When David’s ^atime to die approached, he gave instructions to Solomon his son, saying, 2 “^aI am going the way of all the earth as dust to dust. ^bBe strong and prove yourself a man. 3 Keep the charge of the LORD your God, that is, fulfill your obligation to walk in His ways, keep His statutes, His commandments, His precepts, and His testimonies, ^aas it is written in the Law of Moses, so that ^byou may succeed in everything that you do and wherever you turn, 4 so that ^athe LORD may fulfill His ¹promise concerning me, saying, ‘^bIf your sons are careful regarding their way of life, ^cto walk before Me in truth with all their heart and mind and with all their soul, you ^dshall not fail to have a man (descendant) on the throne of Israel.’

5 “Now you also know what Joab the ^ason of Zeruiah my sister did to me, and what he did to the two commanders of the armies of Israel, ^bto Abner the son of Ner and ^cto Amasa the son of Jether, both of whom he murdered; ¹avenging the blood of war in a time of peace. And he put the innocent blood of war of Abner and Amasa on his ²belt that was around his ³waist, and on his sandals on his feet. 6 ^aSo act in accordance with your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to Sheol (the place of the dead) in peace. 7 But ^abe gracious and kind to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and ^blet them be among those who have the honor to eat at your table; ^cfor they met me with kindness when I fled from your brother Absalom. 2+@Sam 17:27-29 8 And look, ^ayou have with you Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite of Bahurim; he is the one who cursed me with a sinister curse the day I went to Mahanaim. But ^bhe came down to meet me at the Jordan on my return, and I swore to him by the LORD, saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’ 9 But now do not let him go unpunished, ^afor you are a wise man; and you will know what to do to him, and you will bring his gray head down to Sheol covered with blood.”

10 So ^aDavid lay down with his fathers in death and was buried in ^bthe ¹City of David. 11 ^aThe time that David reigned over Israel was forty years: ^bhe reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 12 Then ^aSolomon sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was firmly established.

13 Now Adonijah the son of David and Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. She said, “^aDo you come in peace?” And he said, “In peace.” 14 Then he said, “I have something to say to you.” And she said, “Speak.” 15 So he said, “You know that ^athe kingdom belonged to me as the eldest living son and ^ball Israel ¹looked to me and expected me to be king. ^cHowever, the kingdom has passed from me and became my brother’s, ^dfor it was his from the LORD. 16 So now I am making one request of you; do not ¹refuse me.” And she said to him, “Speak.” 17 He said, “Please speak to King Solomon, for he will not refuse you; ask that he may give me ^aAbishag the Shunammite as a wife.” 1+@Kin 1:1-4 18 Bathsheba replied, “Very well; I will speak to the king for you.”

19 So Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah. And the king rose to meet her, bowed before her, and sat down on his throne; then he had ^aa throne set for her, the king’s mother, and she sat on his right^b. 20 Then she said, “I am making one small request of you; ^ado not refuse me.” And the king said to her, “Ask, my mother, for I will not refuse you.” 21 So she said, “Let ^aAbishag the Shunammite be given to your brother Adonijah as a wife.” 22 King Solomon answered and said to his mother, “And why are you asking for ¹Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? ^aAsk the kingdom for him also—^bsince he is my older brother— ask it for him and for ^cAbiathar the priest and Joab the son of Zeruiah his supporters!” 23 Then King Solomon swore by the LORD, saying, “May God do the same to me, and more also, if Adonijah has ^anot requested this deplorable thing against his own ¹life. 24 So now, as the LORD lives, who has established me and set me on the throne of David my father, and ^awho has made me a house as He promised, Adonijah shall indeed be put to death today.” 25 So King Solomon ^asent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he ¹struck Adonijah and he died.

26 Then the king said to Abiathar the priest, “^aGo to Anathoth to your own fields, ^bfor you ¹certainly deserve to die; but I will not put you to death this day, because ^cyou carried the ark of the Lord GOD before my father David, and ^dyou suffered everything that my father endured.” 27 So Solomon dismissed Abiathar a descendant of Eli from being priest to the LORD, fulfilling ^athe word of the LORD, which He had spoken concerning the house (descendants) of Eli in Shiloh. 1+@Sam 2:27-36

