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¹ Now whan the tyme came that Dauid shulde dye, he commaunded Salomon his sonne, and sayde:² I go the waye of all the worlde, Be thou stroge therfore, and shewe thyselfe a man,³ and kepe the watch of the LORDE thy God, that thou walke in his wayes, and holde his ordinaunces, his commaundementes, his lawes, and his testimonies, as it is written in the lawe of Moses, that thou mayest be wyse in all that thou doest, and whither so euer thou turnest the:⁴ that the LORDE maye rayse vp his worde, which he hath spoke ouer me, and saide: Yf thy children kepe their waye and walke before me faithfully and truly and with all their hert and withall their soule, the shal there neuer fayle the a man vpon the seate of Israel.⁵ Thou knowest well also what Ioab the sonne of Zeru Ia hath done vnto me, what he dyd vnto the two chefe captaynes of Israel, Abner the sonne of Ner, and Amasa the sonne of Iether, whom he slewe and shed the bloude of warre wha it was peace, & put the bloude of warre vpon his girdel yt was aboute his loynes, and in his shues that were vpon his fete:⁶ Do thou acordynge to thy wy?dome, that thou brynge not his graye heer downe to the graue in peace.⁷ And to the children of Barsyllai the Gileadite, thou shalt shewe mercy, that they maye eate at thy table. For so ioined they the selues vnto me, whan I fled before thy brother Absalom.⁸ And beholde, thou hast with the Semei the sonne of Gera the sonne of Iemini of Bahurim, which cursed me with very bytter and shamefull cursynges, what tyme as I wente to Mahanaim. Yet came he downe to mete me at Iordan, where I sware vnto him by the LORDE, and sayde: I wyll not slaye the with the swerde.⁹ But suffre not thou him to be vngiltye, for thou art a wyse man, and shalt wel knowe what thou oughtest to do vnto him, that thou mayest brynge his graye heer downe to the graue with bloude.¹⁰ So Dauid slepte with his fathers, and was buried in the cite of Dauid.¹¹ The tyme that Dauid was kynge ouer Israel, is fortie yeare. Seuen yeares was he kynge at Hebro and thre and thirtie yeare at Ierusalem.

¹² And Salomon sat vpon the seate of Dauid his father, and his kyngdome was made very sure.¹³ But Adonias the sonne of Hagith came in to Bethseba Salomons mother. And she sayde: Is thy commynge peaceable? He spake: Yee,¹⁴ and sayde: I haue somwhat to saye to the. She sayde: Saye on.¹⁵ He sayde: Thou knowest that the kyngdome was myne, and that all Israel had sett them selues vpon me, that I shulde be kynge, but now is the kyngdome turned, and become my brothers: for he hath it of the LORDE.¹⁶ Now desyre I one peticion of the, Make not my face ashamed. She sayde vnto him: Saye on.¹⁷ He sayde: Speake vnto kynge Salomon (for he shall not shame thy face) that he maye geue me Abisag to wyfe.¹⁸ Bethseba sayde: Wel, I wil speake to the kynge for the.¹⁹ And Bethseba came in to kynge Salomon to speake with him. And the kynge stode vp, and wente to mete her, and worshipped her, and sat him downe vpon his seate. And there was a chayre set for the kynges mother, so that she sat at his righte hande.²⁰ And she sayde: One peticion desyre I of the make not my face ashamed. The kynge saydt: Axe O my mother, I wyl not shame thy face.²¹ She saide: Let Abisag of Sunem be geuen thy brother Adonias to wyfe.²² Then answered kynge Salomon, and saide vnto his mother: Why desyrest thou Abisag of Sunem for Adonias? Axe the kyngdome or him also, for he is my greater brother, and hath Abiathar the prest, and Ioab the sonne of Zeru Ia.²³ And the kynge sware by the LORDE, and sayde: God do this and that vnto me, Adonias shall haue spoken this agaynst his lyfe.²⁴ And now as truly as the LORDE lyueth which hath ordeyned me, and made me to syt vpon the seate of my father Dauid, and hath made me a house ( acordynge as he sayde) this daye shal Adonias dye.²⁵ And kynge Salomon sent thither by Benaia the sonne of Ioiada, which smote him that he dyed.

