WEBVTT 00:00:00.900 --> 00:00:03.740 Hello, this is Father Paul, and I'm glad we're 00:00:03.740 --> 00:00:05.700 taking this journey together to read the Bible 00:00:05.700 --> 00:00:09.480 in a year. Today's reading is from 1 Kings chapters 00:00:09.480 --> 00:00:12.720 1 and 2, as well as 1 Chronicles chapter 21. 00:00:13.259 --> 00:00:17.600 1 Kings chapter 1. Now King David was old, advanced 00:00:17.600 --> 00:00:20.260 in years, and they put covers on him, but he 00:00:20.260 --> 00:00:22.620 could not get warm. Therefore his servants said 00:00:22.620 --> 00:00:24.660 to him, Let a young woman, a virgin, be sought 00:00:24.660 --> 00:00:26.699 for our lord the king, and let her stand before 00:00:26.699 --> 00:00:28.760 the king, and let her care for him, and let her 00:00:28.760 --> 00:00:31.460 lie in your bosom, that our lord the king may 00:00:31.460 --> 00:00:34.119 be warm. So they sought for a lovely young woman 00:00:34.119 --> 00:00:36.439 throughout all the territory of Israel, and found 00:00:36.439 --> 00:00:39.060 Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the 00:00:39.060 --> 00:00:41.159 king. The young woman was very lovely, and she 00:00:41.159 --> 00:00:43.060 cared for the king and served him, but the king 00:00:43.060 --> 00:00:45.579 did not know her. Then Adonijah the son of Haggith 00:00:45.579 --> 00:00:48.380 exalted himself, saying, I will be king. And 00:00:48.380 --> 00:00:50.500 he prepared for himself chariots and horsemen 00:00:50.500 --> 00:00:53.020 and fifty men to run before him. And his father 00:00:53.020 --> 00:00:55.840 had not rebuked him at any time by saying, Why 00:00:55.840 --> 00:00:58.240 have you done so? He was also very good -looking. 00:00:58.359 --> 00:01:01.299 His mother had borne him after Absalom. Then 00:01:01.299 --> 00:01:03.820 he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and 00:01:03.820 --> 00:01:06.079 with Abiathar the priest, and they followed and 00:01:06.079 --> 00:01:08.859 helped Adonijah. But Zadok the priest, Benaiah 00:01:08.859 --> 00:01:12.000 the son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, 00:01:12.280 --> 00:01:18.920 And Adonijah sacrificed sheep and oxen and fattened 00:01:18.920 --> 00:01:21.620 cattle by the stone of Zohelet, which is by Ein 00:01:21.620 --> 00:01:24.159 Rogel. He also invited all his brothers, the 00:01:24.159 --> 00:01:26.560 king's sons, and all the men of Judah, the king's 00:01:26.560 --> 00:01:29.060 servants. But he did not invite Nathan the prophet, 00:01:29.280 --> 00:01:32.000 Benaiah, the mighty men, or Solomon his brother. 00:01:32.359 --> 00:01:34.819 So Nathan spoke to Bathsheba, the mother of Solomon, 00:01:34.920 --> 00:01:37.120 saying, Have you not heard that Adonijah, the 00:01:37.120 --> 00:01:39.739 son of Haggith, has become king, and David our 00:01:39.739 --> 00:01:42.799 lord does not know it? Come, please, let me now 00:01:42.799 --> 00:01:45.200 give you advice, that you may save your own life 00:01:45.200 --> 00:01:47.620 and the life of your son Solomon. Go immediately 00:01:47.620 --> 00:01:50.180 to King David and say to him, Did you not, my 00:01:50.180 --> 00:01:52.400 lord, O king, swear to your maidservant, saying, 00:01:52.579 --> 00:01:54.640 Assuredly your son Solomon shall reign after 00:01:54.640 --> 00:01:57.519 me, and he shall sit on my throne? Why then has 00:01:57.519 --> 00:02:00.099 Adonijah become king? Then, while you are still 00:02:00.099 --> 00:02:02.319 talking there with the king, I also will come 00:02:02.319 --> 00:02:04.760 in after you and confirm your words. So Bathsheba 00:02:04.760 --> 00:02:07.000 went into the chamber to the king. Now the king 00:02:07.000 --> 00:02:09.360 was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was 00:02:09.360 --> 00:02:11.719 serving the king. And Bathsheba bowed and did 00:02:11.719 --> 00:02:14.340 homage to the king. Then the king said, What 00:02:14.340 --> 00:02:16.960 is your wish? Then she said to him, My lord, 00:02:17.099 --> 00:02:19.560 you swore by the lord your god to your maidservant, 00:02:19.580 --> 00:02:22.120 saying, Assuredly Solomon your son shall reign 00:02:22.120 --> 00:02:24.990 after me, and he shall sit on my throne. So now 00:02:24.990 --> 00:02:27.810 look, Adonijah has become king, and now my lord 00:02:27.810 --> 00:02:30.750 the king, you do not know about it. He has sacrificed 00:02:30.750 --> 00:02:33.610 oxen and fatted cattle and sheep in abundance, 00:02:33.770 --> 00:02:36.689 and has invited all the sons of the king, Abiathar 00:02:36.689 --> 00:02:38.969 the priest, and Joab the commander of the army. 00:02:39.090 --> 00:02:41.449 But Solomon your servant, he has not invited. 