Bible in 90 Days
19 They came before me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my stay.
20 He brought me forth also into a large place; He delivered me, because He delighted in me.
21 “The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands hath He recompensed me.
22 For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
23 For all His judgments were before me; and as for His statutes, I did not depart from them.
24 I was also upright before Him, and have kept myself from mine iniquity.
25 Therefore the Lord hath recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to my cleanness in His eyesight.
26 “With the merciful Thou wilt show Thyself merciful, and with the upright man Thou wilt show Thyself upright.
27 With the pure Thou wilt show thyself pure, and with the froward Thou wilt show thyself unsavory.
28 And the afflicted people Thou wilt save; but Thine eyes are upon the haughty, that Thou mayest bring them down.
29 For Thou art my lamp, O Lord; and the Lord will lighten my darkness.
30 For by Thee I have run through a troop; by my God have I leaped over a wall.
31 “As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is tried; He is a buckler to all them that trust in Him.
32 “For who is God, save the Lord? And who is a rock, save our God?
33 God is my strength and power, and He maketh my way perfect.
34 He maketh my feet like hinds’ feet, and setteth me upon my high places.
35 He teacheth my hands to war, so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.
36 Thou hast also given me the shield of Thy salvation, and Thy gentleness hath made me great.
37 Thou hast enlarged my steps under me, so that my feet did not slip.
38 I have pursued mine enemies and destroyed them, and turned not again until I had consumed them.
39 And I have consumed them and wounded them, that they could not arise; yea, they are fallen under my feet.
40 For Thou hast girded me with strength to battle; them that rose up against me hast Thou subdued under me.
41 Thou hast also given me the necks of mine enemies, that I might destroy them that hate me.
42 They looked, but there was none to save; even unto the Lord, but He answered them not.
43 Then did I beat them as small as the dust of the earth; I stamped them as the mire of the street and spread them abroad.
44 “Thou also hast delivered me from the strivings of my people; Thou hast kept me to be head of the heathen; a people whom I knew not shall serve me.
45 Strangers shall submit themselves unto me; as soon as they hear, they shall be obedient unto me.
46 Strangers shall fade away, and they shall be afraid out of their secret places.
47 “The Lord liveth! And blessed be my Rock! And exalted be the God of the rock of my salvation!
48 It is God that avengeth me, and that bringeth down the people under me,
49 and that bringeth me forth from mine enemies. Thou also hast lifted me up on high above them that rose up against me; Thou hast delivered me from the violent man.
50 Therefore I will give thanks unto Thee, O Lord, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto Thy name.
51 He is the tower of salvation for His king, and showeth mercy to His anointed, unto David, and to his seed for evermore.”
23 Now these are the last words of David. David the son of Jesse, the man who was raised up on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel, said:
2 “The Spirit of the Lord spoke by me, and His word was on my tongue.
3 The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me: ‘He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.
4 And he shall be as the light of the morning when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds, as the tender grass springing out of the earth by clear shining after rain.’
5 “Although my house be not so with God, yet He hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure; for this is all my salvation and all my desire, although He make it not to grow.
6 But the sons of Belial shall be all of them as thorns thrust away, because they cannot be taken with hands;
7 but the man that shall touch them must be armed with iron and the staff of a spear; and they shall be utterly burned with fire in the same place.”
8 These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: The Tachmonite who sat in the chief seat among the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite. He lifted up his spear against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time.
9 And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo, the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David when they defied the Philistines who were there gathered together for battle, and the men of Israel had gone away.
10 He arose and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand cleaved unto the sword; and the Lord wrought a great victory that day, and the people returned after him only to despoil.
11 And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop where there was a piece of ground full of lentils; and the people fled from the Philistines.
12 But he stood in the midst of the ground and defended it, and slew the Philistines; and the Lord wrought a great victory.
13 And three of the thirty chief men went down, and came to David in the harvest time unto the cave of Adullam; and the troop of the Philistines pitched camp in the Valley of Rephaim.
14 And David was then in a stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Bethlehem.
15 And David longed, and said, “Oh that one would give me a drink of the water from the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate!”
16 And the three mighty men broke through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate, and took it and brought it to David; nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the Lord.
