KJV-Parallel Bibles
1. Now king David was old and stricken in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he gat no heat.
2. Wherefore his servants said unto him, Let there be sought for my lord the king a young virgin: and let her stand before the king, and let her cherish him, and let her lie in thy bosom, that my lord the king may get heat.
3. So they sought for a fair damsel throughout all the coasts of Israel, and found Abishag a Shunammite, and brought her to the king.
4. And the damsel was very fair, and cherished the king, and ministered to him: but the king knew her not.
5. Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, I will be king: and he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him.
6. And his father had not displeased him at any time in saying, Why hast thou done so? and he also was a very goodly man; and his mother bare him after Absalom.
7. And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest: and they following Adonijah helped him.
8. But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men which belonged to David, were not with Adonijah.
9. And Adonijah slew sheep and oxen and fat cattle by the stone of Zoheleth, which is by En-rogel, and called all his brethren the king's sons, and all the men of Judah the king's servants:
10. But Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he called not.
11. Wherefore Nathan spake unto Bath-sheba the mother of Solomon, saying, Hast thou not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith doth reign, and David our lord knoweth it not?
12. Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon.
13. Go and get thee in unto king David, and say unto him, Didst not thou, my lord, O king, swear unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? why then doth Adonijah reign?
14. Behold, while thou yet talkest there with the king, I also will come in after thee, and confirm thy words.
15. And Bath-sheba went in unto the king into the chamber: and the king was very old; and Abishag the Shunammite ministered unto the king.
16. And Bath-sheba bowed, and did obeisance unto the king. And the king said, What wouldest thou?
17. And she said unto him, My lord, thou swarest by the LORD thy God unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne.
18. And now, behold, Adonijah reigneth; and now, my lord the king, thou knowest it not:
19. And he hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the sons of the king, and Abiathar the priest, and Joab the captain of the host: but Solomon thy servant hath he not called.
20. And thou, my lord, O king, the eyes of all Israel are upon thee, that thou shouldest tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him.
21. Otherwise it shall come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders.
22. And, lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet also came in.
23. And they told the king, saying, Behold Nathan the prophet. And when he was come in before the king, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground.
24. And Nathan said, My lord, O king, hast thou said, Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne?
25. For he is gone down this day, and hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the king's sons, and the captains of the host, and Abiathar the priest; and, behold, they eat and drink before him, and say, God save king Adonijah.
26. But me, even me thy servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and thy servant Solomon, hath he not called.
27. Is this thing done by my lord the king, and thou hast not shewed it unto thy servant, who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?
28. Then king David answered and said, Call me Bath-sheba. And she came into the king's presence, and stood before the king.
29. And the king sware, and said, As the LORD liveth, that hath redeemed my soul out of all distress,
30. Even as I sware unto thee by the LORD God of Israel, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my stead; even so will I certainly do this day.
31. Then Bath-sheba bowed with her face to the earth, and did reverence to the king, and said, Let my lord king David live for ever.
32. And king David said, Call me Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the king.
33. The king also said unto them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon:
34. And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there king over Israel: and blow ye with the trumpet, and say, God save king Solomon.
35. Then ye shall come up after him, that he may come and sit upon my throne; for he shall be king in my stead: and I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.
36. And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, and said, Amen: the LORD God of my lord the king say so too.
37. As the LORD hath been with my lord the king, even so be he with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord king David.
38. So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, went down, and caused Solomon to ride upon king David's mule, and brought him to Gihon.
39. And Zadok the priest took an horn of oil out of the tabernacle, and anointed Solomon. And they blew the trumpet; and all the people said, God save king Solomon.
40. And all the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth rent with the sound of them.
41. And Adonijah and all the guests that were with him heard it as they had made an end of eating. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, Wherefore is this noise of the city being in an uproar?
42. And while he yet spake, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came: and Adonijah said unto him, Come in; for thou art a valiant man, and bringest good tidings.
43. And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, Verily our lord king David hath made Solomon king.
44. And the king hath sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and they have caused him to ride upon the king's mule:
45. And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon: and they are come up from thence rejoicing, so that the city rang again. This is the noise that ye have heard.
46. And also Solomon sitteth on the throne of the kingdom.
47. And moreover the king's servants came to bless our lord king David, saying, God make the name of Solomon better than thy name, and make his throne greater than thy throne. And the king bowed himself upon the bed.
48. And also thus said the king, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which hath given one to sit on my throne this day, mine eyes even seeing it.
49. And all the guests that were with Adonijah were afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way.
50. And Adonijah feared because of Solomon, and arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.
51. And it was told Solomon, saying, Behold, Adonijah feareth king Solomon: for, lo, he hath caught hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear unto me to day that he will not slay his servant with the sword.
52. And Solomon said, If he will shew himself a worthy man, there shall not an hair of him fall to the earth: but if wickedness shall be found in him, he shall die.
53. So king Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and bowed himself to king Solomon: and Solomon said unto him, Go to thine house.
1. Now King David was old and far on in years; and though they put covers over him, his body was cold.
2. So his servants said to him, Let search be made for a young virgin for my lord the king, to take care of him and be waiting on him; and you may take her in your arms, and so my lord the king will be warm.
3. So after searching through all the land of Israel for a fair young girl, they saw Abishag the Shunammite, and took her to the king.
4. Now she was very beautiful; and she took care of the king, waiting on him at all times; but the king had no connection with her.
5. Then Adonijah, the son of Haggith, lifting himself up in pride, said, I will become king; and he made ready his carriages of war and his horsemen, with fifty runners to go before him.
