1 KINGS 1:1-53
ACTS 4:1-37
PSALM 124:1-8
PROVERBS 16:24
1 KINGS 1:1-53
Now King David was very old, and no matter how many blankets covered him, he could not keep warm. 2 So his advisers told him, " We will find a young virgin who will wait on you and be your nurse. She will lie in your arms and keep you warm." 3 So they searched throughout the country for a beautiful girl, and they found Abishag from Shunem and brought her to the king. 4 The girl was very beautiful, and she waited on the king and took care of him. But the king had no sexual relations with her. 5 About that time David's son Adonijah, whose mother was Haggith, decided to make himself king in place of his aged father. So he provided himself with chariots and horses and recruited fifty men to run in front of him. 6 Now his father, King David, had never disciplined him at any time, even by asking, " What are you doing?" Adonijah was a very handsome man and had been born next after Absalom. 7 Adonijah took Joab son of Zeruiah and Abiathar the priest into his confidence, and they agreed to help him become king. 8 But among those who remained loyal to David and refused to support Adonijah were Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and David's personal bodyguard. 9 Adonijah went to the stone of Zoheleth near the spring of En-rogel, where he sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fattened calves. He invited all his brothers--the other sons of King David--and all the royal officials of Judah. 10 But he did not invite Nathan the prophet, or Benaiah, or the king's bodyguard, or his brother Solomon. 11 Then Nathan the prophet went to Bathsheba, Solomon's mother, and asked her, " Did you realize that Haggith's son, Adonijah, has made himself king and that our lord David doesn't even know about it? 12 If you want to save your own life and the life of your son Solomon, follow my counsel. 13 Go at once to King David and say to him, ` My lord, didn't you promise me that my son Solomon would be the next king and would sit upon your throne? Then why has Adonijah become king?' 14 And while you are still talking with him, I will come and confirm everything you have said." 15 So Bathsheba went into the king's bedroom. He was very old now, and Abishag was taking care of him. 16 Bathsheba bowed low before him. " What can I do for you?" he asked her. 17 She replied, " My lord, you vowed to me by the LORD your God that my son Solomon would be the next king and would sit on your throne. 18 But instead, Adonijah has become the new king, and you do not even know about it. 19 He has sacrificed many oxen, fattened calves, and sheep, and he has invited all your sons and Abiathar the priest and Joab, the commander of the army. But he did not invite your servant Solomon. 20 And now, my lord the king, all Israel is waiting for your decision as to who will become king after you. 21 If you do not act, my son Solomon and I will be treated as criminals as soon as you are dead." 22 While she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet arrived. 23 The king's advisers told him, " Nathan the prophet is here to see you." Nathan went in and bowed low before the king. 24 He asked, " My lord, have you decided that Adonijah will be the next king and that he will sit on your throne? 25 Today he has sacrificed many oxen, fattened calves, and sheep, and he has invited your sons to attend the celebration. He also invited Joab, the commander of the army, and Abiathar the priest. They are feasting and drinking with him and shouting, ` Long live King Adonijah!' 26 But I myself, your servant, was not invited; neither were Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, nor Solomon. 27 Has my lord really done this without letting any of his servants know who should be the next king?" 28 " Call Bathsheba," David said. So she came back in and stood before the king. 29 And the king vowed, " As surely as the LORD lives, who has rescued me from every danger, 30 today I decree that your son Solomon will be the next king and will sit on my throne, just as I swore to you before the LORD, the God of Israel." 31 Then Bathsheba bowed low before him again and exclaimed, " May my lord King David live forever!" 32 Then King David ordered, " Call Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada." When they came into the king's presence, 33 the king said to them, " Take Solomon and my officers down to Gihon Spring. Solomon is to ride on my personal mule. 34 There Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet are to anoint him king over Israel. Then blow the trumpets and shout, ` Long live King Solomon!' 35 When you bring him back here, he will sit on my throne. He will succeed me as king, for I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and Judah." 36 " Amen!" Benaiah son of Jehoiada replied. " May the LORD, the God of my lord the king, decree it to be so. 37 And may the LORD be with Solomon as he has been with you, and may he make Solomon's reign even greater than yours!" 38 So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the king's bodyguard took Solomon down to Gihon Spring, and Solomon rode on King David's personal mule. 39 There Zadok the priest took a flask of olive oil from the sacred tent and poured it on Solomon's head. Then the trumpets were blown, and all the people shouted, " Long live King Solomon!" 40 And all the people returned with Solomon to Jerusalem, playing flutes and shouting for joy. The celebration was so joyous and noisy that the earth shook with the sound. 41 Adonijah and his guests heard the celebrating and shouting just as they were finishing their banquet. When Joab heard the sound of trumpets, he asked, " What's going on? Why is the city in such an uproar?" 42 And while he was still speaking, Jonathan son of Abiathar the priest arrived. " Come in," Adonijah said to him, " for you are a good man. You must have good news." 43 " Not at all!" Jonathan replied. " Our lord King David has just declared Solomon king! 44 The king sent him down to Gihon Spring with Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, protected by the king's bodyguard. They had him ride on the king's own mule, 45 and Zadok and Nathan have anointed him as the new king. They have just returned, and the whole city is celebrating and rejoicing. That's what all the noise is about. 46 Moreover, Solomon is now sitting on the royal throne as king. 47 All the royal officials went to King David and congratulated him, saying, ` May your God make Solomon's fame even greater than your own, and may Solomon's kingdom be even greater than yours!' Then the king bowed his head in worship as he lay in his bed, 48 and he spoke these words: ` Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who today has chosen someone to sit on my throne while I am still alive to see it.' " 49 Then all of Adonijah's guests jumped up in panic from the banquet table and quickly went their separate ways. 50 Adonijah himself was afraid of Solomon, so he rushed to the sacred tent and caught hold of the horns of the altar. 51 Word soon reached Solomon that Adonijah had seized the horns of the altar and that he was pleading, " Let Solomon swear today that he will not kill me!" 52 Solomon replied, " If he proves himself to be loyal, he will not be harmed. But if he does not, he will die." 53 So King Solomon summoned Adonijah, and they brought him down from the altar. He came and bowed low before the king, and Solomon dismissed him, saying, " Go on home."
