撒母耳记下 12
Chinese New Version (Simplified)
拿单指摘大卫，大卫认罪
12 耶和华差派拿单去见大卫。于是拿单来到大卫那里，对他说：“在一座城里有两个人，一个富有，一个贫穷。 2 那富有的有极多牛羊， 3 那贫穷的除了买来养的一只母羊羔以外，甚么也没有。那小羊在他家里和他的儿女一同长大，小羊吃他的食物，喝他杯中的饮料，睡在他的怀里，就像他的女儿一样。 4 有一个旅客来到富翁那里，他舍不得从自己的牛群羊群中取一头出来，款待到他那里来的旅客，却取了那穷人的母羊羔，款待到他那里来的客人。” 5 大卫就非常恼怒那人，对拿单说：“我指着永活的耶和华起誓，作这事的人该死。 6 他必须四倍赔偿这羊羔，因为他作了这事，又因他没有怜悯的心。”
7 拿单对大卫说：“你就是那人！耶和华以色列的 神这样说：‘我膏立了你作以色列的王，把你从扫罗的手里救了出来， 8 把你主人的家赐给你，把你主人的妻妾交在你怀里，又把以色列和犹大家赐给你。如果太少了，我还可以多多加给你。 9 你为甚么藐视耶和华的话，行他看为恶的事呢？你用刀击杀了赫人乌利亚，娶了他的妻子作你的妻子，你借着亚扪人的刀杀了乌利亚。 10 所以，从今以后，刀剑必不离开你的家，因为你藐视了我，娶了赫人乌利亚的妻子作你的妻子。’ 11 耶和华这样说：‘看哪！我必从你家中兴起祸患攻击你；我要在你的眼前把你的妃嫔拿去赐给你的同伴。他要在光天化日之下与她们同床。 12 你在暗中行了这事，我却要在所有以色列人面前，在光天化日之下行这事报应你。’” 13 大卫对拿单说：“我得罪了耶和华了。”拿单对大卫说：“耶和华已经除去了你的罪，你必不至于死。 14 只是因为你作了这事，使耶和华的仇敌大得亵渎的机会，所以你所生的儿子必定死。” 15 于是拿单回自己的家去了。
耶和华击打乌利亚的妻子给大卫所生的孩子，他就害了重病。
大卫的儿子病逝
16 大卫为那孩子恳求 神，并且禁食。他进房里去，终夜躺在地上。 17 他家中的老侍从站在他旁边，要把他从地上扶起来，他却不肯，也不与他们一起吃饭。 18 到了第七天，孩子死了。大卫的臣仆不敢告诉他孩子死了，因为他们说：“看哪，孩子还活着的时候，我们劝他，他尚且不听我们的话。现在我们怎么能告诉他孩子已经死了呢？他会伤心欲绝的。” 19 大卫看见他的臣仆彼此低声耳语，就知道孩子已经死了。他问臣仆说：“孩子死了吗？”他们回答：“死了！” 20 于是大卫从地上起来，洗澡，抹膏，更换衣服，进耶和华的殿去敬拜，然后回到自己的宫里去，吩咐人给他摆上饭，他就吃了。 21 臣仆问他：“你为甚么这样作呢？孩子还活着的时候，你为他禁食哭泣；孩子死了，你倒起来吃饭！” 22 他回答：“孩子还活着的时候，我禁食哭泣，因为我想：‘谁知道呢？也许耶和华怜悯我，让孩子可以活着。’ 23 现在他死了，我为甚么还要禁食呢？我还能使他回来吗？我要到他那里去，他却不能回到我这里来。”
所罗门出生
24 大卫安慰他的妻子拔示巴，进到她那里去，与她同睡。她生了一个儿子，大卫给他起名叫所罗门；耶和华也喜爱他， 25 就差派拿单先知去，照着耶和华的吩咐，给他起名叫耶底底亚。
约押攻取拉巴(A)
26 那时，约押正在攻打亚扪人的拉巴，攻取了王城。 27 约押派遣使者去见大卫，说：“我攻打拉巴，已经攻取了水城。 28 现在，请你聚集其余的人民，安营攻打这城，把城攻取；免得我攻取了这城，人就以我的名字来叫这城。” 29 于是大卫聚集所有的人民，向拉巴进军；攻打那城，把它攻取了。 30 大卫从他们的王的头上夺取了王冠。王冠的金子重三十五公斤，上面嵌有宝石，人把这冠冕戴在大卫的头上。大卫又从这城里带走了许多战利品， 31 又把那城里的人民带出去，使他们用锯子、铁耙、铁斧作工，或使他们在砖窑服役。大卫对待亚扪各城的居民都是这样。后来，大卫和众人都回耶路撒冷去了。
2 Samuel 12
The Voice
At first glance, David seems no different than many people who are given power and who use it without regard for what is right or what is fair. In this affair, David looks like the rich and powerful leaders the Hebrew prophets elsewhere in the Old Testament are constantly condemning. He has a moral and ethical failure as most of the kings who follow him also have. He exploits a loyal servant and wreaks havoc on his house.
