1 Kings 2:13-38

¹³and Adonijah son of Haggith cometh in unto Bath-Sheba, mother of Solomon, and she saith, 'Is thy coming peace?' and he saith, 'Peace.'

¹⁴And he saith, 'I have a word unto thee,' and she saith, 'Speak.'

¹⁵And he saith, 'Thou hast known that the kingdom was mine, and towards me set their faces had all Israel for reigning, and the kingdom is turned round about, and is my brother's, for from Jehovah it was his;

¹⁶and now, one petition I am asking of thee — turn not back my face;' and she saith unto him, 'Speak.'

¹⁷And he saith, 'Speak, I pray thee, to Solomon the king, for he doth not turn back thy face, and he doth give to me Abishag the Shunammite for a wife.'

¹⁸And Bath-Sheba saith, 'Good; I do speak for thee unto the king.'

¹⁹And Bath-Sheba cometh in unto king Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah, and the king riseth to meet her, and boweth himself to her, and sitteth on his throne, and placeth a throne for the mother of the king, and she sitteth at his right hand.

²⁰And she saith, 'One small petition I ask of thee, turn not back my face;' and the king saith to her, 'Ask, my mother, for I do not turn back thy face.'

²¹And she saith, 'Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah thy brother for a wife.'

²²And king Solomon answereth and saith to his mother, 'And why art thou asking Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? also ask for him the kingdom — for he is mine elder brother — even for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab son of Zeruiah.'

²³And king Solomon sweareth by Jehovah, saying, 'Thus doth God to me, and thus He doth add — surely against his soul hath Adonijah spoken this word;

²⁴and now, Jehovah liveth, who hath established me, and causeth me to sit on the throne of David my father, and who hath made for me an house as He spake — surely to-day is Adonijah put to death.'

²⁵And king Solomon sendeth by the hand of Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and he falleth upon him, and he dieth.

²⁶And to Abiathar the priest said the king, 'To Anathoth go, unto thy fields; for a man of death thou art, but in this day I do not put thee to death, because thou hast borne the ark of the Lord Jehovah before David my father, and because thou wast afflicted in all that my father was afflicted in.'

²⁷And Solomon casteth out Abiathar from being priest to Jehovah, to fulfil the word of Jehovah which He spake concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.

²⁸And the report hath come unto Joab — for Joab hath turned aside after Adonijah, though after Absalom he did not turn aside — and Joab fleeth unto the tent of Jehovah, and layeth hold on the horns of the altar.

²⁹And it is declared to king Solomon that Joab hath fled unto the tent of Jehovah, and lo, near the altar; and Solomon sendeth Benaiah son of Jehoiada, saying, 'Go, fall upon him.'

³⁰And Benaiah cometh in unto the tent of Jehovah, and saith unto him, 'Thus said the king, Come out;' and he saith, 'Nay, but here I die.' And Benaiah bringeth back the king word, saying, 'Thus spake Joab, yea, thus he answered me.'

³¹And the king saith to him, 'Do as he hath spoken, and fall upon him, and thou hast buried him, and turned aside the causeless blood which Joab shed, from off me, and from off the house of my father;

³²and Jehovah hath turned back his blood on his own head, who hath fallen on two men more righteous and better than he, and slayeth them with the sword, — and my father David knew not — Abner son of Ner, head of the host of Israel, and Amasa son of Jether, head of the host of Judah;

³³yea, turned back hath their blood on the head of Joab, and on the head of his seed to the age; and for David, and for his seed, and for his house, and for his throne, there is peace unto the age, from Jehovah.'

³⁴And Benaiah son of Jehoiada goeth up and falleth upon him, and putteth him to death, and he is buried in his own house in the wilderness,

³⁵and the king putteth Benaiah son of Jehoiada in his stead over the host, and Zadok the priest hath the king put in the stead of Abiathar.

³⁶And the king sendeth and calleth for Shimei, and saith to him, 'Build for thee a house in Jerusalem, and thou hast dwelt there, and dost not go out thence any where;

³⁷and it hath been, in the day of thy going out, and thou hast passed over the brook Kidron, thou dost certainly know that thou dost surely die — thy blood is on thy head.'

³⁸And Shimei saith to the king, 'The word is good; as my lord the king hath spoken so doth thy servant do;' and Shimei dwelleth in Jerusalem many days.