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2 Samuel 9-11
New American Standard Bible

David’s Kindness to Mephibosheth

9 Then David said, “Is there [a]anyone still left of the house of Saul, (A)so that I could show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” 2 Now there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba, and they summoned him to David; and the king said to him, “Are you (B)Ziba?” And he said, “I am your servant.” 3 Then the king said, “Is there no one remaining of the house of Saul to whom I could show the (C)kindness of God?” And Ziba said to the king, “(D)There is still a son of Jonathan, one who is disabled in both feet.” 4 So the king said to him, “Where is he?” And Ziba said to the king, “Behold, he is (E)in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar.” 5 Then King David sent [b]messengers who brought him from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar. 6 (F)Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, came to David and (G)fell on his face and prostrated himself. And David said, “Mephibosheth.” And he said, “Here is your servant!” 7 Then David said to him, “Do not be afraid, for (H)I will assuredly show kindness to you for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I (I)will restore to you all the [c]land of your [d]grandfather Saul; and (J)you yourself shall [e]eat at my table regularly.” 8 Again he prostrated himself, and said, “What is your servant, that you should be concerned about (K)a dead dog like me?”

9 Then the king summoned Saul’s servant Ziba and said to him, “(L)Everything that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s [f]grandson. 10 You and your sons and your servants shall cultivate the land for him, and you shall bring in the produce so that your master’s grandson will have food [g]to eat; nevertheless (M)Mephibosheth, your master’s grandson, (N)shall [h]eat at my table regularly.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. 11 Then Ziba said to the king, “In accordance (O)with everything that my lord the king commands his servant, so your servant will do.” So Mephibosheth ate at [i]David’s table as one of the king’s sons. 12 Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Mica. And all who lived in the house of Ziba were servants to Mephibosheth. 13 So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because (P)he ate at the king’s table regularly. And (Q)he was disabled in his two feet.

Ammon and Aram Defeated

10 (R)Now it happened afterward that (S)the king of the Ammonites died, and his son Hanun became king in his place. 2 Then David said, “I will show kindness to Hanun the son of (T)Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent [j]some of his servants to console him about his father. But when David’s servants came to the land of the Ammonites, 3 the commanders of the Ammonites said to their lord Hanun, “[k]Do you think that David is simply honoring your father since he has sent you servants [l]to console you? (U)Has David not sent his servants to you in order to explore the city, to spy it out and overthrow it?” 4 So Hanun took David’s servants and (V)shaved off half of their beards, and (W)cut off their robes in the middle as far as their buttocks, and sent them away. 5 When messengers informed David, he sent servants to meet them, because the men were extremely humiliated. And the king said, “Stay in Jericho until your beards grow back, and then you shall return.”

6 Now when the sons of Ammon saw that (X)they had become repulsive to David, the sons of Ammon sent messengers and (Y)hired the Arameans of (Z)Beth-rehob and the (AA)Arameans of Zobah, twenty thousand foot soldiers, and the king of (AB)Maacah with a thousand men, and the men of Tob with twelve thousand men. 7 When David heard about this, he sent Joab and all the army, the warriors. 8 And the sons of Ammon came out and lined up for battle (AC)at the entrance of the [m]city, while the Arameans of Zobah and of Rehob and the men of (AD)Tob and Maacah were stationed by themselves in the field.

9 Now when Joab saw that [n]the battle was set against him at the front and at the rear, he selected warriors from all the choice men in Israel, and lined them up against the Arameans. 10 But the remainder of the people he placed [o]under the command of his brother Abishai, and he lined them up against the sons of Ammon. 11 And he said, “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you shall help me; but if the sons of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will come to help you. 12 (AE)Be strong, and let’s show ourselves courageous for the sake of our people and the cities of our God; and (AF)may the Lord do what is good in His sight.” 13 So Joab and the people who were with him advanced to the battle against the Arameans, and (AG)they fled from him. 14 When the sons of Ammon saw that the Arameans had fled, they also fled from Abishai and entered the city. (AH)Then Joab returned from fighting against the sons of Ammon and came to Jerusalem.

15 When the Arameans saw that they had been [p]defeated by Israel, they assembled together. 16 (AI)And Hadadezer sent word and brought out the Arameans who were beyond the Euphrates River, and they came to Helam; and (AJ)Shobach the commander of the army of Hadadezer [q]led them. 17 Now when it was reported to David, he gathered all Israel together and crossed the Jordan, and came to Helam. And the Arameans lined up against David and fought him. 18 But the Arameans fled from Israel, and David killed (AK)seven hundred charioteers of the Arameans and forty thousand horsemen, and struck Shobach the commander of their army, and he died there. 19 When all the kings, servants of Hadadezer, saw that they had been [r]defeated by Israel, (AL)they made peace with Israel and served them. So the Arameans were afraid to help the sons of Ammon anymore.

