1 Kings 1:1-8

Adonijah Tries to Seize the Throne

1:1 King David was very old; ¹  even when they covered him with blankets, ²  he could not get warm. 1:2 His servants advised ³  him, “A young virgin must be found for our master, the king, ⁴  to take care of the king’s needs ⁵  and serve as his nurse. She can also sleep with you ⁶  and keep our master, the king, warm.” ⁷  1:3 So they looked through all Israel ⁸  for a beautiful young woman and found Abishag, a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 1:4 The young woman was very beautiful; she became the king’s nurse and served him, but the king did not have sexual relations with her. ⁹ 

1:5 Now Adonijah, son of David and Haggith, ¹⁰  was promoting himself, ¹¹  boasting, ¹²  “I will be king!” He managed to acquire ¹³  chariots and horsemen, as well as fifty men to serve as his royal guard. ¹⁴  1:6 (Now his father had never corrected ¹⁵  him ¹⁶  by saying, “Why do you do such things?” He was also very handsome and had been born right after Absalom. ¹⁷ ) 1:7 He collaborated ¹⁸  with Joab son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest, and they supported ¹⁹  him. ²⁰  1:8 But Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and David’s elite warriors ²¹  did not ally themselves ²²  with Adonijah.

[1:1]  ¹ tn Heb “was old, coming into the days” (i.e., advancing in years).

[1:1]  ² tn Or “garments.”

[1:2]  ³ tn Heb “said to.”

[1:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “let them seek for my master, the king, a young girl, a virgin.” The third person plural subject of the verb is indefinite (see GKC 460 §144.f). The appositional expression, “a young girl, a virgin,” is idiomatic; the second term specifically defines the more general first term (see IBHS 230 §12.3b).

[1:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “and she will stand before the king.” The Hebrew phrase “stand before” can mean “to attend; to serve” (BDB 764 s.v. עָמַד).

[1:2]  ⁶ tn Heb “and she will lie down in your bosom.” The expression might imply sexual intimacy (see 2 Sam 12:3 [where the lamb symbolizes Bathsheba] and Mic 7:5), though v. 4b indicates that David did not actually have sex with the young woman.

[1:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “and my master, the king, will be warm.”

[1:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “through all the territory of Israel.”

[1:4]  ⁹ tn Heb “did not know her.”

[1:5]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “son of Haggith,” but since this formula usually designates the father (who in this case was David), the translation specifies that David was Adonijah’s father.

[1:5]  ¹¹ tn Heb “lifting himself up.”

[1:5]  ¹² tn Heb “saying.”

[1:5]  ¹³ tn Or “he acquired for himself.”

[1:5]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “to run ahead of him.”

[1:6]  ¹⁵ tn Or “disciplined.”

[1:6]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “did not correct him from his days.” The phrase “from his days” means “from his earliest days,” or “ever in his life.” See GKC 382 §119.w, n. 2.

[1:6]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and she gave birth to him after Absalom.” This does not imply they had the same mother; Absalom’s mother was Maacah, not Haggith (2 Sam 3:4).

[1:7]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “his words were.”

[1:7]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “helped after” (i.e., stood by).

[1:7]  ²⁰ tn Heb “Adonijah.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“him”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[1:8]  ²¹ tn Or “bodyguard” (Heb “mighty men”).

[1:8]  ²² tn Heb “were not.”