Mar 11 - 2 Samuel 22-24, 1 Kings 1
2 Samuel
1And David spoke to the Lord the words of this verse, in the day that the Lord freed him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul2And he said: "The Lord is my rock, and my strength, and my Savior3I will hope in him. God is my strong one, my shield, and the horn of my salvation. He lifts me up, and he is my refreshment. You, O my Savior, will free me from iniquity4I will call upon the Lord, who is praiseworthy; and I will be saved from my enemies5For the pangs of death have encircled me. The torrents of Belial have terrified me6The ropes of Hell have encompassed me. The snares of death have intercepted me7In my tribulation, I will call upon the Lord, and I will cry out to my God. And he will heed my voice from his temple, and my outcry will reach his ears8The earth was shaken, and it quaked. The foundations of the mountains were struck together and violently shaken, because he was angry with them9Smoke ascends from his nostrils, and fire from his mouth will devour; coals have been kindled by it10He bent down the heavens, and it descended; and a fog was beneath his feet11And he climbed upon the cherubim, and he flew; and he slid upon the wings of the wind12He set darkness as a hiding place around himself, with waters sifted from the clouds of the heavens13By means of the brightness of his glance, coals of fire were kindled14The Lord will thunder from heaven; and the Most High will utter his voice15He shot arrows, and he scattered them; lightning, and he consumed them16And the overflow of the sea appeared, and the foundations of the globe were revealed, at the rebuke of the Lord, at the exhale of the breath of his fury17He sent from on high, and he took me up. And he drew me out of many waters18He freed me from my most powerful enemy and from those who had hated me. For they were too strong for me19He went before me in the day of my affliction, and the Lord became my firmament20And he led me out to a wide-open place. He freed me, because I was pleasing to him21The Lord will reward me according to my justice. And he will repay me according to the cleanness of my hands22For I have kept to the ways of the Lord, and I have not acted impiously before my God23For all his judgments are in my sight. And I have not removed his precepts from me24And I shall be perfect with him. And I shall guard myself from my own iniquity25And the Lord will recompense me according to my justice, and according to the cleanness of my hands in the sight of his eyes26With the holy one, you will be holy, and with the strong one, you will be perfect27With the elect one, you will be elect, and with the perverse one, you will be perverse28And you will bring to salvation the poor people, and you will humble the exalted with your eyes29For you are my lamp, O Lord. And you, O Lord, will illuminate my darkness30For in you, I will run girded. In my God, I will leap over the wall31God, his way is immaculate; the eloquence of the Lord is an exacting fire. He is the shield of all who hope in him32Who is God except the Lord? And who is strong except our God33God, he has girded me with fortitude, and he has made my way perfect34making my feet like the feet of the stag, and stationing me upon my exalted places35teaching my hands to do battle, and making my arms like a bow of brass36You have given me the shield of your salvation. And your mildness has multiplied me37You will enlarge my steps under me, and my ankles will not fail38I will pursue my enemies, and crush them. And I will not turn back, until I consume them39I will consume them and break them apart, so that they cannot rise up; they will fall under my feet40You have girded me with strength for the battle. Those who resisted me, you have bent down under me41You have caused my enemies to turn their back to me; they have hatred for me, and I shall destroy them42They will cry out, and there will be no one to save; to the Lord, and he will not heed them43I will wipe them away like the dust of the earth. I will break them apart and crush them, like the mud of the streets44You will save me from the contradictions of my people. You will preserve me to be the head of the Gentiles; a people I do not know shall serve me45The sons of foreigners, who will resist me, at the hearing of the ear they will be obedient to me46The foreigners flowed away, but they will be drawn together in their anguishes47The Lord lives, and my God is blessed. And the strong God of my salvation shall be exalted48God gives me vindication, and he casts down the peoples under me49He leads me away from my enemies, and he lifts me up from those who resist me. You will free me from the iniquitous man50Because of this, I will confess to you, O Lord, among the Gentiles, and I will sing to your name51magnifying the salvation of his king, and showing mercy to David, his Christ, and to his offspring forever.