17 And he said, “Be it far from me, O Lord, that I should do this. Is not this the blood of the men who went in jeopardy of their lives?” Therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three mighty men.
18 And Abishai the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief among three. And he lifted up his spear against three hundred and slew them, and had the name among three.
19 Was he not most honorable of three? Therefore he was their captain; however he attained not unto the first three.
20 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, who had done many acts, he slew two lionlike men of Moab. He went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow.
21 And he slew an Egyptian, a goodly man; and the Egyptian had a spear in his hand, but he went down to him with a staff and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and slew him with his own spear.
22 These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and had the name among three mighty men.
23 He was more honorable than the thirty, but he attained not to the first three. And David set him over his guard.
24 Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty; Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem,
25 Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite,
26 Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite,
27 Abiezer the Anathothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite,
28 Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite,
29 Heleb the son of Baanah, a Netophathite, Ittai the son of Ribai out of Gibeah of the children of Benjamin,
30 Benaiah the Pirathonite, Hiddai of the brooks of Gaash,
31 Abialbon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite,
32 Eliahba the Shaalbonite of the sons of Jashen, Jonathan,
33 Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Hararite,
34 Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai, the son of the Maachathite, Eliam the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite,
35 Hezrai the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite,
36 Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite,
37 Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, armorbearer to Joab the son of Zeruiah,
38 Ira an Ithrite, Gareb an Ithrite,
39 Uriah the Hittite: thirty and seven in all.
24 And again the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he [Satan] moved David against them to say, “Go, number Israel and Judah.”
2 For the king said to Joab the captain of the host who was with him, “Go now through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan even to Beersheba, and number ye the people, that I may know the number of the people.”
3 And Joab said unto the king, “Now the Lord thy God add unto the people, how many so ever they be, a hundredfold, that the eyes of my lord the king may see it. But why doth my lord the king delight in this thing?”
4 Notwithstanding, the king’s word prevailed against Joab and against the captains of the host. And Joab and the captains of the host went out from the presence of the king to number the people of Israel.
5 And they passed over the Jordan and pitched camp in Aroer, on the right side of the city that lieth in the midst of the valley of Gad and toward Jazer.
6 Then they came to Gilead and to the land of Tahtimhodshi; and they came to Danjaan and about to Sidon,
7 and came to the stronghold of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and of the Canaanites; and they went out to the south of Judah, even to Beersheba.
8 So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.
9 And Joab gave the sum of the number of the people unto the king: and there were in Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men.
10 And David’s heart smote him after he had numbered the people. And David said unto the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. And now, I beseech Thee, O Lord, take away the iniquity of Thy servant, for I have done very foolishly.”
11 For when David was up in the morning, the word of the Lord came unto the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying,
12 “Go, and say unto David, ‘Thus saith the Lord: I offer thee three things. Choose thee one of them, that I may do it unto thee.’”
13 So Gad came to David and told him, and said unto him, “Shall seven years of famine come unto thee in thy land? Or wilt thou flee three months before thine enemies while they pursue thee? Or shall there be three days’ pestilence in thy land? Now advise, and see what answer I shall return to Him that sent me.”
14 And David said unto Gad, “I am in a great strait. Let us fall now into the hand of the Lord, for His mercies are great; and let me not fall into the hand of man.”
15 So the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel from the morning even to the time appointed; and there died of the people from Dan even to Beersheba seventy thousand men.
16 And when the angel stretched out his hand upon Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord repented of the evil, and said to the angel who destroyed the people, “It is enough: stay now thine hand.” And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing place of Araunah the Jebusite.
17 And David spoke unto the Lord when he saw the angel who smote the people, and said, “Lo, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Let Thine hand, I pray Thee, be against me and against my father’s house.”
18 And Gad came that day to David and said unto him, “Go up, rear an altar unto the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.”
19 And David, according to the saying of Gad, went up as the Lord commanded.
20 And Araunah looked, and saw the king and his servants coming on toward him; and Araunah went out and bowed himself before the king on his face upon the ground.
21 And Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” And David said, “To buy the threshing floor from thee to build an altar unto the Lord, that the plague may be stayed from the people.”
