11 And king David 'is' old, entering into days, and they cover him with garments, and he hath no heat, 2 and his servants say to him, 'Let them seek for my lord the king a young woman, a virgin, and she hath stood before the king, and is to him a companion, and hath lain in thy bosom, and my lord the king hath heat.' 3 And they seek a fair young woman in all the border of Israel, and find Abishag the Shunammite, and bring her in to the king, 4 and the young woman 'is' very very fair, and she is to the king a companion, and serveth him, and the king hath not known her.
5 And Adonijah son of Haggith is lifting himself up, saying, 'I do reign;' and he prepareth for himself a chariot and horsemen, and fifty men running before him, 6 and his father hath not grieved him 'all' his days, saying, 'Wherefore thus hast thou done?' and he also 'is' of a very good form, and 'his mother' bare him after Absalom. 7 And his words are with Joab son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest, and they help after Adonijah; 8 and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty ones whom David hath, have not been with Adonijah. 9 And Adonijah sacrificeth sheep and oxen and fatlings near the stone of Zoheleth, that 'is' by En-Rogel, and calleth all his brethren, sons of the king, and for all the men of Judah, servants of the king; 10 and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty ones, and Solomon his brother, he hath not called.
11 And Nathan speaketh unto Bath-Sheba, mother of Solomon, saying, 'Hast thou not heard that Adonijah son of Haggith hath reigned, and our lord David hath not known? 12 and now, come, let me counsel thee, I pray thee, and deliver thy life, and the life of thy son Solomon; 13 go and enter in unto king David, and thou hast said unto him, Hast thou not, my lord, O king, sworn to thy handmaid, saying, Surely Solomon thy son doth reign after me, and he doth sit on my throne? and wherefore hath Adonijah reigned? 14 Lo, thou are yet speaking there with the king, and I come in after thee, and have completed thy words.' 15 And Bath-Sheba cometh in unto the king, to the inner chamber, and the king 'is' very aged, and Abishag the Shunammite is serving the king: 16 and Bath-Sheba boweth and doth obeisance to the king, and the king saith, 'What—to thee?' 17 And she saith to him, 'My lord, thou hast sworn by Jehovah thy God to thy handmaid: Surely Solomon thy son doth reign after me, and he doth sit on my throne; 18 and now, lo, Adonijah hath reigned, and now, my lord, O king, thou hast not known; 19 and he sacrificeth ox, and fatling, and sheep in abundance, and calleth for all the sons of the king, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab head of the host—and for Solomon thy servant he hath not called. 20 And thou, my lord, O king, the eyes of all Israel 'are' on thee, to declare to them who doth sit on the throne of my lord the king after him; 21 and it hath been, when my lord the king lieth with his fathers, that I have been, I and my son Solomon—'reckoned' sinners.' 22 And lo, she is yet speaking with the king, and Nathan the prophet hath come in; 23 and they declare to the king, saying, 'Lo, Nathan the prophet;' and he cometh in before the king, and boweth himself to the king, on his face to the earth. 24 And Nathan saith, 'My lord, O king, thou hast said, Adonijah doth reign after me, and he doth sit on my throne; 25 for he hath gone down to-day, and doth sacrifice ox, and fatling, and sheep, in abundance, and calleth for all the sons of the king, and for the heads of the host, and for Abiathar the priest, and lo, they are eating and drinking before him, and they say, Let king Adonijah live! 26 'And for me—me, thy servant, and for Zadok the priest, and for Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, and for Solomon thy servant, he hath not called; 27 if from my lord the king this thing hath been, then thou hast not caused thy servant to know who doth sit on the throne of my lord the king after him.'
28 And king David answereth and saith, 'Call for me for Bath-Sheba;' and she cometh in before the king, and standeth before the king. 29 And the king sweareth and saith, 'Jehovah liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity; 30 surely as I sware to thee by Jehovah, God of Israel, saying, Surely Solomon thy son doth reign after me, and he doth sit on my throne in my stead; surely so I do this day.' 31 And Bath-Sheba boweth—face to the earth—and doth obeisance to the king, and saith, 'Let my lord, king David, live to the age.'
32 And king David saith, 'Call for me for Zadok the priest, and for Nathan the prophet, and for Benaiah son of Jehoiada;' and they come in before the king. 33 And the king saith to them, 'Take with you the servants of your lord, and ye have caused Solomon my son to ride on mine own mule, and caused him to go down unto Gihon, 34 and anointed him there hath Zadok the priest—and Nathan the prophet—for king over Israel, and ye have blown with a trumpet, and said, Let king Solomon live; 35 and ye have come up after him, and he hath come in and hath sat on my throne, and he doth reign in my stead, and him I have appointed to be leader over Israel, and over Judah.' 36 And Benaiah son of Jehoiada answereth the king, and saith, 'Amen! so doth Jehovah, God of my lord the king, say; 37 as Jehovah hath been with my lord the king, so is He with Solomon, and doth make his throne greater than the throne of my lord king David.' 38 And Zadok the priest goeth down, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethite, and the Pelethite, and they cause Solomon to ride on the mule of king David, and cause him to go unto Gihon, 39 and Zadok the priest taketh the horn of oil out of the tent, and anointeth Solomon, and they blow with a trumpet, and all the people say, 'Let king Solomon live.' 40 And all the people come up after him, and the people are piping with pipes, and rejoicing—great joy, and the earth rendeth with their voice.
