1 Kings 2:17 (WEB)
He said, “Please speak to Solomon the king (for he will not tell you ‘no’), that he give me Abishag the Shunammite as wife.”
As quoted in the map (KJV)
1 Kings 2:13–17 (KJV)
13 And Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bath-sheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, Comest thou peaceably? And he said, Peaceably. 14 He said moreover, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And she said, Say on. 15 And he said, Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel set their faces on me, that I should reign: howbeit the kingdom is turned about, and is become my brother’s: for it was his from the LORD. 16 And now I ask one petition of thee, deny me not. And she said unto him, Say on. 17 And he said, Speak, I pray thee, unto Solomon the king, (for he will not say thee nay,) that he give me Abishag the Shunammite to wife.
Key words
- לֹא־יָשִׁיב אֶת־פָּנָיִךְlo-yashiv et-panayikh · Hebrew
- 'he will not say thee nay' — literally 'he will not turn away your face.' A petition brought by the queen mother is expected to be granted.
- הֲשָׁלוֹם בֹּאֶךָhashalom bo'ekha · Hebrew
- 'Comest thou peaceably?' (v. 13) — Bathsheba receives Adonijah as one who can grant an audience.
Why it matters
Adonijah asks Bathsheba to carry his request to King Solomon because, as queen mother, she will not be refused. Pitre points to this as the Old Testament root of asking Mary's intercession: subjects bring petitions to the king through his mother. (Solomon in fact refuses this particular request because it is a veiled bid for the throne; the point is the recognised office of intercessor, not the outcome of this one plea.)