22 And Araunah said unto David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up what seemeth good unto him. Behold, here are oxen for burnt sacrifice, and threshing instruments and other instruments of the oxen for wood.”
23 All these things did Araunah, as a king, give unto the king. And Araunah said unto the king, “The Lord thy God accept thee.”
24 And the king said unto Araunah, “Nay; but I will surely buy it from thee at a price; neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the Lord my God of that which doth cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
25 And David built there an altar unto the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the Lord was entreated for the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel.
1 Now King David was old and stricken in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he got no heat.
2 Therefore 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 comfort 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 region 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 bore 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 who 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 Enrogel, 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 Therefore Nathan spoke unto Bathsheba 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 Bathsheba went in unto the king into the chamber; and the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite ministered unto the king.
16 And Bathsheba bowed and did obeisance unto the king. And the king said, “What wouldest thou?”
17 And she said unto him, “My lord, thou swore 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 had 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 has 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 shown unto thy servant who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?”
28 Then King David answered and said, “Call to me Bathsheba.” And she came into the king’s presence and stood before the king.
29 And the king swore, and said, “As the Lord liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all distress,
30 even as I swore 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 Bathsheba 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 to 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 a 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 who were with him heard it as they had made an end of eating. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, “For what reason is this noise, and the city in an uproar?”
42 And while he yet spoke, 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 have 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, who hath given one to sit on my throne this day, mine eyes even seeing it.’”
49 And all the guests who 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 today that he will not slay his servant with the sword.’”
52 And Solomon said, “If he will show himself a worthy man, there shall not a 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.”
2 Now the days of David drew nigh that he should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying,
2 “I go the way of all the earth. Be thou strong therefore, and show thyself a man;
3 and keep the charge of the Lord thy God to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, and His commandments, and His judgments, and His testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest and whithersoever thou turnest thyself,
4 that the Lord may continue His word which He spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If thy children take heed to their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail thee,’ said He, ‘a man on the throne of Israel.’
5 “Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins and in his shoes that were on his feet.
6 Do therefore according to thy wisdom, and let not his hoary head go down to the grave in peace.
7 But show kindness unto the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at thy table; for so they came to me when I fled because of Absalom thy brother.
8 And behold, thou hast with thee Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite of Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim; but he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by the Lord, saying, ‘I will not put thee to death with the sword.’
9 Now therefore hold him not guiltless, for thou art a wise man and knowest what thou oughtest to do unto him; but his hoary head bring thou down to the grave with blood.”
10 So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the City of David.
11 And the days that David reigned over Israel were forty years: seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty and three years reigned he in Jerusalem.
12 Then sat Solomon upon the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was established greatly.
13 And Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, “Comest thou peaceably?” And he said, “Peaceably.”
14 He said moreover, “I have something to say unto thee.” And she said, “Say on.”
15 And he said, “Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel set their faces on me, that I should reign. However the kingdom is turned about and has become my brother’s, for it was his from the Lord.
16 And now I ask one petition of thee; deny me not.” And she said unto him, “Say on.”
17 And he said, “Speak, I pray thee, unto Solomon the king (for he will not say ‘nay’ to thee), that he give me Abishag the Shunammite for a wife.”
18 And Bathsheba said, “Well; I will speak for thee unto the king.”
19 Bathsheba therefore went unto King Solomon to speak unto him for Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet her and bowed himself unto her, and sat down on his throne and caused a seat to be set for the king’s mother; and she sat on his right hand.
20 Then she said, “I desire one small petition of thee; I pray thee, say not ‘nay’ to me.” And the king said unto her, “Ask on, my mother, for I will not say to thee ‘nay.’”
21 And she said, “Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah thy brother for a wife.”
22 And King Solomon answered and said unto his mother, “And why dost thou ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Ask for him the kingdom also, for he is mine elder brother — even for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah.”
23 Then King Solomon swore by the Lord, saying, “God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah have not spoken this word against his own life.
24 Now therefore, as the Lord liveth, who hath established me and set me on the throne of David my father, and who hath made me a house, as He promised, Adonijah shall be put to death this day.”