00:02:41.789 --> 00:02:44.610 And as for you, my lord, O king, the eyes of 00:02:44.610 --> 00:02:46.789 all Israel are on you, that you should tell them 00:02:46.789 --> 00:02:48.949 who will sit on the throne of my lord the king 00:02:48.949 --> 00:02:51.490 after him. Otherwise it will happen, when my 00:02:51.490 --> 00:02:53.789 lord the king rests with his fathers, that I 00:02:53.789 --> 00:02:55.949 and my son Solomon will be counted as offenders. 00:02:56.409 --> 00:02:58.729 And just then, while she was still talking with 00:02:58.729 --> 00:03:01.289 the king, Nathan the prophet also came in. So 00:03:01.289 --> 00:03:03.449 they told the king, saying, Here is Nathan the 00:03:03.449 --> 00:03:05.610 prophet. And when he came in before the king, 00:03:05.789 --> 00:03:07.909 he bowed down before the king with his face to 00:03:07.909 --> 00:03:10.629 the ground. And Nathan said, My lord, O king, 00:03:10.830 --> 00:03:13.090 have you said Adonijah shall reign after me, 00:03:13.169 --> 00:03:15.900 and he shall sit on my throne? For he has gone 00:03:15.900 --> 00:03:18.340 down today and has sacrificed oxen and fattened 00:03:18.340 --> 00:03:20.979 cattle and sheep in abundance, and has invited 00:03:20.979 --> 00:03:23.180 all the king's sons and the commanders of the 00:03:23.180 --> 00:03:25.599 army and Abiathar the priest. And look, they 00:03:25.599 --> 00:03:27.439 are eating and drinking before him, and they 00:03:27.439 --> 00:03:30.560 say, Long live King Adonijah. But he has not 00:03:30.560 --> 00:03:33.759 invited me, me your servant, nor Zadok the priest, 00:03:33.939 --> 00:03:36.759 nor Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, nor your servant 00:03:36.759 --> 00:03:39.400 Solomon. Has this thing been done by my lord 00:03:39.400 --> 00:03:41.580 the king? And you have not told your servant 00:03:41.580 --> 00:03:44.000 who should sit on the throne of my lord the king 00:03:44.000 --> 00:03:46.430 after him? Then King David answered and said, 00:03:46.610 --> 00:03:49.509 Call Bathsheba to me. So she came into the king's 00:03:49.509 --> 00:03:51.710 presence and stood before the king. And the king 00:03:51.710 --> 00:03:54.569 took an oath and said, As the Lord lives, who 00:03:54.569 --> 00:03:57.370 has redeemed my life from every distress, just 00:03:57.370 --> 00:03:59.469 as I swore to you by the Lord God of Israel, 00:03:59.530 --> 00:04:02.050 saying, Assuredly Solomon your son shall be king 00:04:02.050 --> 00:04:04.569 after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my 00:04:04.569 --> 00:04:07.550 place. So I certainly will do this day. Then 00:04:07.550 --> 00:04:09.789 Bathsheba bowed her face to the earth and paid 00:04:09.789 --> 00:04:12.330 homage to the king and said, Let my lord King 00:04:12.330 --> 00:04:15.069 David live forever. And King David said, Call 00:04:15.069 --> 00:04:17.649 to me Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and 00:04:17.649 --> 00:04:20.029 Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. So they came before 00:04:20.029 --> 00:04:22.629 the king. The king also said to them, Take with 00:04:22.629 --> 00:04:24.589 you the servants of your lord, and have Solomon 00:04:24.589 --> 00:04:27.569 my son ride on my own mule, and take him down 00:04:27.569 --> 00:04:30.589 to Gihon. There led Zadok the priest and Nathan 00:04:30.589 --> 00:04:33.189 the prophet anoint him king over Israel, and 00:04:33.189 --> 00:04:35.689 blow the horn and say, Long live King Solomon. 