It could not have served your interests better if you had arranged her visit.
The priesthood is aroused against him. The council condemns him.
Even the people talk openly of his shame.
Your Highness is reflecting my own thoughts.
I would be a fool to ignore such an opportunity.
You might have to wait forever for another one like this.
I will solve Hezrai and Zadok's problem for them
and at the same time, my own.
Or rather, this is a problem that you, Joab, with a little help, will solve.
I await your command, Highness.
Your Majesty commanded me to attend upon her?
It took you long enough to get here. I sent Takyan to bring you an hour ago.
Ten minutes ago, if Your Majesty pleases.
Come in. Don't stand there arguing with me.
In what way can I serve Your Majesty?
You can arrange for my safe conduct out of Israel.
Stop looking at me like that! Do as I tell you!
- But when, Your Majesty? - Now. Today. This minute.
Your Majesty will pardon me if I seem shocked...
Do I have to consult you first concerning everything I wish to do?
Your Majesty would go without accomplishing her purpose?
Permit me to decide the question of my comings and goings.
Your Majesty will forgive me if I venture to touch upon her personal, private affairs.
Get to the point, Baltor.
I have sensed a change in Your Majesty. A softening.
A desire to evade reality.
You are accusing me of being in love with him? Is that it?
I hope for Your Majesty's own sake that such is not the case.
And if such is the case,
do you deny me the right for the first time in my life to be human?
May I remind Your Majesty that you cannot put your personal feelings
above the Pharaoh and the good of your country?
Don't lecture me, Baltor.
Your Majesty once told me that you could not afford the luxury of being a woman,
that always you were forced to remember that you are a queen,
and that your only love, your only thought, must be your duty.
Your Majesty came to Jerusalem
in search of a means to destroy an enemy whom you once hated!
Yes, Baltor.
I have been trying to evade reality.
I have found myself trying to forget the purpose for which I came,
as one would try to forget an evil dream.
I have been reluctant to make an end of him.
The most merciful way to kill is to thrust quickly and strongly with a knife.
It seems to me that we are no nearer a kill than we were before we came.
You are wrong, Baltor. I have known for days how to destroy Solomon.
Suppose I get his permission to hold the rites of Rha-Gon upon the soil of Israel,
to set up a pagan god in the face of the great Jehovah,
the one god who commands the Israelites to have no other god before him?
That would cause more than angry murmurings against him.
The priests and the people would rise up against Solomon.
Yes, Baltor.
His own people would accomplish his end.
Are you satisfied now that I am still the Queen of Sheba?
Majesty.
How many times shall I tell you that I love you?
Over and over, until you make me believe it.
I will.
But you have known so many loves.
I will take you by the hand
and in the temple, before all Israel, I'll pledge you my love in marriage.
To shut me away in your harem? To share your love?
No, to share my throne with you.
You honour me, but I am already a queen.
We will join our lands as we will join our lives.
A dream that can never be. Too much stands between us.
Nothing must stand between us.
Not even our gods?
I knew this moment would come, for the things we believe in are not the same.
I had hoped that in time you would come to accept Jehovah.
As king of Israel, would you abandon the god of your people for mine?
Still I dared hope.
My love, I must leave Israel.
Why? Why? I cannot let you go.
The time has come for the yearly feast of Rha-Gon.
Can you grant me permission to hold it here in Israel?
It would be a sacrilege.
Then I must go to celebrate it elsewhere.
You see? You cannot banish what stands between us.
No, wait. Listen to me. There must be a way to...
No!
Help! Help! The king!
Help! Guard! Josiah!
Joab.
Are you safe, sire?
We'll deliver him to the one who sent him.
Come on!
Thank all the gods you are not harmed.
For the first time in my life, I... I had no thought for myself.
I feared only for him.
You men, that way. The rest, follow me.
Are you expecting me to plead for mercy?
I have overlooked your hatred because of your value to Israel.
- I pledged never to turn against you. - I asked for no pledge.
But tonight you raised your hand against the life of Israel.
You and your Sheban slut have defiled the fair name of Israel.
I sought only to preserve our country from your contamination.
Only because the blood of David flows through your veins as well as mine,
I grant you your life, but I banish you from Israel forever.
I suppose I should be grateful, but you should be concerned with your own life -
if it has not already been lost to the poison of Sheba.
- Remove him, Josiah. - Take him, and him.
I charge you to cleanse yourself of this iniquity you have permitted to spawn.
Abjure this woman of her idolatries. Tear down the abomination she has erected.
I have given her permission to hold the sacred rite of her own religion.
A pagan revel! An orgy!
I have no apology to make for what I have done.
As I have commanded, so shall it be.
