Bible in 90 Days
19 They confronted me on the day of my disaster,
but the Lord supported me.
20 Then he brought me out into a wide open space.
He rescued me because he delighted in me.
21 The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness.
According to the cleanness of my hands, he has repaid me,
22 because I have kept the ways of the Lord.
I have not done evil and departed from my God.
23 So all his just decrees remain before me,
and I have not turned away from his statutes.
24 I have been blameless with him.
I have kept myself from guilt.
25 The Lord has repaid me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands[a] in his sight.
26 To the merciful[b] you reveal yourself as merciful.
To the blameless person you reveal yourself as blameless.
27 To the pure you reveal yourself as pure,
but to the crooked you reveal yourself as crafty.[c]
28 Yes, you save humble people,
but your eyes are on the proud, and you bring them down.
29 Yes, you are my lamp, O Lord.
The Lord turns my darkness to light.
30 For with you I can charge against a battalion,[d]
and with my God I can jump over a wall.
31 This God—his way is blameless.
The speech of the Lord is pure.
He is a shield for all who take refuge in him.
32 For who is God besides the Lord?
And who is the Rock except our God?
33 This God wraps me with strength[e]
and makes my way smooth.[f]
34 By making my feet like those of a deer,
he enables me to stand on high places.
35 Because he trains my hands for battle,
my arms can draw a bronze bow.
36 Then you give me the shield of your salvation.
Your response makes me great.
37 You widen the path under my feet,
so that my ankles do not give way.
38 I pursued my enemies, and I destroyed them.
Yes, I did not turn back until they were wiped out.
39 I wiped them out. I crushed them.
They could not rise again.
They fell beneath my feet.
40 You wrapped me with strength for battle.
You made those who rose up against me bow down to me.
41 You made my enemies turn their backs and flee.
I destroyed those who hate me.
42 They cried for help, but there was no one to save them.
They cried to the Lord, but he did not answer them.
43 So I ground them as fine as dust of the earth.
I scattered them and trampled them down like mud in the streets.
44 You delivered me from the accusations of my people.
You preserved me as the head of nations.
A people I did not know serve me.
45 Foreigners cringe before me.
As soon as they hear me, they obey me.
46 Foreigners fall exhausted.
They come trembling from their strongholds.
47 The Lord lives! Blessed be my Rock!
May God, the Rock who saves me, be exalted!
48 This God, who avenges me, subdues peoples under me.
49 You delivered me from my enemies.
Yes, you exalted me above those who rose against me.
You rescued me from the violent man.
50 Therefore, I will thank you among the nations, Lord.
To your name I will make music.
51 By providing great salvation for his King,
he shows mercy to his Anointed One,
to David and to his Seed[g] forever.
The Last Words of David
23 These are the last words of David,
the oracle[h] of David, the son of Jesse,
the oracle of the man raised up high,
the man anointed by the God of Jacob,
the pleasant singer of Israel’s songs.
2 The Spirit of the Lord speaks by me.
His word is on my tongue.
3 The God of Israel has spoken.
To me the Rock of Israel has said,
“The one who rules over people with righteousness,
who rules in the fear of God,
4 he is like the light of the morning when the sun rises,
like a morning without clouds,
like brightness after rain, which produces grass from the earth.”
5 But my house is not like this with God.[i]
Nevertheless, he has made an everlasting covenant with me,
completely ordered and secure.
Certainly he will make it spring up for my salvation, to fulfill my desires.[j]
6 Worthless, wicked men are all like thorns to be thrown away.
No one even picks them up with his hand.
7 Anyone who touches them uses an iron tool or the shaft of a spear.
They are completely burned up in the fire, right where they are.
David’s Elite Warriors
8 These are the names of the elite warriors of David:
Jashobeam[k] son of Hakmon was leader among the Three.[l] He lifted up his spear and killed eight hundred[m] at once.[n]
9 After him came Eleazar son of Dodo, the Ahohite. As one of the three elite warriors, he was with David when they defied the Philistines gathered there[o] for battle. The men of Israel retreated, 10 but he took a stand and struck down the Philistines until his hand got tired and froze to the sword. The Lord brought about a great victory on that day. The people of the army returned to Eleazar but only to strip the fallen.
11 After him came Shamma son of Agee, the Hararite. The Philistines were gathered at Lehi. In that location there was a parcel of land full of lentils. The people fled from the Philistines, 12 but Shamma took his stand in the middle of that parcel of ground and defended it. He struck down the Philistines, and the Lord brought about a great victory.
13 Three of the Thirty went down and came to David at the Cave of Adullam at the time of the grain harvest. A band of Philistines was camping in the Valley of Rephaim. 14 David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was in Bethlehem. 15 David expressed a deep craving, “Who will give me water to drink from the well[p] of Bethlehem, which is by the gate?” 16 So the three elite warriors broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water from the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate. They took it and brought it to David, but he was not willing to drink it, so he poured it out to the Lord. 17 He said, “May I be cursed, Lord, if I would do this. This is the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives!” He would not drink it. These are the things the three elite warriors did.
18 Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was the leader of the Thirty.[q] He wielded his spear against three hundred, all of whom were killed. His reputation equaled that of[r] the Three. 19 In fact, he was praised more than the Three, and he became their commander, but he did not belong to the Three.