00:04:35.870 --> 00:04:38.310 Then you shall come up after him, and he shall 00:04:38.310 --> 00:04:40.689 come and sit on my throne. and he shall be king 00:04:40.689 --> 00:04:43.790 in my place, for I have appointed him to be ruler 00:04:43.790 --> 00:04:46.949 over Israel and Judah. Benaiah the son of Jehoiada 00:04:46.949 --> 00:04:49.529 answered the king and said, Amen, may the Lord 00:04:49.529 --> 00:04:52.829 God of my lord the king say so too. As the Lord 00:04:52.829 --> 00:04:55.629 has been with my lord the king, even so may he 00:04:55.629 --> 00:04:57.670 be with Solomon, and make his throne greater 00:04:57.670 --> 00:05:00.490 than the throne of my lord king David. So Zadok 00:05:00.490 --> 00:05:02.930 the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son 00:05:02.930 --> 00:05:05.550 of Jehoiada, the Caratites and the Pelletites, 00:05:05.610 --> 00:05:08.050 went down and had Solomon ride on king David's 00:05:08.050 --> 00:05:10.660 mule and took him to Gihon. Then Zadok the priest 00:05:10.660 --> 00:05:13.500 took a horn of oil from the tabernacle and anointed 00:05:13.500 --> 00:05:15.620 Solomon. And they blew the horn, and all the 00:05:15.620 --> 00:05:18.339 people said, Long live King Solomon! And all 00:05:18.339 --> 00:05:20.360 the people went up after him, and the people 00:05:20.360 --> 00:05:22.259 played the flutes and rejoiced with great joy, 00:05:22.420 --> 00:05:24.579 so that the earth seemed to split with their 00:05:24.579 --> 00:05:27.079 sound. Now Adonijah and all the guests who were 00:05:27.079 --> 00:05:29.779 with him heard it as they finished eating. And 00:05:29.779 --> 00:05:31.879 when Joab heard the sound of the horn, he said, 00:05:32.060 --> 00:05:34.839 Why is the city in such a noisy uproar? While 00:05:34.839 --> 00:05:37.319 he was still speaking, there came Jonathan the 00:05:37.319 --> 00:05:39.699 son of Abiathar the priest, and Adonijah said 00:05:39.699 --> 00:05:42.139 to him, Come in, for you are a prominent man, 00:05:42.259 --> 00:05:44.899 and bring good news. Then Jonathan answered and 00:05:44.899 --> 00:05:47.740 said to Adonijah, No, our lord king David has 00:05:47.740 --> 00:05:50.300 made Solomon king. The king has sent with him 00:05:50.300 --> 00:05:52.680 Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah 00:05:52.680 --> 00:05:55.399 the son of Jehoiada, the Caratites and the Pelletites, 00:05:55.540 --> 00:05:57.620 and they have made him ride on the king's mule. 00:05:57.779 --> 00:06:00.459 So Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have 00:06:00.459 --> 00:06:03.069 anointed him king at Gihon. And they have gone 00:06:03.069 --> 00:06:05.550 up from there rejoicing, so that the city is 00:06:05.550 --> 00:06:08.230 an uproar. This is the noise that you have heard. 00:06:08.449 --> 00:06:10.629 Also Solomon sits on the throne of the kingdom. 00:06:10.829 --> 00:06:13.149 And moreover the king's servants have gone to 00:06:13.149 --> 00:06:15.790 bless our lord king David, saying, May God make 00:06:15.790 --> 00:06:17.730 the name of Solomon better than your name, and 00:06:17.730 --> 00:06:19.870 may he make his throne greater than your throne. 00:06:20.029 --> 00:06:22.529 Then the king bowed himself on the bed. Also 00:06:22.529 --> 00:06:25.069 the king said thus, Blessed be the Lord God of 00:06:25.069 --> 00:06:27.449 Israel, who has given one to sit on my throne 00:06:27.449 --> 00:06:30.600 this day, while my eyes see it. So all the guests 00:06:30.600 --> 00:06:32.839 who were with Adonijah were afraid, and arose, 00:06:33.040 --> 00:06:35.540 and each one went his way. Now Adonijah was afraid 00:06:35.540 --> 00:06:37.860 of Solomon, so he arose and went and took hold 00:06:37.860 --> 00:06:40.459 of the horns of the altar. And it was told Solomon, 00:06:40.579 --> 00:06:43.100 saying, Indeed, Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon. 00:06:43.259 --> 00:06:45.459 For look, he has taken hold of the horns of the 00:06:45.459 --> 00:06:48.139 altar, saying, Let King Solomon swear to me today 00:06:48.139 --> 00:06:50.500 that he will not put his servant to death by 00:06:50.500 --> 00:06:53.180 the sword. Then Solomon said, If he proves himself 00:06:53.180 --> 00:06:56.160 a worthy man, not one hair of him shall fall 00:06:56.160 --> 00:06:58.680 to the earth. But if wickedness is found in him, 00:06:58.740 --> 00:07:01.509 he shall die. So King Solomon sent them to bring 00:07:01.509 --> 00:07:03.430 him down from the altar, and he came and fell 00:07:03.430 --> 00:07:05.449 down before King Solomon, and Solomon said to 00:07:05.449 --> 00:07:09.889 him, Go to your house. Chapter 2 Now the days 00:07:09.889 --> 00:07:12.449 of David drew near that he should die, and he 00:07:12.449 --> 00:07:15.029 charged Solomon his son, saying, I go the way 00:07:15.029 --> 00:07:17.689 of all the earth. Be strong, therefore, and prove 00:07:17.689 --> 00:07:20.170 yourself a man, and keep the charge of the Lord 00:07:20.170 --> 00:07:23.360 your God. to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, 00:07:23.399 --> 00:07:26.279 his commandments, his judgments, and his testimonies, 00:07:26.279 --> 00:07:28.759 as it is written in the law of Moses, that you 00:07:28.759 --> 00:07:31.240 may prosper in all that you do and wherever you 00:07:31.240 --> 00:07:33.819 turn, that the Lord may fulfill his word which 00:07:33.819 --> 00:07:36.240 he spoke concerning me, saying, If your sons 00:07:36.240 --> 00:07:38.720 take heed to their way, to walk before me in 00:07:38.720 --> 00:07:40.939 truth with all their heart and with all their 00:07:40.939 --> 00:07:43.879 soul, he said, You shall not lack a man on the 00:07:43.879 --> 00:07:46.939 throne of Israel. Moreover, you know also what 00:07:46.939 --> 00:07:49.410 Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me. and what he 00:07:49.410 --> 00:07:51.689 did to the two commanders of the armies of Israel, 00:07:51.810 --> 00:07:54.550 to Abner the son of Nir, and Amasa the son of 00:07:54.550 --> 00:07:56.670 Jether, whom he killed. And he shed the blood 00:07:56.670 --> 00:07:59.209 of war in peacetime, and put the blood of war 00:07:59.209 --> 00:08:01.790 on his belt that was around his waist, and on 00:08:01.790 --> 00:08:04.029 his sandals that were on his feet. Therefore 00:08:04.029 --> 00:08:06.230 do according to your wisdom, and do not let his 00:08:06.230 --> 00:08:08.990 gray hair go down to the grave in peace. But 00:08:08.990 --> 00:08:11.889 show kindness to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, 00:08:12.009 --> 00:08:14.649 and let them be among those who eat at your table. 00:08:14.810 --> 00:08:17.430 For so they came to me when I fled from Absalom 00:08:17.430 --> 00:08:20.250 your brother. And see, you have with you Shimei 00:08:20.250 --> 00:08:23.089 the son of Gerah, a Benjamite from Bahurim, who 00:08:23.089 --> 00:08:25.769 cursed me with a malicious curse in the day when 00:08:25.769 --> 00:08:28.310 I went to Mahanaim. But he came down to meet 00:08:28.310 --> 00:08:30.670 me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by the Lord, 00:08:30.730 --> 00:08:33.169 saying, I will not put you to death by the sword. 00:08:33.389 --> 00:08:36.230 Now therefore do not hold him guiltless, for 00:08:36.230 --> 00:08:38.529 you are a wise man and know what you ought to 00:08:38.529 --> 00:08:40.690 do to him. But bring his gray hair down to the 00:08:40.690 --> 00:08:43.730 grave with blood. So David rested with his fathers 00:08:43.730 --> 00:08:46.149 and was buried in the city of David. The period 00:08:46.149 --> 00:08:48.370 that David reigned over Israel was 40 years. 00:08:48.549 --> 00:08:50.950 Seven years he reigned in Hebron, and in Jerusalem 00:08:50.950 --> 00:08:54.029 he reigned 33 years. Then Solomon sat on the 00:08:54.029 --> 00:08:56.309 throne of his father David, and his kingdom was 00:08:56.309 --> 00:08:59.230 firmly established. Now Adonijah the son of Haggith 00:08:59.230 --> 00:09:01.769 came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. So she 00:09:01.769 --> 00:09:04.529 said, Do you come peaceably? And he said, Peaceably. 