2:1 And the days of David drew near that he
should die: and he addressed his son Solomon, saying, I go the way of all
the earth:
2:2 but be thou strong, and shew thyself a man;
2:3 and keep the charge of the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep
the commandments and the ordinances and the judgements which are written in
the law of Moses; that thou mayest understand what thou shalt do in all
things that I command thee:
2:4 that the Lord may confirm his word which he spoke, saying, If thy
children shall take heed to their way to walk before me in truth with all
their heart, [I promise thee], saying, there shall not fail thee a man on
the throne of Israel.
2:5 Moreover thou knowest all that Joab the son of Saruia did to me, what he
did to the two captains of the forces of Israel, to Abenner the son of Ner,
and to Amessai the son of Jether, that he slew them, and shed the blood of
war in peace, and put innocent blood on hi girdle that was about his loins,
and on his sandal that was on his foot.
2:6 Therefore thou shalt deal [with him] according to thy wisdom, and thou
shalt not bring down his grey hairs in peace to the grave.
2:7 But thou shalt deal kindly with the sons of Berzelli the Galaadite, and
they shall be among those that eat at thy table; for thus they drew nigh to
me when I fled from the face of thy brother Abessalom.
2:8 And, behold, [there is] with thee Semei the son of Gera, a Benjamite of
Baurim: and he cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went into
the camp; and he came down to Jordan to meet me, and I swore to him by the
Lord, saying, I will not put thee to death with the sword.
2:9 But thou shalt by no means hold him guiltless, for thou art a wise man,
and wilt know what thou shalt do to him, and shalt bring down his grey hairs
with blood to the grave.
2:10 And David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David.
2:11 And the days which David reigned over Israel [were] forty years; he
reigned seven years in Chebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
2:12 And Solomon sat on the throne of his father David, and his kingdom was
established greatly.
2:13 And Adonias the son of Aggith came in to Bersabee the mother of
Solomon, and did obeisance to her: and she said, Dost thou enter peaceably?
and he said, Peaceably:
2:14 I have business with thee. And she said to him, Say on.
2:15 And he said to her, Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine, and all
Israel turned their face toward me for a king; but the kingdom was turned
[from me] and became my brother's: for it was [appointed] to him from the
Lord.
2:16 And now I make one request of thee, do not turn away thy face. And
Bersabee said to him, Speak [on].
2:17 And he said to her, Speak, I pray thee, to king Solomon, for he will
not turn away his face from thee, and let him give me Abisag the Somanite
for a wife.
2:18 And Bersabee said, Well; I will speak for thee to the king.
2:19 And Bersabee went in to king Solomon to speak to him concerning Adonias;
and the king rose up to meet her, and kissed her, and sat on the throne, and
a throne was set for the mother of the king, and she sat on his right hand.
2:20 And she said to him, I ask of thee one little request; turn not away my
face from thee. And the king said to her, Ask, my mother, and I will not
reject thee.
2:21 And she said, Let, I pray thee, Abisag the Somanite be given to Adonias
thy brother to wife.
2:22 And king Solomon answered and said to his mother, And why hast thou
asked Abisag for Adonias? ask for him the kingdom also; for he [is] my elder
brother, and he has for his companion Abiathar the priest, and Joab the son
of Saruia the commander-in-chief.
2:23 And king Solomon swore by the Lord, saying, God do so to me, and more
also, [if it be not] that Adonias has spoken this word against his own life.
2:24 And now [as] the Lord lives who has established me, and set me on the
throne of my father David, and he has made me a house, as the Lord spoke,
this day shall Adonias be put to death.
2:25 So king Solomon sent by the hand of Banaeas the son of Jodae, and he
slew him, and Adonias died in that day.
2:26 And the king said to Abiathar the priest, Depart thou quickly to
Anathoth to thy farm, for thou art worthy of death this day; but I will not
slay thee, because thou hast borne the ark of the covenant of the Lord
before my father, and because thou was afflicted in all things wherein my
father was afflicted.
2:27 And Solomon removed Abiathar from being a priest of the Lord, that the
word of the Lord might be fulfilled, which he spoke concerning the house of
Heli in Selom.
