Passage Resources Hebrew/Greek Your Content
Previous Next
Add parallel Print Page Options
Close NET

2 Samuel 11
New English Translation

David Commits Adultery with Bathsheba

11 In the spring of the year, at the time when kings[a] normally conduct wars,[b] David sent out Joab with his officers[c] and the entire Israelite army.[d] They defeated the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed behind in Jerusalem.[e] 2 One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of his palace.[f] From the roof he saw a woman bathing. Now this woman was very attractive.[g] 3 So David sent someone to inquire about the woman. The messenger[h] said, “Isn’t this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?”

4 David sent some messengers to get her.[i] She came to[j] him and he went to bed with her.[k] (Now at that time she was in the process of purifying herself from her menstrual uncleanness.)[l] Then she returned to her home. 5 The woman conceived and then sent word to David saying, “I’m pregnant.”

6 So David sent a message to Joab that said, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” So Joab sent Uriah to David. 7 When Uriah came to him, David asked about how Joab and the army were doing and how the campaign was going.[m] 8 Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your home and relax.”[n] When Uriah left the palace, the king sent a gift to him.[o] 9 But Uriah stayed at the door of the palace with all[p] the servants of his lord. He did not go down to his house.

10 So they informed David, “Uriah has not gone down to his house.” So David said to Uriah, “Haven’t you just arrived from a journey? Why haven’t you gone down to your house?” 11 Uriah replied to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah reside in temporary shelters, and my lord Joab and my lord’s soldiers are camping in the open field. Should I go to my house to eat and drink and go to bed with[q] my wife? As surely as you are alive,[r] I will not do this thing!” 12 So David said to Uriah, “Stay here another day. Tomorrow I will send you back.” So Uriah stayed in Jerusalem both that day and the following one.[s] 13 Then David summoned him. He ate and drank with him, and got him drunk. But in the evening he went out to sleep on his bed with the servants of his lord; he did not go down to his own house.

14 In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah. 15 In the letter he wrote: “Station Uriah at the front in the thick of the battle and then withdraw from him so he will be cut down and killed.”

16 So as Joab kept watch on the city, he stationed Uriah at the place where he knew the best enemy soldiers[t] were. 17 When the men of the city came out and fought with Joab, some of David’s soldiers[u] fell in battle. Uriah the Hittite also died.

18 Then Joab sent a full battle report to David.[v] 19 He instructed the messenger as follows: “When you finish giving the battle report to the king, 20 if the king becomes angry and asks you, ‘Why did you go so close to the city to fight? Didn’t you realize they would shoot from the wall? 21 Who struck down Abimelech the son of Jerub-Besheth? Didn’t a woman throw an upper millstone[w] down on him from the wall so that he died in Thebez? Why did you go so close to the wall?’ just say to him, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hittite is also dead.’”

22 So the messenger departed. When he arrived, he informed David of all the news that Joab had sent with him. 23 The messenger said to David, “The men overpowered us and attacked us[x] in the field. But we forced them to retreat[y] all the way to the door of the city gate. 24 Then the archers shot at your servants from the wall and some of the king’s soldiers[z] died. Your servant Uriah the Hittite is also dead.” 25 David said to the messenger, “Tell Joab, ‘Don’t let this thing upset you.[aa] There is no way to anticipate whom the sword will cut down.[ab] Press the battle against the city and conquer[ac] it.’ Encourage him with these words.”[ad]

26 When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband Uriah was dead, she mourned for him.[ae] 27 When the time of mourning passed, David had her brought to his palace.[af] She became his wife and she bore him a son. But what David had done upset the Lord.[ag]

Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 11:1 tc Codex Leningrad (B19A), on which BHS is based, has here “messengers” (הַמַּלְאָכִים, hammalʾakhim), probably as the result of contamination from the occurrence of that word in v. 4. The present translation follows most Hebrew mss and the ancient versions, which read “kings” (הַמֶּלָאכִים, hammelakhim).
  2. 2 Samuel 11:1 tn Heb “go out.”
  3. 2 Samuel 11:1 tn Heb “and his servants with him.”
  4. 2 Samuel 11:1 tn Heb “all Israel.”
  5. 2 Samuel 11:1 tn The disjunctive clause contrasts David’s inactivity with the army’s activity.
  6. 2 Samuel 11:2 tn Heb “on the roof of the house of the king.” So also in vv. 8, 9.
  7. 2 Samuel 11:2 tn The disjunctive clause highlights this observation and builds the tension of the story.
  8. 2 Samuel 11:3 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the messenger) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  9. 2 Samuel 11:4 tn Heb “and David sent messengers and he took her.”
  10. 2 Samuel 11:4 tn The expression בּוֹא אֶל (boʾ ʾel) means “come to” or “approach,” but is also used as a euphemism for sexual relations, the implied purpose for approaching someone. Here it refers only to the stage of approaching while the next verb describes the result. That she is the subject of this verb (while David is the subject of the next verb) probably indicates that the act was consensual.
  11. 2 Samuel 11:4 tn Heb “he lay down with her.” The verb שָׁכַב (shakav) “to lie down” can be a euphemism for going to bed for sexual relations.
  12. 2 Samuel 11:4 tn The parenthetical disjunctive clause further heightens the tension by letting the reader know that Bathsheba, having just completed her menstrual cycle, is ripe for conception. See P. K. McCarter, II Samuel (AB), 286. Since she just had her period, it will also be obvious to those close to the scene that Uriah, who has been away fighting, cannot be the father of the child.
  13. 2 Samuel 11:7 tn Heb “concerning the peace of Joab and concerning the peace of the people and concerning the peace of the battle.”
  14. 2 Samuel 11:8 tn Heb “and wash your feet.”
  15. 2 Samuel 11:8 tn Heb “and there went out after him the gift of the king.”
  16. 2 Samuel 11:9 tc The Lucianic recension of the Old Greek translation lacks the word “all.”
  17. 2 Samuel 11:11 tn Heb “lie with.” The verb שָׁכַב (shakav) “to lie down” can be a euphemism for going to bed for sexual relations.
  18. 2 Samuel 11:11 tn Heb “as you live and as your soul lives.”
  19. 2 Samuel 11:12 tn On the chronology involved here see P. K. McCarter, II Samuel (AB), 287.
  20. 2 Samuel 11:16 tn Heb “the valiant men.” This refers in context to the strongest or most valiant defenders of the city Joab and the Israelite army were besieging, so the present translation uses “the best enemy soldiers” for clarity.
  21. 2 Samuel 11:17 tn Heb “some of the people from the servants of David.”
  22. 2 Samuel 11:18 tn Heb “Joab sent and related to David all the matters of the battle.”
  23. 2 Samuel 11:21 sn The upper millstone (Heb “millstone of riding”) refers to the heavy circular stone that was commonly rolled over a circular base in order to crush and grind such things as olives.
  24. 2 Samuel 11:23 tn Heb “and came out to us.”
  25. 2 Samuel 11:23 tn Heb “but we were on them.”
  26. 2 Samuel 11:24 tc The translation follows the Qere (“your servants”) rather than the Kethib (“your servant”).
  27. 2 Samuel 11:25 tn Heb “let not this matter be evil in your eyes.”
  28. 2 Samuel 11:25 tn Heb “according to this and according to this the sword devours.”
  29. 2 Samuel 11:25 tn Heb “overthrow.”
  30. 2 Samuel 11:25 tn The Hebrew text does not have “with these words.” They are supplied in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.
  31. 2 Samuel 11:26 tn Heb “for her lord.”
  32. 2 Samuel 11:27 tn Heb “David sent and gathered her to his house.”
  33. 2 Samuel 11:27 tn Heb “and the thing which David had done was evil in the eyes of the Lord.” Note the verbal connection with v. 25. Though David did not regard the matter as evil, the Lord certainly did.
Listen to 撒母耳記下 11
Close CCBT

