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2 Samuel 12
New King James Version
2 Samuel 12
New King James Version
Nathan’s Parable and David’s Confession
12 Then the Lord sent Nathan to David. And (A)he came to him, and (B)said to him: “There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor. 2 The rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds. 3 But the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food and drank from his own cup and lay in his bosom; and it was like a daughter to him. 4 And a traveler came to the rich man, who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd to prepare one for the wayfaring man who had come to him; but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”
5 So David’s anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this [a]shall surely die! 6 And he shall restore (C)fourfold for the lamb, because he did this thing and because he had no pity.”
7 Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘I (D)anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8 I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your keeping, and gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more! 9 (E)Why have you (F)despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight? (G)You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon. 10 Now therefore, (H)the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ 11 Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house; and I will (I)take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. 12 For you did it secretly, (J)but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun.’ ”
13 (K)So David said to Nathan, (L)“I have sinned against the Lord.”
And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has (M)put away your sin; you shall not die. 14 However, because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord (N)to blaspheme, the child also who is born to you shall surely die.” 15 Then Nathan departed to his house.
The Death of David’s Son
And the (O)Lord struck the child that Uriah’s wife bore to David, and it became ill. 16 David therefore pleaded with God for the child, and David fasted and went in and (P)lay all night on the ground. 17 So the elders of his house arose and went to him, to raise him up from the ground. But he would not, nor did he eat food with them. 18 Then on the seventh day it came to pass that the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead. For they said, “Indeed, while the child was alive, we spoke to him, and he would not heed our voice. How can we tell him that the child is dead? He may do some harm!”
19 When David saw that his servants were whispering, David perceived that the child was dead. Therefore David said to his servants, “Is the child dead?”
And they said, “He is dead.”
20 So David arose from the ground, washed and (Q)anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he went into the house of the Lord and (R)worshiped. Then he went to his own house; and when he requested, they set food before him, and he ate. 21 Then his servants said to him, “What is this that you have done? You fasted and wept for the child while he was alive, but when the child died, you arose and ate food.”
22 And he said, “While the child was alive, I fasted and wept; (S)for I said, ‘Who can tell whether [b]the Lord will be gracious to me, that the child may live?’ 23 But now he is dead; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go (T)to him, but (U)he shall not return to me.”
Solomon Is Born
24 Then David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in to her and lay with her. So (V)she bore a son, and (W)he[c] called his name Solomon. Now the Lord loved him, 25 and He sent word by the hand of Nathan the prophet: So [d]he called his name [e]Jedidiah, because of the Lord.
Rabbah Is Captured(X)
26 Now (Y)Joab fought against (Z)Rabbah of the people of Ammon, and took the royal city. 27 And Joab sent messengers to David, and said, “I have fought against Rabbah, and I have taken the city’s water supply. 28 Now therefore, gather the rest of the people together and encamp against the city and take it, lest I take the city and it be called after my name.” 29 So David gathered all the people together and went to Rabbah, fought against it, and took it. 30 (AA)Then he took their king’s crown from his head. Its weight was a talent of gold, with precious stones. And it was set on David’s head. Also he brought out the [f]spoil of the city in great abundance. 31 And he brought out the people who were in it, and put them to work with saws and iron picks and iron axes, and made them cross over to the brick works. So he did to all the cities of the people of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 12:5 deserves to die, lit. is a son of death
- 2 Samuel 12:22 Heb. mss., Syr. God
- 2 Samuel 12:24 So with Kt., LXX, Vg.; Qr., a few Heb. mss., Syr., Tg. she
- 2 Samuel 12:25 Qr., some Heb. mss., Syr., Tg. she
- 2 Samuel 12:25 Lit. Beloved of the Lord
- 2 Samuel 12:30 plunder
2 Samuel 12
English Standard Version
2 Samuel 12
English Standard Version
Nathan Rebukes David
12 And the Lord sent (A)Nathan to David. He came to him and said to him, (B)“There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. 2 The rich man had very many flocks and herds, 3 but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. And he brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children. It used to eat of his morsel and drink from his cup and lie in his arms,[a] and it was like a daughter to him. 4 Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was unwilling to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the guest who had come to him, but he took the poor man's lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.” 5 Then David's anger was greatly kindled against the man, and he said to Nathan, (C)“As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die, 6 and he shall restore the lamb (D)fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.”