20 Benaiah son of Jehoiada, an energetic warrior from Kabze’el, performed great deeds. He struck the two Lions of God[s] from Moab. He also went down and killed a lion in the middle of a cistern on a snowy day. 21 He killed an impressive Egyptian, who was armed with a spear. Benaiah went down against him with a staff, snatched the spear from the hand of the Egyptian, and killed him with his own spear. 22 These were the accomplishments of Benaiah son of Jehoiada. His reputation equaled that of the Three. 23 He was praised more than the Thirty, but he did not belong to the Three. David placed him over his bodyguard.
24 Among the Thirty were:
Asahel, the brother of Joab,
Elhanan son of Dodo from Bethlehem,
25 Shammah the Harodite,[t]
Elika the Harodite,
26 Helez the Paltite,[u]
Ira son of Ikkesh from Tekoa,
27 Abiezer from Anathoth,
Mebunnai[v] the Hushathite,
28 Zalmon[w] the Ahohite,
Maharai the Netophathite,
29 Heleb[x] son of Ba’anah the Netophathite,
Ittai son of Ribai from Gibeah in Benjamin,
30 Benaiah a Pirathonite,
Hiddai[y] from the ravines of Ga’ash,
31 Abi-Albon[z] the Arbathite,
Azmaveth the Barhumite,[aa]
32 Eliahba the Sha’albonite,
the sons of Jashen,[ab]
Jehonathan, 33 Shammah the Hararite,
Ahiam son of Sharar[ac] the Ararite,
34 Eliphelet son of Ahasbai[ad]
the son of the Ma’akathite,[ae]
Eliam son of Ahithophel the Gilonite,[af]
35 Hezro the Carmelite,
Pa’arai the Arbite,[ag]
36 Igal son of Nathan from Zobah,[ah]
Bani the Gadite,[ai]
37 Zelek the Ammonite,
Naharai of Be’eroth, the armor bearer of Joab son of Zeruiah,
38 Ira the Ithrite,
Gareb the Ithrite,
39 Uriah the Hittite.
In all there were thirty-seven.
The Census
24 The anger of the Lord burned against Israel again, and he incited David against them so that he said, “Go count Israel and Judah.”
2 The king said to Joab, the commander of his army, “Travel through all the tribes of Israel from Dan to Beersheba and register the fighting men. Then I will know how many there are.”
3 Joab said to the king, “The Lord your God will make the people a hundred times larger, however many they may be, and the eyes of my lord the king will see it. But why does my lord the king have such a strong desire to do this?”
4 But the word of the king overruled Joab and the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army went out from the presence of the king to register Israel. 5 They crossed the Jordan and camped in Aroer on the south side of the city that is in the middle of the canyon. Next they went to Gad and then to Jazer. 6 Then they came to Gilead and to the land of Tahtim Hodshi. After that, they came to Dan Ja’an and around to Sidon. 7 Then they came to the fortress of Tyre and all the cities of the Hivites and the Canaanites. After that they went out to the Negev of Judah at Beersheba.
8 So they went throughout all the land, and then came back to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.
9 Joab reported the numbers from the registration of the fighting men to the king. Israel had eight hundred thousand soldiers who could draw a sword. Judah had five hundred thousand men.
10 David had a guilty conscience after he had counted the fighting men. So David said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But, Lord, please take away the guilt of your servant, because I have acted very foolishly.”
11 When David got up in the morning, the word of the Lord came to Gad the prophet, David’s seer. The Lord said, 12 “Go tell David, ‘This is what the Lord says. I am laying out three choices before you. Choose one of them for yourself, and I will carry it out against you.’”
13 So Gad went to David and told him about this. He said, “Shall seven[aj] years of famine in your land come upon you, or three months of fleeing with your enemies pursuing you, or three days of plague[ak] in your land? Now consider this and decide what answer I should return to the one who sent me.”
14 David said to Gad, “This puts me in a difficult position. Please! Let us fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercy is great. But do not let me fall into the hands of man.”
15 So the Lord sent a plague against Israel from the next morning until the appointed time. Seventy thousand people from Dan to Beersheba died. 16 The angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, but the Lord relented and did not bring the disaster. He said to the angel who was carrying out the destruction among the people, “Enough. Now hold back your hand.”
The angel of the Lord was near the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
17 David said to the Lord, as he was watching the angel striking the people, “Look! I am the one who sinned. I am guilty. But these sheep—what have they done? Please! Let your hand be against me and against the house of my father.”
David Builds an Altar to the Lord
18 Gad came to David on that day and said to him, “Go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” 19 So David went up and obeyed Gad’s instructions as the Lord had commanded.
20 Araunah looked up and saw the king and his servants coming toward him. So Araunah went out and bowed down to the king with his face to the ground, 21 and he said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?”
David said, “To purchase the threshing floor from you, in order to build an altar to the Lord, so the plague will be held back from the people.”
22 Araunah said to David, “My lord the king can take it and offer whatever seems good to him. Here are oxen for the burnt offering, as well as the threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood. 23 O King, Araunah is giving all this to the king.” Araunah also said to the king, “The Lord your God will accept you.”
24 But the king said to Araunah, “No. I insist on purchasing it from you for what it is worth. I will not offer to the Lord my God burnt offerings that I did not pay for.”
So David purchased the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.[al] 25 He built an altar to the Lord and offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings there. The Lord heard the requests for the land, and the plague was held back from Israel.
