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 American Standard Bible
Nathan Rebukes David
12 Then the Lord sent (A)Nathan to David. And (B)he came to him and [a]said,
“There were two men in a city, the one wealthy and the other poor.
2 The wealthy man had a great many flocks and herds.
3 But the poor man had nothing at all except (C)one little ewe lamb
Which he bought and nurtured;
And it grew up together with him and his children.
It would eat [b]scraps from him and drink from his cup and lie [c]in his lap,
And was like a daughter to him.
4 Now a visitor came to the wealthy man,
And he could not bring himself to take any animal from his own flock or his own herd,
To prepare for the traveler who had come to him;
So he took the poor man’s ewe lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”
5 Then David’s anger burned greatly against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this certainly [d](D)deserves to die! 6 So he must make restitution for the lamb (E)four times over, since he did this thing and [e]had no compassion.”
7 Nathan then said to David, “(F)You yourself are the man! This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘(G)It is I who anointed you as king over Israel, and it is I who rescued you from the hand of Saul. 8 I also gave you (H)your master’s house and put your master’s wives [f]into your care, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added to you [g]many more things like these! 9 Why (I)have you despised the word of the Lord, by doing evil in His sight? (J)You have struck and killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, you (K)have taken his wife as your wife, and you have slaughtered him with the sword of the sons of Ammon. 10 Now then, (L)the sword shall never leave your house, because you have despised Me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ 11 This is what the Lord says: ‘Behold, I am going to raise up evil against you from your own household; (M)I will even take your wives before your eyes and give them to your companion, and he will sleep with your wives in [h]broad daylight. 12 Indeed, (N)you did it secretly, but (O)I will do this thing before all Israel, and [i]in open daylight.’” 13 Then David said to Nathan, “(P)I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has (Q)allowed your sin to pass; you shall not die. 14 However, since by this deed you have (R)shown utter disrespect for the [j]Lord, the child himself who is born to you shall certainly die.” 15 Then Nathan went to his house.
Loss of a Child
Later the Lord struck the child that Uriah’s [k]widow bore to David, so that he was very sick. 16 David therefore pleaded with God for the child; and David (S)fasted and went and (T)lay all night on the ground. 17 (U)The elders of his household stood beside him in order to help him up from the ground, but he was unwilling and would not eat food with them. 18 Then it happened on the seventh day that the child died. And David’s servants were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, “Behold, while the child was still alive, we spoke to him and he did not listen to [l]us. How then can we tell him that the child is dead, since he might do himself harm?” 19 But when David saw that his servants were whispering together, David perceived that the child was dead; so David said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” And they said, “He is dead.” 20 So David got up from the ground, (V)washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he went into the house of the Lord and (W)worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and when he asked, they served him food, 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 [m]alive; but when the child died, you got up and ate food.” 22 And he said, “While the child was still alive, (X)I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘(Y)Who knows, the Lord may be gracious to me, and the child may live.’ 23 But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? (Z)I am going to him, but (AA)he will not return to me.”
Solomon Born
24 Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and went in to her and slept with her; and she gave birth to a son, and [n](AB)he named him Solomon. Now the Lord loved him, 25 and sent word through Nathan the prophet, and he named him [o]Jedidiah for the Lord’s sake.
War Again
26 (AC)Now Joab fought against (AD)Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, and captured the royal city. 27 Then Joab sent messengers to David and said, “I have fought against Rabbah, I have even captured the city of waters. 28 Now then, gather the rest of the people and camp opposite the city and capture it, or I will capture the city myself and it will be named after me.” 29 So David gathered all the people and went to Rabbah, and he fought against it and captured it. 30 Then (AE)he took the crown of [p]their king from his head; and its weight was a [q]talent of gold, and it had a precious stone; and it was placed on David’s head. And he brought out the plunder of the city in great amounts. 31 He also brought out the people who were in it, and (AF)put some to work at saws, iron picks, and iron axes, and made [r]others [s]serve at the brick [t]works. And he did the same to all the cities of the sons of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 12:1 Lit said to him
- 2 Samuel 12:3 Lit his piece
- 2 Samuel 12:3 Or on his chest
- 2 Samuel 12:5 Lit is a son of death
- 2 Samuel 12:6 Or showed no consideration
- 2 Samuel 12:8 Lit on your lap; or chest
- 2 Samuel 12:8 Lit like these and like these
- 2 Samuel 12:11 Lit the sight of this sun
- 2 Samuel 12:12 Lit before the sun
- 2 Samuel 12:14 Lit enemies of the Lord (a euphemistic reference to God); DSS word of the Lord
- 2 Samuel 12:15 Lit wife
- 2 Samuel 12:18 Lit our voice
- 2 Samuel 12:21 Some ancient versions still alive
- 2 Samuel 12:24 Some mss she
- 2 Samuel 12:25 I.e., beloved of the Lord
- 2 Samuel 12:30 Or Milcom; MT Malcam, prob. a variant spelling of Milcom; cf. Zeph 1:5
- 2 Samuel 12:30 About 75 lb. or 34 kg
- 2 Samuel 12:31 Lit them
- 2 Samuel 12:31 Another reading of MT lit pass through
- 2 Samuel 12:31 Lit mold; i.e., for molding bricks
2 Samuel 12
Palabra de Dios para Todos
Natán reprende a David
12 El SEÑOR envió a Natán para que le dijera a David:
—Había dos hombres que vivían en una ciudad. Uno era rico, y otro pobre. 2 El rico tenía muchas ovejas y ganado. 3 Pero el pobre no tenía nada, excepto una ovejita que había comprado y criado. La ovejita creció en su propia casa junto con él y sus hijos, comía de su comida, bebía de su vaso y dormía en su regazo. Ella era para el hombre pobre como su propia hija. 4 Sucedió entonces que un viajero llegó a visitar al hombre rico. Este quería ofrecerle de comer pero como no quería matar a ninguna de sus ovejas ni ganado para alimentar al viajero, tomó la ovejita del hombre pobre y la mandó preparar para darle de comer a su huésped.
