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2 Samuel 8-12
New King James Version

David’s Further Conquests(A)

8 After this it came to pass that David [a]attacked the Philistines and subdued them. And David took [b]Metheg Ammah from the hand of the Philistines.

2 Then (B)he defeated Moab. Forcing them down to the ground, he measured them off with a line. With two lines he measured off those to be put to death, and with one full line those to be kept alive. So the Moabites became David’s (C)servants, and (D)brought tribute.

3 David also defeated Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of (E)Zobah, as he went to recover (F)his territory at the River Euphrates. 4 David took from him one thousand chariots, [c]seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand foot soldiers. Also David (G)hamstrung all the chariot horses, except that he spared enough of them for one hundred chariots.

5 (H)When the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David killed twenty-two thousand of the Syrians. 6 Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus; and the Syrians became David’s servants, and brought tribute. So (I)the Lord preserved David wherever he went. 7 And David took (J)the shields of gold that had belonged to the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem. 8 Also from [d]Betah and from (K)Berothai,[e] cities of Hadadezer, King David took a large amount of bronze.

9 When [f]Toi king of (L)Hamath heard that David had defeated all the army of Hadadezer, 10 then Toi sent [g]Joram his son to King David, to [h]greet him and bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and defeated him (for Hadadezer had been at war with Toi); and Joram brought with him articles of silver, articles of gold, and articles of bronze. 11 King David also (M)dedicated these to the Lord, along with the silver and gold that he had dedicated from all the nations which he had subdued— 12 from [i]Syria, from Moab, from the people of Ammon, from the (N)Philistines, from Amalek, and from the spoil of Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah.

13 And David made himself a (O)name when he returned from killing (P)eighteen thousand [j]Syrians in (Q)the Valley of Salt. 14 He also put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom he put garrisons, and (R)all the Edomites became David’s servants. And the Lord preserved David wherever he went.

David’s Administration(S)

15 So David reigned over all Israel; and David administered judgment and justice to all his people. 16 (T)Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army; (U)Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder; 17 (V)Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were the priests; [k]Seraiah was the [l]scribe; 18 (W)Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the (X)Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were [m]chief ministers.

David’s Kindness to Mephibosheth

9 Now David said, “Is there still anyone who is left of the house of Saul, that I may (Y)show him [n]kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”

2 And there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was (Z)Ziba. So when they had called him to David, the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?”

He said, “At your service!”

3 Then the king said, “Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, to whom I may show (AA)the kindness of God?”

And Ziba said to the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan who is (AB)lame in his feet.”

4 So the king said to him, “Where is he?”

And Ziba said to the king, “Indeed he is in the house of (AC)Machir the son of Ammiel, in Lo Debar.”

5 Then King David sent and brought him out of the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo Debar.

6 Now when (AD)Mephibosheth[o] the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, had come to David, he fell on his face and prostrated himself. Then David said, “Mephibosheth?”

And he answered, “Here is your servant!”

7 So David said to him, “Do not fear, for I will surely show you kindness for Jonathan your father’s sake, and will restore to you all the land of Saul your grandfather; and you shall eat bread at my table continually.”

8 Then he bowed himself, and said, “What is your servant, that you should look upon such (AE)a dead dog as I?”

9 And the king called to Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, (AF)“I have given to your master’s son all that belonged to Saul and to all his house. 10 You therefore, and your sons and your servants, shall work the land for him, and you shall bring in the harvest, that your master’s son may have food to eat. But Mephibosheth your master’s son (AG)shall eat bread at my table always.” Now Ziba had (AH)fifteen sons and twenty servants.

11 Then Ziba said to the king, “According to all that my lord the king has commanded his servant, so will your servant do.”

“As for Mephibosheth,” said the king, “he shall eat at [p]my table like one of the king’s sons.” 12 Mephibosheth had a young son (AI)whose name was Micha. And all who dwelt in the house of Ziba were servants of Mephibosheth. 13 So Mephibosheth dwelt in Jerusalem, (AJ)for he ate continually at the king’s table. And he (AK)was lame in both his feet.

The Ammonites and Syrians Defeated(AL)

10 It happened after this that the (AM)king of the people of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his place. 2 Then David said, “I will show (AN)kindness to Hanun the son of (AO)Nahash, as his father showed kindness to me.”

So David sent by the hand of his servants to comfort him concerning his father. And David’s servants came into the land of the people of Ammon. 3 And the princes of the people of Ammon said to Hanun their lord, “Do you think that David really honors your father because he has sent comforters to you? Has David not rather sent his servants to you to search the city, to spy it out, and to overthrow it?”

4 Therefore Hanun took David’s servants, shaved off half of their beards, cut off their garments in the middle, (AP)at their buttocks, and sent them away. 5 When they told David, he sent to meet them, because the men were greatly [q]ashamed. And the king said, “Wait at Jericho until your beards have grown, and then return.”