41 And Adonijah heareth, and all those called, who 'are' with him, and they have finished to eat, and Joab heareth the noise of the trumpet, and saith, 'Wherefore 'is' the noise of the city roaring?' 42 He is yet speaking, and lo, Jonathan son of Abiathar the priest hath come in, and Adonijah saith, 'Come in, for a man of valour thou 'art', and thou bearest good tidings.' 43 And Jonathan answereth and saith to Adonijah, 'Verily our lord king David hath caused Solomon to reign, 44 and the king sendeth with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethite, and the Pelethite, and they cause him to ride on the king's mule, 45 and they anoint him—Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet—for king in Gihon, and are come up thence rejoicing, and the city is moved; it 'is' the noise that ye have heard. 46 'And also Solomon hath sat on the throne of the kingdom, 47 and also the servants of the king have come into bless our lord king David, saying, Thy God doth make the name of Solomon better than thy name, and his throne greater than thy throne; and the king boweth himself on the bed, 48 and also thus hath the king said, Blessed 'is' Jehovah, God of Israel, who hath given to-day 'one' sitting on my throne, and mine eyes seeing.' 49 And they tremble, and rise—all those called who 'are' for Adonijah—and go, each on his way; 50 and Adonijah feareth because of Solomon, and riseth, and goeth, and layeth hold on the horns of the altar. 51 And it is declared to Solomon, saying, 'Lo, Adonijah feareth king Solomon, and lo, he hath laid hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear to me as to-day—he doth not put to death his servant by the sword.' 52 And Solomon saith, 'If he becometh a virtuous man—there doth not fall of his hair to the earth, and if evil is found in him—then he hath died.' 53 And king Solomon sendeth, and they bring him down from off the altar, and he cometh in and boweth himself to king Solomon, and Solomon saith to him, 'Go to thy house.'
21 And draw near do the days of David to die, and he chargeth Solomon his son, saying, 2 'I am going in the way of all the earth, and thou hast been strong, and become a man, 3 and kept the charge of Jehovah thy God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commands, and His judgments, and His testimonies, as it is written in the law of Moses, so that thou dost wisely all that thou dost, and whithersoever thou turnest, 4 so that Jehovah doth establish His word which He spake unto me, saying, If thy sons observe their way to walk before Me in truth, with all their heart, and with all their soul; saying, There is not cut off a man of thine from the throne of Israel. 5 'And also, thou hast known that which he did to me—Joab son of Zeruiah—that which he did to two heads of the hosts of Israel, to Abner son of Ner, and to Amasa son of Jether—that he slayeth them, and maketh the blood of war in peace, and putteth the blood of war in his girdle, that 'is' on his loins, and in his sandals that 'are' on his feet; 6 and thou hast done according to thy wisdom, and dost not let his old age go down in peace to Sheol. 7 'And to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite thou dost do kindness, and they have been among those eating at thy table, for so they drew near unto me in my fleeing from the face of Absalom thy brother. 8 'And lo, with thee 'is' Shimei son of Gera, the Benjamite of Bahurim, and he reviled me—a grievous reviling—in the day of my going to Mahanaim; and he hath come down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swear to him by Jehovah, saying, I do not put thee to death by the sword; 9 and now, acquit him not, for a wise man thou 'art', and thou hast known that which thou dost to him, and hast brought down his old age with blood to Sheol.'
10 And David lieth down with his fathers, and is buried in the city of David, 11 and the days that David hath reigned over Israel 'are' forty years, in Hebron he hath reigned seven years, and in Jerusalem he hath reigned thirty and three years.
12 And Solomon hath sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingdom is established greatly,
13 and Adonijah son of Haggith cometh in unto Bath-Sheba, mother of Solomon, and she saith, 'Is thy coming peace?' and he saith, 'Peace.' 14 And he saith, 'I have a word unto thee,' and she saith, 'Speak.' 15 And 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; 16 and now, one petition I am asking of thee—turn not back my face;' and she saith unto him, 'Speak.' 17 And 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.' 18 And Bath-Sheba saith, 'Good; I do speak for thee unto the king.' 19 And 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. 20 And 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.' 21 And she saith, 'Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah thy brother for a wife.' 22 And 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.' 23 And 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; 24 and 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.' 25 And king Solomon sendeth by the hand of Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and he falleth upon him, and he dieth.