Bathsheba, David’s Great Sin

11 (AM)Then it happened [s](AN)in the spring, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him and all Israel, and they brought destruction on the sons of Ammon and (AO)besieged Rabbah. But David stayed in Jerusalem.

2 Now at evening time David got up from his bed and walked around on (AP)the roof of the king’s house, and from the roof he saw a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful in appearance. 3 So David sent servants and inquired about the woman. And someone said, “Is this not (AQ)Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of (AR)Uriah the Hittite?” 4 Then David sent messengers and [t]had her brought, and when she came to him, (AS)he slept with her; (AT)and when she had purified herself from her uncleanness, she returned to her house. 5 But the woman conceived; so she sent word and informed David, and said, “(AU)I am pregnant.”

6 Then David sent word to Joab: “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” So Joab sent Uriah to David. 7 When Uriah came to him, (AV)David asked about Joab’s well-being and [u]that of the people, and the condition of the war. 8 Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house, and (AW)wash your feet.” So Uriah left the king’s house, and a gift from the king [v]was sent after him. 9 But Uriah slept (AX)at the door of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. 10 Now when they informed David, saying, “Uriah did not go down to his house,” David said to Uriah, “Did you not come from a journey? Why did you not go down to your house?” 11 And Uriah said to David, “(AY)The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in [w]temporary shelters, and my lord Joab and (AZ)the servants of my lord are camping in the open field. Should I then go to my house to eat and drink and to sleep with my wife? By your life and the life of your soul, I will not do this thing.” 12 Then David said to Uriah, “(BA)Stay here today also, and tomorrow I will let you go back.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the day after. 13 Now David summoned [x]Uriah, and he ate and drank in his presence, and he (BB)made [y]Uriah drunk; and in the evening Uriah went out to lie on his bed (BC)with his lord’s servants, and he still did not go down to his house.

14 So in the morning David (BD)wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15 (BE)He had written in the letter [z]the following: “[aa]Station Uriah on the front line of the [ab]fiercest battle and pull back from him, (BF)so that he may be struck and killed.” 16 So it was as Joab kept watch on the city, that he [ac]stationed Uriah at the place where he knew there were valiant men. 17 And the men of the city went out and fought against Joab, and some of the people among David’s servants fell; and (BG)Uriah the Hittite also died. 18 Then Joab sent a messenger and reported to David all the events of the war. 19 He ordered the messenger, saying, “When you have finished telling all the events of the war to the king, 20 then it shall be that if the king’s wrath rises and he says to you, ‘Why did you move against the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall? 21 Who (BH)struck Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Did a woman not throw an upper millstone on him from the wall so that he died at Thebez? Why did you move against the wall?’—then you shall say, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hittite also died.’”

22 So the messenger departed and came and reported to David everything that Joab had sent him to tell. 23 The messenger said to David, “The men prevailed against us and came out against us in the field, but we [ad]pressed them as far as the entrance of the gate. 24 Also, the archers shot at your servants from the wall; so some of the king’s servants died, and your servant Uriah the Hittite also died.” 25 Then David said to the messenger, “This is what you shall say to Joab: ‘Do not let this thing [ae]displease you, for the sword devours one as well as another; [af]fight with determination against the city and overthrow it’; and thereby encourage him.”

26 Now when Uriah’s wife heard that her husband Uriah was dead, (BI)she mourned for her husband. 27 When the time of mourning was over, David sent servants and [ag]had her brought to his house and (BJ)she became his wife; then she bore him a son. But (BK)the thing that David had done was evil in the sight of the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 9:1 Lit he who is
  2. 2 Samuel 9:5 Lit and he brought
  3. 2 Samuel 9:7 Lit field
  4. 2 Samuel 9:7 Lit father
  5. 2 Samuel 9:7 Lit eat bread
  6. 2 Samuel 9:9 Lit son
  7. 2 Samuel 9:10 Lit and eat it
  8. 2 Samuel 9:10 Lit eat bread
  9. 2 Samuel 9:11 Lit my
  10. 2 Samuel 10:2 Lit by the hand of
  11. 2 Samuel 10:3 Lit In your eyes is David honoring
  12. 2 Samuel 10:3 Lit consoling
  13. 2 Samuel 10:8 Lit gate
  14. 2 Samuel 10:9 Lit the faces of the battle were against
  15. 2 Samuel 10:10 Lit in the hand of
  16. 2 Samuel 10:15 Lit struck
  17. 2 Samuel 10:16 Lit was before them
  18. 2 Samuel 10:19 Lit struck
  19. 2 Samuel 11:1 Lit at the return of the year
  20. 2 Samuel 11:4 Lit took her
  21. 2 Samuel 11:7 Lit welfare of
  22. 2 Samuel 11:8 Lit went out
  23. 2 Samuel 11:11 Or huts
  24. 2 Samuel 11:13 Lit him
  25. 2 Samuel 11:13 Lit him
  26. 2 Samuel 11:15 Lit saying
  27. 2 Samuel 11:15 Lit Give
  28. 2 Samuel 11:15 Lit severe
  29. 2 Samuel 11:16 Lit gave
  30. 2 Samuel 11:23 Lit were upon
  31. 2 Samuel 11:25 Lit be evil in your sight
  32. 2 Samuel 11:25 Lit seize your battle against
  33. 2 Samuel 11:27 Lit brought her
Close NLT

