2 Samuel 12:24-25
New English Translation
24 So David comforted his wife Bathsheba. He came to her[a] and went to bed with her.[b] Later she gave birth to a son, and David[c] named him Solomon. Now the Lord loved the child[d] 25 and sent word through Nathan the prophet that he should be named Jedidiah[e] for the Lord’s sake.
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- 2 Samuel 12:24 tn The combination of the verb בּוֹא (boʾ; “to come, enter”) and the preposition אֶל (ʾel; “to”) means “to approach, to come to” (HALOT 1:113). This common expression is also used as a euphemism for coming together for sexual relations. Although some take the phrase to be a graphic depiction of a man actions in sexual relations with a woman, certain factors clarify that it is a euphemism. First, the phrase also describes a woman approaching a man for sexual relations (2 Sam 11:4), a situation where this phrase cannot be explicitly descriptive. Second, the phrase is paired here with שָׁכַב (shakhav), “to lie down,” which only makes sense if the two are complementary (compare also Gen 19:33-34 which uses both verbs of Lot’s daughters, but without the preposition). The verb שָׁכַב can imply lying down for sleep or for sexual relations. When בּוֹא אֶל (boʾ ʾel) is used with שָׁכַב (shakhav), they state the natural progression of approaching and then lying with. Hebrew can use the two together, or either separately, as a euphemism for sexual relations. But if the phrase בּוֹא אֶל were already an explicit depiction of sex, then the latter phrase with שָׁכַב, “to lie with,” would be pointless. So 2 Sam 11:4 and 2 Sam 12:24 are important evidence for how this phrase really works, and it is appropriate to also use euphemisms in translation.
- 2 Samuel 12:24 tn Heb “and he lay with her.” The phrase is a euphemism for sexual relations.
- 2 Samuel 12:24 tc The Kethiv reads “he named” while the Qere reads “she named.”tn Heb “he”; the referent (David) has been specified in the translation for clarity. While some translations render the pronoun as third person plural (“they”), implying that both David and Bathsheba together named the child, it is likely that the name “Solomon,” which is related to the Hebrew word for “peace” (and may be derived from it) had special significance for David, who would have regarded the birth of a second child to Bathsheba as a confirming sign that God had forgiven his sin and was at peace with him.
- 2 Samuel 12:24 tn Heb “him,” referring to the child.
- 2 Samuel 12:25 sn The name Jedidiah means “loved by the Lord.”
Deuteronomy 33:12
New English Translation
Blessing on Benjamin
12 Of Benjamin he said:
“The beloved of the Lord will live safely by him;
he protects him all the time,
and the Lord[a] places him on his chest.”[b]
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 33:12 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Deuteronomy 33:12 tn Heb “between his shoulders.” This suggests the scene in John 13:23 with Jesus and the Beloved Disciple.
2 Samuel 7:15
New English Translation
15 But my loyal love will not be removed from him as I removed it from Saul, whom I removed from before you.
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1 Chronicles 17:13
New English Translation
13 I will become his father and he will become my son. I will never withhold my loyal love from him, as I withheld it from the one who ruled before you.[a]
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- 1 Chronicles 17:13 sn The one who ruled before you is a reference to Saul, from whom the kingdom was taken and given to David.
Isaiah 55:3
New English Translation
3 Pay attention and come to me.
Listen, so you can live.[a]
Then I will make an unconditional covenantal promise to[b] you,
just like the reliable covenantal promises I made to David.[c]
Footnotes
- Isaiah 55:3 tn The jussive with vav (ו) conjunctive following the imperative indicates purpose/result.sn To live here refers to covenantal blessing, primarily material prosperity and national security (see vv. 4-5, 13, and Deut 30:6, 15, 19-20).
- Isaiah 55:3 tn Or “an eternal covenant with.”
- Isaiah 55:3 tn Heb “the reliable expressions of loyalty of David.” The syntactical relationship of חַסְדֵי (khasde, “expressions of loyalty”) to the preceding line is unclear. If the term is appositional to בְּרִית (berit, “covenant”), then the Lord here transfers the promises of the Davidic covenant to the entire nation. Another option is to take חַסְדֵי (khasde) as an adverbial accusative and to translate “according to the reliable covenantal promises.” In this case the new covenantal arrangement proposed here is viewed as an extension or perhaps fulfillment of the Davidic promises. A third option, the one reflected in the above translation, is to take the last line as comparative. In this case the new covenant being proposed is analogous to the Davidic covenant. Verses 4-5, which compare David’s international prominence to what Israel will experience, favors this view. In all three of these interpretations, “David” is an objective genitive; he is the recipient of covenantal promises. A fourth option would be to take David as a subjective genitive and understand the line as giving the basis for the preceding promise: “Then I will make an unconditional covenantal promise to you, because of David’s faithful acts of covenantal loyalty.”
Ezra 7:28
New English Translation
28 He has also conferred his favor on me before the king, his advisers, and all the influential leaders of the king. I gained strength as the hand of the Lord my God was on me, and I gathered leaders from Israel to go up with me.
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Nehemiah 13:26
New English Translation
26 Was it not because of things like these that King Solomon of Israel sinned? Among the many nations there was no king like him. He was loved by his God, and God made[a] him king over all Israel. But the foreign wives made even him sin!
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- Nehemiah 13:26 tn Heb “gave.”
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