Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet: As noted in previous verses in this chapter, Good News Translation omits the qualifying words the priest and the prophet for reasons of English style since this information has been stated earlier. But these words should be kept here since David may have used them as a reminder that the priests and the prophets stood behind Solomon as king.
Anoint: Anointing consisted of pouring oil or rubbing ointment on a person’s head; it symbolized the coming of God’s spirit on the person who was seen to have been chosen by God. Throughout the Old Testament, kings are often called “the LORD’s anointed” (for example, 1 Sam 24.6, 10; 26.9, 11, 16, 23; 2 Sam 1.14, 16). For the first half of the verse, Parole de Vie provides a good model for languages in which there is no verb meaning “to anoint”: “There, the priest Zadok and the prophet Nathan poured oil on Solomon’s head in order to consecrate him as king of Israel.”
In the Hebrew the verb anoint is third person singular, not plural as Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation seem to indicate. But the plural understanding is confirmed in verse 45, where both Zadok and Nathan are involved in the anointing of Solomon. According to the Law, anointing was to be performed by a priest; and verse 39 states that Zadok alone anointed Solomon. So how is one to understand and translate the first half of the verse? Various solutions have been proposed: (a) the words and Nathan the prophet are a later addition to the text and should not be translated (so Gray); (b) Zadok actually did the anointing while Nathan assisted (compare De Vries, who translates “and let Zadok the priest, with Nathan the prophet, anoint…”); (c) as happens sometimes elsewhere in Hebrew (for example in verse 21), a singular verb at the beginning of a clause may have a compound (plural) subject (so Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, and most translations here). Since the final form of the text should be translated, and not some reconstructed “original” text, interpretation (c) seems preferable.
Israel: In verse 35 the writer refers more specifically to “Israel and … Judah,” referring to both the southern tribe of Judah and the northern tribes of Israel. Here in verse 34 the term Israel includes both Israel and Judah without distinction.
Blow the trumpet: The Hebrew verb rendered blow is second person plural. Use of the definite article with trumpet in Hebrew does not necessarily mean that a specific one is being referred to. The trumpet is probably to be understood in a collective sense as “trumpets” since a plural subject is used. A plural may therefore be used in the receptor language translation. The trumpet, which was made of a ram’s horn, sounded only two or three notes and was used to signal people to gather together, especially in times of war, but also for other important events.
In the Hebrew the verb say is second person plural in form and is used as an imperative. It is probably addressed to all those present. The context may require something stronger than say in some languages. Note that several English versions have “shout” (New International Version, Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh) or some other more forceful term such as “cry” (New American Bible).
The shout Long live King Solomon follows the same formula as “Long live King Adonijah” in verse 25 above.
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .