⁵ Adonijah was the son of King David and Haggith, and he ·was very proud [began boasting; ^Lexalted himself]. “I will be the king,” he said. So he got chariots and ·horses [or horsemen; charioteers] for himself and fifty men ·for his personal bodyguard [^Lto run ahead of him]. ⁶ Now David had never ·interfered with [disciplined; crossed; rebuked] Adonijah by ·questioning what he did [^Lasking, “Why are you doing that?”]. Born next after Absalom, Adonijah was a very handsome man.

⁷ Adonijah ·spoke [conferred] with Joab son of Zeruiah and Abiathar the priest, and they agreed to ·help [support] him. ⁸ But Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and King David’s ·special guard [^Lmighty men] did not join Adonijah.

⁹ Then Adonijah killed some sheep, ·cows [oxen], and fat calves for sacrifices at the Stone of Zoheleth near the spring of Rogel. He invited all his brothers, the other sons of King David, to come, as well as all the men of Judah. ¹⁰ But Adonijah did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, ·his father’s special guard [^Lthe mighty men], or his brother Solomon.

¹¹ When Nathan heard about this, he went to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother. “Have you heard that Adonijah, Haggith’s son, has ·made himself [become] king?” Nathan asked. “Our ·real king, [lord] David, does not know it. ¹² Now I will give you advice on how to save yourself and your son Solomon. ¹³ Go to King David and tell him, ‘My master and king, ·you promised [^Ldidn’t you promise/vow/swear…?] that my son Solomon would be king and would rule on your throne after you. Why then has Adonijah become king?’ ¹⁴ While you are still talking to the king, I will come in and ·tell him that what you have said about Adonijah is true [confirm your words].”

¹⁵ So Bathsheba went in to see the aged king in his bedroom, where Abishag, the girl from Shunam, was caring for him. ¹⁶ Bathsheba bowed and knelt before the king. He asked, “What do you ·want [wish]?”

¹⁷ She answered, “My master, you ·made a promise [vowed; swore] to me in the name of the Lord your God. You said, ‘Your son Solomon will surely become king after me, and he will ·rule [sit] on my throne.’ ¹⁸ But now, unknown to you, Adonijah ·has become [is] king. ¹⁹ He has killed many ·cows [oxen], fat calves, and sheep for sacrifices. And he has invited all your sons, as well as Abiathar the priest and Joab the commander of the army, but he did not invite Solomon, who serves you. ²⁰ My master and king, ·all the Israelites are watching you [^Lthe eyes of Israel are on you], waiting for you to decide who will ·be [^Lsit on the throne of my lord the] king after you. ²¹ Otherwise, as soon as ·you die [^Lmy lord the king sleeps with his fathers/ancestors], Solomon and I will be treated as ·criminals [offenders].”

²² While Bathsheba was still talking with the king, Nathan the prophet arrived. ²³ The servants told the king, “Nathan the prophet is here.” So Nathan went to the king and ·bowed facedown [prostrated himself] on the ground before him.

²⁴ Nathan said, “My ·master and [lord the] king, have you ·said [decreed] that Adonijah will be the king after you and that he will ·rule [sit] on your throne? ²⁵ Today he has sacrificed many ·cows [oxen], fat calves, and sheep, and he has invited all ·your other [the king’s] sons, the commanders of the army, and Abiathar the priest. Right now they are eating and drinking with him. They are saying, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ ²⁶ But he did not invite me, your own servant, or Zadok the priest, or Benaiah son of Jehoiada, or your ·son [^Lservant] Solomon. ²⁷ Did ·you [the lord my king] do this? Since we are your servants, why didn’t you tell us who should ·be [^Lsit on the throne of the lord my] king after you?”