00:09:04.710 --> 00:09:07.009 Moreover he said, I have something to say to 00:09:07.009 --> 00:09:09.629 you. And she said, Say it. Then he said, You 00:09:09.629 --> 00:09:11.789 know that the kingdom was mine, and all Israel 00:09:11.789 --> 00:09:14.269 had set their expectations on me that I should 00:09:14.269 --> 00:09:16.919 reign. However, the kingdom has been turned over 00:09:16.919 --> 00:09:19.460 and has become my brother's, for it was his from 00:09:19.460 --> 00:09:22.620 the Lord. Now I ask one petition of you, do not 00:09:22.620 --> 00:09:25.679 deny me. And she said to him, Say it. Then he 00:09:25.679 --> 00:09:28.100 said, Please speak to King Solomon, for he will 00:09:28.100 --> 00:09:31.000 not refuse you, that he may give me Abishag the 00:09:31.000 --> 00:09:34.200 Shunammite as wife. So Bathsheba said, Very well, 00:09:34.340 --> 00:09:36.740 I will speak for you to the king. Bathsheba therefore 00:09:36.740 --> 00:09:39.220 went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah. 00:09:39.519 --> 00:09:41.500 And the king rose up to meet her and bowed down 00:09:41.500 --> 00:09:44.340 to her and sat down on his throne and had a throne 00:09:44.340 --> 00:09:47.000 set for the king's mother. So she sat at his 00:09:47.000 --> 00:09:49.399 right hand. Then she said, I desire one small 00:09:49.399 --> 00:09:51.720 petition of you, do not refuse me. And the king 00:09:51.720 --> 00:09:53.720 said to her, ask it my mother, for I will not 00:09:53.720 --> 00:09:56.779 refuse you. So she said, let Abishag the Shunammite 00:09:56.779 --> 00:09:59.240 be given to Adonijah your brother as wife. And 00:09:59.240 --> 00:10:00.980 king Solomon answered and said to his mother, 00:10:01.120 --> 00:10:03.379 now why do you ask Abishag the Shunammite for 00:10:03.379 --> 00:10:06.139 Adonijah? Ask for him the kingdom also, for he 00:10:06.139 --> 00:10:08.889 is my older brother. For him... and for Abiathar 00:10:08.889 --> 00:10:11.009 the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah. 00:10:11.250 --> 00:10:13.210 Then King Solomon swore by the Lord, saying, 00:10:13.429 --> 00:10:16.490 May God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah 00:10:16.490 --> 00:10:19.169 has not spoken this word against his own life. 00:10:19.669 --> 00:10:22.190 Now therefore, as the Lord lives, who has confirmed 00:10:22.190 --> 00:10:24.509 me and set me on the throne of David my father, 00:10:24.629 --> 00:10:26.850 and who has established a house for me, as he 00:10:26.850 --> 00:10:29.149 promised, Adonijah shall be put to death today. 00:10:29.389 --> 00:10:31.710 So King Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the 00:10:31.710 --> 00:10:33.909 son of Jehoiada, and he struck him down, and 00:10:33.909 --> 00:10:36.309 he died. And to Abiathar the priest, the king 00:10:36.309 --> 00:10:39.320 said, Go to Anatol. to your own fields, for you 00:10:39.320 --> 00:10:41.559 are deserving of death. But I will not put you 00:10:41.559 --> 00:10:43.659 to death at this time, because you carried the 00:10:43.659 --> 00:10:46.279 ark of the Lord God before my father David, and 00:10:46.279 --> 00:10:48.159 because you were afflicted every time my father 00:10:48.159 --> 00:10:50.899 was afflicted. So Solomon removed Abiathar from 00:10:50.899 --> 00:10:53.259 being priest to the Lord, that he might fulfill 00:10:53.259 --> 00:10:55.460 the word of the Lord which he spoke concerning 00:10:55.460 --> 00:10:58.500 the house of Eli at Shiloh. Then news came to 00:10:58.500 --> 00:11:00.940 Joab, for Joab had defected to Adonijah, though 00:11:00.940 --> 00:11:03.360 he had not defected to Absalom. So Joab fled 00:11:03.360 --> 00:11:05.539 to the tabernacle of the Lord and took hold of 00:11:05.539 --> 00:11:07.679 the horns of the altar. And King Solomon was 00:11:07.679 --> 00:11:10.019 told, Joab has fled to the tabernacle of the 00:11:10.019 --> 00:11:12.440 Lord, there he is by the altar. Then Solomon 00:11:12.440 --> 00:11:14.980 sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, Go 00:11:14.980 --> 00:11:17.559 strike him down. So Benaiah went to the tabernacle 