1 Kings 2:12-46

New American Standard Bible

¹²Then ^(A)Solomon sat on the throne of his father David, and his kingdom was firmly established.

¹³Now Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. So she said, “^(B)Do you come peacefully?” And he said, “Peacefully.” ¹⁴Then he said, “I have something to say to you.” And she said, “Speak.” ¹⁵So he said, “You yourself know that ^(C)the kingdom was mine and ^(D)that all Israel ^[a]intended for me to be king; ^(E)however, the kingdom has turned around and become my brother’s, ^(F)for it was his from the Lord. ¹⁶So now I am making one request of you; do not ^[b]refuse me.” And she said to him, “Speak.” ¹⁷Then he said, “Please speak to Solomon the king—for he will not ^[c]refuse you—that he may give me ^(G)Abishag the Shunammite as a wife.” ¹⁸And Bathsheba said, “Very well; I will speak to the king for you.”

Adonijah Executed

¹⁹So Bathsheba went to King Solomon, to speak to him for Adonijah. And the king stood to meet her, bowed to her, and sat on his throne; then he ^(H)had a throne set up for the king’s mother, and ^(I)she sat on his right. ²⁰Then she said, “I am making one small request of you; ^(J)do not ^[d]refuse me.” And the king said to her, “Ask, my mother, for I will not ^[e]refuse you.” ²¹So she said, “^(K)Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother as a wife.” ²²But King Solomon answered and said to his mother, “And why are you requesting Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? ^(L)Request for him the kingdom as well—^(M)since he is my older brother—for him, for ^(N)Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah!” ²³Then King Solomon swore by the Lord, saying, “May God do so to me and more so, if Adonijah has ^(O)not spoken this word against his own ^[f]life! ²⁴Now then, as the Lord lives, who has established me and set me on the throne of David my father, and ^(P)has made me a house just as He ^[g]promised, Adonijah certainly shall be put to death today!” ²⁵Then King Solomon ^(Q)sent the order by Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he ^[h]struck him so that he died.

²⁶Then to Abiathar the priest the king said, “^(R)Go to Anathoth to your own field, ^(S)for you ^[i]deserve to die; but I will not put you to death at this ^[j]time, because ^(T)you carried the ark of the Lord ^[k]God before my father David, and because ^(U)you were afflicted in everything with which my father was afflicted.” ²⁷So Solomon dismissed Abiathar from being priest to the Lord, to fulfill ^(V)the word of the Lord, which He had spoken regarding the house of Eli in Shiloh.

Joab Executed

²⁸Now the news came to Joab ^(W)because Joab had followed Adonijah, ^(X)though he had not followed Absalom. So Joab fled to the tent of the Lord and ^(Y)took hold of the horns of the altar. ²⁹And it was reported to King Solomon that Joab had fled to the tent of the Lord, and ^[l]was beside the altar. Then Solomon ^(Z)sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, “^(AA)Go, ^[m]execute him.” ³⁰So Benaiah came to the tent of the Lord and said to him, “This is what the king has said: ‘Come out.’” But he said, “No, for I will die here.” So Benaiah brought back word to the king, saying, “This is what Joab spoke, and so he answered me.” ³¹And the king said to him, “^(AB)Do just as he has spoken, and ^[n]execute him and bury him, ^(AC)so that you may remove from me and from my father’s house the blood which Joab shed without ^[o]justification. ³²^(AD)The Lord will return his blood on his own head, ^(AE)because he ^[p]struck two men more righteous and better than he, and killed them with the sword, while my father David did not know about it: ^(AF)Abner the son of Ner, commander of the army of Israel, and ^(AG)Amasa the son of Jether, commander of the army of Judah. ³³^(AH)So their blood shall return on the head of Joab and on the head of his ^[q]descendants forever; but for David and his ^[r]descendants, and his house and his throne, may there be peace from the Lord forever.” ³⁴Then ^(AI)Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up and ^[s]struck him and put him to death, and he was buried at his own house ^(AJ)in the wilderness. ³⁵And ^(AK)the king appointed Benaiah the son of Jehoiada over the army in his place, and the king appointed ^(AL)Zadok the priest ^(AM)in place of Abiathar.

Shimei Executed

³⁶Now the king sent men and summoned ^(AN)Shimei, and said to him, “Build yourself a house in Jerusalem and live there, and do not leave there for any other place. ³⁷For on the day you leave and ^(AO)cross the ^[t]brook Kidron, you will know for certain that you will assuredly die; ^(AP)your blood will be ^[u]on your own head.” ³⁸Shimei then said to the king, “The word is good. Just as my lord the king has spoken, so your servant shall do.” So Shimei lived in Jerusalem for many days.

³⁹But it came about at the end of three years, that two of Shimei’s servants ran away ^(AQ)to Achish son of Maacah, king of Gath. And others told Shimei, saying, “Behold, your servants are in Gath.” ⁴⁰Then Shimei got up and saddled his donkey, and went to Gath to Achish, to search for his servants. And Shimei went and brought his servants from Gath. ⁴¹And it was reported to Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and had returned. ⁴²So the king sent men and summoned Shimei, and said to him, “Did I not make you swear by the Lord, and solemnly warn you, saying, ‘Know for certain that on the day you depart and go anywhere, you shall assuredly die’? And you said to me, ‘The word I have heard is good.’ ⁴³Why then have you not kept the oath of the Lord, and the command which I ^[v]imposed on you?” ⁴⁴The king also said to Shimei, “^(AR)You yourself know all the evil that ^[w]you acknowledge in your heart, which you did to my father David; therefore ^(AS)the Lord will return your evil on your own head. ⁴⁵But King Solomon will be blessed, and ^(AT)the throne of David will be established before the Lord forever.” ⁴⁶^(AU)So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he went out and ^[x]struck him so that he died.