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1 Kings 1:8

in 1 Kings 1

But Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and David’s mighty men would not join Adonijah.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men that belonged to David, were not with Adonijah.

KJV

But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men which belonged to David, were not with Adonijah.

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This verse in 1 Kings 1

Commentary

7 notes on this verse
There is some difficulty in understanding how Zadok and Abiathar came to be both “priests” at this time, and in what relation they stood to one another. The best explanation seems to be that Abiathar was the real high priest, and officiated at the sanctuary containing the ark of the covenant in Zion, while Zadok performed the offices of chief priest at the tabernacle of Witness at Gibeon 1Ch 16:39. For Benaiah, see 2Sa 8:18; 2Sa 20:23; 2Sa 23:20-21. For Nathan, see 2Sa 7:2-3, 2Sa 7:17; 2Sa 12:1-15, 2Sa 12:

This site's exposition

Joab son of Zeruiah

on 1 Kings 1:7-8

Two camps form around the old king while he is still breathing. Joab, David's general, and Abiathar side with Adonijah, while Zadok the priest, Benaiah, Nathan the prophet and David's mighty men do not. The split sets up the next chapter, where Solomon puts Joab to death and expels Abiathar.

This site's exposition

But Zadok the priest

Two high priests serve at once in this chapter. Albert Barnes explains the pair by placing Abiathar at the ark on Zion and Zadok at the tabernacle at Gibeon, as 1 Chronicles 16:39 records. Matthew Henry notes that Adonijah never dared put his plan to men of such proven loyalty.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

) who those were that were of such approved fidelity to David that Adonijah had not the confidence so much as to propose his project to them--Zadok, Benaiah, and Nathan. A man that has given proofs of his resolute adherence to that which is good shall not be asked to do a bad thing.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens

But Zadok the priest,....

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

proposed

Adonijah's feast at En-rogel was one of this Oriental description, and it was on a large scale (2Sa 3:4, 5; At the accession of a new king there were sacrifices offered (1Sa 11:15). But on such an occasion it was no less customary to entertain the grandees of the kingdom and even the populace in a public manner (1Ch 12:23-40).

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

And Nathan - Some suppose that he was the preceptor of Solomon.

The words behind it

16 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • וְצָד֣וֹקand Zadok

    vetzadokH6659 →53 times

  • הַ֠כֹּהֵןthe priest

    hakohenH3548 →750 times

  • וּבְנָיָ֨הוּand Benaiah

    uvenayahuH1141 →42 times

  • בֶן־[the] son of

    ven-H1121 →4930 times

  • יְהוֹיָדָ֜עJehoiada

    yehoyada'H3077 →51 times

  • וְנָתָ֤ןand Nathan

    venatanH5416 →41 times

  • הַנָּבִיא֙the prophet

    hanavi'H5030 →314 times

  • וְשִׁמְעִ֣יand Shimei

    veshimiH8096 →43 times

  • וְרֵעִ֔יand Rei

    vereiH7472 →

  • וְהַגִּבּוֹרִ֖יםand the mighty [men]