Adonijah’s Conspiracy
1 When King David was old and advanced in years, his servants covered him with blankets, but he could not get warm. 2 So they said to him, “Let your servants search for a young woman, a virgin, for my lord the king. She will attend to the king and be his nurse. She will lie close to him and keep my lord the king warm.”
3 So they searched the whole territory of Israel for a beautiful young woman. They found Abishag from Shunem and brought her to the king. 4 The young woman was very beautiful, and she served as the king’s nurse, but the king was not intimate with her.
5 Adonijah son of Haggith[am] was pushing himself forward, saying, “I will become king.” He obtained a chariot and charioteers and fifty men to run ahead of him. 6 His father had never rebuked him by saying, “Why are you acting like this?”
Adonijah also was very handsome and had been born next in line after Absalom. 7 Joab son of Zeruiah and Abiathar the priest conspired with Adonijah and gave him their support. 8 But Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, along with Shimei, Rei, and David’s elite warriors, did not join with Adonijah.
9 Adonijah sacrificed sheep, cattle, and specially fattened calves at the Stone of Zoheleth, which was near En Rogel Spring. He invited all of his brothers, the king’s sons, and all of the king’s officials from Judah. 10 But he did not invite the prophet Nathan, Benaiah, the elite warriors, or his brother Solomon.
Nathan and Bathsheba Support Solomon
11 Nathan said to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, “Haven’t you heard that Adonijah son of Haggith has become king, and our lord David does not know about it? 12 Now let me give you some advice on how to save your life and the life of your son Solomon: 13 Go to King David and say to him, ‘My lord the king, didn’t you swear to me your servant and promise me, “Your son Solomon will be king after me, and he will sit on my throne”? Then why has Adonijah become king?’ 14 Then, while you are still there speaking with the king, I will come in after you and confirm your words.”
15 So Bathsheba went to the king in his chamber. The king was very old, and Abishag from Shunem was taking care of him. 16 Bathsheba knelt and bowed down before the king. The king said, “Why have you come?”
17 She said, “My lord, you swore to your servant by the Lord your God and promised, ‘Your son Solomon will be king after me, and he will sit on my throne.’ 18 But now, look, Adonijah has become king, and you, my lord the king, did not know about it. 19 He has sacrificed cattle, specially fattened calves, and sheep in abundance. He has invited all the king’s sons, as well as Abiathar the priest and Joab the commander of the army. But he has not invited your servant Solomon. 20 Now, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are upon you, waiting for you to tell them who will sit on my lord the king’s throne after him. 21 If you do not, when my lord the king rests with[an] his fathers, then I and my son Solomon will be treated like traitors.”
22 Just then, while she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in. 23 The king was told, “The prophet Nathan is here.” Nathan went in and bowed down to the ground before the king.
24 Nathan said, “Did you, my lord the king, say, ‘Adonijah will be king after me, and he will sit on my throne’? 25 Today he has gone out and sacrificed a great many cattle, specially fattened calves, and sheep. He has invited all the king’s sons, the commanders of the army, and Abiathar the priest. They are even eating and drinking with him and saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ 26 But he has not invited me your servant, Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, or your servant Solomon. 27 Has this command about who will sit on the throne of my lord the king after him really come from my lord the king, even though you have not made this known to your servants?”
28 Then King David responded, “Call Bathsheba for me.” She came in and stood before the king. 29 The king swore, “As surely as the Lord lives, who has redeemed my life from every tight spot, 30 just as I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, that Solomon your son will be king after me and he will sit on my throne in my place, I will indeed make it happen this very day.”
31 Bathsheba knelt down on the ground and bowed before the king and said, “May my lord King David live forever!”
David Makes Solomon King
32 King David said, “Call in Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada.” So they came in before the king.
33 The king said to them, “Take your lord’s servants with you. Have my son Solomon ride on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon Spring. 34 There Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet are to anoint him as king over Israel. Then you are to blow the ram’s horn and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ 35 Then you are to follow him, as he goes in and sits on my throne, and he will be king in my place. I decree that he will be leader over Israel and Judah.”
36 Then Benaiah son of Jehoiada responded to the king, “Amen! May the Lord, the God of my lord the king, confirm this! 37 Just as the Lord was with my lord the king, so may he also be with Solomon. May he make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David!”
38 So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, the Kerethites, and the Pelethites went out. They had Solomon ride on the mule that belonged to King David and brought him down to Gihon Spring. 39 Then Zadok the priest took the horn of olive oil from the Tent and anointed Solomon. After that they blew the ram’s horn, and all the people said, “Long live King Solomon!”
40 All the people followed Solomon. The people were playing flutes and rejoicing so greatly that the ground shook from the sound. 41 When Adonijah and all his guests heard it, they stopped eating. Joab heard the sound of the ram’s horn and asked, “Why is the noise from the city so loud?”
42 Just then, while he was still speaking, Jonathan, son of Abiathar the priest, came in. Adonijah said, “Come in, for you are a worthy man, and you must be bringing good news.”
43 Jonathan responded to Adonijah:
Not at all! Our lord King David has made Solomon king! 44 The king sent Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, the Kerethites, and the Pelethites with Solomon, and they placed him on the king’s mule. 45 Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anointed him as king at Gihon, and they went up from there rejoicing. The city is in an uproar. That is the noise you have been hearing. 46 Also, Solomon has taken his seat on the throne of the kingdom. 47 The king’s servants have come to bless our lord King David, saying, “May your God treat the name of Solomon even more favorably than your name, and may his throne be greater than your throne.”
