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¹ And King David was old, going into days. And they covered him with garments, for he had no heat.² And his servants said to him, Let them seek out a young woman for my lord the king, a virgin, and she shall stand before the king, and be a nurse to him, and lie in your bosom, and my lord the king shall have heat.³ And they sought out a beautiful young woman in all the border of Israel. And they found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her in to the king.⁴ And the young woman was exceedingly beautiful, and she was a nurse to the king and served him. But the king did not know her.

⁵ And Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, I will reign. And he prepared a chariot for himself, and horsemen, and fifty men running before his face.⁶ And his father had not troubled him all his days, saying, Why have you done so? And he also was very good of form, and one had borne him after Absalom.⁷ And his words were with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest. And they helped, going after Adonijah.⁸ But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men who were to David, were not with Adonijah.⁹ And Adonijah sacrificed sheep and oxen and fatlings near the Stone of Serpents which is near En-rogel. And he called all his brothers, the sons of the king, and all the men of Judah, the servants of the king.¹⁰ But he did not call Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and his brother Solomon.

¹¹ And Nathan spoke to Bathsheba, the mother of Solomon, saying, Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith reigns, and our lord David does not know?¹² And now, come, please let me counsel you with counsel, and save your life, and the life of your son Solomon.¹³ Go up and go in to King David. And you shall say to him, My lord, O king, have you not sworn to your handmaid, saying, Surely your son Solomon shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne? And why does Adonijah reign?¹⁴ Behold, while you are speaking with the king, then I will come in after you and will confirm your words.¹⁵ And Bathsheba came in to the king, to the inner room. And the king was old, and Abishag the Shunammite was serving the king.¹⁶ And Bathsheba bowed and knelt before the king. And the king said, What shall I do for you?¹⁷ And she said to him, My lord, you have sworn to your handmaid by Jehovah your God, saying , Surely your son Solomon shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne.¹⁸ And now, behold, Adonijah reigns. And now, my lord O king, you have not known.¹⁹ And he sacrifices oxen, and fatlings, and sheep in abundance, and has called all the king's sons, and Abiathar the priest and Joab the commander of the army. But he has not called to your servant Solomon.²⁰ And you, my lord O king, the eyes of Israel are on you, to tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him.²¹ And it will be, when my lord the king lies with his fathers, that I, my son Solomon and I, shall be offenders.²² And, behold, she was speaking with the king, and Nathan the prophet came in.²³ And they told the king, saying, Behold, Nathan the prophet! And he came in before the king and bowed to the king, his nose to the earth.²⁴ And Nathan said, My lord O king, have you said, Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne?²⁵ For he has gone down today and sacrificed oxen, and fatlings, and sheep in abundance, and has called all the king's sons, and the army commanders, and Abiathar the priest. And behold, they are eating and drinking before him, and they aresaying, Let King Adonijah live!²⁶ But as for me, I, your servant, and for Zadok the priest, and for Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and for your servant Solomon, he has not called.²⁷ If this thing is to come about from my lord the king, then you have not caused your servant to know who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him.²⁸ And King David replied and said, Call Bathsheba for me. And she came in before the king, and stood before the king.²⁹ And the king swore and said, As Jehovah lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all distress,³⁰ surely as I swore to you by Jehovah, the God of Israel, saying, Surely your son Solomon shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place; surely so I will do this day.³¹ And Bathsheba bowed her face to the earth, even bowing to the king, and said, Let my lord King David live forever.

³² And King David said, Call Zadok the priest for me and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came in before the king.³³ And the king said to them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and you shall cause my son Solomon to ride on my mule, and cause him to go down to Gihon.³⁴ And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet shall anoint him there as king over Israel. And you shall blow with the ram's horn and shout, Let King Solomon live!³⁵ And you shall come up after him, and let him come and sit on my throne, for he shall reign in my place. For I have appointed him ruler over Israel, and over Judah.³⁶ And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king and said, Amen! So says Jehovah the God of my lord the king.³⁷ As Jehovah has been with my lord the king, so shall He be with Solomon, and shall make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.³⁸ And Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites went out and caused Solomon to ride on King David's mule, and caused him to go to Gihon.³⁹ And Zadok the priest took the horn of oil out of the Tabernacle and anointed Solomon. And they blew with the ram's horn, and all the people shouted, Let King Solomon live!⁴⁰ And all the people came up after him. And the people were piping with pipes, and rejoicing with great joy. And the earth was torn with their sound.

⁴¹ And Adonijah heard, and all those invited, who were with him. And they stopped eating. And Joab heard the sound of the ram's horn, and said, What is this noise roaring from the city?⁴² And he was still speaking, and, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came in. And Adonijah said, Come in, for you are a mighty man and bear good news.⁴³ And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, Truly our lord, King David, has caused Solomon to reign.⁴⁴ And the king sent Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet with him, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites. And they caused him to ride on the king's mule.⁴⁵ And they anointed him, Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet, as king in Gihon. And they have come up from there rejoicing. And the city was roaring. It is the noise that you heard.⁴⁶ And also Solomon has sat on the throne of the kingdom.⁴⁷ And also the king's servants have come in to bless our lord, King David, saying, Your God shall make the name of Solomon better than your name, and his throne greater than your throne. And the king bowed himself on the bed.⁴⁸ And also the king has said, Blessed is Jehovah the God of Israel who has today given one sitting on my throne, and my eyes seeing it.⁴⁹ And they trembled and rose up, all those who were invited by Adonijah, and left, each to his way.⁵⁰ And Adonijah was afraid because of Solomon, and he rose up and went and lay hold on the horns of the altar.⁵¹ And it was told to Solomon, saying, Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon. And, behold, he has laid hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let King Solomon swear to me as of today that he will not put his servant to death by the sword.⁵² And Solomon said, If he becomes a son of virtue, not a hair of his head shall fall to the earth. But if evil is found in him, then he shall die.⁵³ And King Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came in and bowed to King Solomon. And Solomon said to him, Go to your house.