25 And King Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him so that he died.
26 And unto Abiathar the priest said the king, “Get thee to Anathoth, unto thine own fields, for thou art worthy of death; but I will not at this time put thee to death, because thou didst bear the ark of the Lord God before David my father, and because thou hast been afflicted in all wherein my father was afflicted.”
27 So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest unto the Lord, that he might fulfill the word of the Lord which He spoke concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.
28 Then tidings came to Joab; for Joab had turned after Adonijah, though he turned not after Absalom. And Joab fled unto the tabernacle of the Lord, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.
29 And it was told King Solomon that Joab had fled unto the tabernacle of the Lord; and behold, he is by the altar. Then Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, “Go, fall upon him.”
30 And Benaiah came to the tabernacle of the Lord, and said unto him, “Thus saith the king, ‘Come forth!’” And he said, “Nay, but I will die here.” And Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, “Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me.”
31 And the king said unto him, “Do as he hath said, and fall upon him and bury him, that thou mayest take away the innocent blood which Joab shed from me and from the house of my father.
32 And the Lord shall return his blood upon his own head, who fell upon two men more righteous and better than he and slew them with the sword — to wit, Abner the son of Ner, captain of the host of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, captain of the host of Judah — my father David not knowing thereof.
33 Their blood shall therefore return upon the head of Joab and upon the head of his seed for ever; but upon David, and upon his seed, and upon his house, and upon his throne, shall there be peace for ever from the Lord.”
34 So Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon him and slew him; and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness.
35 And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his place over the host, and Zadok the priest did the king put in the place of Abiathar.
36 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said unto him, “Build thee a house in Jerusalem and dwell there, and go not forth from thence anywhere.
37 For it shall be that on the day thou goest out and passest over the Brook Kidron, thou shalt know for certain that thou shalt surely die; thy blood shall be upon thine own head.”
38 And Shimei said unto the king, “The saying is good. As my lord the king hath said, so will thy servant do.” And Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem many days.
39 And it came to pass, at the end of three years, that two of the servants of Shimei ran away unto Achish son of Maachah, king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying, “Behold, thy servants are in Gath.”
40 And Shimei arose and saddled his ass, and went to Gath to Achish to seek his servants; and Shimei went and brought his servants from Gath.
41 And it was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and had come back.
42 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said unto him, “Did I not make thee to swear by the Lord, and protested unto thee, saying, ‘Know for certain, on the day thou goest out and walkest abroad anywhere, that thou shalt surely die’? And thou said unto me, ‘The word that I have heard is good.’
43 Why then hast thou not kept the oath of the Lord and the commandment that I have charged thee with?”
44 The king said moreover to Shimei, “Thou knowest all the wickedness which thine heart is privy to, that thou did to David my father. Therefore the Lord shall return thy wickedness upon thine own head;
45 and King Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before the Lord for ever.”
46 So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, who went out and fell upon him so that he died. And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.
3 And Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh’s daughter, and brought her into the City of David until he had made an end of building his own house and the house of the Lord and the wall of Jerusalem round about.
2 Only, the people sacrificed in high places, because there was no house built unto the name of the Lord until those days.
3 And Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of David his father; only, he sacrificed and burned incense in high places.
4 And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place. A thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar.
5 In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask what I shall give thee.”
6 And Solomon said, “Thou hast shown unto Thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before Thee in truth and in righteousness and in uprightness of heart with Thee; and Thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that Thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
7 And now, O Lord my God, Thou hast made Thy servant king instead of David my father. And I am but a little child; I know not how to go out or come in.
8 And Thy servant is in the midst of Thy people whom Thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.
9 Give therefore Thy servant an understanding heart to judge Thy people, that I may discern between good and bad; for who is able to judge this Thy so great a people?”
10 And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.
11 And God said unto him, “Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life, neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies, but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment,
12 behold, I have done according to thy words. Lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart, so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.
13 And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches and honor, so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days.
14 And if thou wilt walk in My ways to keep My statutes and My commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.”
15 And Solomon awoke; and behold, it was a dream. And he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered up burnt offerings and offered peace offerings,and made a feast for all his servants.
17 And the one woman said, “O my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house.
18 And it came to pass the third day after I was delivered that this woman was delivered also. And we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house.