7 Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, (E)‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul. 8 And I gave you your master's house and your master's wives into your arms and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. And if this were too little, I would add to you as much more. 9 (F)Why have you despised the word of the Lord, (G)to do what is evil in his sight? (H)You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and (I)have taken his wife to be your wife and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. 10 Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ 11 Thus says the Lord, ‘Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house. And I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. 12 For you did it secretly, (J)but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun.’” 13 (K)David said to Nathan, (L)“I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, (M)“The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. 14 Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly (N)scorned the Lord,[b] the child who is born to you shall die.” 15 Then Nathan went to his house.
David's Child Dies
And the Lord afflicted the child that Uriah's wife bore to David, and he became sick. 16 David therefore sought God on behalf of the child. And David (O)fasted and went in (P)and lay all night on the ground. 17 And the elders of his house stood beside him, to raise him from the ground, but he would not, nor did he eat food with them. 18 On the seventh day the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, “Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spoke to him, and he did not listen to us. How then can we say to him the child is dead? He may do himself some harm.” 19 But when David saw that his servants were whispering together, David understood that the child was dead. And David said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” They said, “He is dead.” 20 Then David arose from the earth (Q)and washed and anointed himself and changed his clothes. And he went into the house of the Lord (R)and worshiped. He then went to his own house. And when he asked, they set food before him, and he ate. 21 Then his servants said to him, “What is this thing that you have done? You fasted and wept for the child while he was alive; but when the child died, you arose and ate food.” 22 He said, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept, for I said, (S)‘Who knows whether the Lord will be gracious to me, that the child may live?’ 23 But now he is dead. Why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, (T)but he will not return to me.”
Solomon's Birth
24 Then David comforted his wife, Bathsheba, and went in to her and lay with her, and (U)she bore a son, and he called his name (V)Solomon. And the Lord loved him 25 and sent a message by Nathan the prophet. So he called his name Jedidiah,[c] because of the Lord.
Rabbah Is Captured
26 (W)Now Joab (X)fought against (Y)Rabbah of the Ammonites and took the royal city. 27 And Joab sent messengers to David and said, “I have fought against Rabbah; moreover, I have taken the city of waters. 28 Now then gather the rest of the people together and encamp against the city and take it, lest I take the city and it be called by my name.” 29 So David gathered all the people together and went to Rabbah and fought against it and took it. 30 And he took the crown of their king from his head. The weight of it was a talent[d] of gold, and in it was a precious stone, and it was placed on David's head. And he brought out the spoil of the city, a very great amount. 31 And he brought out the people who were in it and set them to labor with saws and iron picks and iron axes and made them toil at[e] the brick kilns. And thus he did to all the cities of the Ammonites. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 12:3 Hebrew bosom; also verse 8
- 2 Samuel 12:14 Masoretic Text the enemies of the Lord; Dead Sea Scroll the word of the Lord
- 2 Samuel 12:25 Jedidiah means beloved of the Lord
- 2 Samuel 12:30 A talent was about 75 pounds or 34 kilograms
- 2 Samuel 12:31 Hebrew pass through
2 Samuel 12
New International Version
2 Samuel 12
New International Version
Nathan Rebukes David(A)
12 The Lord sent Nathan(B) to David.(C) When he came to him,(D) he said, “There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. 2 The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, 3 but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.
4 “Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him.”
5 David(E) burned with anger(F) against the man(G) and said to Nathan, “As surely as the Lord lives,(H) the man who did this must die! 6 He must pay for that lamb four times over,(I) because he did such a thing and had no pity.”
7 Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man!(J) This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed(K) you(L) king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8 I gave your master’s house to you,(M) and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you all Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. 9 Why did you despise(N) the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down(O) Uriah(P) the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed(Q) him with the sword of the Ammonites. 10 Now, therefore, the sword(R) will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’
11 “This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household(S) I am going to bring calamity on you.(T) Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight.(U) 12 You did it in secret,(V) but I will do this thing in broad daylight(W) before all Israel.’”
13 Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned(X) against the Lord.”
