1 Kings 1:5-10

1:5 Now Adonijah, son of David and Haggith, ¹  was promoting himself, ²  boasting, ³  “I will be king!” He managed to acquire ⁴  chariots and horsemen, as well as fifty men to serve as his royal guard. ⁵  1:6 (Now his father had never corrected ⁶  him ⁷  by saying, “Why do you do such things?” He was also very handsome and had been born right after Absalom. ⁸ ) 1:7 He collaborated ⁹  with Joab son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest, and they supported ¹⁰  him. ¹¹  1:8 But Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and David’s elite warriors ¹²  did not ally themselves ¹³  with Adonijah. 1:9 Adonijah sacrificed sheep, cattle, and fattened steers at the Stone of Zoheleth near En Rogel. He invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, ¹⁴  as well as all the men of Judah, the king’s servants. 1:10 But he did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the elite warriors, ¹⁵  or his brother Solomon.

1 Kings 1:50-53

1:50 Adonijah feared Solomon, so he got up and went and grabbed hold of the horns of the altar. ¹⁶  1:51 Solomon was told, “Look, Adonijah fears you; ¹⁷  see, he has taken hold of the horns of the altar, saying, ‘May King Solomon solemnly promise ¹⁸  me today that he will not kill his servant with the sword.’” 1:52 Solomon said, “If he is a loyal subject, ¹⁹  not a hair of his head will be harmed, but if he is found to be a traitor, ²⁰  he will die.” 1:53 King Solomon sent men to bring him down ²¹  from the altar. He came and bowed down to King Solomon, and Solomon told him, “Go home.” ²² 

[1:5]  ¹ 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]  ² tn Heb “lifting himself up.”

[1:5]  ³ tn Heb “saying.”

[1:5]  ⁴ tn Or “he acquired for himself.”

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

[1:6]  ⁶ tn Or “disciplined.”

[1:6]  ⁷ 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]  ⁸ 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]  ⁹ tn Heb “his words were.”

[1:7]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “helped after” (i.e., stood by).

[1:7]  ¹¹ tn Heb “Adonijah.” The proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“him”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[1:8]  ¹² tn Or “bodyguard” (Heb “mighty men”).

[1:8]  ¹³ tn Heb “were not.”

[1:9]  ¹⁴ tc The ancient Greek version omits this appositional phrase.

[1:10]  ¹⁵ tn Or “bodyguard” (Heb “mighty men”).

[1:50]  ¹⁶ sn 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, Adonijah was seeking asylum from Solomon.

[1:51]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “King Solomon.” The name and title have been replaced by the pronoun (“you”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[1:51]  ¹⁸ tn Or “swear an oath to.”

[1:52]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “if he is a man of strength [or ability].” In this context, where Adonijah calls himself a “servant,” implying allegiance to the new king, the phrase אִישׁ חַיִל (’ish khayil) probably carries the sense of “a worthy man,” that is, “loyal” (see HALOT 311 s.v. חַיִל).

[1:52]  ²⁰ tn Heb “but if evil is found in him.”

[1:53]  ²¹ tn Heb “sent and they brought him down.”

[1:53]  ²² tn Heb “Go to your house.”