19 And this woman’s child died in the night, because she lay upon it.
20 And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me while thine handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom and laid her dead child in my bosom.
21 And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead. But when I had considered it in the morning, behold, it was not my son whom I had borne.”
22 And the other woman said, “Nay; but the living is my son, and the dead is thy son!” And this said, “No; but the dead is thy son, and the living is my son!” Thus they spoke before the king.
23 Then said the king, “The one saith, ‘This is my son who liveth, and thy son is the dead’; and the other saith, ‘Nay; but thy son is the dead, and my son is the living.’”
24 And the king said, “Bring me a sword.” And they brought a sword before the king.
25 And the king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other.”
26 Then spoke the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her heart yearned for her son and she said, “O my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it!” But the other said, “Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it.”
27 Then the king answered and said, “Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. She is the mother thereof.”
28 And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to do judgment.
4 So King Solomon was king over all Israel.
2 And these were the princes whom he had: Azariah the son of Zadok, the priest;
3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, the recorder;
4 and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the host; and Zadok and Abiathar were the priests;
5 and Azariah the son of Nathan was over the officers; and Zabud the son of Nathan was principal officer and the king’s friend;
6 and Ahishar was over the household; and Adoniram the son of Abda was over the tribute.
7 And Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, who provided victuals for the king and his household; each man his month in a year made provision.
8 And these are their names: the son of Hur, in Mount Ephraim;
9 the son of Deker, in Makaz and in Shaalbim and Bethshemesh and Elonbethhanan;
10 the son of Hesed, in Arubboth; to him pertained Sochoh and all the land of Hepher;
11 the son of Abinadab, in all the region of Dor, who had Taphath the daughter of Solomon as a wife;
12 Baana the son of Ahilud; to him pertained Taanach and Megiddo, and all Bethshean, which is by Zartanah beneath Jezreel, from Bethshean to Abelmeholah, even unto the place that is beyond Jokneam;
13 the son of Geber, in Ramothgilead; to him pertained the towns of Jair the son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead; to him also pertained the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, threescore great cities with walls and brazen bars;
14 Ahinadab the son of Iddo had Mahanaim;
15 Ahimaaz was in Naphtali; he also took Basemath the daughter of Solomon for a wife;
16 Baanah the son of Hushai was in Asher and in Aloth;
17 Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar;
18 Shimei the son of Elah, in Benjamin;
19 Geber the son of Uri was in the country of Gilead, in the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and of Og king of Bashan, and he was the only officer who was in the land.
20 Judah and Israel were many, as the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking and making merry.
21 And Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the river unto the land of the Philistines and unto the border of Egypt. They brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his life.
22 And Solomon’s provision for one day was thirty measures of fine flour, and threescore measures of meal,
23 ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen out of the pastures, and a hundred sheep, besides harts, and roebucks, and fallow deer, and fatted fowl.
24 For he had dominion over all the region on this side of the river, from Tiphsah even to Gaza, over all the kings on this side of the river; and he had peace on all sides round about him.
25 And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan even to Beersheba, all the days of Solomon.
26 And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots and twelve thousand horsemen.
27 And those officers provided victuals for King Solomon and for all who came unto King Solomon’s table, every man in his month. They lacked nothing.
28 Barley also and straw for the horses and dromedaries brought they unto the place where the officers were, every man according to his charge.
29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the seashore.
30 And Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the East country and all the wisdom of Egypt.
31 For he was wiser than all men — than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman and Chalcol and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all nations round about.
32 And he spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs were a thousand and five.
33 And he spoke of trees, from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall. He spoke also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes.
34 And there came from all people to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom.
5 And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon, for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the place of his father; for Hiram ever loved David.
2 And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying,
3 “Thou knowest how David my father could not build a house unto the name of the Lord his God because of the wars which were about him on every side, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet.
4 But now the Lord my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrence.
5 And behold, I purpose to build a house unto the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord spoke unto David my father, saying, ‘Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy stead, he shall build a house unto My name.’
6 Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon, and my servants shall be with thy servants; and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt appoint, for thou knowest that there is not among us any that has skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians.”