The king bowed in worship on his bed, 48 and the king spoke the following words: “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who today has provided someone to sit upon my throne and has permitted my eyes to see it.”
49 Then all of Adonijah’s guests quickly got up, and each one went his own way.
50 Adonijah was afraid of Solomon, so he went and held on to the horns of the altar.[ao] 51 Solomon was told, “Adonijah is so afraid of King Solomon that he has grabbed the horns of the altar, and he is saying, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me this day that he will not kill his servant with the sword.’”
52 Solomon said, “If he is a worthy man, not a hair of his head will fall to the ground, but if he is caught planning evil, he will die.” 53 Then King Solomon had Adonijah brought down from the altar. He came in and bowed down to King Solomon, and Solomon told him, “Go to your house.”
David’s Charge to Solomon
2 The day of David’s death was approaching, so he gave the following commands to his son Solomon:
2 I am about to go the way of all the earth. Now, be strong and act like a man! 3 Fulfill your duties to the Lord your God. Walk in his ways. Keep his statutes, his commands, his ordinances, and his decrees as they are written in the Law of Moses, so that you may have success in everything you do and everywhere you turn, 4 in order that the Lord may keep this word that he spoke to me: “If your sons are careful to walk before me faithfully with their whole heart and soul, then you will never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.”
5 Furthermore, you know what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me—what he did to two commanders of the army of Israel, to Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether. He killed them, spilling blood in peacetime as if it were happening in war. He spattered that blood on the belt around his waist and on the sandals on his feet, as if it were war. 6 Deal with him according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray hair go down to the grave in peace.
7 Keep faith with[ap] the sons of Barzillai from Gilead, and let them eat at your table, because they did the same for me when I fled from your brother Absalom.
8 Watch out for Shimei son of Gera from Bahurim of the tribe of Benjamin, since he is still with you. He cursed me bitterly on the day I went to Mahanaim. But when he came down to meet me at the Jordan, I swore to him by the Lord, “I will not kill you with the sword.” 9 But now, do not leave him unpunished, for you are a wise man. You will know what you should do to him. Bring his gray hair down to the grave in blood.
David’s Death
10 David rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David. 11 David was king over Israel for forty years. He was king in Hebron for seven years, and he was king in Jerusalem for thirty-three years.
Adonijah Schemes Against Solomon
12 Solomon was seated on the throne of his father David, and his kingship was firmly established.
13 Adonijah son of Haggith came to Solomon’s mother Bathsheba. She said to him, “Do you come in peace?”
“Yes, in peace,” he answered. 14 Then he said, “May I have a word with you?”
She said, “Yes. Speak up.”
15 He said, “You know that the kingship was mine, and all Israel looked for me to be king. But things changed, and the kingship went to my brother instead, because the Lord gave it to him. 16 But now, I am asking you for one request. Do not turn me away.”
She said, “Tell me what it is.”
17 He said, “Ask King Solomon (for he will not turn you down) to give me Abishag from Shunem as my wife.”
18 Bathsheba said, “Very well, I will speak to the king for you.”
19 So Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him on behalf of Adonijah. The king met her and bowed down to her. Then he sat on his throne and also set up a throne for the king’s mother, and she sat at his right hand.
20 She said, “I am asking you for one small request. Do not turn me down.”
The king answered her, “Ask, mother, for I will not turn you down.”
21 She said, “Please give Abishag from Shunem to your brother Adonijah as his wife.”
22 King Solomon answered his mother, “Why do you ask for Abishag from Shunem to be given to Adonijah? You might as well ask for the kingship for him. After all, he is my brother, my older brother! Yes, request it for him and for Abiathar the priest and for Joab son of Zeruiah!”
23 Then King Solomon swore by the Lord, “May God punish me severely and double it,[aq] if Adonijah does not pay with his life for this request that he has made! 24 Now, as surely as the Lord lives, who has appointed me and seated me on the throne of my father David and has established my house just as he said he would, Adonijah will die today!” 25 Then King Solomon gave an order to Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and he struck down Adonijah and killed him.
Solomon Makes His Kingship Secure
26 To Abiathar the priest the king said, “Go to your estate in Anathoth because you deserve to die. But I will not kill you today because you carried the Ark of the Lord God before my father David and because you shared in all my father’s sufferings.” 27 So Solomon drove Abiathar out from serving as priest for the Lord to fulfill the word of the Lord which had been spoken against the house of Eli in Shiloh.
28 When the news reached Joab, he fled to the Tent of the Lord and held on to the horns of the altar, for he had supported Adonijah, although he had not supported Absalom. 29 When King Solomon was told that Joab had fled to the Tent of the Lord and that he was there by the side of the altar, Solomon sent word to ⎣Joab, saying, “What happened to you that caused you to flee to the altar?” Joab said, “Because I was afraid of you, I fled to the Lord.” So Solomon sent word to⎦ Benaiah son of Jehoiada, “Go! Strike him down!”[ar]
30 Benaiah went to the Tent of the Lord and called to Joab, “The king says, ‘Come out!’”
Joab answered, “No. I will die here.”
So Benaiah reported back to the king, “This is what Joab said, and this is how I responded.”
