David and Bathsheba

11 In the spring,^(A) at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab^(B) out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army.^(C) They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah.^(D) But David remained in Jerusalem.

² One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof^(E) of the palace. From the roof he saw^(F) a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, ³ and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba,^(G) the daughter of Eliam^(H) and the wife of Uriah^(I) the Hittite.” ⁴ Then David sent messengers to get her.^(J) She came to him, and he slept^(K) with her. (Now she was purifying herself from her monthly uncleanness.)^(L) Then she went back home. ⁵ The woman conceived and sent word to David, saying, “I am pregnant.”

¹⁴ In the morning David wrote a letter^(A) to Joab and sent it with Uriah. ¹⁵ In it he wrote, “Put Uriah out in front where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down^(B) and die.^(C)”

¹⁶ So while Joab had the city under siege, he put Uriah at a place where he knew the strongest defenders were.

²⁶ When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him. ²⁷ After the time of mourning^(A) was over, David had her brought to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing David had done displeased^(B) the Lord.