ACTS 4:1-37
While Peter and John were speaking to the people, the leading priests, the captain of the Temple guard, and some of the Sadducees came over to them. 2 They were very disturbed that Peter and John were claiming, on the authority of Jesus, that there is a resurrection of the dead. 3 They arrested them and, since it was already evening, jailed them until morning. 4 But many of the people who heard their message believed it, so that the number of believers totaled about five thousand men, not counting women and children. 5 The next day the council of all the rulers and elders and teachers of religious law met in Jerusalem. 6 Annas the high priest was there, along with Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and other relatives of the high priest. 7 They brought in the two disciples and demanded, " By what power, or in whose name, have you done this?" 8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, " Leaders and elders of our nation, 9 are we being questioned because we've done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed? 10 Let me clearly state to you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed in the name and power of Jesus Christ from Nazareth, the man you crucified, but whom God raised from the dead. 11 For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ` The stone that you builders rejected
has now become the cornerstone.'
12 There is salvation in no one else! There is no other name in all of heaven for people to call on to save them." 13 The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men who had had no special training. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus. 14 But since the man who had been healed was standing right there among them, the council had nothing to say. 15 So they sent Peter and John out of the council chamber and conferred among themselves. 16 " What should we do with these men?" they asked each other. " We can't deny they have done a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it. 17 But perhaps we can stop them from spreading their propaganda. We'll warn them not to speak to anyone in Jesus' name again." 18 So they called the apostles back in and told them never again to speak or teach about Jesus. 19 But Peter and John replied, " Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than him? 20 We cannot stop telling about the wonderful things we have seen and heard."21 The council then threatened them further, but they finally let them go because they didn't know how to punish them without starting a riot. For everyone was praising God 22 for this miraculous sign--the healing of a man who had been lame for more than forty years. 23 As soon as they were freed, Peter and John found the other believers and told them what the leading priests and elders had said. 24 Then all the believers were united as they lifted their voices in prayer: " O Sovereign Lord, Creator of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them--25 you spoke long ago by the Holy Spirit through our ancestor King David, your servant, saying, ` Why did the nations rage?
Why did the people waste their time with futile plans?
26 The kings of the earth prepared for battle;
the rulers gathered together
against the Lord
and against his Messiah.'
27 " That is what has happened here in this city! For Herod Antipas, Pontius Pilate the governor, the Gentiles, and the people of Israel were all united against Jesus, your holy servant, whom you anointed. 28 In fact, everything they did occurred according to your eternal will and plan. 29 And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and give your servants great boldness in their preaching. 30 Send your healing power; may miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant Jesus." 31 After this prayer, the building where they were meeting shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. And they preached God's message with boldness. 32 All the believers were of one heart and mind, and they felt that what they owned was not their own; they shared everything they had. 33 And the apostles gave powerful witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God's great favor was upon them all. 34 There was no poverty among them, because people who owned land or houses sold them 35 and brought the money to the apostles to give to others in need. 36 For instance, there was Joseph, the one the apostles nicknamed Barnabas (which means " Son of Encouragement"). He was from the tribe of Levi and came from the island of Cyprus. 37 He sold a field he owned and brought the money to the apostles for those in need.
PSALM 124:1-8
A song for the ascent to Jerusalem. A psalm of David.
1 If the LORD had not been on our side--
let Israel now say--
2 if the LORD had not been on our side
when people rose up against us,
3 they would have swallowed us alive
because of their burning anger against us.
4 The waters would have engulfed us;
a torrent would have overwhelmed us.
5 Yes, the raging waters of their fury
would have overwhelmed our very lives.
6 Blessed be the LORD,
who did not let their teeth tear us apart!
7 We escaped like a bird from a hunter's trap.
The trap is broken, and we are free!
8 Our help is from the LORD,
who made the heavens and the earth.
PROVERBS 16:24
Kind words are like honey-sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.