31 The king said to him, “Do just as he said. Strike him dead and bury him. Remove from me and from my father’s house the blood that Joab shed without cause. 32 The Lord has brought the blood he shed back on his own head, because he struck down two men who were more righteous and better than he was. He killed them with the sword, but my father David did not know about it. The blood of Abner son of Ner, commander of the army of Israel, and Amasa son of Jether, commander of the army of Judah, 33 has come back on Joab’s head and on the heads of his descendants forever. But for David and his descendants and his house and his throne, there will be peace forever from the Lord.”
34 So Benaiah son of Jehoiada went up and struck him down and killed him. He buried him at his house in the wilderness. 35 Then the king put Benaiah son of Jehoiada in Joab’s place over the army. He placed Zadok the priest into Abiathar’s position.
36 The king summoned Shimei and said to him, “Build a house for yourself in Jerusalem and live there. Do not go out of the city—ever! 37 On the day you go out and cross the Kidron Valley, you can be sure that you will die. Your blood will be on your own head.”
38 Shimei said to the king, “Your decision is good. Your servant will do just as my lord the king has said.” So Shimei lived in Jerusalem for some time. 39 At the end of three years, two of Shimei’s slaves fled to Achish son of Ma’akah, the king of Gath. Shimei was told, “Listen! Your slaves are in Gath.”
40 So Shimei saddled his donkey and went to Achish of Gath to look for his slaves. Then he brought them back from Gath.
41 Solomon was told that Shimei had left Jerusalem and had gone to Gath and returned. 42 The king summoned Shimei and said to him, “Did I not swear to you by the Lord and warn you that you could be sure that on the day you dared to go out of Jerusalem you would die? And didn’t you answer me, ‘Your decision is good. I have heard what you said’? 43 Why then did you not keep your oath to the Lord and obey the command I gave you?” 44 The king also said to Shimei, “In your heart you know all the evil that you did to my father David. Now the Lord has brought your evil back on your own head. 45 Now may King Solomon be blessed, and may David’s throne be firmly established before the Lord forever.”
46 Then the king gave a command to Benaiah son of Jehoiada. He went out and struck down Shimei and killed him. In this way the kingship was firmly established in the hands of Solomon.
The Beginning of Solomon’s Reign
3 Solomon had made a marriage alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt. He married Pharaoh’s daughter and brought her into the City of David until he had finished building his own house, the Lord’s house, and the wall around Jerusalem.
2 The people were still offering sacrifices at the high places[as] because a house for the Name of the Lord had not yet been built in those days. 3 Solomon loved the Lord, so he followed the instructions of his father David, though he was still offering sacrifices and burning incense at the high places.
Solomon Asks for Wisdom
4 So the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, because it was the most important high place. Solomon offered one thousand whole burnt offerings on that altar. 5 The Lord appeared to Solomon in Gibeon in a dream at night.
God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”
6 Solomon said, “You have shown great mercy and faithfulness[at] to your servant, my father David, just as he walked before you in truth, righteousness, and uprightness of heart toward you. You have shown this great mercy and faithfulness to him and have given him a son who is seated on his throne to this very day. 7 O Lord my God, now you have made your servant king in the place of my father David, but I am a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in. 8 And I, your servant, am among your people whom you have chosen, a great people, who cannot be counted or numbered because they are so many. 9 Now give to your servant a perceptive heart to judge your people, to distinguish between good and evil, for who is able to judge this great people of yours?”
10 In the eyes of the Lord, Solomon’s request was good. 11 So God said to him, “Because you have asked for this, and you have not asked for a long life, nor have you asked for riches, nor have you asked for the lives of your enemies, but you have asked for discernment to reach just verdicts, 12 therefore I will act according to your words. Yes, I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you before you, nor will anyone like you rise up after you. 13 In addition, I will give you what you have not asked for: such riches and honor that there will not be anyone like you among the other kings throughout all your days. 14 If you walk in my ways by keeping my statutes and commands just as your father David did, then I will give you a long life.”
15 Then Solomon woke up and realized it was a dream. So Solomon went to Jerusalem and stood before the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord.[au] He offered whole burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, and he made a feast for all his officials.
Solomon Demonstrates God’s Wisdom
16 Later, two prostitutes came and stood before the king.
17 One woman said, “Hear me, my lord! This woman and I live in the same house. While she was living in the house, I gave birth. 18 Three days after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth. We were together. There was no one else in the house with us. Only the two of us were there. 19 One night this woman’s son died because she lay on top of him. 20 Then she got up in the middle of the night and took my son from beside me while I, your servant, was sleeping. She laid him next to her, and her dead son she laid next to me. 21 When I got up in the morning to nurse my son, there he was—dead! But when I examined him closely in the morning, I saw it was not my son, to whom I had given birth!”
22 But the other woman said, “No! The living child is really my son, and your son is the dead one!”
But the first one kept saying, “No! Your son is really the dead one, and my son is the living one!” They kept arguing like this before the king.
23 The king said, “This woman says, ‘My son is the living one, and your son is the dead one.’ But this other woman says, ‘No, your son is really the dead one, and my son is the living one.’” 24 So the king said, “Bring me a sword.” So they brought a sword to the king.
25 Then the king said, “Cut the living child in two, and give half to this woman and half to that woman.”
26 But the woman to whom the living child belonged spoke up, because her feelings for her son were very strong. She said, “Listen to me, my lord. Give her the living child. Please don’t kill him.”
