1
And it came to pass, after the year was
expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and
his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon,
and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem. 2 And it came to pass
in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof
of the king's house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the
woman was very beautiful to look upon. 3 And David sent and enquired after the
woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of
Uriah the Hittite? 4 And David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in
unto him, and he lay with her; for she was purified from her uncleanness: and
she returned unto her house. 5 And the woman conceived, and sent and told David,
and said, I am with child.
6 And David
sent to Joab, saying, Send me Uriah the Hittite. And Joab sent Uriah to David. 7
And when Uriah was come unto him, David demanded of him how Joab did, and how
the people did, and how the war prospered. 8 And David said to Uriah, Go down to
thy house, and wash thy feet. And Uriah departed out of the king's house, and
there followed him a mess of meat from the king. 9 But Uriah slept at the door
of the king's house with all the servants of his lord, and went not down to his
house. 10 And when they had told David, saying, Uriah went not down unto his
house, David said unto Uriah, Camest thou not from thy journey? why then didst
thou not go down unto thine house? 11 And Uriah said unto David, The ark, and
Israel, and Judah, abide in tents; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my
lord, are encamped in the open fields; shall I then go into mine house, to eat
and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I
will not do this thing. 12 And David said to Uriah, Tarry here to day also, and
to morrow I will let thee depart. So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day, and the
morrow. 13 And when David had called him, he did eat and drink before him; and
he made him drunk: and at even he went out to lie on his bed with the servants
of his lord, but went not down to his house.
14 And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab, and
sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15 And he wrote in the letter, saying, Set ye
Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he
may be smitten, and die. 16 And it came to pass, when Joab observed the city,
that he assigned Uriah unto a place where he knew that valiant men were. 17 And
the men of the city went out, and fought with Joab: and there fell some of the
people of the servants of David; and Uriah the Hittite died also. 18 Then Joab
sent and told David all the things concerning the war; 19 And charged the
messenger, saying, When thou hast made an end of telling the matters of the war
unto the king, 20 And if so be that the king's wrath arise, and he say unto
thee, Wherefore approached ye so nigh unto the city when ye did fight? knew ye
not that they would shoot from the wall? 21 Who smote Abimelech the son of
Jerubbesheth? did not a woman cast a piece of a millstone upon him from the
wall, that he died in Thebez? why went ye nigh the wall? then say thou, Thy
servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also. 22 So the messenger went, and came and
shewed David all that Joab had sent him for. 23 And the messenger said unto
David, Surely the men prevailed against us, and came out unto us into the field,
and we were upon them even unto the entering of the gate. 24 And the shooters
shot from off the wall upon thy servants; and some of the king's servants be
dead, and thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also. 25 Then David said unto
the messenger, Thus shalt thou say unto Joab, Let not this thing displease thee,
for the sword devoureth one as well as another: make thy battle more strong
against the city, and overthrow it: and encourage thou him. 26 And when the wife
of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband. 27
And when the mourning was past, David sent and fetched her to his house, and she
became his wife, and bare him a son. But the thing that David had done
displeased the LORD.
Chapter 12
1 And the
LORD sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him, and said unto him, There were
two men in one city; the one rich, and the other poor. 2 The rich man had
exceeding many flocks and herds: 3 But the poor man had nothing, save one little
ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up: and it grew up together with
him, and with his children; it did eat of his own meat, and drank of his own
cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter. 4 And there came a
traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his
own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him; but took the
poor man's lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him. 5 And David's
anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As the LORD
liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die: 6 And he shall
restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no
pity. 7 And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the LORD God of
Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand
of Saul; 8 And I gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's wives into thy
bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too
little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things. 9 Wherefore
hast thou despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in his sight? thou
hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy
wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. 10 Now
therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast
despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. 11
Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own
house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy
neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. 12 For thou
didst it secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the
sun. 13 And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan
said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die. 14
Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of
the LORD to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.
15 And Nathan
departed unto his house. And the LORD struck the child that Uriah's wife bare
unto David, and it was very sick. 16 David therefore besought God for the child;
and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth. 17 And the
elders of his house arose, and went to him, to raise him up from the earth: but
he would not, neither did he eat bread with them. 18 And it came to pass on the
seventh day, that the child died.