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22 But King Solomon said to his mother, ‘You are asking me to give Abishag to Adonijah as his wife! You should also ask me to give my kingdom to him, my older brother! That would be the same thing. Then he would rule together with Abiathar the priest and Zeruiah's son Joab!’[a]

23 Then King Solomon made this strong promise in the Lord's name. He said, ‘Because Adonijah has asked to have Abishag as his wife, I will certainly punish him with death. If I do not do that, I pray that God will punish me instead! 24 As surely as the Lord lives, Adonijah must die today. The Lord has done everything that he promised to me. He has made me strong so that now I rule on the throne of my father David. And my descendants will continue to rule as kings after me.’

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Footnotes

  1. 2:22 Adonijah thought that he should be king, because he was older than Solomon. If he could marry Abishag, that would show that he had taken David's place as king.