Translation commentary on 1 Kings 2:45

King Solomon shall be blessed: Solomon refers to himself in the third person in Hebrew. Good News Translation changes this to first person “me.” This kind of translation is also adopted by Bible en français courant, New Century Version, and Contemporary English Version and will certainly be more natural in many other languages.

The passive expression here may be easily avoided since it is clear that God is the agent of the blessing. One may say “the LORD will bless me” or, since Yahweh has just been mentioned by name in the previous verse as the agent of punishment, the pronoun may be used as in Good News Translation, which has “he will bless me.”

The throne of David shall be established: The throne of David refers to the kingdom ruled by David and his descendants. For the meaning of the Hebrew verb translated established here and in verse 46, see the comments on verse 12.

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 .

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Kings 2:45

2:45a But King Solomon will be blessed

But ⌊I⌋, King Solomon, am blessed ⌊by Yahweh⌋.
-or-
But me, the king, Yahweh will bless,

2:45b and David’s throne will remain secure before the LORD forever.”

David’s family line will secure/firmly reign over Israel before Yahweh forever.”
-or-
and he will secure/keep the kingdom for David and all his future descendants to rule.”

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