6 When the people of Ammon saw that they (AQ)had made themselves repulsive to David, the people of Ammon sent and hired (AR)the Syrians of (AS)Beth Rehob and the Syrians of Zoba, twenty thousand foot soldiers; and from the king of (AT)Maacah one thousand men, and from (AU)Ish-Tob twelve thousand men. 7 Now when David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the army of (AV)the mighty men. 8 Then the people of Ammon came out and put themselves in battle array at the entrance of the gate. And (AW)the Syrians of Zoba, Beth Rehob, Ish-Tob, and Maacah were by themselves in the field.

9 When Joab saw that the battle line was against him before and behind, he chose some of Israel’s best and put them in battle array against the Syrians. 10 And the rest of the people he put under the command of (AX)Abishai his brother, that he might set them in battle array against the people of Ammon. 11 Then he said, “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me; but if the people of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will come and help you. 12 (AY)Be of good courage, and let us (AZ)be strong for our people and for the cities of our God. And may (BA)the Lord do what is good in His sight.”

13 So Joab and the people who were with him drew near for the battle against the Syrians, and they fled before him. 14 When the people of Ammon saw that the Syrians were fleeing, they also fled before Abishai, and entered the city. So Joab returned from the people of Ammon and went to (BB)Jerusalem.

15 When the Syrians saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they gathered together. 16 Then [r]Hadadezer sent and brought out the Syrians who were beyond [s]the River, and they came to Helam. And [t]Shobach the commander of Hadadezer’s army went before them. 17 When it was told David, he gathered all Israel, crossed over the Jordan, and came to Helam. And the Syrians set themselves in battle array against David and fought with him. 18 Then the Syrians fled before Israel; and David killed seven hundred charioteers and forty thousand (BC)horsemen of the Syrians, and struck Shobach the commander of their army, who died there. 19 And when all the kings who were servants to [u]Hadadezer saw that they were defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and (BD)served them. So the Syrians were afraid to help the people of Ammon anymore.

David, Bathsheba, and Uriah

11 It happened in the spring of the year, at the (BE)time when kings go out to battle, that (BF)David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the people of Ammon and besieged (BG)Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.

2 Then it happened one evening that David arose from his bed (BH)and walked on the roof of the king’s house. And from the roof he (BI)saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to behold. 3 So David sent and inquired about the woman. And someone said, “Is this not [v]Bathsheba, the daughter of [w]Eliam, the wife (BJ)of Uriah the (BK)Hittite?” 4 Then David sent messengers, and took her; and she came to him, and (BL)he lay with her, for she was (BM)cleansed from her impurity; and she returned to her house. 5 And the woman conceived; so she sent and told David, and said, “I am with child.”

6 Then David sent to Joab, saying, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent Uriah to David. 7 When Uriah had come to him, David asked how Joab was doing, and how the people were doing, and how the war prospered. 8 And David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and (BN)wash your feet.” So Uriah departed from the king’s house, and a gift of food from the king followed him. 9 But Uriah slept at the (BO)door of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. 10 So when they told 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, (BP)“The ark and Israel and Judah are dwelling in tents, and (BQ)my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are encamped in the open fields. Shall I then go to my house to eat and drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.”

12 Then David said to Uriah, “Wait here today also, and tomorrow I will let you depart.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next. 13 Now when David called him, he ate and drank before him; and he made him (BR)drunk. And at evening he went out to lie on his bed (BS)with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house.

14 In the morning it happened that David (BT)wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15 And he wrote in the letter, saying, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the [x]hottest battle, and retreat from him, that he may (BU)be struck down and die.” 16 So it was, while Joab besieged the city, that he assigned Uriah to a place where he knew there were valiant men. 17 Then the men of the city came out and fought with Joab. And some of the people of the servants of David fell; and Uriah the Hittite died also.

18 Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war, 19 and charged the messenger, saying, “When you have finished telling the matters of the war to the king, 20 if it happens that the king’s wrath rises, and he says to you: ‘Why did you approach so near to the city when you fought? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall? 21 Who struck (BV)Abimelech the son of [y]Jerubbesheth? Was it not a woman who cast a piece of a millstone on him from the wall, so that he died in Thebez? Why did you go near the wall?’—then you shall say, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.’ ”

22 So the messenger went, and came and told David all that Joab had sent by him. 23 And the messenger said to David, “Surely the men prevailed against us and came out to us in the field; then we drove them back as far as the entrance of the gate. 24 The archers shot from the wall at your servants; and some of the king’s servants are dead, and your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.”