7 And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly and said, “Blessed be the Lord this day, who hath given unto David a wise son over this great people.”
8 And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, “I have considered the things for which thou sentest to me, and I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar and concerning timber of fir.
9 My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon unto the sea; and I will convey them by sea in floats unto the place that thou shalt appoint me, and will cause them to be discharged there, and thou shalt receive them. And thou shalt accomplish my desire in giving food for my household.”
10 So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire.
11 And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil; thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year.
12 And the Lord gave Solomon wisdom, as He promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and they two made a league together.
13 And King Solomon raised a tribute of men out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men.
14 And he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses: a month they were in Lebanon and two months at home; and Adoniram was over the levy.
15 And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand who bore burdens and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains,
16 besides the chief of Solomon’s officers who were over the work, three thousand and three hundred, who ruled over the people who wrought in the work.
17 And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones and hewn stones, to lay the foundation of the house.
18 And Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders and the stone squarers hewed them. So they prepared timber and stones to build the house.
6 And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel had come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the Lord.
2 And the house which King Solomon built for the Lord, the length thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits.
3 And the porch in front of the temple of the house, twenty cubits was the length thereof, according to the breadth of the house, and ten cubits was the breadth thereof in front of the house.
4 And for the house he made windows broad within and narrow without.
5 And against the wall of the house he built chambers round about, against the walls of the house round about, both of the temple and of the oracle; and he made chambers round about.
6 The nethermost chamber was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad; for outside in the wall of the house he made narrowed rests round about, that the beams should not be fastened in the walls of the house.
7 And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither, so that there was neither hammer nor ax nor any tool of iron heard in the house while it was in building.
8 The door for the middle chamber was in the right side of the house; and they went up with winding stairs into the middle chamber, and out of the middle into the third.
9 So he built the house and finished it, and covered the house with beams and boards of cedar.
10 And then he built chambers against all the house, five cubits high; and they rested on the house with timber of cedar.
11 And the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying,
12 “Concerning this house which thou art building, if thou wilt walk in My statutes and execute My judgments and keep all My commandments to walk in them, then will I perform My word with thee, which I spoke unto David thy father.
13 And I will dwell among the children of Israel and will not forsake My people Israel.”
14 So Solomon built the house and finished it.
15 And he built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar, both the floor of the house and the walls of the ceiling; and he covered them on the inside with wood, and covered the floor of the house with planks of fir.
16 And he built twenty cubits on the sides of the house, both the floor and the walls with boards of cedar; he even built them for it within, even for the oracle, even for the Most Holy Place.
17 And the house, that is, the temple before it, was forty cubits long.
18 And the cedar of the house within was carved with buds and open flowers. All was cedar; there was no stone seen.
19 And the oracle he prepared in the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of the Lord.
20 And the oracle in the forepart was twenty cubits in length and twenty cubits in breadth and twenty cubits in the height thereof; and he overlaid it with pure gold, and so covered the altar which was of cedar.
21 So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold; and he made a partition by the chains of gold before the oracle, and he overlaid it with gold.
22 And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he had finished all the house; also the whole altar that was by the oracle he overlaid with gold.
23 And within the oracle he made two cherubims of olive tree, each ten cubits high.
24 And five cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing of the cherub: from the outermost part of the one wing unto the outermost part of the other was ten cubits.
25 And the other cherub was ten cubits; both the cherubims were of one measure and one size.
26 The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub.
27 And he set the cherubims within the inner house; and they stretched forth the wings of the cherubims, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house.
28 And he overlaid the cherubims with gold.
29 And he carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, within and without.
30 And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, within and without.
31 And for the entrance of the oracle he made doors of olive tree; the lintel and side posts were a fifth part of the wall.
32 The two doors also were of olive tree; and he carved upon them carvings of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold, and spread gold upon the cherubims and upon the palm trees.
33 So also made he for the door of the temple posts of olive tree, a fourth part of the wall.
34 And the two doors were of fir tree; the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding.
35 And he carved thereon cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, and covered them with gold fitted upon the carved work.
36 And he built the inner court with three rows of hewn stone and a row of cedar beams.
37 In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of the Lord laid, in the month of Ziv.
38 And in the eleventh year, in the month of Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof and according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it.