26 And 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.' 27 And 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. 28 And 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. 29 And 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.' 30 And 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.' 31 And 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; 32 and 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; 33 yea, 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.' 34 And 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,
35 and 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. 36 And 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; 37 and 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.' 38 And 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. 39 And it cometh to pass, at the end of three years, that flee do two of the servants of Shimei unto Achish son of Maachah, king of Gath, and they declare to Shimei, saying, 'Lo, thy servants 'are' in Gath;' 40 and Shimei riseth, and saddleth his ass, and goeth to Gath, unto Achish, to seek his servants, and Shimei goeth and bringeth his servants from Gath. 41 And it is declared to Solomon that Shimei hath gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and doth return, 42 and the king sendeth and calleth for Shimei, and saith unto him, 'Have I not caused thee to swear by Jehovah—and I testify against thee, saying, In the day of thy going out, and thou hast gone anywhere, thou dost certainly know that thou dost surely die; and thou sayest unto me, The word I have heard 'is' good? 43 and wherefore hast thou not kept the oath of Jehovah, and the charge that I charged upon thee?' 44 And the king saith unto Shimei, 'Thou hast known all the evil that thy heart hath known, which thou didest to David my father, and Jehovah hath turned back thine evil on thy head, 45 and king Solomon 'is' blessed, and the throne of David is established before Jehovah unto the age.' 46 And the king chargeth Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and he goeth out and falleth on him, and he dieth, and the kingdom is established in the hand of Solomon.
28 And having said these things, he went on before, going up to Jerusalem. 29 And it came to pass, as he came nigh to Bethphage and Bethany, unto the mount called of the Olives, he sent two of his disciples, 30 having said, Go away to the village over-against, in which, entering into, ye shall find a colt bound, on which no one of men did ever sit, having loosed it, bring 'it'; 31 and if any one doth question you, Wherefore do ye loose 'it'? thus ye shall say to him—The Lord hath need of it.' 32 And those sent, having gone away, found according as he said to them, 33 and while they are loosing the colt, its owners said unto them, 'Why loose ye the colt?' 34 and they said, 'The Lord hath need of it;' 35 and they brought it unto Jesus, and having cast their garments upon the colt, they did set Jesus upon it. 36 And as he is going, they were spreading their garments in the way, 37 and as he is coming nigh now, at the descent of the mount of the Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began rejoicing to praise God with a great voice for all the mighty works they had seen, 38 saying, 'blessed 'is' he who is coming, a king in the name of the Lord; peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.' 39 And certain of the Pharisees from the multitude said unto him, 'Teacher, rebuke thy disciples;' 40 and he answering said to them, 'I say to you, that, if these shall be silent, the stones will cry out!'
41 And when he came nigh, having seen the city, he wept over it, 42 saying—'If thou didst know, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things for thy peace; but now they were hid from thine eyes. 43 'Because days shall come upon thee, and thine enemies shall cast around thee a rampart, and compass thee round, and press thee on every side, 44 and lay thee low, and thy children within thee, and they shall not leave in thee a stone upon a stone, because thou didst not know the time of thy inspection.'
45 And having entered into the temple, he began to cast forth those selling in it, and those buying, 46 saying to them, 'It hath been written, My house is a house of prayer—but ye made it a den of robbers.' 47 And he was teaching daily in the temple, but the chief priests and the scribes were seeking to destroy him—also the chiefs of the people— 48 and they were not finding what they shall do, for all the people were hanging on him, hearing him.
(Read Luke 19:28-40)
Christ has dominion over all creatures, and may use them as he pleases. He has all men's hearts both under his eye and in his hand. Christ's triumphs, and his disciples' joyful praises, vex proud Pharisees, who are enemies to him and to his kingdom. But Christ, as he despises the contempt of the proud, so he accepts the praises of the humble. Pharisees would silence the praises of Christ, but they cannot; for as God can out of stones raise up children unto Abraham, and turn the stony heart to himself, so he can bring praise out of the mouths of children. And what will be the feelings of men when the Lord returns in glory to judge the world!
(Read Luke 19:41-48)
Who can behold the holy Jesus, looking forward to the miseries that awaited his murderers, weeping over the city where his precious blood was about to be shed, without seeing that the likeness of God in the believer, consists much in good-will and compassion? Surely those cannot be right who take up any doctrines of truth, so as to be hardened towards their fellow-sinners. But let every one remember, that though Jesus wept over Jerusalem, he executed awful vengeance upon it. Though he delights not in the death of a sinner, yet he will surely bring to pass his awful threatenings on those who neglect his salvation. The Son of God did not weep vain and causeless tears, nor for a light matter, nor for himself. He knows the value of souls, the weight of guilt, and how low it will press and sink mankind. May he then come and cleanse our hearts by his Spirit, from all that defiles. May sinners, on every side, become attentive to the words of truth and salvation.