But the other woman said, “He will be neither mine nor yours. Cut him in two!”
27 The king answered, “Give the living child to the first woman, and do not kill him. She is his mother.”
28 All Israel heard about the judgment which the king had rendered. They were filled with awe[av] in his presence, because they saw that God’s wisdom was in him to administer justice.
King Solomon’s Administration
4 So King Solomon ruled over all Israel. 2 These were his officials:
Azariah son[aw] of Zadok was the priest.
3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, were the secretaries.
Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the record keeper.[ax]
4 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the army.
Zadok and Abiathar were priests.
5 Azariah son of Nathan was supervisor over the governors.
Zabud son of Nathan, a priest, was the king’s personal advisor.[ay]
6 Ahishar was the palace administrator,
and Adoniram son of Abda was in charge of forced labor.
7 Solomon had twelve governors, who were over all Israel. They supplied provisions for the king and for his palace. Each of them was assigned one month of the year during which he was responsible for supplying provisions. 8 These were their names:
Ben Hur[az] in the hill country of Ephraim,
9 Ben Deker in Makaz and in Sha’albim, Beth Shemesh, and
Elon Beth Hanan,
10 Ben Hesed in Arubboth (Sokoh and all the land of Hepher were his),
11 Ben Abinadad in all the heights of Dor[ba] (Taphath daughter of
Solomon was his wife),
12 Ba’ana son of Ahilud in Ta’anach and Megiddo, and in all Beth
Shan, which is beside Zarethan, below Jezre’el, from Beth Shan to
Abel Meholah, up to the other side of Jokmeam,
13 Ben Geber in Ramoth Gilead (the villages of Jair son of Manasseh
in Gilead belonged to him, and the region of Argob in Bashan
belonged to him, sixty great cities with walls and bronze bars),
14 Ahinadab son of Iddo in Mahanaim,
15 Ahima’az in Naphtali (he was married to Solomon’s
daughter Basemath),
16 Ba’ana son of Hushai in Asher and in Be’aloth,
17 Jehoshaphat son of Paruah in Issachar,
18 Shimei son of Ela in Benjamin,
19 Geber son of Uri in the land of Gilead (this included the land of both
Sihon king of the Amorites and Og king of Bashan, but there was
only one governor for that land).
The Glory of Solomon’s Rule
20 Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand by the sea. They were eating, drinking, and rejoicing. 21 Solomon was ruling all the kingdoms from the River[bb] to the land of the Philistines, up to the border of Egypt. They sent tribute and workers to Solomon all the days of his life.[bc] 22 Solomon’s provisions for one day were one hundred eighty bushels[bd] of fine flour and three hundred sixty bushels[be] of plain flour, 23 ten stall-fed cattle, twenty pasture-fed cattle, and one hundred sheep, not to mention deer, gazelle, roebucks, and fattened poultry.
24 Since Solomon was ruling over everything west of the River, from Tiphsah to Gaza, over all the kingdoms west of the River, he had peace on all sides. 25 Judah and Israel lived in safety, with every man sitting under his own vine and fig tree, from Dan to Beersheba, throughout Solomon’s days. 26 Solomon had four thousand[bf] teams[bg] of horses for his chariots and twelve thousand charioteers.
27 His governors supplied provisions for King Solomon and for all those who gathered at King Solomon’s table. Each governor was responsible for one month, so the court lacked nothing. 28 They brought the barley and straw for the horses and steeds[bh] to the location assigned to each one of them.
29 God gave Solomon wisdom and very great understanding and breadth of knowledge[bi] like the sand on the seashore. 30 Solomon’s wisdom was greater than all the wisdom of the men of the East and greater than all the wisdom of Egypt. 31 He was wiser than any man, wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, wiser than Heman, Kalkol, or Darda, the sons of Mahol. His name was known in all the surrounding nations. 32 He spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs numbered one thousand and five. 33 He spoke about trees, from the cedars of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall. He also spoke about animals, birds, reptiles and other crawling things, and fish. 34 From all the peoples and from all the kings of the earth who heard about Solomon’s wisdom, people came to listen to his wisdom.
Solomon Prepares to Build the Temple
5 Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon because he heard that Solomon had been anointed king in his father’s place, and because Hiram had been a dear friend of David all his days.[bj]
2 Solomon sent the following message to Hiram.
3 You know that my father David was not able to build a house for the Name of the Lord his God, because of the wars that swirled around him until the Lord put his enemies under the soles of his feet. 4 But now the Lord my God has given me rest on every side. I have no adversary and face no dangerous situations. 5 Listen to this! I intend to build a house for the Name of the Lord my God, just as the Lord told my father, “Your son, whom I will put on your throne in your place, will build the house for my Name.” 6 Now give the order to cut cedar logs for me from Lebanon. My servants will work with your servants, and I will reimburse you whatever you specify as the pay for your servants, for you know that there is no one among us who knows how to cut lumber like the Sidonians.
7 When Hiram heard Solomon’s words, he was very happy and he said:
Blessed be the Lord this day because he has given David a wise son to rule over this great people.
8 So Hiram sent word to Solomon:
I have heard the message you sent me. I will provide all the cedar and fir logs that you desire. 9 My servants will bring the logs down from Lebanon to the sea, and I will put them into the sea as rafts and float them to the place that you tell me. Then we will dismantle them there, and you can transport them up from there. In exchange, you will provide all the food I desire for my palace.