1These are the last words of David. Now David, the son of Jesse, the man to whom it was appointed concerning the Christ of the God of Jacob, the preeminent psalmist of Israel said2"The Spirit of the Lord has spoken through me, and his word was spoken through my tongue3The God of Israel spoke to me, the Strong One of Israel spoke, the Ruler of men, the Just Ruler, in the fear of God4like the first light of the morning as the sun is rising, when a morning without clouds glows red, and like plants springing forth from the earth after a rainfall5But my house is not so great with God that he should undertake an eternal covenant with me, firm and fortified in all things. For he is the entirety of my salvation and the entirety of my will. And there is nothing of this which will not spring forth6But all prevaricators shall be plucked out like thorns, yet they are not taken away by hands7And if anyone wishes to touch them, he must be armed with iron and a wooden lance. And they shall be set ablaze and burned to nothing.8These are the names of the valiant of David. Sitting in the chair was the wisest leader among the three; he was like a very tender little worm in a tree, who killed eight hundred men in one attack9After him, there was Eleazar, the son of his paternal uncle, an Ahohite, who was among the three valiant men who were with David when they chastised the Philistines, and they were gathered together in battle there10And when the men of Israel had gone up, he himself stood fast and struck down the Philistines, until his hand grew weak and stiff with the sword. And the Lord wrought a great salvation on that day. And the people who had fled returned to take up the spoils of the slain11And after him, there was Shammah, the son of Agee, from Hara. And the Philistines gathered together at an outpost. For a field full of lentils was in that place. And when the people had fled from the face of the Philistines12he stood fast in the middle of the field, and it was protected by him. And he struck down the Philistines. And the Lord wrought a great salvation13And moreover, before this, the three who were leaders among the thirty descended and went to David at harvest time, in the cave of Adullam. But the camp of the Philistines was positioned in the Valley of the giants14And David was in a stronghold. Moreover, there was a garrison of the Philistines at that time in Bethlehem15Then David desired, and he said, "If only someone would give me a drink of the water from the cistern, which is in Bethlehem beside the gate!16Therefore, the three valiant men burst into the encampment of the Philistines, and they drew water from the cistern of Bethlehem, which was beside the gate. And they brought it to David. Yet he was not willing to drink; instead, he poured it out to the Lord17saying: "May the Lord be gracious to me, so that I may not do this. Should I drink the blood of these men who have set out to the peril of their own lives?" Therefore, he was not willing to drink. These things were accomplished by these three robust men18Also Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was first among the three. It was he who lifted up his spear against three hundred men, whom he killed. And he was renowned among the three19and he was the noblest of the three, and he was their leader. But at first he did not attain to the three20And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, a very strong man of great deeds, was from Kabzeel. He slew the two lions of Moab, and he descended and slew a lion in the middle of a den, in the days of snow21He also killed an Egyptian who had a spear in his hand, a man worthy to behold. And yet he had gone down to him with only a staff. And he forced the spear from the hand of the Egyptian, and he killed him with his own spear22Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, accomplished these things23And he was renowned among the three robust men, who were the most noble among the thirty. Yet truly, he did not attain to the three, until David made him his secret advisor24Among the thirty were: Asahel, the brother of Joab, Elhanan, the son of his paternal uncle, from Bethlehem25Shammah from Harod, Elika from Harod26Helez from Palti, Ira, the son of Ikkesh, from Tekoa27Abiezer from Anathoth, Mebunnai from Hushah28Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite29Heleb, the son of Baanah, also himself a Netophathite, Ittai, the son of Ribai, from Gibeah, of the sons of Benjamin30Benaiah the Pirathonite, Hiddai from the Torrent Gaash31Abialbon the Arbathite, Azmaveth from Beromi32Eliahba from Shaalbon; the sons of Jashen, Jonathan33Shammah from Orori, Ahiam, the son of Sharar, the Hararite34Eliphelet, the son of Ahasbai, the son of Maacath, Eliam, the son of Ahithophel, the Gilonite35Hezrai from Carmel, Paarai from Arbi36Igal, the son of Nathan, from Zobah, Bani from Gad37Zelek from Ammon, Naharai the Beerothite, the armor bearer of Joab, the son of Zeruiah38Ira the Ithrite, Gareb also an Ithrite39Uriah the Hittite: altogether thirty seve
1And the fury of the Lord was again kindled against Israel, and he stirred up David among them, saying: "Go, number Israel and Judah.2And the king said to Joab, the leader of his army, "Travel through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and number the people, so that I may know their number.3And Joab said to the king: "May the Lord your God increase your people, who are already great in number, and may he again increase them, one hundredfold, in the sight of my lord the king. But what does my lord the king intend for himself by this kind of thing?4But the words of the king prevailed over the words of Joab and the leaders of the army. And so Joab and the leaders of the military departed from the face of the king, so that they might number the people of Israel5And when they had passed across the Jordan, they arrived at Aroer, to the right of the city, which is in the Valley of Gad6And they continued on through Jazer, into