1 Kings 1:4

4 erat autem puella pulchra nimis dormiebatque cum rege et ministrabat ei rex vero non cognovit eam

1 Kings 1:4 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 1:4

And the damsel [was] very fair
And so very agreeable to the king to be in his presence, and wait upon him, and take things of her hand, as well as lie with him:

and cherished the king;
enlivened his spirits by her amiable countenance, her graceful behaviour, and tender care of him, and especially by bedding with him:

and ministered to him;
serving him with her own hands whatever he took for his sustenance:

but the king knew her not;
as a man knows his wife; which shows that she was his wife, and that it would not have been criminal in him had he known her; but this is observed, not to point at the chastity of David, but his feebleness, and loss of desire after women, and that the damsel remained a virgin; and that was the ground of Adonijah's request, and his hope of succeeding.

1 Kings 1:4 In-Context

2 dixerunt ergo ei servi sui quaeramus domino nostro regi adulescentulam virginem et stet coram rege et foveat eum dormiatque in sinu tuo et calefaciat dominum nostrum regem

3 quaesierunt igitur adulescentulam speciosam in omnibus finibus Israhel et invenerunt Abisag Sunamitin et adduxerunt eam ad regem

4 erat autem puella pulchra nimis dormiebatque cum rege et ministrabat ei rex vero non cognovit eam

5 Adonias autem filius Aggith elevabatur dicens ego regnabo fecitque sibi currum et equites et quinquaginta viros qui ante eum currerent

6 nec corripuit eum pater suus aliquando dicens quare hoc fecisti erat autem et ipse pulcher valde secundus natu post Absalom