1 Kings 1 | King James Version

King James Version

1 Now king David was old and stricken in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he gat no heat. 2 Wherefore his servants said unto him, Let there be sought for my lord the king a young virgin: and let her stand before the king, and let her cherish him, and let her lie in thy bosom, that my lord the king may get heat. 3 So they sought for a fair damsel throughout all the coasts of Israel, and found Abishag a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4 And the damsel was very fair, and cherished the king, and ministered to him: but the king knew her not. 5 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, I will be king: and he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. 6 And his father had not displeased him at any time in saying, Why hast thou done so? and he also was a very goodly man ; and his mother bare him after Absalom. 7 And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest: and they following Adonijah helped him . 8 But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men which belonged to David, were not with Adonijah. 9 And Adonijah slew sheep and oxen and fat cattle by the stone of Zoheleth, which is by Enrogel, and called all his brethren the king' sons, and all the men of Judah the king' servants: 10 But Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he called not. 11 Wherefore Nathan spake unto Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, Hast thou not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith doth reign, and David our lord knoweth it not? 12 Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon. 13 Go and get thee in unto king David, and say unto him, Didst not thou, my lord, O king, swear unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? why then doth Adonijah reign? 14 Behold, while thou yet talkest there with the king, I also will come in after thee, and confirm thy words. 15 And Bathsheba went in unto the king into the chamber: and the king was very old; and Abishag the Shunammite ministered unto the king. 16 And Bathsheba bowed, and did obeisance unto the king. And the king said, What wouldest thou? 17 And she said unto him, My lord, thou swarest by the LORD thy God unto thine handmaid, saying , Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne. 18 And now, behold, Adonijah reigneth; and now, my lord the king, thou knowest it not: 19 And he hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the sons of the king, and Abiathar the priest, and Joab the captain of the host: but Solomon thy servant hath he not called. 20 And thou, my lord, O king, the eyes of all Israel are upon thee, that thou shouldest tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. 21 Otherwise it shall come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders. 22 And, lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet also came in. 23 And they told the king, saying, Behold Nathan the prophet. And when he was come in before the king, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground. 24 And Nathan said, My lord, O king, hast thou said, Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? 25 For he is gone down this day, and hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the king' sons, and the captains of the host, and Abiathar the priest; and, behold, they eat and drink before him, and say, God save king Adonijah. 26 But me, even me thy servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and thy servant Solomon, hath he not called. 27 Is this thing done by my lord the king, and thou hast not shewed it unto thy servant, who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him? 28 Then king David answered and said, Call me Bathsheba. And she came into the king' presence, and stood before the king. 29 And the king sware, and said, As the LORD liveth, that hath redeemed my soul out of all distress, 30 Even as I sware unto thee by the LORD God of Israel, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my stead; even so will I certainly do this day. 31 Then Bathsheba bowed with her face to the earth, and did reverence to the king, and said, Let my lord king David live for ever. 32 And king David said, Call me Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the king. 33 The king also said unto them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon: 34 And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there king over Israel: and blow ye with the trumpet, and say, God save king Solomon. 35 Then ye shall come up after him, that he may come and sit upon my throne; for he shall be king in my stead: and I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah. 36 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, and said, Amen: the LORD God of my lord the king say so too . 37 As the LORD hath been with my lord the king, even so be he with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord king David. 38 So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, went down, and caused Solomon to ride upon king David' mule, and brought him to Gihon. 39 And Zadok the priest took an horn of oil out of the tabernacle, and anointed Solomon. And they blew the trumpet; and all the people said, God save king Solomon. 40 And all the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth rent with the sound of them. 41 And Adonijah and all the guests that were with him heard it as they had made an end of eating. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, Wherefore is this noise of the city being in an uproar? 42 And while he yet spake, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came: and Adonijah said unto him, Come in; for thou art a valiant man, and bringest good tidings. 43 And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, Verily our lord king David hath made Solomon king. 44 And the king hath sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and they have caused him to ride upon the king' mule: 45 And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon: and they are come up from thence rejoicing, so that the city rang again. This is the noise that ye have heard. 46 And also Solomon sitteth on the throne of the kingdom. 47 And moreover the king' servants came to bless our lord king David, saying, God make the name of Solomon better than thy name, and make his throne greater than thy throne. And the king bowed himself upon the bed. 48 And also thus said the king, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which hath given one to sit on my throne this day, mine eyes even seeing it . 49 And all the guests that were with Adonijah were afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way. 50 And Adonijah feared because of Solomon, and arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. 51 And it was told Solomon, saying, Behold, Adonijah feareth king Solomon: for, lo, he hath caught hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear unto me to day that he will not slay his servant with the sword. 52 And Solomon said, If he will shew himself a worthy man, there shall not an hair of him fall to the earth: but if wickedness shall be found in him, he shall die. 53 So king Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and bowed himself to king Solomon: and Solomon said unto him, Go to thine house.

