1 Kings 1:51

1:51 Solomon was told, “Look, Adonijah fears you;¹ see, he has taken hold of the horns of the altar, saying, ‘May King Solomon solemnly promise² me today that he will not kill his servant with the sword.’”

1 Kings 2:28-29

2:28 When the news reached Joab (for Joab had supported³ Adonijah, although he had not supported Absalom), he⁴ ran to the tent of the Lord and grabbed hold of the horns of the altar.⁵ 2:29 When King Solomon heard⁶ that Joab had run to the tent of the Lord and was right there beside the altar, he ordered Benaiah son of Jehoiada,⁷ “Go, strike him down.”

1 Kings 8:54

8:54 When Solomon finished presenting all these prayers and requests to the Lord, he got up from before the altar of the Lord where he had kneeled and spread out his hands toward the sky.⁸

1 Kings 9:25

9:25 Three times a year Solomon offered burnt offerings and peace offerings⁹ on the altar he had built for the Lord, burning incense along with them before the Lord. He made the temple his official worship place.¹⁰

1 Kings 13:32

13:32 for the prophecy he announced with the Lord’s authority¹¹ against the altar in Bethel¹² and against all the temples on the high places in the cities of the north¹³ will certainly be fulfilled.”

1 Kings 18:26

18:26 So they took a bull, as he had suggested,¹⁴ and prepared it. They invoked the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “Baal, answer us.” But there was no sound and no answer. They jumped¹⁵ around on the altar they had made.¹⁶

1 Kings 19:10

19:10 He answered, “I have been absolutely loyal¹⁷ to the Lord, the sovereign God,¹⁸ even though the Israelites have abandoned the agreement they made with you,¹⁹ torn down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left and now they want to take my life.”²⁰

1 Kings 19:14

19:14 He answered, “I have been absolutely loyal²¹ to the Lord, the sovereign God,²² even though the Israelites have abandoned the agreement they made with you,²³ torn down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left and now they want to take my life.”²⁴

¹tn Heb “King Solomon.” The name and title have been replaced by the pronoun (“you”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

²tn Or “swear an oath to.”

³tn Heb “turned after” (also later in this verse).

⁴tn Heb “Joab.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁵sn Grabbed hold of the horns of the altar. The “horns” of the altar were the horn-shaped projections on the four corners of the altar (see Exod 27:2). By going to the holy place and grabbing hold of the horns of the altar, Joab was seeking asylum from Solomon.

⁵tn Heb “and it was related to King Solomon.”

⁶tn Heb “so Solomon sent Benaiah son of Jehoiada, saying.”

⁷tn Or “toward heaven.”

⁹tn Or “tokens of peace”; NIV, TEV “fellowship offerings.”

¹⁰tn Heb “and he made complete the house.”

¹¹tn Heb “for the word which he cried out by the word of the Lord”

¹²map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.

¹³tn Heb “Samaria.” The name of Israel’s capital city here stands for the northern kingdom as a whole. Actually Samaria was not built and named until several years after this (see 1 Kgs 16:24), so it is likely that the author of Kings, writing at a later time, is here adapting the old prophet’s original statement.

¹³tn Heb “and they took the bull which he allowed them.”

¹⁴tn Heb “limped” (the same verb is used in v. 21).

¹⁵tc The MT has “which he made,” but some medieval Hebrew mss and the ancient versions have the plural form of the verb.

¹⁵tn Or “very zealous.” The infinitive absolute preceding the finite verb emphasizes the degree of his zeal and allegiance.

¹⁶tn Traditionally, “the God of hosts.”

¹⁷tn Heb “abandoned your covenant.”

¹⁸tn Heb “and they are seeking my life to take it.”

¹⁷tn Or “very zealous.” The infinitive absolute preceding the finite verb emphasizes the degree of his zeal and allegiance.

¹⁸tn Traditionally, “the God of hosts.”

¹⁹tn Heb “abandoned your covenant.”

²⁰tn Heb “and they are seeking my life to take it.”