1 Kings 1:29
ESV
And the king swore, saying, "As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my soul out of every adversity,
NIV
The king then took an oath: "As surely as the Lord lives, who has delivered me out of every trouble,
NASB
Then the king vowed and said, 'As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my life from all distress,
CSB
The king swore an oath and said, "As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my life from every difficulty,
NLT
And the king repeated his vow: 'As surely as the Lord lives, who has rescued me from every danger,
KJV
And the king sware, and said, As the Lord liveth, that hath redeemed my soul out of all distress,
NKJV
And the king took an oath and said, “ As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my life from every distress,
What does 1 Kings 1:29 mean?
Nathan needs David to crown Solomon as king before Adonijah takes power. To make this happen, he coached Bathsheba to explain that Adonijah was throwing himself a coronation party. She reminded David that he had promised her Solomon would be king and pointed out that Adonijah would probably kill her and Solomon (1 Kings 1:11–14). Nathan then entered David's rooms to echo that message. He also inferred that David's still-loyal officials would also be vulnerable to Adonijah's sword (1 Kings 1:22–27).Nathan is a prophet of God. He's given David several important messages from the Lord. Yet in all his planning and plotting over this incident, he hasn't mentioned God once. That might be because God's will was already clear, and Nathan saw an obvious solution. Or he might just be speaking under his own wisdom.
When David hears what's happening, his frame of reference is firmly fixed on the Lord. He uses the covenant name of YHWH, or Yahweh (Exodus 3:15). David is there because of YHWH. He swore to Bathsheba by "the Lord, the God of Israel" (1 Kings 1:30). What he doesn't mention here is that it was the Lord who chose Solomon to be king (1 Chronicles 28:6). It's unclear if Nathan knows this. It seems that, knowing Solomon is both his choice and God's, David is so settled in his heart that Solomon will be king that he assumes everyone will follow along.
David's oath, "As the Lord lives," compares his word to God's absolute existence, as an unquestionable truth. He continues with yet another affirmation that he owes all to God (1 Samuel 22:1—23:7). David recognizes that his relationship with God is defined by God's faithfulness to and protection of him. Of course, he will do as God commanded and make Solomon king.