New International Reader’s Version

Adonijah makes himself king

1 King David was now very old. He couldn’t keep warm even when blankets were spread over him. 2 So his attendants spoke to him. They said, ‘You are our king and master. Please let us try to find a young virgin to serve you. She can take care of you. She can lie down beside you to keep you warm.’ 3 So David’s attendants looked all over Israel for a beautiful young woman. They found Abishag. She was from the town of Shunem. They brought her to the king. 4 The woman was very beautiful. She took care of the king and served him. But the king didn’t have sex with her. 5 Adonijah was the son of David and his wife Haggith. He came forward and announced, ‘I’m going to be the next king.’ So he got chariots and horses ready. He also got 50 men to run in front of him. 6 His father had never tried to stop him from doing what he wanted to. His father had never asked him, ‘Why are you acting the way you do?’ Adonijah was also very handsome. Now that Absalom was dead, Adonijah was David’s eldest son. 7 Adonijah talked things over with Joab, the son of Zeruiah. He also talked with Abiathar the priest. They agreed to help him. 8 But Zadok the priest and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, didn’t join Adonijah. Nathan the prophet didn’t join him. Shimei and Rei didn’t join him. And neither did David’s special guard. 9 Adonijah sacrificed sheep, cattle and fat calves. He sacrificed them at the Stone of Zoheleth near En Rogel. He invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the royal officials of Judah. 10 But he didn’t invite Benaiah or Nathan the prophet. He didn’t invite the special guard or his brother Solomon either. 11 Nathan asked Solomon’s mother Bathsheba, ‘Haven’t you heard? Adonijah, the son of Haggith, has made himself king. And King David doesn’t know anything about it. 12 So let me tell you what to do to save your life. It will also save the life of your son Solomon. 13 Go in and see King David. Say to him, “You are my king and master. You promised me, ‘You can be sure that your son Solomon will be king after me. He will sit on my throne.’ If that’s really true, why has Adonijah become king?” 14 While you are still talking to the king, I’ll come in and support what you have said.’ 15 So Bathsheba went to see the old king in his room. Abishag, the Shunammite, was taking care of him there. 16 Bathsheba bowed low in front of the king. ‘What do you want?’ the king asked. 17 She said to him, ‘My master, you made a promise in the name of the LORD your God. You promised me, “Your son Solomon will be king after me. He will sit on my throne.” 18 But now Adonijah has made himself king. And you don’t even know about it. 19 He has sacrificed large numbers of cattle, fat calves and sheep. He has invited all the king’s sons. He has also invited Abiathar the priest and Joab, the commander of the army. But he hasn’t invited your son Solomon. 20 You are my king and master. All the Israelites are watching to see what you will do. They want to find out from you who will sit on the throne after you. 21 If you don’t do something, I and my son Solomon will be treated like people who have committed crimes. That will happen as soon as you join the members of your family who have already died.’ 22 While she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet arrived. 23 The king was told, ‘Nathan the prophet is here.’ So Nathan went to the king. He bowed down with his face towards the ground. 24 Nathan said, ‘You are my king and master. Have you announced that Adonijah will be king after you? Have you said he will sit on your throne? 25 Today he has gone down outside the city. He has sacrificed large numbers of cattle, fat calves and sheep. He has invited all the king’s sons. He has also invited the commanders of the army and Abiathar the priest. Even now they are eating and drinking with him. They are saying, “May King Adonijah live a long time!” 26 But he didn’t invite me. He didn’t invite Zadok the priest or Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada. He didn’t invite your son Solomon either. 27 King David, have you allowed all of that to happen? Did you do it without letting us know about it? Why didn’t you tell us who is going to sit on your throne after you?’