7 But Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished all his house.
2 He built also the House of the Forest of Lebanon; the length thereof was a hundred cubits, and the breadth thereof fifty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits, upon four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars.
3 And it was covered with cedar above upon the beams that lay on fortyfive pillars, fifteen in a row.
4 And there were windows in three rows, and light was against light in three ranks.
5 And all the doors and posts were square, with the windows; and light was against light in three ranks.
6 And he made a Porch of Pillars: the length thereof was fifty cubits, and the breadth thereof thirty cubits; and the porch was in front of them, and the other pillars and the thick beam were in front of them.
7 Then he made a porch for the throne where he might judge, even the Porch of Judgment; and it was covered with cedar from one side of the floor to the other.
8 And his house where he dwelt had another court within the porch, which was of the like work. Solomon made also a house for Pharaoh’s daughter, whom he had taken for a wife, like unto this porch.
9 All these were of costly stones, according to the measures of hewn stones, sawed with saws, within and without, even from the foundation unto the coping, and so on the outside toward the great court.
10 And the foundation was of costly stones, even great stones, stones of ten cubits, and stones of eight cubits.
11 And above were costly stones, according to the measures of hewn stones and cedars.
12 And the great court round about was with three rows of hewn stone and a row of cedar beams, both for the inner court of the house of the Lord and for the porch of the house.
13 And King Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of Tyre.
14 He was a widow’s son of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass; and he was filled with wisdom and understanding and skill to work all works in brass. And he came to King Solomon and wrought all his work.
15 For he cast two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high apiece; and a line of twelve cubits compassed each of them about.
16 And he made two capitals of molten brass to set upon the tops of the pillars; the height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits;
17 and nets of checker work and wreaths of chain work for the capitals which were upon the top of the pillars, seven for the one capital and seven for the other capital.
18 And he made the pillars, and two rows with pomegranates round about upon the one network to cover the capitals that were upon the top; and so did he for the other capital.
19 And the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars were of lily work in the porch, four cubits.
20 And the capitals upon the two pillars had pomegranates also above, over against the belly which was by the network; and the pomegranates were two hundred in rows round about upon the other capital.
21 And he set up the pillars in the porch of the temple: and he set up the right pillar and called the name thereof Jachin [that is, He shall establish], and he set up the left pillar and called the name thereof Boaz [that is, In it is strength].
22 And upon the top of the pillars was lily work; so was the work of the pillars finished.
23 And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other; it was round all about, and his height was five cubits, and a line of thirty cubits compassed it round about.
24 And under the brim of it round about there were buds compassing it, ten to a cubit, compassing the sea round about; the buds were cast in two rows when it was cast.
25 It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; and the sea was set above upon them, and all their hind parts were inward.
26 And it was a handbreadth thick, and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, with flowers of lilies. It contained two thousand baths.
27 And he made ten bases of brass; four cubits was the length of one base, and four cubits the breadth thereof, and three cubits the height of it.
28 And the work of the bases was in this manner: they had borders, and the borders were between the ledges;
29 and on the borders that were between the ledges were lions, oxen, and cherubims. And upon the ledges there was a base above; and beneath the lions and oxen were certain additions made of thin work.
30 And every base had four brazen wheels and plates of brass, and the four corners thereof had supports. Under the laver were molten supports at the side of every addition.
31 And the mouth of it within the capital and above was a cubit; but the mouth thereof was round according to the work of the base, a cubit and a half; and also upon the mouth of it were engravings with their borders, foursquare, not round.
32 And under the borders were four wheels, and the axles of the wheels were joined to the base; and the height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit.
33 And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel; their axles and their hubs and their rims and their spokes were all molten.
34 And there were four supports to the four corners of one base, and the supports were part of the very base itself.
35 And in the top of the base was there a round compass of half a cubit high; and on the top of the base the ledges thereof and the borders thereof were of the same.
36 For on the plates of the ledges thereof and on the borders thereof he engraved cherubims, lions, and palm trees, according to the proportion of every one, and additions round about.
37 After this manner he made the ten bases; all of them had one casting, one measure, and one size.
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