You have broken God's covenant and his commandment:
"Thou shalt have no other gods before me. "
"Thou shalt not make unto thyself any graven images. "
"Thou shalt not kill. " But murder was attempted against me.
If Sheba had not escaped, the assassins would not have spared her.
The permission I have granted is poor compensation for the crime attempted.
It seems that in your lust for this woman, you have lost your reason.
Choose your words carefully, Hezrai. It is love I have for her.
Out of love, I offered to share this throne with her.
And out of love, I will attend her ritual.
- Hear me, Solomon. - I have heard all I want to hear from you.
Then hear the voice of God.
The royal raiment will be stripped from you.
You will cry out your repentance,
but the ears and hearts of your people will be closed against you.
And my ears are closed to cackling priests and mumbling old men.
I will show you I am king in Israel, not you.
Woe unto you, Solomon.
Rha-Gon! Rha-Gon!
Hear us, O Rha-Gon, god of love, giver of life.
Let thy spirit enter into our bodies.
Endow our men with strength and vitality
and our women with endless fruitfulness.
My door was closed.
Must you intrude upon my privacy?
Can you shut out your conscience by closing the door?
Say what you must, then please leave me alone.
I come seeking the man I once knew.
The man who was noble, gentle and kind, the man who walked with God.
- Those are mere words, Abishag. - I entreat you to listen.
When I was a child, you were the world and I adored you.
But time passed, and love changed even as I did.
My love became that of a woman for a man.
But the man became a king,
and in his eyes, the woman was still a child.
I know how strongly it calls to you.
Listen to your people. Their love calls to you, as I call in my love.
Listen to them if not to me.
Whether you or my people approve, I must go.
You cannot go. Do not destroy yourself!
I beg of you!
Lord God, hear the prayer of thy servant.
Mine was not the strength to save my lord Solomon from himself.
But thine is the power. Let not thy wrath descend upon him.
Look into his heart and pity him.
But if it be thy will to punish him, visit it upon me in his stead.
Oh, no.
Why?
The sin was mine. Why did you not strike me?
I warned you, Solomon. The hand of God is upon you.
Majesty, you must rest.
I cannot rest, Takyan.
I have come to ask your permission to arrange your immediate departure.
Yes.
Let us go - quickly.
There is no reason for us to remain now that I have accomplished my purpose.
Your Majesty should not reproach herself. It was nothing more than a sudden storm.
It is not the first time lightning has dealt death, nor will it be the last.
Was it nothing more than a coincidence?
Surely Your Majesty cannot believe the Israelites,
that it was a sign of the anger and revenge of their god?
- I no longer know what I do believe. - Majesty, you're overwrought.
Yes, the strain of the last few days has affected us all.
But this is your hour of triumph. The Pharaoh will rejoice in your victory.
Sheba can be proud of her queen.
I am very proud of myself.
I have earned my reward from Egypt. We will have our port on the Red Sea.
We will have more gold, more power, more everything.
Because I have betrayed a great man who trusted me,
who loved me beyond all else.
The Sheban. The Sheban is coming.
Here comes the Sheban.
- The Sheban. - Come away.
Your Majesty understands that it is not a request that you attend the council.
It is a command from the elders of the tribes.
I have no wish to evade what they have to say to me.
You should not have taken the risk of coming here.
If I had not come now,
I might have lost the courage to come at all.
Once, you asked me for truth.
And I answered you with truth, but I made it sound like a lie to deceive you.
For I was a friend of the Pharaoh and an enemy of Israel,
and I came here out of hatred to destroy you.
Had I known this the day you arrived in Jerusalem,
it would have changed nothing.
Mine is the greater guilt.
For I have known from the first where you would lead, I would follow.
But why did you not just go without explanations?
Because I love you.
What I have done, I cannot undo.
Do with me what you will, but this you must believe.
My love is not a lie.
Think not to appease the wrath of Israel with remorse.
Neither will God's anger be turned aside.
I will speak no words in my defence.
What could you say in view of your transgressions?
Because of you, dissension fills the land.
The unity of the nation is sundered.
Even as this,
the symbol of its oneness, is broken into fragments.
The elders of the tribes deny you as their king and depart from you.
The Lord God will smite you into the dust
and his people will praise his name.
So be it.
Folly is set on great heights,
and that which has been done is that which shall be done.
Who knows what is good for a man in his life,
his vain life which he spends as a shadow?
Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.
But if ye turn away and forsake my statutes,
then I will pluck them up by the roots out of my land which I have given them,
and this house which is high
shall be an astonishment to everyone that passeth by it, so that he shall say
"Why hath the Lord done thus unto this land and unto this house?"
And it shall be answered "Because they forsook the Lord God of their fathers
which brought them forth out of the land of Egypt
and laid hold on other gods and worshipped them and served them. "
"Therefore hath he brought all this evil upon them. "
The elders have denounced Solomon,
and the captains of the host have returned to their own provinces.