2:28 And the report came to Joab son of Saruia; for Joab had turned after
Adonias, and he went not after Solomon: and Joab fled to the tabernacle of
the Lord, and caught hold of the horns of the altar.
2:29 And it was told Solomon, saying, Joab has fled to the tabernacle of the
Lord, and lo! he has hold of the horns of the altar. And king Solomon sent
to Joab, saying, What ails thee, that thou hast fled to the altar and Joab
said, Because I was afraid of thee, and fled for refuge to the Lord. And
Solomon sent Banaeas son of Jodae, saying, Go and slay him, and bury him.
2:30 And Banaeas son of Jodae came to Joab to the tabernacle of the Lord,
and said to him, Thus says the king, Come forth. And Joab said, I will not
come forth, for I will die here. And Banaeas son of Jodae returned and spoke
to the king, saying, Thus has Joab spoken, and thus has he answered me.
2:31 And the king said to him, Go, and do to him as he has spoken, and kill
him: and thou shalt bury him, and thou shalt remove this day the blood which
he shed without cause, from me and from the house of my father.
2:32 And the Lord has returned upon his own head the blood of his
unrighteousness, inasmuch as he attacked two men more righteous and better
than himself, and slew them with the sword, and my father David knew not of
their blood, [even] Abenner the son of Ner the commander-in-chief of Israel,
and Amessa the son of Jether the commander-in-chief of Juda.
2:33 And their blood is returned upon his head, and upon the head of his
seed for ever: but to David, and his seed, and his house, and his throne,
may there be peace for ever from the Lord.
2:34 So Banaeas son of Jodae went up, and attacked him, and slew him, and
buried him in his house in the wilderness.
2:35 And the king appointed Banaeas son of Jodae in his place over the host;
and the kingdom was established in Jerusalem; and [as for] Sadoc the priest,
the king appointed him to be high priest in the room of Abiathar. And
Solomon son of David reigned over Israel and Juda in Jerusalem: and the Lord
gave understanding to Solomon, and very much wisdom, and largeness of heart,
as the sand by the sea-shore.
2:36 And the king called Semei, and said to him, Build thee a house in
Jerusalem, and dwell there, and thou shalt not go out thence any whither.
2:37 And it shall come to pass in the day that thou shalt go forth and cross
over the brook Kedron, know assuredly that thou shalt certainly die: thy
blood shall be upon thine head. And the king caused him to swear in that
day.
2:38 And Semei said to the king, Good [is] the word that thou hast spoken,
my lord O king: thus will thy servant do. And Semei dwelt in Jerusalem three
years.
2:39 And it came to pass after the three years, that two servants of Semei
ran away to Anchus son of Maacha king of Geth: and it was told Semei,
saying, Behold, thy servants [are] in Geth.
2:40 And Semei rose up, and saddled his ass, and went to Geth to Anchus to
seek out his servants: and Semei went, and brought his servants out of Geth.
2:41 And it was told Solomon, saying, Semei is gone out of Jerusalem to Geth,
and has brought back his servants.
2:42 And the king sent and called Semei, and said to him, Did I not adjure
thee by the Lord, and testify to thee, saying, In whatsoever day thou shalt
go out of Jerusalem, and go to the right or left, know certainly that thou
shalt assuredly die?
2:43 And why hast thou not kept the oath of the Lord, and the commandment
which I commanded thee?
2:44 And the king said to Semei, Thou knowest all thy mischief which thy
heart knows, which thou didst to David my father: and the Lord has
recompensed thy mischief on thine [own] head.
2:45 And king Solomon [is] blessed, and the throne of David shall be
established before the Lord for ever.