Gilead, and to the lower land of Hodsi. And they arrived in the woodlands of Dan. And going around beside Sidon7they passed near the walls of Tyre, and near all the land of the Hivite and the Canaanite. And they went into the south of Judah, to Beersheba8And having inspected the entire land, after nine months and twenty days, they were present in Jerusalem9Then Joab gave the number of the description of the people to the king. And there were found of Israel eight hundred thousand able-bodied men, who might draw the sword; and of Judah, five hundred thousand fighting men10Then the heart of David struck him, after the people were numbered. And David said to the Lord: "I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But I pray that you, O Lord, may take away the iniquity of your servant. For I have acted very foolishly.11And David rose up in the morning, and the word of the Lord went to Gad, the prophet and seer of David, saying12"Go, and say to David: ‘Thus says the Lord: I present to you a choice of three things. Choose one of these, whichever you will, so that I may do it to you.’ 13And when Gad had gone to David, he announced it to him, saying: "Either seven years of famine will come to you in your land; or you will flee for three months from your adversaries, and they will pursue you; or there will be a pestilence in your land for three days. Now then, deliberate, and see what word I may respond to him who sent me.14Then David said to Gad: "I am in great anguish. But it is better that I should fall into the hands of the Lord (for his mercies are many) than into the hands of men.15And the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel, from the morning until the appointed time. And there died of the people, from Dan to Beersheba, seventy thousand men16And when the Angel of the Lord had extended his hand over Jerusalem, so that he might destroy it, the Lord took pity on the affliction. And he said to the Angel who was striking the people: "It is enough. Hold back your hand now." And the Angel of the Lord was beside the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite17And when he had seen the Angel cutting down the people, David said to the Lord: "I am the one who sinned. I have acted iniquitously. These ones who are the sheep, what have they done? I beg you that your hand may be turned against me and against my father’s house.18Then Gad went to David on that day, and he said, "Ascend and construct an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.19And David ascended in accord with the word of Gad, which the Lord had commanded to him20And looking out, Araunah turned his attention to the king and his servants, passing toward him21And going out, he adored the king, lying prone with his face to the ground, and he said, "What is the reason that my lord the king has come to his servant?" And David said to him, "So as to purchase the threshing floor from you, and to build an altar to the Lord, and to quiet the plague that rages among the people.22And Araunah said to David: "May my lord the king offer and accept whatever is pleasing to him. You have oxen for a holocaust, and the cart and the yokes of the oxen to use for wood.23All these things Araunah gave, as a king to a king. And Araunah said to the king, "May the Lord your God accept your vow.24And in response, the king said to him: "It shall not be as you wish. Instead, I will purchase it from you at a price. For I will not offer to the Lord, my God, holocausts that cost nothing." Therefore, David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver25And in that place, David built an altar to the Lord. And he offered holocausts and peace offerings. And the Lord was gracious to the land, and the plague was held back from Israel
1 Kings
1Now king David had become elderly, and he had many days in his lifetime. And though he was covered with clothes, he was not warmed2Therefore, his servants said to him: "Let us seek, for our lord the king, a young virgin. And let her stand before the king, and warm him, and sleep in his bosom, and provide warmth for our lord the king.3And so they sought a beautiful young woman in all the parts of Israel. And they found Abishag, a Shunammite, and they led her to the king4Now the girl was exceedingly beautiful. And she slept with the king, and she ministered to him. Yet truly, the king did not know her5Then Adonijah, the son of Haggith, exalted himself, saying, "I shall reign!" And he appointed for himself chariots and horsemen, with fifty men who would run before him6Neither did his father chastise him at any time, saying, "Why have you done this?" Now he, too, was very beautiful, the second in birth, after Absalom7And he conferred with Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar, the priest, who gave assistance to the side of Adonijah8Yet truly, Zadok, the priest, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan, the prophet, and Shimei and Rei, and the mature men of the army of David were not with Adonijah9Then Adonijah, having immolated rams and calves and every kind of fat cattle beside the Stone of the Serpent, which was in the vicinity of the fountain Rogel, summoned all his brothers, the sons of the king, and all the men of Judah, the servants of the king10But he did not summon Nathan, the prophet, and Benaiah, and all the mature men, and Solomon, his brother11And so Nathan said to Bathsheba, the mother of Solomon: "Have you not heard that Adonijah, the son of Haggith, has begun to reign, and that our lord David is ignorant of this12Now then, come, accept my counsel, and save your life and the life of your son Solomon13Go and enter to king David, and say to him: ‘Did you not, my lord the king, swear to me, your handmaid, saying: "Your son Solomon shall reign after me, and he himself shall sit on my throne?" Then why does Adonijah reign?14And while you are still speaking with the king there, I will enter after you, and I will complete your words.15And so