2 Samuel 9-11
New Living Translation

David’s Kindness to Mephibosheth

9 One day David asked, “Is anyone in Saul’s family still alive—anyone to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” 2 He summoned a man named Ziba, who had been one of Saul’s servants. “Are you Ziba?” the king asked.

“Yes sir, I am,” Ziba replied.

3 The king then asked him, “Is anyone still alive from Saul’s family? If so, I want to show God’s kindness to them.”

Ziba replied, “Yes, one of Jonathan’s sons is still alive. He is crippled in both feet.”

4 “Where is he?” the king asked.

“In Lo-debar,” Ziba told him, “at the home of Makir son of Ammiel.”

5 So David sent for him and brought him from Makir’s home. 6 His name was Mephibosheth[a]; he was Jonathan’s son and Saul’s grandson. When he came to David, he bowed low to the ground in deep respect. David said, “Greetings, Mephibosheth.”

Mephibosheth replied, “I am your servant.”

7 “Don’t be afraid!” David said. “I intend to show kindness to you because of my promise to your father, Jonathan. I will give you all the property that once belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will eat here with me at the king’s table!”

8 Mephibosheth bowed respectfully and exclaimed, “Who is your servant, that you should show such kindness to a dead dog like me?”

9 Then the king summoned Saul’s servant Ziba and said, “I have given your master’s grandson everything that belonged to Saul and his family. 10 You and your sons and servants are to farm the land for him to produce food for your master’s household.[b] But Mephibosheth, your master’s grandson, will eat here at my table.” (Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)

11 Ziba replied, “Yes, my lord the king; I am your servant, and I will do all that you have commanded.” And from that time on, Mephibosheth ate regularly at David’s table,[c] like one of the king’s own sons.

12 Mephibosheth had a young son named Mica. From then on, all the members of Ziba’s household were Mephibosheth’s servants. 13 And Mephibosheth, who was crippled in both feet, lived in Jerusalem and ate regularly at the king’s table.

David Defeats the Ammonites

10 Some time after this, King Nahash[d] of the Ammonites died, and his son Hanun became king. 2 David said, “I am going to show loyalty to Hanun just as his father, Nahash, was always loyal to me.” So David sent ambassadors to express sympathy to Hanun about his father’s death.

But when David’s ambassadors arrived in the land of Ammon, 3 the Ammonite commanders said to Hanun, their master, “Do you really think these men are coming here to honor your father? No! David has sent them to spy out the city so they can come in and conquer it!” 4 So Hanun seized David’s ambassadors and shaved off half of each man’s beard, cut off their robes at the buttocks, and sent them back to David in shame.

5 When David heard what had happened, he sent messengers to tell the men, “Stay at Jericho until your beards grow out, and then come back.” For they felt deep shame because of their appearance.

6 When the people of Ammon realized how seriously they had angered David, they sent and hired 20,000 Aramean foot soldiers from the lands of Beth-rehob and Zobah, 1,000 from the king of Maacah, and 12,000 from the land of Tob. 7 When David heard about this, he sent Joab and all his warriors to fight them. 8 The Ammonite troops came out and drew up their battle lines at the entrance of the city gate, while the Arameans from Zobah and Rehob and the men from Tob and Maacah positioned themselves to fight in the open fields.

9 When Joab saw that he would have to fight on both the front and the rear, he chose some of Israel’s elite troops and placed them under his personal command to fight the Arameans in the fields. 10 He left the rest of the army under the command of his brother Abishai, who was to attack the Ammonites. 11 “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then come over and help me,” Joab told his brother. “And if the Ammonites are too strong for you, I will come and help you. 12 Be courageous! Let us fight bravely for our people and the cities of our God. May the Lord’s will be done.”

13 When Joab and his troops attacked, the Arameans began to run away. 14 And when the Ammonites saw the Arameans running, they ran from Abishai and retreated into the city. After the battle was over, Joab returned to Jerusalem.

