1st Kings Chapter 1 verse 4 Holy Bible
And the damsel was very fair; and she cherished the king, and ministered to him; but the king knew her not.
read chapter 1 in ASV
Now she was very beautiful; and she took care of the king, waiting on him at all times; but the king had no connection with her.
read chapter 1 in BBE
And the damsel was very fair; and cherished the king, and ministered to him; but the king knew her not.
read chapter 1 in DARBY
And the damsel was very fair, and cherished the king, and ministered to him: but the king knew her not.
read chapter 1 in KJV
And the damsel was very fair, and cherished the king, and ministered to him: but the king knew her not.
read chapter 1 in WBT
The young lady was very beautiful; and she cherished the king, and ministered to him; but the king didn't know her intimately.
read chapter 1 in WEB
and the young woman `is' very very fair, and she is to the king a companion, and serveth him, and the king hath not known her.
read chapter 1 in YLT
Pulpit Commentary
Pulpit CommentaryVerse 4. - And the damsel was very fair [lit. ,fair to exceeding] and cherished [see on ver. 2] the king, and ministered to him; but the king knew her not. [This is mentioned to explain the history of 1 Kings 2:13-25. Had it been otherwise, Adonijah could never have presumed to seek her in marriage, and Bathsheba would never have promised her help in his suit. Such an incestuous alliance would not only have been contrary to the law (Leviticus 18:8), but abhorrent to all true Israelites (cf. 1 Corinthians 5:1). In this fact, which the court knew, and which the nation at large did not know - they could only suppose that such a "search" for one so exceeding "fair" meant the increase of the seraglio - Adoni-jah found his point d'appui for a second attempt on the throne. The older expositors and some of the modern, notably Wordsworth, assume that Abishag was David's wife, in the sense of being legally married to him. (Corn. A Lap. discusses the question at considerable length, and with needless pruriency.) But this idea finds no support in Scripture, which represents her as simply an attendant. It is idle to remark, consequently, that "the Jewish law allowed polygamy" (Rawlinson).