Nathan replied, “The Lord has taken away(Y) your sin.(Z) You are not going to die.(AA) 14 But because by doing this you have shown utter contempt for[a] the Lord,(AB) the son born to you will die.”
15 After Nathan had gone home, the Lord struck(AC) the child that Uriah’s wife had borne to David, and he became ill. 16 David pleaded with God for the child. He fasted and spent the nights lying(AD) in sackcloth[b] on the ground. 17 The elders of his household stood beside him to get him up from the ground, but he refused,(AE) and he would not eat any food with them.(AF)
18 On the seventh day the child died. David’s attendants were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they thought, “While the child was still living, he wouldn’t listen to us when we spoke to him. How can we now tell him the child is dead? He may do something desperate.”
19 David noticed that his attendants were whispering among themselves, and he realized the child was dead. “Is the child dead?” he asked.
“Yes,” they replied, “he is dead.”
20 Then David got up from the ground. After he had washed,(AG) put on lotions and changed his clothes,(AH) he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and at his request they served him food, and he ate.
21 His attendants asked him, “Why are you acting this way? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept,(AI) but now that the child is dead, you get up and eat!”
22 He answered, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, ‘Who knows?(AJ) The Lord may be gracious to me and let the child live.’(AK) 23 But now that he is dead, why should I go on fasting? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him,(AL) but he will not return to me.”(AM)
24 Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba,(AN) and he went to her and made love to her. She gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon.(AO) The Lord loved him; 25 and because the Lord loved him, he sent word through Nathan the prophet to name him Jedidiah.[c](AP)
26 Meanwhile Joab fought against Rabbah(AQ) of the Ammonites and captured the royal citadel. 27 Joab then sent messengers to David, saying, “I have fought against Rabbah and taken its water supply. 28 Now muster the rest of the troops and besiege the city and capture it. Otherwise I will take the city, and it will be named after me.”
29 So David mustered the entire army and went to Rabbah, and attacked and captured it. 30 David took the crown(AR) from their king’s[d] head, and it was placed on his own head. It weighed a talent[e] of gold, and it was set with precious stones. David took a great quantity of plunder from the city 31 and brought out the people who were there, consigning them to labor with saws and with iron picks and axes, and he made them work at brickmaking.[f] David did this to all the Ammonite(AS) towns. Then he and his entire army returned to Jerusalem.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 12:14 An ancient Hebrew scribal tradition; Masoretic Text for the enemies of
- 2 Samuel 12:16 Dead Sea Scrolls and Septuagint; Masoretic Text does not have in sackcloth.
- 2 Samuel 12:25 Jedidiah means loved by the Lord.
- 2 Samuel 12:30 Or from Milkom’s (that is, Molek’s)
- 2 Samuel 12:30 That is, about 75 pounds or about 34 kilograms
- 2 Samuel 12:31 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain.
2 Samuel 12
Lexham English Bible
2 Samuel 12
Lexham English Bible
Nathan Reproves David
12 So Yahweh sent Nathan to David, and he came to him and said, “Two men were in a certain city; one was rich and the other was poor. 2 The rich man had very many flocks and herds, 3 but the poor man had nothing except for one small ewe lamb which he had bought. He had nurtured her, and she grew up with him and with his children together. She used to eat from his morsel and drink from his cup, and she used to lie in his lap and became like a daughter for him. 4 And a visitor came to the rich man, but he was reluctant[a] to take from his flocks or from his herds to prepare a meal for the traveler when he came to him. So he took the ewe lamb of the poor man and prepared it for the man who had come to him.” 5 Then the anger of David was kindled[b] against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As Yahweh lives,[c] the man who has done this deserves to die![d] 6 He shall restore the ewe lamb fourfold because he has done this thing, and because he had no pity.” 7 Then Nathan said to him, “You are the man! Thus says Yahweh the God of Israel: ‘I anointed you as king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8 I gave you the household of your master and the women of your master into your lap. I also gave you the house of Israel and Judah; if that had been too little, I would have added to you much more.[e] 9 Why have you despised the word of Yahweh by doing evil in his eyes?[f] Uriah the Hittite you have struck down with the sword, and his wife you have taken to yourself as wife! You have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites![g] 10 So then, a sword will not turn away from your house forever, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife!’ 11 Thus says Yahweh, ‘Look, I am going to raise up evil against you from within your house, and I will take your women before your eyes, and I will give them to your neighbor, and he shall sleep with your wives in broad daylight.[h] 12 Though you did this in secret, I will do this thing before all of Israel in broad daylight!’”[i]