28 Now the news reached Joab, ^afor Joab had supported and followed Adonijah, ^balthough he had not followed Absalom. So Joab fled to the sacred tent of the LORD and ^ctook hold of the horns of the altar to seek asylum. 29 King Solomon was told that Joab had fled to the tent of the LORD and was at that moment beside the altar. Then Solomon ^asent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, “^bGo, ¹strike him down.” 30 So Benaiah came to the tent of the LORD and told Joab, “This is what the king commands, ‘Come out of there.’” But Joab said, “No, for I will die here.” Then Benaiah brought word to the king again, saying, “This is what Joab said, and this is how he answered me.” 31 The king said to him, “^aDo as he has said. ¹Strike him down and bury him, ^bso that you may remove from me and from my father’s house the innocent blood which Joab shed. 32 ^aThe LORD will return his bloody deeds upon his own head, ^bbecause he struck down two men more righteous and honorable than he and killed them with the sword, without my father David knowing: ^cAbner the son of Ner, commander of the army of Israel, and ^dAmasa the son of Jether, commander of the army of Judah. 33 ^aSo shall their blood return on the head of Joab and the heads of his descendants forever. But for David, his descendants, his house, and his throne, may there be peace from the LORD forever.” 34 So ^aBenaiah the son of Jehoiada went up to the tabernacle and struck and killed Joab, and he was buried at his own house ^bin the wilderness of Judah. 35 ^aThe king appointed Benaiah the son of Jehoiada over the army in Joab’s place, and appointed ^bZadok the priest ^cin place of Abiathar.

36 Now the king sent word and called for ^aShimei and said to him, “Build yourself a house in Jerusalem and live there. Do not go from there to ¹any other place. 37 For on the day you leave and ^across over the ¹Brook Kidron, know for certain that you shall surely die; ^byour blood shall be on your own head.” 38 Shimei said to the king, “The word (ruling) is good. As my lord the king has said, so will your servant do.” So Shimei lived in Jerusalem for many days.

39 But it happened after three years, that two of Shimei’s servants ran away ^ato Achish the son of Maacah, the king of ¹Gath. And Shimei was told, “Behold, your runaway servants are in Gath.” 40 So Shimei arose, saddled his donkey, and went to Gath to King Achish to look for his servants. And Shimei went and brought them back from Gath. 41 Now Solomon was told that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and had returned. 42 So the king sent word and called for Shimei and said to him, “Did I not make you swear by the LORD and solemnly warn you, saying, ‘Know for certain that on the day you leave Jerusalem and go anywhere, you shall surely die’? And you said to me, ‘The word (ruling) I have heard is good.’ 43 Why then have you not kept the oath of the LORD, and the command which I gave you?” 44 The king also said to Shimei, “^aYou are aware in your own heart of all the evil you did to my father David; so ^bthe LORD shall return your evil on your own head. 45 But King Solomon shall be blessed, and ^athe throne of David shall be established before the LORD forever.” 46 ^aSo the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he went out and struck down Shimei, and he died.

^bSo the kingdom was established in the hands of Solomon.

Then David’s ^1atime to die drew near, so he commanded Solomon his son, saying, 2 “^aI am going the way of all the earth. ^bSo you shall be strong, and be a man. 3 And you shall keep the responsibility given by Yahweh your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His judgments, and His testimonies, ^aaccording to what is written in the Law of Moses, that ^byou may be prosperous in all that you do and wherever you turn, 4 so that ^aYahweh may establish His promise which He spoke concerning me, saying, ‘^bIf your sons keep their way, ^cto walk before Me in ¹truth with all their heart and with all their soul, He said, ^2dyou shall not have a man cut off from the throne of Israel.’

5 “Now you also know what Joab the ^ason of Zeruiah did to me, what he did to the two commanders of the armies of Israel, to ^bAbner the son of Ner, and to ^cAmasa the son of Jether, whom he killed; he also ¹shed the blood of war in peace. And he put the blood of war on his belt ²about his ³waist, and on his sandals ⁴on his feet. 6 ^aSo act according to your wisdom, and do not let his gray hair go down to Sheol in peace. 7 But ^ashow lovingkindness to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and ^blet them be among those who eat at your table; ^cfor they ¹assisted me when I fled from Absalom your brother. 8 Behold, ^athere is with you Shimei the son of Gera the Benjamite, of Bahurim; now it was he who cursed me with a ¹violent curse on the day I went to Mahanaim. But when ^bhe came down to me at the Jordan, I swore to him by Yahweh, saying, ‘I will not put you to death with the sword.’ 9 So now, do not let him go unpunished, ^afor you are a wise man; and you will know what you ought to do to him, and you will bring his gray hair down to Sheol with blood.”

10 Then ^aDavid slept with his fathers and was buried in ^bthe city of David. 11 ^aAnd the ¹time which David reigned over Israel was forty years; in Hebron he reigned ^bseven years and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years. 12 And ^aSolomon sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was firmly established.