David makes Solomon king

28 King David said, ‘Tell Bathsheba to come in.’ So she came and stood in front of the king. 29 Then the king made a promise. He said, ‘The LORD has saved me from all my troubles. You can be sure that he lives. 30 And you can be just as sure I will do what I promised. This is the day I will do what I promised in the name of the LORD. He is the God of Israel. I promised you that your son Solomon would be king after me. He will sit on my throne in my place.’ 31 Then Bathsheba bowed down in front of the king. Her face was towards the ground. She said, ‘King David, you are my master. May you live for ever!’ 32 King David said, ‘Tell Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet to come in. Also tell Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, to come.’ So they came to the king. 33 He said to them, ‘Take my officials with you. Ask my son Solomon to get on my own mule. Take him down to the Gihon spring. 34 Ask Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet to anoint him as king over Israel there. Blow a trumpet. Shout, “May King Solomon live a long time!” 35 Then come back up to the city with him. Let him sit on my throne. He will rule in my place. I’ve appointed him ruler over Israel and Judah.’ 36 Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, answered the king. ‘Amen!’ he said. ‘May the LORD your God make it come true. 37 You are my king and master. The LORD has been with you. May he also be with Solomon. King David, may the LORD make Solomon’s kingdom even greater than yours!’ 38 So Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet left the palace. Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, went with them. So did the Kerethites and Pelethites. They put Solomon on King David’s mule. And they brought him down to the Gihon spring. 39 Zadok the priest had taken an animal horn from the sacred tent. The horn was filled with olive oil. He anointed Solomon with the oil. A trumpet was blown. All the people shouted, ‘May King Solomon live a long time!’ 40 Then they went up towards the city. Solomon was leading the way. The people were playing flutes. They were filled with great joy. The ground shook because of all the noise. 41 Adonijah and all his guests heard it. They were just finishing their meal. Joab heard the sound of the trumpet. So he asked, ‘What does all this noise in the city mean?’ 42 While Joab was still speaking, Jonathan arrived. Jonathan was the son of Abiathar the priest. Adonijah said, ‘Come in. I have respect for you. You must be bringing good news.’ 43 ‘No! I’m not!’ Jonathan answered. ‘Our master King David has made Solomon king. 44 David sent Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet along with Solomon. He also sent Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, with him. He sent the Kerethites and Pelethites with him too. They put him on the king’s mule. 45 They took him down to the Gihon spring. There Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anointed him as king. Now they’ve gone back up to the city. They were cheering all the way. The city is filled with the sound of it. That’s the noise you hear. 46 And that’s not all. Solomon has taken his seat on the royal throne. 47 The royal officials came to give their blessing to our master King David. They said, “May your God make Solomon’s name more famous than yours! May he make Solomon’s kingdom greater than yours!” While King David was sitting on his bed, he bowed in worship. 48 He said, “I praise the LORD. He is the God of Israel. He has let me live to see my son sitting on my throne today as the next king.” ’ 49 When all Adonijah’s guests heard that, they were terrified. So they got up and scattered. 50 Adonijah was afraid of what Solomon might do to him. So he went and grabbed the horns of the altar for burnt offerings. Those horns stuck out from its upper corners. 51 Then Solomon was told, ‘King Solomon, Adonijah is afraid of you. He’s holding onto the horns of the altar. He says, “I want King Solomon to make a promise today. I want him to promise that he won’t kill me with his sword.” ’ 52 Solomon replied, ‘Let him show that he’s a man people can respect. Then not even one hair on his head will fall to the ground. But if I find out he’s done something evil, he will die.’ 53 King Solomon got some men to bring Adonijah down from the altar. He came and bowed down to King Solomon. Solomon said, ‘Go on home.’