Bathsheba entered to the king in the bedroom. Now the king was very old, and Abishag, the Shunammite, was ministering to him16Bathsheba bowed herself, and she reverenced the king. And the king said to her, "What do you wish?17And responding, she said: "My lord, you swore to your handmaid, by the Lord your God: ‘your son Solomon will reign after me, and he himself shall sit upon my throne.18And now behold, Adonijah reigns, while you, my lord the king, are ignorant of it19He has slain oxen, and every kind of fattened cattle, and many rams. And he has summoned all the sons of the king, as well as Abiathar, the priest, and Joab, the leader of the military. But Solomon, your servant, he did not summon20Truly now, my lord the king, the eyes of all of Israel look with favor upon you, that you may indicate to them who ought to sit upon your throne, my lord the king, after you21Otherwise, this will be: when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, I and my son Solomon will be as sinners.22And while she was still speaking with the king, Nathan, the prophet, arrived23And they announced to the king, saying, "Nathan, the prophet, is here." And when he had entered in the sight of the king, and he had reverenced prone on the ground24Nathan said: "My lord the king, did you say, ‘Let Adonijah reign after me, and let him sit upon my throne?25For today, he descended, and he immolated oxen, and fattened cattle, and many rams. And he summoned all the sons of the king, and the leaders of the army, along with Abiathar, the priest. And they are eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘As king Adonijah lives.26But he did not summon me, your servant, and Zadok, the priest, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and Solomon, your lowly servant27Could this word have gone out from my lord the king, and could you not have revealed it to me, your servant, as to who would be seated upon the throne of my lord the king after him?28And king David responded, saying, "Summon to me Bathsheba." And when she had entered before the king, and she had stood before him29the king swore and said: "As the Lord lives, who has rescued my soul from all distress30just as I swore to you by the Lord God of Israel, saying: ‘Your son Solomon shall reign after me, and he himself shall sit upon my throne in my place,’ so shall I do this day.31And Bathsheba, having lowered her face to the ground, reverenced the king, saying, "May my lord David live forever.32And king David said, "Summon to me Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada." And when they had entered before the king33he said to them: "Take with you the servants of your lord, and place my son Solomon upon my mule. And lead him to Gihon34And let Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, anoint him in that place as the king over Israel. And you shall sound the trumpet, and you shall say, ‘As king Solomon lives.35And you shall ascend after him, and he shall arrive and shall sit upon my throne. And he himself shall reign in my place. And I will command that he be the ruler over Israel and over Judah.36And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, responded to the king, saying: "Amen. So says the Lord, the God of my lord the king37In the same way that the Lord has been with my lord the king, so may he be with Solomon. And may he make his throne more sublime than the throne of my lord, king David.38Then Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, descended, with Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and Pelethites. And they placed Solomon on the mule of king David, and they led him to Gihon39And Zadok, the priest, took the horn of oil from the tabernacle, and he anointed Solomon. And they sounded the trumpet. And all the people said, "As king Solomon lives.40And the entire multitude ascended after him. And the people were playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy. And the earth resounded before the noise of them41Then Adonijah, and all who had been summoned by him, heard it. And now the feast had ended. Then, too, Joab, hearing the voice of the trumpet, said, "What is the meaning of this clamor from the tumultuous city?42While he was still speaking, Jonathan, the son of Abiathar the priest, arrived. And Adonijah said to him, "Enter, for you are a valiant man, and you report good news.43And Jonathan answered Adonijah: "By no means. For our lord king David has appointed Solomon as king44And he has sent with him Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and Pelethites. And they have placed him on the mule of the king45And Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, have anointed him king, at Gihon. And they are ascending from there, rejoicing, and so the city resounds. This is the noise that you have heard46But also, Solomon sits upon the throne of the kingdom47And the servants of the king, entering, have blessed our lord king David, saying: ‘May God amplify the name of Solomon above your name, and may he magnify his throne above your throne.’ And the king reverenced from his bed48And he said: ‘Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, who today has bestowed someone to sit upon my throne, while my eyes may see it.’ 49Therefore, all those who had been summoned by Adonijah were terrified. And they all rose up, and each one went his own way50Then Adonijah, fearing Solomon, rose up and went away. And he took hold of the horn of the altar51And they reported to Solomon, saying: "Behold, Adonijah, fearing king Solomon, has taken hold of the horn of the altar, saying: ‘May king Solomon swear to me this day that he will not put to death his servant with the sword.’ 52And Solomon said: "If he is a good man, not so much as one hair of his head shall fall to the ground. But if evil is found in him, he shall die.53Therefore, king Solomon sent and brought him from the altar. And entering, he reverenced king Solomon. And Solomon said to him, "Go to your own house.