1 Kings 2:9

Good News Translation

But you must not let him go unpunished. You know what to do, and you must see to it that he is put to death."

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
So don’t let him go unpunished, for you are a wise man. You know how to deal with him to bring his gray head down to Sheol with blood.”

Hebrew Names Version
Now therefore don't hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man; and you will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his gray head down to She'ol with blood.

King James Version
Now therefore hold him not guiltless: for thou art a wise man, and knowest what thou oughtest to do unto him; but his hoar head bring thou down to the grave with blood.

English Standard Version
Now therefore do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man. You will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his gray head down with blood to Sheol."

New Century Version
But you should not leave him unpunished. You are a wise man, and you will know what to do to him, but you must be sure he is killed."

New English Translation
But now don't treat him as if he were innocent. You are a wise man and you know how to handle him; make sure he has a bloody death."

Amplified Bible
"But now do not let him go unpunished, for you are a wise man; and you will know what to do to him, and you will bring his gray head down to Sheol [covered] with blood."

New American Standard Bible
"But now do not leave him unpunished, for you are a wise man; and you will know what to do to him, and you will bring his gray hair down to Sheol with blood."

Geneva Bible (1587)
But thou shalt not count him innocent: for thou art a wise man, and knowest what thou oughtest to doe vnto him: therefore thou shalt cause his hoare head to goe downe to the graue with blood.

Legacy Standard Bible
So now, do not let him go unpunished, for you are a wise man; and you will know what you ought to do to him, and you will bring his gray hair down to Sheol with blood."

Contemporary English Version
Now you must punish him. He's an old man, but you're wise enough to know that you must have him killed.

Complete Jewish Bible
Now, however, you should not let him go unpunished. You are a wise man, and you will know what you should do to him — you will bring his gray head down to the grave with blood."

Darby Translation
And now hold him not guiltless; for thou art a wise man, and thou shalt know what thou oughtest to do to him; but bring his hoar head down to Sheol with blood.

Easy-to-Read Version
Now, don't leave him unpunished. You are a wise man. You will know what you must do, but don't let him die peacefully of old age."

George Lamsa Translation
Now therefore hold him not guiltless; for you are a wise man, and know what you ought to do to him; and bring his folly on his head; and you shall bring down his hoary head with blood to Sheol.

Lexham English Bible
So then, do not leave him unpunished, for you are a wise man, and you will know what you must do to him. You must bring his grey hair down to Sheol with blood."

Literal Translation
And now, do not acquit him, for you are a wise man, and you know that which you shall do to him and shall bring his old age down with blood to Sheol.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
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.

American Standard Version
Now therefore hold him not guiltless, for thou art a wise man; and thou wilt know what thou oughtest to do unto him, and thou shalt bring his hoar head down to Sheol with blood.

Bible in Basic English
But do not let him be free from punishment, for you are a wise man; and it will be clear to you what you have to do with him; see that his white head goes down to the underworld in blood.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
But thou shalt not count him as vngiltie: For thou art a man of wisdome, and knowest what thou oughtest to do vnto him, his hoore head shalt thou bring to the graue with blood.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
Now therefore hold him not guiltless, for thou art a wise man; and thou wilt know what thou oughtest to do unto him, and thou shalt bring his hoar head down to the grave with blood.'

King James Version (1611)
Nowe therefore holde him not guiltlesse: for thou art a wise man, and knowest what thou oughtest to doe vnto him, but his hoare head bring thou downe to the graue with blood.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
But thou shalt by no means hold him guiltless, for thou art a wise man, and wilt know what thou shalt do to him, and shalt bring down his grey hairs with blood to the grave.

English Revised Version
Now therefore hold him not guiltless, for thou art a wise man; and thou wilt know what thou oughtest to do unto him, and thou shalt bring his hoar head down to the grave with blood.

Berean Standard Bible
Now therefore, do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man. You know what you ought to do to him to bring his gray head down to Sheol in blood."

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
nyle thou suffre hym to be vnpunyschid; forsothe thou art a wise man, and thou schalt wite what thou schalt do to hym, and thou schalt lede forth hise hoor heeris with blood to hellis.

Young's Literal Translation
and now, acquit him not, for a wise man thou [art], and thou hast known that which thou dost to him, and hast brought down his old age with blood to Sheol.'

Update Bible Version
Now therefore don't hold him innocent, for you are a wise man; and you will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his hoar head down to Sheol with blood.

Webster's Bible Translation
Now therefore hold him not guiltless: for thou [art] a wise man, and knowest what thou oughtest to do to him; but his hoary head do thou bring down to the grave with blood.

World English Bible
Now therefore don't hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man; and you will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his gray head down to Sheol with blood.

New King James Version
Now therefore, do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man and know what you ought to do to him; but bring his gray hair down to the grave with blood."

New Living Translation
But that oath does not make him innocent. You are a wise man, and you will know how to arrange a bloody death for him."

New Life Bible
So do not let him go without being punished. For you are a wise man. You will know what you should do to him. Bring his gray hair down to the grave with blood."

New Revised Standard
Therefore do not hold him guiltless, for you are a wise man; you will know what you ought to do to him, and you must bring his gray head down with blood to Sheol."

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Now, therefore do not hold him guiltless, for, a wise man, thou art, and wilt know how thou oughtest to deal with him, and wilt suffer his grey hairs to go down with blood, to hades.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Do not thou hold him guiltless. But thou art a wise man, and knowest what to do with him, and thou shalt bring down his grey hairs with blood to the grave.

Revised Standard Version
Now therefore hold him not guiltless, for you are a wise man; you will know what you ought to do to him, and you shall bring his gray head down with blood to Sheol."