²⁶ And to the prest Abiathar sayde ye kynge: Go thy waye vnto Anathot to thy londe, for thou art a man of deeth. Neuerthelesse I wyl not slaye the this daye for thou hast borne the Arke of the LORDE God before my father Dauid, and hast suffred also where my father suffred.²⁷ Thus Salomo put forth Abiathar, that he must nomore be the prest of the LORDE, that the worde of the LORDE mighte be fulfilled, which he spake ouer the house of Eli at Silo.²⁸ And this rumonre came before Ioab: for Ioab cleued vnto Adonias, and not vnto Salomon. Then fled Ioab into the Tabernacle of the LORDE, and toke holde of the hornes of the altare.²⁹ And it was tolde kynge Salomon, that Ioab was fled in to the Tabernacle of the LORDE, and beholde, he stondeth at the altare.Then sent Salomon Benaia the sonne of Ioiada, and sayde: Go slaye him.³⁰ And whan Benaia came to the Tabernacle of the LORDE, he sayde vnto him: Thus sayeth the kynge: Come forth. He sayde: No, I wyl dye here. And Benaia tolde this vnto the kynge agayne. and sayde: Thus hath Ioab spoken, and thus hath he answered me.³¹ The kinge saide vnto him: Do as he hath spoken, and slaye him, and bury him, that thou mayest put fro me and my fathers house the bloude which Ioab hath shed without a cause,³² and that the LORDE maye recompence him his bloude vpon his heade, because he smote two men, which were more righteous and better then he, and slewe them with ye swerde that my father Dauid knewe not of: namely, Abner ye sonne of Ner the chefe captaine ouer Israel, & Amasa the sonne of Iether ye chefe captaine ouer Iuda yt³³ their bloude maye be recompensed vpo ye heade of Ioab and of his sede for euer: but Dauid and his sede, his house and his seate haue peace for euermore of the LORDE.³⁴ And Benaia the sonne of Ioiada wente vp, and smote him, and slewe him: & he was buried in his house in the wyldernes.

³⁵ And ye kynge set Benaia ye sonne of Ioiada in his steade ouer the hoost. And Sadoc ye prest dyd the kynge set in the steade of Abiathar.³⁶ And the kynge sent, and caused for to call Semei, and sayde vnto him: Buylde the an house at Ierusalem, and dwell there, and departe not from thence, nether hither ner thither.³⁷ In what daye so euer thou departest forth, and goest ouer ye broke Cedron, be thou sure, that thou shalt dye the deeth: thy bloude be vpon thy heade.³⁸ Semei sayde vnto the kynge: This is a good meanynge, as my lorde the kynge hath sayde, so shal thy seruaunt do. So Semei dwelt at Ierusalem a longe season.³⁹ But after thre yeare it fortuned that two seruauntes ranne awaye from Semei vnto Achis the sonne of Maecha kynge of Gath.And it was tolde Semei: beholde, thy seruauntes are at Gath.⁴⁰ Then Semei gat him vp, and sadled his asse, and wete vnto Gath to Achis, for to seke his seruautes. And wha he came thither, he broughte his seruauntes from Gath.⁴¹ And it was tolde Salomon, that Semei wente from Ierusalem vnto Gath, and was come agayne.⁴² Then sent the kynge, and caused for to call Semei, and sayde vnto him: Sware not I to the by the LORDE, and assured the, and sayde: Loke what daye so euer thou departest out and goest hither or thither, be sure that thou shalt dye the death? And thou saydest vnto me: I haue herde a good meanynge.⁴³ Why hast thou not kepte the then acordinge to the ooth of the LORDE, and commaundement that I commaunded the?⁴⁴ And the kynge sayde vnto Semei: Thou remembrest all ye wickednes, which thy hert knoweth that thou dyddest vnto my father Dauid. The LORDE hath recompenced ye thy wickednes, vpon thy heade.⁴⁵ And kynge Salomon is blessed, and the seate of Dauid shalbe stablished before ye LORDE for euer.⁴⁶ And the kynge commaunded Benaia ye sonne of Ioiada, which wente forth, and smote him that he dyed. And the kyngdome was stablished by Salomons hande.