    vehaggiborimH1368 →158 times

  • אֲשֶׁ֣רwho

    ʾasherH834 →5497 times

  • לְדָוִ֑ד[belonged] to David

    ledavidH1732 →999 times

  • לֹ֥אnot

    lo'H3808 →5168 times

  • הָי֖וּthey were

    hayuH1961 →3559 times

  • עִם־with

    ʾim-H5973 →1050 times

  • אֲדֹנִיָּֽהוּ׃Adonijah

    ʾadoniyahuH138 →26 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

18 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

1 Kings 4:18Shimei son of Ela in Benjamin;5 works1 Kings 1:26But me your servant he did not invite, nor Zadok the priest, nor Benaiah son of Jehoiada, nor your servant Solomon.5 works2 Samuel 23:8–39These are the names of David’s mighty men: Josheb-basshebeth the Tahchemonite was chief of the Three. He wielded his spear against eight hundred men, whom he killed at one time.4 works2 Samuel 20:25Sheva was the scribe; Zadok and Abiathar were priests;4 works1 Kings 1:38Then Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, along with the Cherethites and Pelethites, went down and set Solomon on King David’s mule, and they escorted him to Gihon.4 works1 Kings 1:32Then King David said, “Call in for me Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada.” So they came before the king.3 works
The other 12 cross-references, with their words ▾
1 Kings 2:35And the king appointed Benaiah son of Jehoiada in Joab’s place over the army, and he appointed Zadok the priest in Abiathar’s place.2 works2 Samuel 12:1–15Then the LORD sent Nathan to David, and when he arrived, he said, “There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor.2 works1 Chronicles 11:10–47Now these were the chiefs of David’s mighty men, who, together with all Israel, bolstered and strengthened his kingdom, according to the word of the LORD concerning Israel.2 works1 Chronicles 27:5–6The third army commander, as chief for the third month, was Benaiah son of Jehoiada the priest. There were 24,000 men in his division.2 works2 Samuel 7:2–4he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.”2 works2 Samuel 8:17–18Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Seraiah was the scribe;2 worksZechariah 12:13the clan of the house of Levi and their wives, the clan of Shimei and their wives,2 worksEzekiel 44:15But the Levitical priests, who are descended from Zadok and who kept charge of My sanctuary when the Israelites went astray from Me, are to approach Me to minister before Me. They will stand before Me to offer Me fat and blood, declares the Lord GOD.2 works1 Chronicles 6:8Ahitub was the father of Zadok, Zadok was the father of Ahimaaz,2 works1 Kings 1:10But he did not invite Nathan the prophet, Benaiah, the mighty men, or his brother Solomon.2 works1 Samuel 2:35Then I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest. He will do whatever is in My heart and mind. And I will build for him an enduring house, and he will walk before My anointed one for all time.2 works2 Chronicles 9:29As for the rest of the acts of Solomon, from beginning to end, are they not written in the Records of Nathan the Prophet, in the Prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite, and in the Visions of Iddo the Seer concerning Jeroboam son of Nebat?2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    2 Samuel 20:25

    Sheva was the scribe; Zadok and Abiathar were priests;

    it leads to

    • 1 Kings 4:4

      Benaiah son of Jehoiada was in charge of the army; Zadok and Abiathar were priests;

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

    • 2 Samuel 8:17

      Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Seraiah was the scribe;

  • Through

    1 Kings 2:35

    And the king appointed Benaiah son of Jehoiada in Joab’s place over the army, and he appointed Zadok the priest in Abiathar’s place.

    it leads to

    • 1 Kings 2:27

      So Solomon banished Abiathar from the priesthood of the LORD and thus fulfilled the word that the LORD had spoken at Shiloh against the house of Eli.

    • 1 Chronicles 24:3

      With the help of Eleazar’s descendant Zadok and Ithamar’s descendant Ahimelech, David divided them according to the offices of their service.

    • 1 Chronicles 29:22

      That day they ate and drank with great joy in the presence of the LORD. Then, for a second time, they designated David’s son Solomon as king, anointing him before the LORD as ruler,…

    • 1 Chronicles 6:4–15

      Eleazar was the father of Phinehas, Phinehas was the father of Abishua,

  • Through

    1 Kings 4:18

    Shimei son of Ela in Benjamin;

    it leads to

    • Zechariah 12:13

      the clan of the house of Levi and their wives, the clan of Shimei and their wives,

    • Joshua 18:20–28

      On the east side the border was the Jordan. These were the borders around the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Benjamin.

Where this verse is studied

About 1 Kings

The visit of the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon, Sir Edward John Poynter, 1890. Public domain.
The visit of the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon, Sir Edward John Poynter, 1890. Public domain.
1 Kings: the study guide →Read 1 Kings 1 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); F. W. Farrar, The First Book of Kings (Expositor's Bible); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil, The Books of the Kings and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in 1 Kings 1 →