The Living Bible (107 page)
Authors: Inc. Tyndale House Publishers
Tags: #BIBLES / Other Translations / Text
In his old age King David was confined to his bed; but no matter how many blankets were heaped upon him, he was always cold.
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“The cure for this,” his aides told him, “is to find a young virgin to be your concubine and nurse. She will lie in your arms and keep you warm.”
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So they searched the country from one end to the other to find the most beautiful girl in all the land. Abishag, from Shunam, was finally selected. They brought her to the king, and she lay in his arms to warm him (but he had no sexual relations with her).
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At about that time, David’s son
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Adonijah (his mother was Haggith) decided to crown himself king in place of his aged father. So he hired chariots and drivers and recruited fifty men to run down the streets before him as royal footmen.
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Now his father, King David, had never disciplined him at any time—not so much as by a single scolding! He was a very handsome man and was Absalom’s younger brother.
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He took General Joab and Abiathar the priest into his confidence, and they agreed to help him become king.
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But among those who remained loyal to King David and refused to endorse Adonijah were the priests Zadok and Benaiah, the prophet Nathan, Shimei, Rei, and David’s army chiefs.
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Adonijah went to En-rogel where he sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fat young goats at the Serpent’s Stone. Then he summoned all of his brothers—the other sons of King David—and all the royal officials of Judah, requesting that they come to his coronation.
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But he didn’t invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the loyal army officers, or his brother Solomon.
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Then Nathan the prophet went to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, and asked her, “Do you realize that Haggith’s son, Adonijah, is now the king and that our lord David doesn’t even know about it?
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If you want to save your own life and the life of your son Solomon—do exactly as I say!
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Go at once to King David and ask him, ‘My lord, didn’t you promise me that my son Solomon would be the next king and would sit upon your throne? Then why is Adonijah reigning?’
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And while you are still talking with him, I’ll come and confirm everything you’ve said.”
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So Bathsheba went into the king’s bedroom. He was an old, old man now, and Abishag was caring for him.
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Bathsheba bowed low before him.
“What do you want?” he asked her.
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She replied, “My lord, you vowed to me by the Lord your God that my son Solomon would be the next king and would sit upon your throne.
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But instead, Adonijah is the new king, and you don’t even know about it.
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He has celebrated his coronation by sacrificing oxen, fat goats, and many sheep and has invited all your sons and Abiathar the priest and General Joab. But he didn’t invite Solomon.
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And now, my lord the king, all Israel is waiting for your decision as to whether Adonijah is the one you have chosen to succeed you.
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If you don’t act, my son Solomon and I will be arrested and executed as criminals as soon as you are dead.”
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While she was speaking, the king’s aides told him, “Nathan the prophet is here to see you.”
Nathan came in and bowed low before the king,
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and asked, “My lord, have you appointed Adonijah to be the next king? Is he the one you have selected to sit upon your throne?
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Today he celebrated his coronation by sacrificing oxen, fat goats, and many sheep, and has invited your sons to attend the festivities. He also invited General Joab and Abiathar the priest; and they are feasting and drinking with him and shouting, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’
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But Zadok the priest and Benaiah and Solomon and I weren’t invited.
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Has this been done with your knowledge? For you haven’t said a word as to which of your sons you have chosen to be the next king.”
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“Call Bathsheba,” David said. So she came back in and stood before the king.
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And the king vowed, “As the Lord lives who has rescued me from every danger,
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I decree that your son Solomon shall be the next king and shall sit upon my throne, just as I swore to you before by the Lord God of Israel.”
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Then Bathsheba bowed low before him
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again and exclaimed, “Oh, thank you, sir. May my lord the king live forever!”
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“Call Zadok the priest,” the king ordered, “and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah.”
When they arrived,
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he said to them, “Take Solomon and my officers to Gihon. Solomon is to ride on my personal mule,
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and Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet are to anoint him there as king of Israel. Then blow the trumpets and shout, ‘Long live King Solomon!’
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When you bring him back here, place him upon my throne as the new king; for I have appointed him king of Israel and Judah.”
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“Amen! Praise God!” replied Benaiah, and added,
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“May the Lord be with Solomon as he has been with you, and may God make Solomon’s reign even greater than yours!”
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So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, and David’s bodyguard took Solomon to Gihon, riding on King David’s own mule.
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At Gihon, Zadok took a flask of sacred oil from the Tabernacle and poured it over Solomon; and the trumpets were blown and all the people shouted, “Long live King Solomon!”
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Then they all returned with him to Jerusalem, making a joyous and noisy celebration all along the way.
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Adonijah and his guests heard the commotion and shouting just as they were finishing their banquet.
“What’s going on?” Joab demanded. “Why is the city in such an uproar?”
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And while he was still speaking, Jonathan, the son of Abiathar the priest, rushed in.
“Come in,” Adonijah said to him, “for you are a good man; you must have good news.”
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“Our lord King David has declared Solomon as king!” Jonathan shouted.
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“The king sent him to Gihon with Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet and Benaiah, protected by the king’s own bodyguard; and he rode on the king’s own mule. And Zadok and Nathan have anointed him as the new king! They have just returned, and the whole city is celebrating and rejoicing. That’s what all the noise is.
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Solomon is sitting on the throne, and all the people are congratulating King David, saying, ‘May God bless you even more through Solomon than he has blessed you personally! May God make Solomon’s reign even greater than yours!’ And the king is lying in bed, acknowledging their blessings.
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He is saying, ‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel who has selected one of my sons to sit upon my throne while I am still alive to see it.’”
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Then Adonijah and his guests jumped up from the banquet table and fled in panic; for they were fearful for their lives. Adonijah rushed into the Tabernacle and caught hold of the horns of the sacred altar.