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Now therefore, do not let him go unpunished, for you are a wise man; and you will know what you ought to do to him, and you will bring his gray hair down to Sheol with blood."

Contextual Overview

¹ When David was about to die, he called his son Solomon and gave him his last instructions: ² "My time to die has come. Be confident and determined, ³ and do what the Lord your God orders you to do. Obey all his laws and commands, as written in the Law of Moses, so that wherever you go you may prosper in everything you do. ⁴ If you obey him, the Lord will keep the promise he made when he told me that my descendants would rule Israel as long as they were careful to obey his commands faithfully with all their heart and soul. ⁵ "There is something else. You remember what Joab did to me by killing the two commanders of Israel's armies, Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether. You remember how he murdered them in time of peace as revenge for deaths they had caused in time of war. He killed innocent men, and now I bear the responsibility for what he did, and I suffer the consequences. ⁶ You know what to do; you must not let him die a natural death. ⁷ "But show kindness to the sons of Barzillai from Gilead and take care of them, because they were kind to me when I was fleeing from your brother Absalom. ⁸ "There is also Shimei son of Gera, from the town of Bahurim in Benjamin. He cursed me bitterly the day I went to Mahanaim, but when he met me at the Jordan River, I gave him my solemn promise in the name of the Lord that I would not have him killed. ⁹ But you must not let him go unpunished. You know what to do, and you must see to it that he is put to death." ¹⁰ David died and was buried in David's City.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

hold him: Do not consider him as an innocent man; for, as thou art a wise man, and knowest how to treat such persons, treat him as he deserves; only, as I have sworn to him that I would not put him to death, "bring not his hoar head down to the grave with blood." So Solomon understood David; for, after he had commanded Joab to be slain, in obedience to his father, he sent for Shimei, and knowing he ought to be well watched, he confined him to Jerusalem for the rest of his life, and so it appears David should be understood; for the negative particle lo, in the former clause, "hold him not guiltless," should be repeated in the latter clause, though not expressed; instances of which frequently occur in the Hebrew Scriptures. (See note on Judges 5:30. 1 Samuel 2:3. Psalms 1:5, Psalms 9:18, Psalms 38:1, Psalms 75:5. Proverbs 5:16, Proverbs 24:12, etc). This is the view taken of the subject by Dr. Kennicott, and it seems the best and most correct mode of interpreting the text. Exodus 20:7, Exodus 22:28, Job 9:28

wise: 1 Kings 3:12, 1 Kings 3:28

his: 1 Kings 2:6, Genesis 42:38, Genesis 44:31

with: Numbers 32:23

Reciprocal: 2 Samuel 16:5 - whose name 2 Samuel 19:23 - Thou shalt 1 Kings 2:36 - Shimei Psalms 45:9 - upon Proverbs 15:20 - wise Proverbs 19:5 - unpunished Proverbs 23:24 - father

Cross-References

Genesis 2:8
Then the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the East, and there he put the man he had formed.

Genesis 2:9
He made all kinds of beautiful trees grow there and produce good fruit. In the middle of the garden stood the tree that gives life and the tree that gives knowledge of what is good and what is bad.

Genesis 2:17
except the tree that gives knowledge of what is good and what is bad. You must not eat the fruit of that tree; if you do, you will die the same day."

Genesis 3:3
"except the tree in the middle of it. God told us not to eat the fruit of that tree or even touch it; if we do, we will die."

Deuteronomy 6:25
If we faithfully obey everything that God has commanded us, he will be pleased with us.'

Proverbs 3:18
Those who become wise are happy; wisdom will give them life.

Proverbs 11:30
Righteousness gives life, but violence takes it away.

Isaiah 44:25
I make fools of fortunetellers and frustrate the predictions of astrologers. The words of the wise I refute and show that their wisdom is foolishness.

Isaiah 47:10
"You felt sure of yourself in your evil; you thought that no one could see you. Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray, and you said to yourself, ‘I am God— there is no one else like me.'

Ezekiel 31:16
When I send it down to the world of the dead, the noise of its downfall will shake the nations. All the trees of Eden and all the choice, well-watered trees of Lebanon who have gone to the world below will be pleased at its downfall.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Now therefore hold him not guiltless,.... Do not look upon him as an innocent person; and if he commits an offence against thee, as he has against me, do not acquit him as I have done:

for thou [art] a wise man; so it seems he was before the appearance of the Lord to him at Gibeon, even before his father's death he had given some proofs of it to David himself:

and knowest what thou oughtest to do unto him; to watch and observe him, and, if found offending, to punish him according to the rules of justice, and the laws of the land:

but his hoary head bring thou down to the grave with blood; spare him not on account of his age, but put him to death whensoever he shall be found guilty, let him not die a natural death.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Hold him not guiltless - i. e. “Do not treat him as an innocent man. Punish him as in thy wisdom thou deemest best. Not capitally at once; but so that he may be likely to give thee in course of time a just occasion to slay him.” So, at least, Solomon seems to have understood the charge. (See 1 Kings 2:36-46.)

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 1 Kings 2:9. Hold him not guiltless — Do not consider him as an innocent man, though I have sworn to him that I would not put him to death by the sword; yet as thou art a wise man, and knowest how to treat such persons, treat him as he deserves; only as I have sworn to him, and he is an aged man, let him not die a violent death; bring not down his hoary head to the grave with blood. So Solomon understood David, and so I think David should be understood; for the negative particle לא lo, in the former clause, hold him NOT guiltless, should be repeated in this latter clause, though not expressed, his hoary head bring thou NOT down; instances of which frequently occur in the Hebrew Bible. See Dr. Kennicott's note at the end of this chapter. 1 Kings 2:46.