5 David se enojó tanto contra el hombre rico que le dijo a Natán:
—¡Tan cierto como que el SEÑOR vive, que el que hizo eso merece la muerte! 6 Debe pagar cuatro veces[a] el valor de la oveja por haber cometido este acto terrible y no haber tenido piedad.
7 Entonces Natán le dijo a David:
—¡Tú eres ese hombre! El SEÑOR Dios de Israel dice: “Te elegí[b] para que fueras el rey de Israel. Te libré de Saúl. 8 Dejé que tomaras a la hija de tú amo y a sus esposas, y te di las hijas de Israel y Judá. Y si no fuera suficiente, te habría dado aun más. 9 ¿Por qué entonces ignoraste mi mandato e hiciste lo que me desagrada? Dejaste que los amonitas mataran a Urías el hitita para quedarte con su esposa. Es como si tú mismo lo hubieras matado en batalla. 10 ¡Por eso tu familia jamás tendrá paz! Al tomar a la esposa de Urías el hitita, me despreciaste”. 11 Ahora el SEÑOR dice: “Traeré desastre contra ti, y vendrá de tu misma familia. Tomaré a tus mujeres y se las entregaré a un hombre cercano a ti. Él dormirá con ellas y todo el mundo lo sabrá. 12 Tú te acostaste con Betsabé a escondidas, pero tu castigo estará a la vista de todo Israel”.
13 Entonces David reconoció ante Natán diciendo:
—He pecado contra el SEÑOR.
Natán le dijo a David:
—El SEÑOR te perdonará incluso este pecado, no morirás. 14 Porque en este asunto tú le has faltado gravemente al respeto al SEÑOR,[c] tu hijo sí morirá.
Muerte del hijo de David y Betsabé
15 Después de esto, Natán regresó a su casa. El SEÑOR hizo que el niño que David había tenido con la esposa de Urías enfermara de gravedad. 16 David rogó a Dios por el niño y se negaba a comer o beber. Se fue a su casa y por las noches se quedaba allí tirado en el suelo. 17 Los ancianos líderes de la familia de David iban a verlo y trataban de levantarlo, pero él se negaba a levantarse y a comer con ellos. 18 Cuando el niño murió al séptimo día, los siervos de David tenían miedo de darle la noticia porque pensaban que se podría hacer algún daño a sí mismo al recibir la noticia, ya que no los había escuchado cuando el niño aun vivía.
19 Pero al ver David que sus siervos murmuraban, comprendió que el niño había muerto. Así que les preguntó a sus siervos:
—¿Ha muerto el niño?
Los siervos contestaron:
—Sí, ya ha muerto.
20 Entonces David se levantó, se bañó y se cambió de ropa. Luego fue a la casa del SEÑOR para adorar. Después regresó a su casa y les pidió a sus siervos algo de comer.
21 Los siervos le preguntaron:
—¿Por qué actúa así? Cuando el niño estaba vivo, usted se negaba a comer y lloraba, pero ahora que murió se levanta y pide de comer.
22 David les respondió:
—Cuando el niño estaba vivo, ayuné y lloré porque pensé: “¿Quién sabe? Tal vez el SEÑOR se compadezca de mí y deje vivir al niño”. 23 Pero ahora el niño murió. ¿Para qué ayunar? ¿Puedo acaso devolverle la vida? Algún día iré adonde él está, pero él no puede volver a mí.
24 Entonces David fue a consolar a su esposa Betsabé y se acostó con ella. Betsabé quedó embarazada de nuevo y tuvo otro hijo, a quien David llamó Salomón. El SEÑOR tuvo agrado del niño. 25 El SEÑOR envió al profeta Natán para ordenar que lo llamaran Jedidías[d].
David toma la ciudad de Rabá
(1 Cr 20:1-3)
26 Joab atacó Rabá, capital de los amonitas y tenía rodeada la fortaleza del rey. 27 Envió mensajeros a David para decirle: «He atacado Rabá y he capturado los depósitos de agua de la ciudad. 28 Ataque Su Majestad ahora la ciudad y captúrela antes que yo. Si soy yo quien la capture, le pondrán mi nombre».
29 Así que David reunió a sus soldados y se dirigió a Rabá para atacarla y capturarla. 30 Él le quitó la corona del dios Milcón[e], la cual era de oro y piedras preciosas y pesaba 33 kilos.[f] Luego se la pusieron a David, quien además se llevó un buen botín de la ciudad. 31 David también expulsó a los habitantes de la ciudad de Rabá y los puso a trabajar con sierras, picos y hachas, y los obligó a hacer construcciones de ladrillo. Hizo lo mismo en todas las ciudades amonitas y luego regresó con su ejército a Jerusalén.
Footnotes
- 12:6 cuatro veces Algunos manuscritos de LXX: siete veces.
- 12:7 elegí Textualmente ungí. Ver Ungir en el vocabulario.
- 12:14 tú […] al respeto al SEÑOR Textualmente tú has hecho que los enemigos del SEÑOR le pierdan el respeto.
- 12:25 Jedidías Nombre que significa amado del Señor.
- 12:30 dios Milcón o su rey. Milcón era el dios principal de los amonitas.
- 12:30 33 kilos Textualmente un talento. Ver tabla de pesas y medidas.
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