00:11:17.559 --> 00:11:19.840 of the Lord and said to him, Thus says the king, 00:11:20.059 --> 00:11:22.679 Come out. And he said, No, but I will die here. 00:11:22.919 --> 00:11:25.240 And Benaiah brought back word to the king, saying, 00:11:25.440 --> 00:11:28.460 Thus says Joab, and thus he answered me. Then 00:11:28.460 --> 00:11:30.539 the king said to him, Do as he has said, and 00:11:30.539 --> 00:11:32.820 strike him down and bury him. that you may take 00:11:32.820 --> 00:11:34.799 away from me and from the house of my father 00:11:34.799 --> 00:11:37.879 the innocent blood which Joab shed. So the Lord 00:11:37.879 --> 00:11:39.960 will return his blood on his head, because he 00:11:39.960 --> 00:11:41.960 struck down two men more righteous and better 00:11:41.960 --> 00:11:44.480 than he, and killed them with the sword, Abner 00:11:44.480 --> 00:11:46.679 the son of Ner, the commander of the army of 00:11:46.679 --> 00:11:49.220 Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, the commander 00:11:49.220 --> 00:11:51.320 of the army of Judah, though my father David 00:11:51.320 --> 00:11:53.679 did not know it. Their blood shall therefore 00:11:53.679 --> 00:11:56.179 return upon the head of Joab and upon the head 00:11:56.179 --> 00:11:58.500 of his descendants forever. But upon David and 00:11:58.500 --> 00:12:00.899 his descendants, upon his house and his throne, 00:12:01.210 --> 00:12:03.889 There shall be peace forever from the Lord. So 00:12:03.889 --> 00:12:06.049 Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up and struck 00:12:06.049 --> 00:12:08.190 and killed him, and he was buried in his own 00:12:08.190 --> 00:12:10.509 house in the wilderness. The king put Benaiah 00:12:10.509 --> 00:12:12.649 the son of Jehoiada in his place over the army, 00:12:12.789 --> 00:12:14.950 and the king put Zadok the priest in the place 00:12:14.950 --> 00:12:17.450 of Abiathar. Then the king sent and called for 00:12:17.450 --> 00:12:20.009 Shimei and said to him, Build yourself a house 00:12:20.009 --> 00:12:22.110 in Jerusalem and dwell there, and do not go out 00:12:22.110 --> 00:12:24.490 from there anywhere, for it shall be on the day 00:12:24.490 --> 00:12:27.190 you go out and cross the brook Kidron, know for 00:12:27.190 --> 00:12:29.669 certain you shall surely die. Your blood shall 00:12:29.669 --> 00:12:32.059 be on your own head. And Shimei said to the king, 00:12:32.240 --> 00:12:34.820 The saying is good. As my lord the king has said, 00:12:34.980 --> 00:12:37.759 so your servant will do. So Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem 00:12:37.759 --> 00:12:40.220 many days. Now it happened at the end of three 00:12:40.220 --> 00:12:43.620 years that two slaves of Shimei ran away to Achish 00:12:43.620 --> 00:12:46.360 the son of Macca king of Gath. And they told 00:12:46.360 --> 00:12:48.759 Shimei saying, Look, your slaves are in Gath. 00:12:48.899 --> 00:12:51.159 So Shimei arose, saddled his donkey, and went 00:12:51.159 --> 00:12:53.740 to Achish at Gath to seek his slaves. And Shimei 00:12:53.740 --> 00:12:56.019 went and brought his slaves from Gath. And Solomon 00:12:56.019 --> 00:12:57.820 was told that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem 00:12:57.820 --> 00:13:00.049 to Gath and had come back. Then the king sent 00:13:00.049 --> 00:13:01.909 and called for Shimei and said to him, Did I 00:13:01.909 --> 00:13:03.950 not make you swear by the Lord and warn you, 00:13:03.990 --> 00:13:06.370 saying, Know for certain that on the day you 00:13:06.370 --> 00:13:08.190 go out and travel anywhere, you shall surely 00:13:08.190 --> 00:13:10.669 die? And he said to me, The word I have heard 00:13:10.669 --> 00:13:12.970 is good. Why then have you not kept the oath 00:13:12.970 --> 00:13:14.730 of the Lord and the commandment that I gave you? 00:13:14.889 --> 00:13:17.950 The king said moreover to Shimei, You know as 00:13:17.950 --> 00:13:20.230 your heart acknowledges all the wickedness that 00:13:20.230 --> 00:13:22.490 you did to my father David. Therefore the Lord 00:13:22.490 --> 00:13:24.289 