15 The Arameans now realized that they were no match for Israel. So when they regrouped, 16 they were joined by additional Aramean troops summoned by Hadadezer from the other side of the Euphrates River.[e] These troops arrived at Helam under the command of Shobach, the commander of Hadadezer’s forces.

17 When David heard what was happening, he mobilized all Israel, crossed the Jordan River, and led the army to Helam. The Arameans positioned themselves in battle formation and fought against David. 18 But again the Arameans fled from the Israelites. This time David’s forces killed 700 charioteers and 40,000 foot soldiers,[f] including Shobach, the commander of their army. 19 When all the kings allied with Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they surrendered to Israel and became their subjects. After that, the Arameans were afraid to help the Ammonites.

David and Bathsheba

11 In the spring of the year,[g] when kings normally go out to war, David sent Joab and the Israelite army to fight the Ammonites. They destroyed the Ammonite army and laid siege to the city of Rabbah. However, David stayed behind in Jerusalem.

2 Late one afternoon, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath. 3 He sent someone to find out who she was, and he was told, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” 4 Then David sent messengers to get her; and when she came to the palace, he slept with her. She had just completed the purification rites after having her menstrual period. Then she returned home. 5 Later, when Bathsheba discovered that she was pregnant, she sent David a message, saying, “I’m pregnant.”

6 Then David sent word to Joab: “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” So Joab sent him to David. 7 When Uriah arrived, David asked him how Joab and the army were getting along and how the war was progressing. 8 Then he told Uriah, “Go on home and relax.[h]” David even sent a gift to Uriah after he had left the palace. 9 But Uriah didn’t go home. He slept that night at the palace entrance with the king’s palace guard.

10 When David heard that Uriah had not gone home, he summoned him and asked, “What’s the matter? Why didn’t you go home last night after being away for so long?”

11 Uriah replied, “The Ark and the armies of Israel and Judah are living in tents,[i] and Joab and my master’s men are camping in the open fields. How could I go home to wine and dine and sleep with my wife? I swear that I would never do such a thing.”

12 “Well, stay here today,” David told him, “and tomorrow you may return to the army.” So Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day and the next. 13 Then David invited him to dinner and got him drunk. But even then he couldn’t get Uriah to go home to his wife. Again he slept at the palace entrance with the king’s palace guard.

David Arranges for Uriah’s Death

14 So the next morning David wrote a letter to Joab and gave it to Uriah to deliver. 15 The letter instructed Joab, “Station Uriah on the front lines where the battle is fiercest. Then pull back so that he will be killed.” 16 So Joab assigned Uriah to a spot close to the city wall where he knew the enemy’s strongest men were fighting. 17 And when the enemy soldiers came out of the city to fight, Uriah the Hittite was killed along with several other Israelite soldiers.

18 Then Joab sent a battle report to David. 19 He told his messenger, “Report all the news of the battle to the king. 20 But he might get angry and ask, ‘Why did the troops go so close to the city? Didn’t they know there would be shooting from the walls? 21 Wasn’t Abimelech son of Gideon[j] killed at Thebez by a woman who threw a millstone down on him from the wall? Why would you get so close to the wall?’ Then tell him, ‘Uriah the Hittite was killed, too.’”

22 So the messenger went to Jerusalem and gave a complete report to David. 23 “The enemy came out against us in the open fields,” he said. “And as we chased them back to the city gate, 24 the archers on the wall shot arrows at us. Some of the king’s men were killed, including Uriah the Hittite.”

25 “Well, tell Joab not to be discouraged,” David said. “The sword devours this one today and that one tomorrow! Fight harder next time, and conquer the city!”

26 When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him. 27 When the period of mourning was over, David sent for her and brought her to the palace, and she became one of his wives. Then she gave birth to a son. But the Lord was displeased with what David had done.

Footnotes

  1. 9:6 Mephibosheth is another name for Merib-baal.
  2. 9:10 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads your master’s grandson.
  3. 9:11 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads my table.
  4. 10:1 As in parallel text at 1 Chr 19:1; Hebrew reads the king.
  5. 10:16 Hebrew the river.
  6. 10:18 As in some Greek manuscripts (see also 1 Chr 19:18); Hebrew reads charioteers.
  7. 11:1 Hebrew At the turn of the year. The first day of the year in the ancient Hebrew lunar calendar occurred in March or April.
  8. 11:8 Hebrew and wash your feet, an expression that may also have a connotation of ritualistic washing.
  9. 11:11 Or at Succoth.
  10. 11:21 Hebrew son of Jerub-besheth. Jerub-besheth is a variation on the name Jerub-baal, which is another name for Gideon; see Judg 6:32.
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