The Meaning of 1 Kings 1:12 Explained

1 Kings 1:12

KJV: Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon.

YLT: and now, come, let me counsel thee, I pray thee, and deliver thy life, and the life of thy son Solomon;

Darby: And now, come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon.

ASV: Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Now therefore come,  let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel,  that thou mayest save  thine own life,  and the life  of thy son  Solomon. 

What does 1 Kings 1:12 Mean?

Context Summary

1 Kings 1:1-14 - A Self-Seeker's Scheme
Adonijah was the fourth son of David, but probably the oldest of those who survived. He was born after Absalom, and like him was goodly in appearance, ambitious in spirit, and equally spoiled by his father's indulgence, 1 Kings 1:6. His attempt to usurp the kingdom reminds us of another great usurper. Satan, we know, in one last desperate effort, will try to secure the empire of the world. But when the people rage and the rulers devise, Psalms 2:1-2; Psalms 2:4, Heaven will laugh at them. The Lamb that was slain is the destined King of men, Revelation 11:15. The book of destiny is in the pierced hand. The government is upon Christ's shoulders. He declares the decree, "The Lord saith unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool," Psalms 110:1.
We look out on the world which is rent by revolt. The prince of this world is attracting to himself the Joabs and Abiathars. They make merry, but do not realize that the hour is at hand when they shall cry to the rocks and the hills to fall on them and hide them from the wrath of the Lamb, Revelation 6:16. Remember the counsel of Augustine, "If you would flee from God, flee to Him!"
1 Kings 1:1-53 - Breaking Three Commandments
From a worldly point of view Naboth might have done a good stroke of business by selling his estate to. Ahab. A royal price and assured favor might have been his-but he had a conscience! Above the persuasive tones of the monarch's offer sounded the voice of God: "The land shall not be sold for ever, for the land is mine." See Leviticus 25:23; Numbers 36:7; Ezekiel 46:18.
Ahab knew perfectly well that Jezebel could not give him the property of another except by foul means, but he took pains not to inquire. Though the direct orders for Naboth's death did not come from him, yet, by his silence, he was an accomplice and an accessory; and divine justice penetrates all such specious excuses. God holds us responsible for wrongs which we do not arrest, though we have the power. The crime was blacker because of the pretext of religion, as suggested by a fast. See also 2 Kings 9:26. The blood of murdered innocence cries to God, and his requital, though delayed, is inevitable. See Revelation 6:9-10. [source]

Chapter Summary: 1 Kings 1

1  Abishag cherishes David in his extreme age
5  Adonijah, David's darling, usurps the kingdom
11  By the council of Nathan
15  Bathsheba moves the king
22  And Nathan seconds her
28  David renews his oath to Bathsheba
32  Solomon, by David's appointment,
38  being anointed king by Zadok and Nathan, the people triumph
41  Jonathan bringing the news, Adonijah's guests fly
50  Adonijah, flying to the horns of the altar, is dismissed by Solomon

What do the individual words in 1 Kings 1:12 mean?

now come let me give you please advice that you may save - your own life and the life of your son Solomon
וְעַתָּ֕ה לְכִ֛י אִיעָצֵ֥ךְ נָ֖א עֵצָ֑ה וּמַלְּטִי֙ אֶת־ נַפְשֵׁ֔ךְ וְאֶת־ נֶ֥פֶשׁ בְּנֵ֖ךְ שְׁלֹמֹֽה

וְעַתָּ֕ה  now 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb
Root: עַתָּה  
Sense: now.
לְכִ֛י  come 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, feminine singular
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
אִיעָצֵ֥ךְ  let  me  give  you 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect Cohortative if contextual, first person common singular, second person feminine singular
Root: יׄועֵץ 
Sense: to advise, consult, give counsel, counsel, purpose, devise, plan.
נָ֖א  please 
Parse: Interjection
Root: נָא  
Sense: I (we) pray, now, please.
עֵצָ֑ה  advice 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: עֵצָה 
Sense: counsel, advice, purpose.
וּמַלְּטִי֙  that  you  may  save 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Piel, Imperative, feminine singular
Root: מָלַט 
Sense: to slip away, escape, deliver, save, be delivered.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
נַפְשֵׁ֔ךְ  your  own  life 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, second person feminine singular
Root: נֶפֶשׁ  
Sense: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.
נֶ֥פֶשׁ  the  life 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: נֶפֶשׁ  
Sense: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.
בְּנֵ֖ךְ  of  your  son 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person feminine singular
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
שְׁלֹמֹֽה  Solomon 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: שְׁלֹמֹה  
Sense: son of David by Bathsheba and 3rd king of Israel; author of Proverbs and Song of Songs.