2:46 And Solomon commanded Banaeas the son of Jodae, and he went forth and
slew him. And king Solomon was very prudent and wise: and Juda and Israel
[were] very many, as the sand which is by the sea for multitude, eating, and
drinking, and rejoicing: and Solomon was chief in all the kingdoms, and they
brought gifts, and served Solomon all the days of his life. And Solomon
began to open the domains of Libanus, and he built Thermae in the
wilderness. And this was the daily provision of Solomon, thirty measures of
fine flour, and sixty measures of ground meal, ten choice calves, and twenty
oxen from the pastures, and a hundred sheep, besides stags, and does, and
choice fed birds. For he ruled in all the country on this side the river,
from Raphi unto Gaza, over all the kings on this side the river: and he was
at peace on all sides round about; and Juda and Israel dwelt safely, every
one under his vine and under his fig tree, eating and drinking and feasting,
from Dan even to Bersabee, all the days of Solomon. And these [were] the
princes of Solomon; Azariu son of Sadoc the priest, and Orniu son of Nathan
chief of the officers, and he went to his house; and Suba the scribe, and
Basa son of Achithalam recorder, and Abi son of Joab commander-in-chief, and
Achire son of Edrai [was] over the levies, and Banaeas son of Jodae over the
household and over the brickwork, and Cachur the son of Nathan [was]
counsellor. |
2:1 Now the days of David drew nigh that he
should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying,
2:2 I go the way of all the earth: be thou strong therefore, and show
thyself a man;
2:3 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:
2:4 That the LORD may continue his word which he spake 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.
2:5 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.
2:6 Do therefore according to thy wisdom, and let not his hoar head go down
to the grave in peace.
2:7 But show kindness unto the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them
be of those that eat at thy table: for so they came to me when I fled
because of Absalom thy brother.
2:8 And, behold, thou hast with thee Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite of
Bahurim, which cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to
Mahanaim: but he came down to meet me at Jordan, and I sware to him by the
LORD, saying, I will not put thee to death with the sword.
2:9 Now therefore hold him not guiltless: for thou art a wise man, and
knowest what thou oughtest to do unto him; but his hoar head bring thou down
to the grave with blood.
2:10 So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David.
2:11 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.
2:12 Then sat Solomon upon the throne of David his father; and his kingdom
was established greatly.
2:13 And Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of
Solomon. And she said, Comest thou peaceably? And he said, Peaceably.
2:14 He said moreover, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And she said, Say
on.
2:15 And he said, Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine, and that all
Israel set their faces on me, that I should reign: howbeit the kingdom is
turned about, and is become my brother's: for it was his from the LORD.
2:16 And now I ask one petition of thee, deny me not. And she said unto him,
Say on.
2:17 And he said, Speak, I pray thee, unto Solomon the king, (for he will
not say thee nay,) that he give me Abishag the Shunammite to wife.
2:18 And Bathsheba said, Well; I will speak for thee unto the king.
2:19 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.
2:20 Then she said, I desire one small petition of thee; I pray thee, say me
not nay. And the king said unto her, Ask on, my mother: for I will not say
thee nay.
2:21 And she said, Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah thy
brother to wife.
2:22 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.
2:23 Then king Solomon sware by the LORD, saying, God do so to me, and more
also, if Adonijah have not spoken this word against his own life.
2:24 Now therefore, as the LORD liveth, which hath established me, and set
me on the throne of David my father, and who hath made me an house, as he
promised, Adonijah shall be put to death this day.
2:25 And king Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and
he fell upon him that he died.
2:26 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 barest the ark of the LORD God before David
my father, and because thou hast been afflicted in all wherein my father was
afflicted.
2:27 So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest unto the LORD; that he
might fulfil the word of the LORD, which he spake concerning the house of
Eli in Shiloh.
2:28 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.
2:29 And it was told king Solomon that Joab was 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.
2:30 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.
2:31 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.
2:32 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, my
father David not knowing thereof, 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.
2:33 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.
2:34 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.
2:35 And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his room over the host:
and Zadok the priest did the king put in the room of Abiathar.
2:36 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said unto him, Build thee
an house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and go not forth thence any whither.
2:37 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.
2:38 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.
2:39 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 be in Gath.
2:40 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.
2:41 And it was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath,
and was come again.
2:42 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 a
certain, on the day thou goest out, and walkest abroad any whither, that
thou shalt surely die? and thou saidst unto me, The word that I have heard
is good.
2:43 Why then hast thou not kept the oath of the LORD, and the commandment
that I have charged thee with?
2:44 The king said moreover to Shimei, Thou knowest all the wickedness which
thine heart is privy to, that thou didst to David my father: therefore the
LORD shall return thy wickedness upon thine own head;
2:45 And king Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be
established before the LORD for ever.
2:46 So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; which went out, and
fell upon him, that he died. And the kingdom was established in the hand of
Solomon. |