10 So Hiram gave Solomon all the cedar and fir that he desired. 11 In return, Solomon gave Hiram one hundred twenty thousand bushels[bk] of wheat as provisions for his palace and one hundred twenty thousand gallons[bl] of beaten[bm] olive oil. Solomon gave this amount to Hiram every year. 12 The Lord gave wisdom to Solomon just as he had promised him, so there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and they made a treaty.
13 King Solomon drafted a labor force from all over Israel. It numbered thirty thousand men. 14 He sent ten thousand men per month to Lebanon in shifts. They would spend one month in Lebanon. Then for two months they would be at home. Adoniram was in charge of this forced labor. 15 Solomon had seventy thousand men to transport materials and eighty thousand men to quarry stones in the mountains, 16 not counting the officials who were overseeing the work for Solomon. There were thirty-three hundred men supervising the people who were doing the work. 17 The king gave a command, and they quarried large, high-quality stones to serve as a foundation for the temple building, which was made of trimmed stones. 18 Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders and the men from Gebal[bn] cut and prepared the wood and stones to construct the temple building.[bo]
The Construction of the Temple
6 In the four hundred eightieth year after the people of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, during the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month named Ziv,[bp] which is the second month, Solomon began to build the house for the Lord.
2 The house which King Solomon built for the Lord was ninety feet long, thirty feet wide, and forty-five feet high.[bq] 3 The porch[br] in front of the temple building[bs] was thirty feet wide, the same as the width of the building. It extended out fifteen feet from the front of the building.
4 He made latticed windows[bt] high on the walls of the building.
5 He added a structure along the outer walls of the building, all the way around the three sides of the building. It was built against the walls of both the front room[bu] and the inner room[bv] of the sanctuary. In this structure he constructed three levels of storage rooms, all the way around the building. 6 The width of the rooms on the lowest story was seven and a half feet. The rooms of the middle story were nine feet wide, and the rooms of the third story were ten and a half feet wide, because he had built three receding ledges into the outside wall of the temple building all the way around, so that the floor beams of each story would not have to be inserted into the walls of the main building.
7 While the building was under construction, only stones that had been finished at the quarry were used in the building. No hammer or chisel or any other iron tool was heard in the building while it was under construction. 8 The entrance into the lowest story[bw] of the side rooms was on the south side[bx] of the building. Winding stairs[by] went up to the middle floor, and also from the middle floor to the third floor. 9 So Solomon finished building the house, and he covered[bz] the house with beams and planks of cedar. 10 He built the floors for the storerooms that were all around the house. Each story was seven and a half feet high. Each story was supported by cedar timbers which rested on the receding ledges constructed along the walls of the building.[ca]
11 The word of the Lord came to Solomon. He said, 12 “In regard to this house which you are building, if you walk according to my statutes and carry out my ordinances and keep all my commands by walking according to them, you will be the one through whom I will fulfill my promise which I spoke to your father David. 13 I will dwell among the descendants of Israel, and I will not forsake my people Israel.”
14 So Solomon finished building the house. 15 He paneled the inside walls of the building with cedar boards, from the floor of the building to the rafters[cb] of the ceiling. He covered the inside walls with wood. He also covered the floor of the building with boards of fir wood.
16 Thirty feet from the back wall of the building he built a wall of cedar boards from the floor to the ceiling. He built this wall inside the building to create an inner sanctuary, the Most Holy Place.
17 The front part of the building became a main room sixty feet long. 18 Gourds[cc] and open flowers were carved into the cedar on the inside of the building. Everything was covered with cedar. No stone was visible.
19 He prepared the inner room of the sanctuary inside the building as a place to set the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord. 20 The inner sanctuary was thirty feet long, thirty feet wide, and thirty feet high, and he overlaid it with pure gold.
He also overlaid the cedar altar with gold. 21 So Solomon covered the inside of the building with pure gold. He stretched gold chains across the front of the inner sanctuary, and he overlaid the sanctuary with gold. 22 He overlaid the whole building with gold, until the whole building had been covered. He also overlaid the whole altar, which was in front of the inner sanctuary, with gold.
The Cherubim
23 For the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim[cd] of olive wood. Each one was fifteen feet tall. 24 Seven and a half feet was the length of one wing of a cherub, and seven and a half feet was the length of the other wing of a cherub. The distance from the tip of one wing to the tip of the other was fifteen feet.[ce] 25 The other cherub also was fifteen feet wide. Both of the cherubim were the same size and looked the same. 26 One cherub was fifteen feet tall, and so was the other cherub. 27 He set the cherubim inside the inner sanctuary of the house. The wings of the cherubim were stretched out, so that the outer wing of the first one touched the wall, and the outer wing of the other cherub touched the opposite wall, and their wings touched one another in the middle of the room. 28 He overlaid the cherubim with gold.
29 He decorated the walls on all sides of both rooms of the building with carved figures of cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers. 30 He overlaid the floor of the building with gold in both the inner and outer rooms.
The Doors
31 For the entrance to the inner sanctuary, he made olive wood doors with five-sided frames.[cf] 32 He carved cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers on them and overlaid them with gold. He shaped sheets of hammered gold to cover the cherubim and the palm trees.
33 He did the same for the entrance to the front room. It had door posts of olive wood that were four-sided 34 and two doors of fir wood. The door on one side was made with two folding leaves, and the door on the other side was made with two folding leaves. 35 He carved cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers on them, and he overlaid them with gold leaf, shaped to the carvings.
