Don't refuse me." "Ask, Mother," the king told her. "I won't refuse you."

21 She replied, "Let Abishag from Shunem be given to your brother Adonijah as his wife."

22 King Solomon then said, "Why do you ask that Abishag from Shunem be given to Adonijah? That would be the same as giving him the kingship. After all, he is my older brother. The priest Abiathar and Joab (Zeruiah's son) are supporting him."

23 King Solomon took an oath by the LORD and said, "May God strike me dead if Adonijah doesn't pay with his life for this request!

24 The LORD set me on my father David's throne and gave me a dynasty as he promised. So I solemnly swear, as the LORD who has established me lives, that Adonijah will be put to death today."

25 King Solomon gave this task to Benaiah, son of Jehoiada. Benaiah attacked and killed Adonijah.

26 The king told the priest Abiathar, "Go to your land in Anathoth. You deserve to die, but I won't kill you at this time because you carried the ark of the Almighty LORD ahead of my father David and because you shared all my father's sufferings."

27 So Solomon removed Abiathar as the LORD's priest and fulfilled the LORD's word spoken at Shiloh about Eli's family.

28 The news reached Joab. (He had supported Adonijah, although he hadn't supported Absalom.) So Joab fled to the LORD's tent and clung to the horns of the altar.

29 After King Solomon heard that Joab had fled to the altar in the tent of the LORD, Solomon sent Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, to kill Joab.

30 When Benaiah came to the tent of the LORD, he told Joab, "The king says, 'Come out.'" "No," Joab answered, "I'll die here." So Benaiah reported to the king what Joab had said and how he had answered.

31 The king answered, "Do as he said. Kill him, and bury him. You can remove the innocent blood--the blood which Joab shed--from me and my father's family.

32 The LORD will repay him for the slaughter he caused. Joab killed two honorable men who were better than he was. He used his sword to kill Abner (who was the son of Ner and the commander of Israel's army) and Amasa (who was the son of Jether and the commander of Judah's army). Joab did this without my father's knowledge.

33 The responsibility for their blood will fall on Joab and his descendants forever. But may David, his descendants, family, and throne always receive peace from the LORD."

34 Then Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, went and attacked Joab, killed him, and buried him at his home in the desert.

35 The king then appointed Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, to replace Joab as commander of the army. King Solomon also replaced Abiathar with the priest Zadok.

36 The king summoned Shimei and said to him, "Build a house for yourself in Jerusalem, and stay there. Don't leave [the city] to go anywhere else.

37 But the day you leave and cross the brook in the Kidron Valley, you can be certain that you will die. You will be responsible for your own death."

38 "Very well," Shimei answered. "I'll do just what Your Majesty said." So Shimei stayed in Jerusalem for a long time.

39 But after three years, two of Shimei's slaves fled to Gath's King Achish, son of Maacah. Shimei was told that his slaves were in Gath,

40 so he saddled his donkey and went to Achish in Gath to search for his slaves. Shimei went to Gath and got his slaves.

41 After Solomon heard that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and back,

42 he summoned Shimei. Solomon asked him, "Didn't I make you take an oath by the LORD? Didn't I warn you that if you left [the city] to go anywhere, you could be certain that you would die? Didn't you say to me, 'Very well. I'll do just what you said'?

43 Why didn't you keep your oath to the LORD and obey the command I gave you?

44 Shimei, you know in your heart all the evil that you did to my father David. The LORD is going to pay you back for the evil you have done.

45 But King Solomon is blessed, and David's dynasty will always be firmly established by the LORD."

46 Then the king gave orders to Benaiah, son of Jehoiada. He went to attack and kill Shimei. Solomon's power as king was now firmly established.