撒母耳記下 11
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)

大衛犯罪

11 第二年春天，諸王又要發動戰爭。大衛差遣約押率領眾將領和以色列大軍出征，自己卻留在耶路撒冷。他們打敗了亞捫人之後又圍攻拉巴。 2 一天黃昏，大衛從床上起來在王宮頂上散步，看見一個長得非常漂亮的女人在沐浴。 3 大衛就派人去打聽這個女人是誰，得知她是以連的女兒、赫人烏利亞的妻子拔示芭。 4 大衛差人把她接來，她來了，大衛就與她同寢，那時她的月經剛潔淨。事後，她便回家去了。 5 拔示芭懷孕了，就派人去告訴大衛。

6 大衛便傳信給約押，說：「你派赫人烏利亞來見我。」約押就派烏利亞去見大衛。 7 烏利亞來了，大衛問他有關約押、士兵和戰爭的情況， 8 然後吩咐他回家休息。烏利亞離開王宮後，收到大衛送的一份禮物。 9 但他跟王的其他僕人一同睡在王宮門口，沒有回家。 10 大衛得知烏利亞沒有回家，便對他說：「你遠道而來，為什麼不回家休息呢？」 11 烏利亞答道：「約櫃、以色列人和猶大人都在帳篷裡，而我主約押及其軍隊也在田間紮營，我怎麼可以回家吃喝快樂，與妻子同房呢？我敢在王面前起誓，我決不做這樣的事！」 12 大衛對烏利亞說：「你再住一天，明天我會派你回去。」於是烏利亞那日就留在耶路撒冷。 13 第二天，大衛邀請他一同吃飯，把他灌醉了。可是到了晚上，烏利亞還是不肯回家，仍然跟王的其他士兵一同住宿。

14 第二天早上，大衛給約押寫了一封信，要烏利亞帶去。 15 大衛在信上吩咐約押：「你把烏利亞派到前線最險惡的地方，到時其他人都要撤退，好讓敵人殺死他。」 16 於是約押圍攻城池時，便派烏利亞到最強悍的敵人那裡。 17 敵人出來迎戰，大衛的軍中有幾位陣亡，赫人烏利亞也死了。 18 約押就派人去向大衛稟告戰爭的詳情， 19 並叮囑信使：「你向王稟告戰情後， 20 他若發怒責問你，『為什麼還冒死逼近呢？你們難道不知道敵人會從城牆上射箭嗎？ 21 難道你們不知道耶路·比設[a]的兒子亞比米勒是誰殺的嗎？一個婦人從城牆上扔下一塊磨石，把他砸死在提備斯。你們為什麼還要逼近城牆呢？』你就對王說，『你的僕人赫人烏利亞也死了。』」

22 於是，信使前來見大衛，照約押的吩咐向大衛稟告。 23 他說：「敵軍勢力強大，在城外跟我們交戰，但我們把他們追到城門口。 24 敵軍的弓箭手從城牆上射死了王的幾個士兵，赫人烏利亞也死了。」 25 大衛便對信使說：「你去告訴約押不要為這事難過，因為刀劍無情。讓他只管竭力攻陷城池。要這樣勉勵約押。」

26 拔示芭聽到丈夫烏利亞的死訊之後就為他守喪。 27 守喪結束後，大衛便派人把她接進宮裡，她就做了大衛的妻子，並給他生了個兒子。然而，大衛的所作所為令耶和華十分不悅。

Footnotes

  1. 11·21 「耶路·比設」又名「耶路·巴力」，參見士師記6·32。
Next
2 Samuel 10
2 Samuel 12
Next
dropdown
New English Translation (NET)

NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional) (CCBT)

By Biblica