The Courtyard
36 He built the inner courtyard with three courses of cut stone and one course of cedar beams.
37 The foundation of the Lord’s house was laid in the fourth year, in the month named Ziv.[cg] 38 In the eleventh year, in the month named Bul,[ch] which is the eighth month, all the parts of the house were finished according to all its specifications. Solomon had spent seven years building it.
The Five Buildings of Solomon’s Palace Complex
7 It took Solomon thirteen years to finish building his whole palace complex.
The House of the Forest of Lebanon
2 He built the House of the Forest of Lebanon. It was one hundred fifty feet long. It was seventy-five feet wide and forty-five feet high. It had four rows[ci] of cedar pillars, with cedar beams on top of the pillars. 3 It was roofed with cedar above the forty-five beams that rested on the pillars, fifteen beams in each row.[cj]
4 There were three rows[ck] of windows with recessed frames on each side of the building. 5 All the doors and posts were made with square beams.[cl] They were arranged in groups of three.
The Hall of Pillars
6 He built a pillared entry hall.[cm] It was seventy-five feet wide and forty-five feet deep. There was another porch in front of the pillars, and more pillars and a canopy in front of them.
The Hall of Justice
7 He made another hall, named the Hall of Justice. The throne from which he judged cases was located there. The hall was covered with cedar from floor to ceiling.[cn]
Palaces for Solomon and Pharaoh’s Daughter
8 His house in which he lived was made the same way. It was on the other side of a courtyard behind the Hall of Pillars.[co] Solomon also made another house like this hall for Pharaoh’s daughter, whom he had married.
9 All of these were made of high-quality stone, precisely cut to the exact measure, trimmed with saws on both sides. Such stones were used from the foundation to the edge of the roof, from the outside of the complex to the great courtyard on the inside. 10 The foundation was made of high-quality stones, huge stones, twelve or fifteen feet long. 11 Above this were high-quality stones, precisely cut, with layers of cedar wood in between. 12 The great courtyard all the way around had three courses of cut stone and then a course of cedar beams, like the inner courtyard of the House of the Lord and the porch of that building.
The Chief Craftsman
13 King Solomon sent for Hiram[cp] from Tyre. 14 He was the son of a widow from the tribe of Naphtali, but his father was a craftsman in bronze from Tyre. Hiram too was filled with wisdom, understanding, and skill for all kinds of work in bronze. He came to King Solomon and performed the work for him.
The Large Bronze Pillars
15 He cast two bronze pillars, each twenty-seven feet tall. Their circumference was eighteen feet.
16 He made two capitals of cast bronze to set on top of the pillars. The height of one capital was seven and a half feet, and the height of the other capital was seven and a half feet. 17 The capitals that sat on top of the pillars were decorated with a latticework of interwoven chains. There were seven rows of decoration on one capital and seven rows on the other capital. 18 This is how he made the pillars: He made two rows of pomegranates to go above the latticework on the capitals that were on top of the pillars.[cq] He did this for each pillar. 19 The capitals that were on top of the pillars for the porch were shaped like lilies, six feet tall. 20 On top of each pillar, above the bulge, beside the latticework, there were two hundred pomegranates arranged in rows all the way around.[cr]
21 He set up the pillars on the porch of the temple building. He set up one pillar on the south and named it Jakin,[cs] and he set up the other pillar on the north and named it Boaz.[ct] 22 The tops of the pillars were shaped like lilies. In this way the work for the pillars was finished.
The Sea
23 He made the sea of cast metal. It was round, fifteen feet from rim to rim. It was seven and a half feet high. Its circumference was forty-five feet. 24 Under its rim all the way around there were round, gourd-shaped ornaments, one every two inches, all the way around the sea.[cu] The ornaments were in two rows, cast as one piece with the sea. 25 The sea stood on twelve cattle, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The sea was set on them. All their hindquarters faced toward the center of the sea. 26 The sea was three inches[cv] thick. Its rim was shaped like the rim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It held twelve thousand gallons.[cw]
The Carts
27 He made ten bronze carts. Each cart was six feet long and six feet wide and four and a half feet tall. 28 This is how the carts were constructed: They had side panels between supporting frames. 29 The panels between the frames were decorated with lions, cattle, and cherubim. On the frames, both above and below the lions and cattle, there were wreaths hanging down.[cx] 30 Each cart had four bronze wheels with bronze axles, and at each of the four corners of the cart there were supports for the basin, with wreaths beside each of them. 31 The opening on top of the cart within a crowning structure was a foot and a half deep. The opening was round. It had a supporting pedestal a little more than two feet tall.[cy] Around the opening there were engravings, and the panel that surrounded the opening was square, not round.
32 The four wheels were underneath the side panels, and the axles for the wheels were inserted through the cart. The height of each wheel was twenty-seven inches. 33 The wheels were made like a chariot wheel. Their axles, rims, spokes, and hubs were all of cast metal. 34 There were supports at each of the four corners of each cart. The supports were part of the cart itself. 35 In the top of the cart there was a round opening nine inches deep.[cz] On top of the cart the supports and its panels were one piece with it. 36 On the panels between the supports he engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees wherever there was room, with wreaths all around. 37 That is how he made the carts. All of them were cast with the same mold, so they had the same size and shape.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.