This is the time to strike, Majesty.
All Israel is in turmoil, and Solomon stands alone.
It seems that your information is more accurate than mine.
Has not the Queen of Sheba given you a full report on the situation?
I have been wondering, awaiting word from her.
You mean she has told you nothing of what I have reported?
Nothing.
Perhaps in her new love, she has forgotten her obligation to you
and finds her alliance with Solomon more to her liking.
You have told me everything I should know,
excepting your price for my support of you against your brother.
I want the crown of Israel. It has always been mine.
And command of the army that you send against Solomon.
I grant it.
But there is one thing I want from you.
You will be the instrument of my punishment of Sheba
for her betrayal of me.
On that, Majesty, you can rely.
Hail to the new king of Israel.
Can your brother equal such strength?
He will be able to gather only a handful of followers.
We will strike quickly. The victory must be decisive.
How many do they number?
Thousands.
- You saw them cross over the border? - Yes, Majesty.
A column from horizon to horizon.
It was to be expected eventually.
We'll go out and face the Egyptians.
Give the orders, Josiah.
Gather what forces you can.
Yes, sire.
With these we hope to stem the Egyptian horde?
My father David faced Goliath with a stone and a shepherd's sling.
God was with David.
- Forgive me, sire. - There is nothing to forgive.
All Israel knows that God has abandoned the son of David.
Majesty, you let him go without a word of farewell.
What could I have said to him?
How could I have told him that I carry his child?
- Halt! - Halt!
- Highness, the enemy has been sighted. - At what distance?
Within one hour's march.
Then they have travelled ten leagues since dawn and we have travelled one.
They are spent and exhausted and we are still fresh.
Two hours yet before the sun sets.
- Deploy your men. - Give the order.
We want every man, horse, chariot, hidden from Solomon's view.
When he rides into the trap, our attack will hit him from every quarter.
Now deploy for attack!
Deploy for attack!
Take your positions. Deploy for attack!
Sire, our men are spent. Shall we call a rest?
They will rest at the dunes of Saladar.
There we will entrench and await the enemy.
Let the battle be joined as far from Jerusalem as possible.
Sire. Look, men on the hill.
- Halt the column. - Halt!
Shunammites!
They bear a flag of friendship.
Ahab!
We come to stand with the king.
Why do you offer me your support in this dark hour?
Is your hatred for the Egyptians greater than your hatred for me?
We come in memory of the love my daughter Abishag gave to you.
- Then we will honour that memory. - God willing.
Fall in behind.
- Josiah. - Forward at the trot.
Forward!
Start the attack.
Attack! Attack!
Form a circle.
Sire, your brother has joined forces with the Egyptians against you.
Break through. Break through. Faster.
Tell the Egyptians to break through with their horsemen.
- Break the circle. - Charge!
Sound the retreat.
Joab, find Solomon.
Let's try over there.
Your Highness, we found Solomon's shield but so far not Solomon.
He must have crawled off to hide with his rabble.
In the morning, we will dig them out of their burrows.
I have more important things than to occupy myself with a rabbit hunt.
Keep searching. There'll be gold for the man who brings me the head of Solomon.
I'm impatient to enter Jerusalem. I do not wish to be delayed by a slow army.
You will have no trouble in destroying Solomon's resistance.
When you have vanquished them, follow me into Jerusalem with all speed.
How many men will you need to enter?
Only a small escort. I will meet with no resistance there.
Your commands will be obeyed.
Colonel Hassin with six officers will go with His Majesty to Jerusalem.
There'll be few of us left to face Adonijah and his Egyptians by tomorrow.
The faint-hearted are deserting us in the darkness.
Can you blame them, Josiah,
after they have seen even my own brother turn against me?
I thought I knew the driving passion of his ambitions,
but never did I think he would betray his own people.
We only found a few scattered units of our people,
almost afraid to show themselves even in the darkness.
In the morning, the Egyptians will march over us into Jerusalem.
No matter how few of us are left, we will fight on.
If I cannot live as a king with honour,
at least I can die as a king with honour.
Woe unto us! Our king is defeated!
Majesty.
The outcry is over the news brought by deserters from Solomon's army.
It seems he has been defeated, his men routed.
Is he... among the dead?
No one knows, but all say that by morning,
not one Israelite will escape alive.
Now will Your Majesty seek safety? The Israelites will blame you.
I beg Your Majesty, do not refuse again. You must save yourself.
- Majesty, where are you going? - Do not try to stop me, Baltor.
I will not let you take the risk of going into the streets.
Stand aside!
I command you both, do not follow after me.