6. Now all his life his father had never gone against him or said to him, Why have you done so? and he was a very good-looking man, and younger than Absalom.
7. And he had talk with Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest; and they were on his side and gave him their support.
8. But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei, and David's men of war did not take the side of Adonijah.
9. Then Adonijah put to death sheep and oxen and fat beasts by the stone of Zoheleth, by En-rogel; and he sent for all his brothers, the king's sons, and all the men of Judah, the king's servants, to come to him:
10. But he did not send for Nathan the prophet and Benaiah and the other men of war and Solomon his brother.
11. Then Nathan said to Bath-sheba, the mother of Solomon, Has it not come to your ears that Adonijah, the son of Haggith, has made himself king without the knowledge of David our lord?
12. So now, let me make a suggestion, so that you may keep your life safe and the life of your son Solomon.
13. Come now, go to King David and say to him, Did you not, O my lord, take an oath to me, your servant, saying, Truly Solomon your son will be king after me, seated on the seat of my kingdom? why then is Adonijah acting as king?
14. And while you are still talking there with the king, see, I will come in after you and say that your story is true.
15. Then Bath-sheba went into the king's room; now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was waiting on him.
16. And Bath-sheba went down on her face on the earth before the king giving him honour. And he said, What is your desire?
17. And she said to him, My lord, you took an oath by the Lord your God and gave your word to your servant, saying, Truly, Solomon your son will be king after me, seated on the seat of my kingdom.
18. And now, see, Adonijah has made himself king without my lord's knowledge;
19. And has put to death oxen and fat beasts and sheep in great numbers, and has sent for all the sons of the king, and Abiathar the priest, and Joab, the captain of the army; but he has not sent for Solomon your servant.
20. And now, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you, waiting for you to say who is to take the place of my lord the king after him.
21. For as things are, it will come about, when my lord the king is sleeping with his fathers, that I and Solomon my son will be made outlaws.
22. And while she was still talking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in.
23. And they said to the king, Here is Nathan the prophet. And when he came in before the king, he went down on his face on the earth.
24. And Nathan said, O my lord king, have you said, Adonijah is to be king after me, seated on the seat of my kingdom?
25. Because today he has gone down and has put to death oxen and fat beasts and sheep in great numbers, and has sent for all the king's sons to come to him, with the captains of the army and Abiathar the priest; and they are feasting before him and crying, Long life to King Adonijah!
26. But me, your servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and your servant Solomon, he has not sent for.
27. Has this thing been done by my lord the king, without giving word to your servants who was to be placed on my lord the king's seat after him?
28. Then King David in answer said, Send for Bath-sheba to come to me. And she came in and took her place before the king.
29. And the king took an oath, and said, By the living Lord, who has been my saviour from all my troubles,
30. As I took an oath to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, saying, Certainly Solomon your son will become king after me, seated on my seat in my place; so will I do this day.
31. Then Bath-sheba went down on her face on the earth before the king giving him honour, and said, May my lord King David go on living for ever.
32. And King David said, Send for Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada. And they came before the king.
33. And the king said to them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and put Solomon my son on my beast, yes, mine, and take him down to Gihon;
34. And there let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet put the holy oil on him to make him king over Israel; and sounding the horn say, Long life to King Solomon!
35. Then come up after him and he will come in and take his place on the seat of my kingdom; for he is to be king in my place, and I have given orders that he is to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.
36. And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, answering the king, said, So be it: and may the Lord, the God of my lord the king, say so.
37. As the Lord has been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon and make the seat of his authority greater than that of my lord King David.
38. So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, went down and put Solomon on King David's beast and took him to Gihon.
39. And Zadok the priest took the vessel of oil out of the Tent, and put the holy oil on Solomon. And when the horn was sounded, all the people said, Long life to King Solomon!
40. And all the people came up after him, piping with pipes, and they were glad with great joy, so that the earth was shaking with the sound.
41. And it came to the ears of Adonijah and all the guests who were with him, when their meal was ended. And Joab, hearing the sound of the horn, said, What is the reason of this noise as if the town was worked up?
42. And while the words were on his lips, Jonathan, the son of Abiathar the priest, came; and Adonijah said, Come in; for you are a man of good faith and the news which you have for us will be good.
43. And Jonathan, answering, said to Adonijah, Not so, but our lord King David has made Solomon king:
44. And he sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and they put him on the king's beast:
45. And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet put the holy oil on him and made him king in Gihon; and they came back from there with joy, and the town was all worked up. This is the noise which has come to your ears.
46. And now Solomon is seated on the seat of the kingdom.
47. And the king's servants came to our lord King David, blessing him and saying, May God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and the seat of his authority greater than your seat; and the king was bent low in worship on his bed.
48. Then the king said, May the God of Israel be praised, who has given one of my seed to be king in my place this day and has let my eyes see it.
49. And all the guests of Adonijah got up in fear and went away, every man to his place.
50. And Adonijah himself was full of fear because of Solomon; and he got up and went to the altar, and put his hands on its horns.
51. And they gave Solomon word of it, saying, See, Adonijah goes in such fear of King Solomon, that he has put his hands on the horns of the altar, saying, Let King Solomon first give me his oath that he will not put his servant to death with the sword.
52. And Solomon said, If he is seen to be a man of good faith, not a hair of him will be touched; but if any wrongdoing is seen in him, he is to be put to death.
53. So King Solomon sent, and they took him down from the altar. And he came and gave honour to King Solomon; and Solomon said to him, Go to your house.
Related Links:
KJV Bible ; Preface to the KJV 1611 ; Read the KJV in 1 Year!
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