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When word reached Solomon that Adonijah was claiming sanctuary in the Tabernacle, and pleading for clemency,
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Solomon replied, “If he behaves himself, he will not be harmed; but if he does not, he shall die.”
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So King Solomon summoned him, and they brought him down from the altar. He came to bow low before the king; and then Solomon curtly dismissed him.
“Go on home,” he said.
As the time of King David’s death approached, he gave this charge to his son Solomon:
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“I am going where every man on earth must some day go. I am counting on you to be a strong and worthy successor.
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Obey the laws of God and follow all his ways; keep each of his commands written in the law of Moses so that you will prosper in everything you do, wherever you turn.
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If you do this, then the Lord will fulfill the promise he gave me, that if my children and their descendants watch their step and are faithful to God, one of them shall always be the king of Israel—my dynasty will never end.
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“Now listen to my instructions. You know that Joab murdered my two generals, Abner and Amasa. He pretended that it was an act of war, but it was done in a time of peace.
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You are a wise man and will know what to do—don’t let him die in peace.
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But be kind to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite. Make them permanent guests of the king, for they took care of me when I fled from your brother Absalom.
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And do you remember Shimei, the son of Gera the Benjaminite from Bahurim? He cursed me with a terrible curse as I was going to Mahanaim; but when he came down to meet me at the Jordan River, I promised I wouldn’t kill him.
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But that promise doesn’t bind you! You are a wise man, and you will know how to arrange a bloody death for him.”
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Then David died and was buried in Jerusalem.
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He had reigned over Israel for forty years, seven of them in Hebron and thirty-three in Jerusalem.
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And Solomon became the new king, replacing his father David; and his kingdom prospered.
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One day Adonijah, the son of Haggith, came to see Solomon’s mother, Bathsheba.
“Have you come to make trouble?” she asked him.
“No,” he replied, “I come in peace.
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As a matter of fact, I have a favor to ask of you.”
“What is it?” she asked.
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“Everything was going well for me,” he said, “and the kingdom was mine: everyone expected me to be the next king. But the tables are turned, and everything went to my brother instead; for that is the way the Lord wanted it.
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But now I have just a small favor to ask of you; please don’t turn me down.”
“What is it?” she asked.
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He replied, “Speak to King Solomon on my behalf (for I know he will do anything you request) and ask him to give me Abishag, the Shunammite, as my wife.”
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“All right,” Bathsheba replied, “I’ll ask him.”
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So she went to ask the favor of King Solomon. The king stood up from his throne as she entered and bowed low to her. He ordered that a throne for his mother be placed beside his; so she sat at his right hand.
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“I have one small request to make of you,” she said. “I hope you won’t turn me down.”
“What is it, my mother?” he asked. “You know I won’t refuse you.”
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“Then let your brother Adonijah marry Abishag,” she replied.
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“Are you crazy?” he demanded. “If I were to give him Abishag, I would be giving him the kingdom too! For he is my older brother! He and Abiathar the priest and General Joab would take over!”
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Then King Solomon swore with a great oath, “May God strike me dead if Adonijah does not die this very day for this plot against me! I swear it by the living God who has given me the throne of my father David and this kingdom he promised me.”
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So King Solomon sent Benaiah to execute him, and he killed him with a sword.
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Then the king said to Abiathar the priest, “Go back to your home in Anathoth. You should be killed, too, but I won’t do it now. For you carried the Ark of the Lord during my father’s reign, and you suffered right along with him in all of his troubles.”
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So Solomon forced Abiathar to give up his position as the priest of the Lord, thereby fulfilling the decree of Jehovah at Shiloh concerning the descendants of Eli.
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When Joab heard about Adonijah’s death (Joab had joined Adonijah’s revolt, though not Absalom’s) he ran to the Tabernacle for sanctuary and caught hold of the horns of the altar.
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When news of this reached King Solomon, he sent Benaiah to execute him.
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Benaiah went into the Tabernacle and said to Joab, “The king says to come out!”
“No,” he said, “I’ll die here.”
So Benaiah returned to the king for further instructions.
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“Do as he says,” the king replied. “Kill him there beside the altar and bury him. This will remove the guilt of his senseless murders from me and from my father’s family.
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Then Jehovah will hold him personally responsible for the murders of two men who were better than he. For my father was no party to the deaths of General Abner, commander-in-chief of the army of Israel, and General Amasa, commander-in-chief of the army of Judah.
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May Joab and his descendants be forever guilty of these murders, and may the Lord declare David and his descendants guiltless concerning their deaths.”
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So Benaiah returned to the Tabernacle and killed Joab; and he was buried beside his house in the desert.
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Then the king appointed Benaiah as commander-in-chief, and Zadok as priest instead of Abiathar.
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The king now sent for Shimei and told him, “Build a house here in Jerusalem, and don’t step outside the city on pain of death. The moment you go beyond Kidron Brook, you die; and it will be your own fault.”
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“All right,” Shimei replied, “whatever you say.” So he lived in Jerusalem for a long time.
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But three years later two of Shimei’s slaves escaped to King Achish of Gath. When Shimei learned where they were,
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he saddled a donkey and went to Gath to visit the king. And when he had found his slaves, he took them back to Jerusalem.
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When Solomon heard that Shimei had left Jerusalem and had gone to Gath and returned,
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he sent for him and demanded, “Didn’t I command you in the name of God to stay in Jerusalem or die? You replied, ‘Very well, I will do as you say.’
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Then why have you not kept your agreement and obeyed my commandment?
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And what about all the wicked things you did to my father, King David? May the Lord take revenge on you,
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but may I receive God’s rich blessings, and may one of David’s descendants always sit upon this throne.”
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Then, at the king’s command, Benaiah took Shimei outside and killed him.
So Solomon’s grip upon the kingdom became secure.