Solomon is vanquished! How are the mighty fallen.
Woe unto us. The Egyptians will be upon us.
The Lord has punished Solomon for his sins.
Who will save us now from Pharaoh?
Our sins have brought this upon us.
Woe unto us. The Egyptians have overthrown our noble Solomon.
Pharaoh will slay us all.
Solomon did not follow the path of God.
God of Israel,
thou who art called the all-knowing, the compassionate,
look into my heart and hear my prayer.
Forgive my sin against thee and thy people.
Grant me the life of Solomon and preserve him against his enemies.
Do this, and I will return to the land of Sheba and cast down the false gods.
And I will build a tabernacle to the glory of thy name,
and there shall be no other gods before thee.
Josiah.
- What has alarmed you, sire? - Not alarm, but hope.
Hope that comes like a light in the midst of darkness.
It is as though God had come to me and showed me the way.
Yes?
Sire.
- Our men return. - And there.
And there!
They rally to us, by the hundreds.
Set them to burnishing their shields. Let them shine like mirrors.
Yes, sire.
I remember you once lectured me, Hezrai, on how a king of Israel is crowned.
Are there any among you who deny my right to sit upon this throne?
Then I need no senseless ritual to attend my elevation.
No anointing with the waters of Gihon.
I take with my own hands what has always been mine.
Hail Adonijah, Lion of Israel.
Hail Adonijah.
Know this, all of you. I have made an alliance with the Pharaoh.
Under his protection, I will rule Israel,
and I'll have no mercy on any who oppose me.
Sire, the Sheban harlot has been found.
She has taken refuge in the temple.
- Halt! - Halt!
- Again the Israelites. - Where did they gather so many men?
Last night we could find none, only their dead.
In a few minutes, they will all be dead.
Today there is no darkness into which they can escape.
They face east, and will be blinded by the sun.
- Prepare for a frontal attack. - Frontal attack.
- They are going to charge us. - Wait for my signal.
Attack. Strike them down.
Attack!
Charge!
Sire?
- Now! - Shields forward.
Lord God of Israel, thine is the victory.
Thou art our sword and our shield.
Lord God of hosts.
Thou art the Lord God. What thou hast done was out of love for thy people.
If thou knowest what is in my heart, grant me forgiveness.
Amen.
Ahab. Josiah.
Choose 20 men. Mount them on horses.
Gather up the Egyptians' banners from the dust.
We will ride with them to Jerusalem to proclaim that the City of David is saved.
By now, Solomon is dead by his own deeds.
An Egyptian sword has rendered judgement upon him.
It is I, Adonijah, who has prevented the hordes from falling upon you
and razing this city.
- Hail Adonijah, saviour of Israel. - Hail Adonijah.
There in the temple is the cause of all your troubles.
It was she who brought disaster upon Israel.
- What shall be done with her? - Let the dogs devour her.
- Drag her through the streets. - Give her to us.
The sanctuary of the temple must not be violated.
In the Israel that I rule, there is no sanctuary for a pagan harlot.
You are her judges. I give her to you.
Let me pass.
Once before I told you I was king and you called me an impostor.
Now I shall prove to you that I am the king.
I grant you the honour of my first judgement.
Stone her!
- I have spoken. Obey my command. - Stone her.
Kill the pagan slut.
Solomon! Victory! Victory!
Victory! Victory! Solomon returns.
- Victory! - Solomon!
Solomon! Once before you robbed me of my birthright,
but this time I'll not be denied!
Sheathe your sword. I will not break my pledge.
I will sheathe it in your heart.
When none in Jerusalem believed that you and Israel could be saved,
she came into the temple and before the sanctuary prayed you might be spared.
For thine is the power and the glory.
For ever.
Because thou didst call upon my name in thy dark hour, I have heard thee.
Return therefore until thine own land
and keep the covenant thou didst make with me.
Now I can tell you that I am to bear the child of our love.
Now you will be queen over Israel, and our son shall reign after me.
No.
I gave promise to God that I would return to my own land.
For that he granted me your life and his forgiveness.
But how can I let you go?
Your child shall reign in the land of Sheba.
And if God grants us the blessing of a son,
then for the first time Sheba shall have a king,
and he shall walk in the way of the Lord God Jehovah.
That we must part is our atonement.
If this be thy will, O God,
I submit to thy judgement.
May thou watch between us while we are apart, one from the other.
I will be with you... always.
Shout unto God, all the earth. Sing praises unto the glory of his name.
Sing praises unto the Lord, O Israel.
Be gracious unto us, God.
- And bless us. - And bless us.
For his anger is but for a moment.
But his love is for ever.
Weeping may tarry for a night,
but joy cometh in the morning.
Visiontext Subtitles: Neil Blackmore
ENHOH