will return your wickedness on your own head. 00:13:24.700 --> 00:13:26.740 But King Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne 00:13:26.740 --> 00:13:28.700 of David shall be established before the Lord 00:13:28.700 --> 00:13:31.019 forever. So the king commanded Benaiah the son 00:13:31.019 --> 00:13:33.299 of Jehoiada, and he went out and struck him down, 00:13:33.379 --> 00:13:35.440 and he died. Thus the kingdom was established 00:13:35.440 --> 00:13:41.659 in the hand of Solomon. Now Satan stood up against 00:13:41.659 --> 00:13:44.179 Israel, and moved David to number Israel. So 00:13:44.179 --> 00:13:46.019 David said to Joab and to the leaders of the 00:13:46.019 --> 00:13:48.759 people, Go number Israel from Beersheba to Dan, 00:13:48.879 --> 00:13:50.940 and bring the number of them to me that I may 00:13:50.940 --> 00:13:53.330 know it. And Joab answered, May the Lord make 00:13:53.330 --> 00:13:55.409 his people a hundred times more than they are. 00:13:55.529 --> 00:13:58.350 But my lord the king, are they not all my lord's 00:13:58.350 --> 00:14:00.629 servants? Why then does my lord require this 00:14:00.629 --> 00:14:03.610 thing? Why should he be a cause of guilt in Israel? 00:14:04.049 --> 00:14:06.070 Nevertheless, the king's word prevailed against 00:14:06.070 --> 00:14:08.690 Joab. Therefore Joab departed and went throughout 00:14:08.690 --> 00:14:11.710 all Israel and came to Jerusalem. Then Joab gave 00:14:11.710 --> 00:14:13.690 the sum of the number of the people to David. 00:14:14.159 --> 00:14:18.059 All Israel had 1 ,100 ,000 men who drew the sword, 00:14:18.200 --> 00:14:21.860 and Judah had 470 ,000 men who drew the sword. 00:14:22.019 --> 00:14:24.580 But he did not count Levi and Benjamin among 00:14:24.580 --> 00:14:27.700 them, for the king's word was abominable to Joab. 00:14:27.759 --> 00:14:30.259 And God was displeased with this thing. Therefore 00:14:30.259 --> 00:14:32.639 he struck Israel. So David said to God, I have 00:14:32.639 --> 00:14:34.539 sinned greatly because I have done this thing. 00:14:34.659 --> 00:14:37.059 But now I pray, take away the iniquity of your 00:14:37.059 --> 00:14:39.519 servant, for I have done very foolishly. Then 00:14:39.519 --> 00:14:42.690 the Lord said to Gad, David's seer. saying go 00:14:42.690 --> 00:14:45.789 and tell David saying thus says the Lord I offer 00:14:45.789 --> 00:14:48.049 you three things choose one of them for yourself 00:14:48.049 --> 00:14:50.809 that I may do it to you so Gad came to David 00:14:50.809 --> 00:14:53.470 and said to him thus says the Lord choose for 00:14:53.470 --> 00:14:55.889 yourself either three years of famine or three 00:14:55.889 --> 00:14:58.570 months to be defeated by your foes with the sword 00:14:58.570 --> 00:15:01.509 of your enemies overtaking you or else for three 00:15:01.509 --> 00:15:03.870 days the sword of the Lord the plague in the 00:15:03.870 --> 00:15:06.049 land with the angel of the Lord destroying throughout 00:15:06.049 --> 00:15:08.549 all the territory of Israel now consider what 00:15:08.549 --> 00:15:10.909 answer I should take back to him who sent me 00:15:11.200 --> 00:15:13.279 And David said to Gad, I am in great distress. 00:15:13.539 --> 00:15:15.559 Please let me fall into the hand of the Lord, 00:15:15.639 --> 00:15:17.919 for his mercies are very great, but do not let 00:15:17.919 --> 00:15:20.419 me fall into the hand of man. So the Lord sent 00:15:20.419 --> 00:15:22.740 a plague upon Israel, and seventy thousand men 00:15:22.740 --> 00:15:25.740 of Israel fell. And God sent an angel to Jerusalem 00:15:25.740 --> 00:15:28.440 to destroy it. As he was destroying, the Lord 00:15:28.440 --> 00:15:30.600 looked and relented of the disaster, and said 00:15:30.600 --> 00:15:32.679 to the angel who was destroying, It is enough. 