13 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, “^aDo you come peacefully?” And he said, “Peacefully.” 14 Then he said, “I have something to say to you.” And she said, “Speak.” 15 So he said, “You know that ^athe kingdom was mine and ^bthat all Israel ¹expected me to be king; ^chowever, the kingdom has turned about and become my brother’s, ^dfor it was his from Yahweh. 16 So now, I am making one request of you; do not ¹turn me away.” And she said to him, “Speak.” 17 Then he said, “Please speak to Solomon the king, for he will not ¹turn you away, that he may give me ^aAbishag the Shunammite as a wife.” 18 And Bathsheba said, “Very well; I will speak to the king for you.”

19 So Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah. And the king arose to meet her, bowed before her, and sat on his throne; then he ^ahad a throne set for the king’s mother, and ^bshe sat on his right. 20 Then she said, “I am making one small request of you; ^ado not turn ¹me away.” And the king said to her, “Ask, my mother, for I will not turn ²you away.” 21 So she said, “^aLet Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother as a wife.” 22 Then King Solomon answered and said to his mother, “And why are you asking Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? ^aAsk for him also the kingdom—^bfor he is my older brother—even for him, for ^cAbiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah!” 23 Then King Solomon swore by Yahweh, saying, “May God do so to me and more also, if Adonijah has ^anot spoken this word against his own ¹life. 24 So now, as Yahweh lives, who has established me and set me on the throne of David my father and ^awho has made me a house as He promised, surely Adonijah shall be put to death today.” 25 So King Solomon ^asent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him so that he died.

26 Then to Abiathar the priest the king said, “^aGo to Anathoth to your own field, ^bfor you ¹deserve to die; but I will not put you to death at this time, because ^cyou carried the ark of Lord Yahweh before my father David, and because ^dyou were afflicted in everything with which my father was afflicted.” 27 So Solomon drove Abiathar away from being priest to Yahweh, in order to fulfill ^athe word of Yahweh, which He had spoken concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.

28 Now the news came to Joab, ^afor Joab had followed Adonijah, ^balthough he had not followed Absalom. And Joab fled to the tent of Yahweh and ^ctook hold of the horns of the altar. 29 And it was told to King Solomon that Joab had fled to the tent of Yahweh, and behold, he is beside the altar. Then Solomon ^asent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, “^bGo, fall upon him.” 30 So Benaiah came to the tent of Yahweh and said to him, “Thus the king has said, ‘Come out.’” But he said, “No, for I will die here.” And Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, “Thus spoke Joab, and thus he answered me.” 31 And the king said to him, “^aDo as he has spoken and fall upon him and bury him, ^bthat you may remove from me and from my father’s house the blood which Joab shed without cause. 32 ^aAnd Yahweh will return his blood on his own head, ^bbecause he fell upon two men more righteous and better than he and killed them with the sword, but my father David did not know it: ^cAbner the son of Ner, commander of the army of Israel, and ^dAmasa the son of Jether, commander of the army of Judah. 33 ^aSo shall their blood return on the head of Joab and on the head of his seed forever; but to David and his seed and his house and his throne, may there be peace from Yahweh forever.” 34 Then ^aBenaiah the son of Jehoiada went up and fell upon him and put him to death, and he was buried at his own house ^bin the wilderness. 35 ^aAnd the king appointed Benaiah the son of Jehoiada over the army in his place, and the king appointed ^bZadok the priest ^cin the place of Abiathar.

36 Then the king sent and called for ^aShimei and said to him, “Build for yourself a house in Jerusalem and live there, and do not go out from there to any place. 37 Now it will be on the day you go out and ^across over the ¹brook Kidron, that you will know for certain that you shall surely die; ^byour blood shall be on your own head.” 38 Shimei then said to the king, “The word is good. As my lord the king has said, so your servant will do.” So Shimei lived in Jerusalem many days.

39 But it happened at the end of three years, that two of the slaves of Shimei ran away ^ato Achish son of Maacah, king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying, “Behold, your slaves are in Gath.” 40 Then Shimei arose and saddled his donkey, and went to Gath to Achish to search for his slaves. And Shimei went and brought his slaves from Gath. 41 And it was told to Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and had returned. 42 So the king sent and called for Shimei and said to him, “Did I not make you swear by Yahweh and solemnly warn you, saying, ‘You will know for certain that on the day you go out and go anywhere, you shall surely die’? And you said to me, ‘The word which I have heard is good.’ 43 Why then have you not kept the oath of Yahweh, and the command which I have commanded you?” 44 The king also said to Shimei, “^aYou know all the evil which ¹you acknowledge in your heart, which you did to my father David; therefore ^bYahweh shall return your evil on your own head. 45 But King Solomon shall be blessed, and ^athe throne of David shall be established before Yahweh forever.” 46 ^aSo the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he went out and fell upon him so that he died.

^bThus the kingdom was established in the hands of Solomon.