12 The Eternal One sent the prophet Nathan to visit David. Nathan came to him and told him a story.
Nathan: Two men lived in the same city. One was quite rich and the other quite poor; 2 the rich man’s wealth included livestock with many flocks and herds, 3 but the poor man owned only one little ewe lamb. He bought it and raised it in his family, with his children, like a pet. It used to eat what little food he had, drink from his meager cup, and snuggle against him. It was like a daughter to him.
4 Now a traveler came to the city to visit the rich man. To offer a proper welcome, the rich man knew he needed to fix a meal, but he did not want to take one of the animals from his flocks and herds. So instead he stole the poor man’s ewe lamb and had it killed and cooked for his guest.
Nathan stood back, waiting for the king’s verdict. 5 David grew very angry at the rich man. It was his royal duty to protect the poor and establish justice.
David: As the Eternal One lives, the rich man who did this deserves to die. 6 At the least, he will restore that lamb four times over because he acted without pity.
Nathan: 7 You are that man!
This is the message of the Eternal God of Israel: “I was the One who anointed you to rule over Israel, and I was the One who rescued you from the hand of Saul. 8 It was I who gave you Saul’s house, Saul’s wives, and dominion over both Israel and Judah; and if that were not enough, I would have given you as much again.
9 “So why have you despised the word of the Eternal and chosen to do evil in His sight? It was you who killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword and stole his wife, even though you used the Ammonites to do the dirty work. 10 Now because he was killed with the sword, the sword will be your constant companion. It will hang over your household, bringing death and violence to your family, since you have despised Me by showing no regard for My law, and you have taken Bathsheba, the lawful wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own wife.”
11 This is the message of the Eternal: “I will bring trouble on you in your own household—right under your nose. I will take your wives and give them to another, and he will flaunt that he sleeps with them in the light of day. 12 You did your evil in secret, but I will do this out in the open, in front of all Israel.”
David (confessing to Nathan): 13 I have sinned against the Eternal One.
Nathan: Because the Eternal has put away your sin, it will not be your death. 14 But because you scorned the Lord by these acts, giving His enemies reason to mock Him, the child you conceived in deceit will die.
15 Then Nathan left the king’s presence and went down to his house.
The Eternal One struck the child born to Uriah’s widow and David so that he became very sick. 16 So David appealed to the True God for the life of his son. David went without food; he lay on the ground praying all night. 17 The elders from his household, the most highly honored of his servants, tried to pull him up off the ground and to make him eat, but he would not.
18 After seven days of this, the child died, and David’s servants were afraid to bring him the news.
Servants (to one another): If the king did not listen to us while his son was still alive, how can we tell him his son is dead? He may hurt himself in some way.
19 When David saw his servants whispering among themselves, he immediately realized the boy was dead.
David (to his servants): Is my son dead?
Servants: Yes, he is dead.
20 Then David stood up, washed, anointed himself with sweet-smelling oils, and changed his clothes. He went into the house of the Eternal and worshiped. Then he returned to his house and asked for food; and when it was brought to him, he ate.
Servants (to David): 21 We don’t understand. When your son was alive, you wept and you refused to eat; now that he is dead, it is as if nothing is wrong—you are up and about and eating.
David: 22 While my son was still alive, I wept and fasted with all my being because I thought to myself, “Who knows? There is still a chance that the Eternal One will have mercy on me and let my child live.” 23 But now that he is dead, why should I continue without eating? Will that bring my son back to life? Someday when I die I will go where he has gone, but he will never come back to me here.
24 David went in to console his wife, Bathsheba. In time they slept together, and she became pregnant. When their second son was born, David named him Solomon. The Eternal loved the boy 25 and sent word by the prophet Nathan that they should call Solomon “Jedidiah.”
The Israelites believe God punishes or rewards based on religious and ethical behavior, so David knows he deserves to be punished for the things he has done. But Nathan tells him that his punishment will come through the loss of the son conceived in adultery with Bathsheba and through the growth of conflict within his own family. The baby does die despite David’s prayer and fasting, and David’s children will soon display the kind of destructive behavior that will all but tear the royal house apart.
26 During this time, Joab was campaigning against the Ammonite city of Rabbah until he captured the royal city. 27 He sent messengers with word of the imminent victory to David.
Joab: I have fought against Rabbah and captured its water supply. The city is almost ours. 28 You should gather the rest of your forces and come yourself to lead the final conquest. If I take the city, then I will receive the credit for it.
29 So David gathered the people, led them against Rabbah, and captured it. 30 He took the crown from their king and had it placed on his own head to show who was now reigning in the land. It was so heavy with gold (weighing over 75 pounds) that it could scarcely be worn, and it had a precious stone mounted on it. He also brought home the vast treasures of the city. 31 Lastly David set the people of the city to work with axes or picks or saws and built kilns for making bricks. He did the same thing to all the cities of the Ammonites, and then he and his armies went home to Jerusalem.
Chinese New Version (CNV). Copyright © 1976, 1992, 1999, 2001, 2005 by Worldwide Bible Society.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.