David Repents, But the Child Dies
13 Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against Yahweh!”[j] Nathan said to David, “Yahweh has also forgiven your sin; you shall not die. 14 But because you have utterly scorned[k] Yahweh in this matter, the son born for you will certainly die.”[l] 15 Then Nathan went to his house, and Yahweh struck the child that the wife of Uriah bore for David, and he became ill. 16 David pleaded with God on behalf of the boy and David fasted. He went to spend the night and lay upon the ground. 17 The elders of his household stood over him to lift him up from the ground, but he was not willing, and he did not eat any food with them. 18 It happened on the seventh day that the child died, and the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, “Look, when the child was alive, we spoke to him, but he would not listen to our voice. How can we tell him, ‘The child is dead’? He may do something evil.” 19 When David saw that his servants were whispering together, he realized that the child was dead. Then David said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” And they said, “He is dead.” 20 David stood up from the ground and washed and anointed himself and changed his clothing. Then he went to the house of Yahweh and worshiped, and he went to his own house. He asked, so they served him food, and he ate. 21 Then his servants said to him, “What is this thing that you have done? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept; now that the child has died, you get up and eat food!” 22 He said, “When the child was still alive, I fasted and I wept because I thought, ‘Who knows? Yahweh may have mercy on me that the child will live.’ 23 But now he is dead. Why should I be fasting? Am I able to return him again? I am going to him, but he cannot return to me.” 24 David consoled Bathsheba his wife, and he went to her and slept with her. She bore a son, and he called[m] him Solomon, and Yahweh loved him. 25 He sent word by the hand of Nathan the prophet, so he called him Jedidiah[n] because of Yahweh.
Battle with the Ammonites
26 And Joab fought against Rabbah of the Ammonites,[o] and he captured the royal city.[p] 27 Then Joab sent messengers to David and said, “We have fought against Rabbah, and we captured the city of the waters. 28 So then, gather the remainder of the army and encamp against the city and capture it, lest I capture the city and my name be proclaimed over it.” 29 So David gathered all of the army, and he went to Rabbah and fought against it and captured it. 30 He took the crown of their king from his head. (Now its weight was a talent of gold, and there was a precious stone in it and it was put on David’s head.) He brought out the plunder of the city in great abundance.[q] 31 He also brought out the people who were in it and put them to the saws and to the iron picks and to the iron axes, and he sent them to the place of the brickmakers. Thus he used to do to all the cities of the Ammonites,[r] and he and all of the army returned to Jerusalem.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 12:4 Literally “felt sorry”
- 2 Samuel 12:5 Literally “the nose of David became very hot”
- 2 Samuel 12:5 Literally “The life of Yahweh”
- 2 Samuel 12:5 Literally “is a son of death”
- 2 Samuel 12:8 Literally “as here and as here”
- 2 Samuel 12:9 Thus Kethib; the reading tradition (Qere) reads “my eyes”
- 2 Samuel 12:9 Literally “sons/children of Ammon”
- 2 Samuel 12:11 Literally “before the eyes of this sun”
- 2 Samuel 12:12 Literally “before the sun”
- 2 Samuel 12:13 See Pss 32:1–5; 51:1–13
- 2 Samuel 12:14 Literally “scorning you have scorned.” The term “enemies of” in the MT is likely a textual corruption and is deleted here
- 2 Samuel 12:14 Literally “dying will die” (compare Gen 2:17)
- 2 Samuel 12:24 So Kethib; Qere reads “she called”
- 2 Samuel 12:25 Jedidiah means “beloved of Yahweh”
- 2 Samuel 12:26 Literally “sons/children of Ammon”
- 2 Samuel 12:26 Literally “city of the kingship”
- 2 Samuel 12:30 Literally “very many”
- 2 Samuel 12:31 Literally “sons/children of Ammon”
New King James Version (NKJV) 
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English Standard Version (ESV) 
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Lexham English Bible (LEB)
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