00:15:32.860 --> 00:15:35.000 Now restrain your hand. And the angel of the 00:15:35.000 --> 00:15:37.740 Lord stood by the threshing floor of Ornan the 00:15:37.740 --> 00:15:40.340 Jebusite. Then David lifted his eyes and saw 00:15:40.340 --> 00:15:42.039 the angel of the Lord standing between earth 00:15:42.039 --> 00:15:44.700 and heaven, having in his hand a drawn sword 00:15:44.700 --> 00:15:47.320 stretched out over Jerusalem. So David and the 00:15:47.320 --> 00:15:49.899 elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell on their faces. 00:15:50.100 --> 00:15:52.940 And David said to God, Was it not I who commanded 00:15:52.940 --> 00:15:55.639 the people to be numbered? I am the one who has 00:15:55.639 --> 00:15:58.059 sinned and done evil indeed. But these sheep, 00:15:58.220 --> 00:16:00.639 what have they done? Let your hand, I pray, O 00:16:00.639 --> 00:16:03.139 Lord my God, be against me and my father's house, 00:16:03.279 --> 00:16:05.320 but not against your people, that they should 00:16:05.320 --> 00:16:07.639 be plagued. Therefore the angel of the Lord commanded 00:16:07.639 --> 00:16:10.179 Gad to say to David that David should go and 00:16:10.179 --> 00:16:12.500 erect an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor 00:16:12.500 --> 00:16:15.379 of Ornan the Jebusite. So David went up at the 00:16:15.379 --> 00:16:17.539 word of Gad, which he had spoken in the name 00:16:17.539 --> 00:16:20.139 of the Lord. Now Ornan turned and saw the angel, 00:16:20.240 --> 00:16:22.440 and his four sons who were with him hid themselves. 00:16:22.700 --> 00:16:24.980 But Ornan continued threshing wheat. So David 00:16:24.980 --> 00:16:27.340 came to Ornan, and Ornan looked and saw David. 00:16:27.500 --> 00:16:29.580 And he went out from the threshing floor and 00:16:29.580 --> 00:16:31.820 bowed before David with his face to the ground. 00:16:31.980 --> 00:16:34.490 Then David said to Ornan, Grant me the place 00:16:34.490 --> 00:16:36.929 of this threshing floor, that I may build an 00:16:36.929 --> 00:16:39.509 altar on it to the Lord. You shall grant it to 00:16:39.509 --> 00:16:41.629 me at the full price, that the plague may be 00:16:41.629 --> 00:16:43.909 withdrawn from the people. But Ornan said to 00:16:43.909 --> 00:16:46.269 David, Take it to yourself and let my lord the 00:16:46.269 --> 00:16:49.049 king do what is good in his eyes. Look, I also 00:16:49.049 --> 00:16:52.029 give you the oxen for burnt offerings, the threshing 00:16:52.029 --> 00:16:54.230 implements for wood, and the wheat for the grain 00:16:54.230 --> 00:16:56.679 offering. I give it all. Then King David said 00:16:56.679 --> 00:16:59.220 to Ornan, No, but I will surely buy it for the 00:16:59.220 --> 00:17:01.559 full price, for I will not take what is yours 00:17:01.559 --> 00:17:04.279 for the Lord, nor offer burnt offerings with 00:17:04.279 --> 00:17:07.140 that which cost me nothing. So David gave Ornan 00:17:07.140 --> 00:17:09.720 six hundred shekels of gold by weight for the 00:17:09.720 --> 00:17:11.980 place. And David built there an altar to the 00:17:11.980 --> 00:17:14.740 Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, 00:17:14.900 --> 00:17:17.059 and called on the Lord. And he answered him from 00:17:17.059 --> 00:17:19.259 heaven by fire on the altar of burnt offering. 00:17:19.559 --> 00:17:21.740 So the Lord commanded the angel, and he returned 00:17:21.740 --> 00:17:24.829 his sword to its sheath. At that time, when David 00:17:24.829 --> 00:17:27.049 saw that the Lord had answered him on the threshing 00:17:27.049 --> 00:17:29.650 floor of Ornan the Jebusite, he sacrificed there. 00:17:29.910 --> 00:17:31.970 For the tabernacle of the Lord and the altar 00:17:31.970 --> 00:17:34.130 of the burnt offering which Moses had made in 00:17:34.130 --> 00:17:36.230 the wilderness were at that time at the high 00:17:36.230 --> 00:17:38.650 place in Gibeon. But David could not go before 00:17:38.650 --> 00:17:41.369 it to inquire of God, for he was afraid of the 00:17:41.369 --> 00:17:48.869 sword of the angel of the Lord. I hope you enjoyed 00:17:48.869 --> 00:17:51.200 today's reading as much as I did. And I look 00:17:51.200 --> 00:17:53.180 forward to seeing you again tomorrow to continue 00:17:53.180 --> 00:17:55.359 on our journey. God bless you and have a great 00:17:55.359 --> 00:17:55.619 day.