25 Then David said to the messenger, “Thus you shall say to Joab: ‘Do not let this thing [z]displease you, for the sword devours one as well as another. Strengthen your attack against the city, and overthrow it.’ So encourage him.”

26 When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband. 27 And when her mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she (BW)became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done (BX)displeased[aa] the Lord.

Nathan’s Parable and David’s Confession

12 Then the Lord sent Nathan to David. And (BY)he came to him, and (BZ)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 [ab]shall surely die! 6 And he shall restore (CA)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 (CB)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 (CC)Why have you (CD)despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight? (CE)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, (CF)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 (CG)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, (CH)but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun.’ ”

13 (CI)So David said to Nathan, (CJ)“I have sinned against the Lord.”

And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has (CK)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 (CL)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 (CM)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 (CN)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 (CO)anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he went into the house of the Lord and (CP)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; (CQ)for I said, ‘Who can tell whether [ac]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 (CR)to him, but (CS)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 (CT)she bore a son, and (CU)he[ad] called his name Solomon. Now the Lord loved him, 25 and He sent word by the hand of Nathan the prophet: So [ae]he called his name [af]Jedidiah, because of the Lord.

Rabbah Is Captured(CV)

26 Now (CW)Joab fought against (CX)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 (CY)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 [ag]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

  1. 2 Samuel 8:1 Lit. struck
  2. 2 Samuel 8:1 Lit. The Bridle of the Mother City
  3. 2 Samuel 8:4 seven thousand, 1 Chr. 18:4
  4. 2 Samuel 8:8 Tibhath, 1 Chr. 18:8
  5. 2 Samuel 8:8 Chun, 1 Chr. 18:8
  6. 2 Samuel 8:9 Tou, 1 Chr. 18:9
  7. 2 Samuel 8:10 Hadoram, 1 Chr. 18:10
  8. 2 Samuel 8:10 Lit. ask him of his welfare
  9. 2 Samuel 8:12 LXX, Syr., Heb. mss. Edom
  10. 2 Samuel 8:13 LXX, Syr., Heb. mss. Edomites and 1 Chr. 18:12
  11. 2 Samuel 8:17 Shavsha, 1 Chr. 18:16
  12. 2 Samuel 8:17 secretary
  13. 2 Samuel 8:18 Lit. priests
  14. 2 Samuel 9:1 covenant faithfulness
  15. 2 Samuel 9:6 Or Merib-Baal
  16. 2 Samuel 9:11 LXX David’s table
  17. 2 Samuel 10:5 humiliated
  18. 2 Samuel 10:16 Heb. Hadarezer
  19. 2 Samuel 10:16 The Euphrates
  20. 2 Samuel 10:16 Shophach, 1 Chr. 19:16
  21. 2 Samuel 10:19 Heb. Hadarezer
  22. 2 Samuel 11:3 Bathshua, 1 Chr. 3:5
  23. 2 Samuel 11:3 Ammiel, 1 Chr. 3:5
  24. 2 Samuel 11:15 fiercest
  25. 2 Samuel 11:21 Jerubbaal (Gideon), Judg. 6:32ff.
  26. 2 Samuel 11:25 Lit. be evil in your sight
  27. 2 Samuel 11:27 Lit. was evil in the eyes of
  28. 2 Samuel 12:5 deserves to die, lit. is a son of death
  29. 2 Samuel 12:22 Heb. mss., Syr. God
  30. 2 Samuel 12:24 So with Kt., LXX, Vg.; Qr., a few Heb. mss., Syr., Tg. she
  31. 2 Samuel 12:25 Qr., some Heb. mss., Syr., Tg. she
  32. 2 Samuel 12:25 Lit. Beloved of the Lord
  33. 2 Samuel 12:30 plunder
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2 Samuel 8-12
New International Version

David’s Victories(A)

8 In the course of time, David defeated the Philistines(B) and subdued(C) them, and he took Metheg Ammah from the control of the Philistines.

2 David also defeated the Moabites.(D) He made them lie down on the ground and measured them off with a length of cord. Every two lengths of them were put to death, and the third length was allowed to live. So the Moabites became subject to David and brought him tribute.(E)

3 Moreover, David defeated Hadadezer(F) son of Rehob, king of Zobah,(G) when he went to restore his monument at[a] the Euphrates(H) River. 4 David captured a thousand of his chariots, seven thousand charioteers[b] and twenty thousand foot soldiers. He hamstrung(I) all but a hundred of the chariot horses.

5 When the Arameans of Damascus(J) came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck down twenty-two thousand of them. 6 He put garrisons(K) in the Aramean kingdom of Damascus, and the Arameans became subject(L) to him and brought tribute. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.(M)

7 David took the gold shields(N) that belonged to the officers of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem. 8 From Tebah[c] and Berothai,(O) towns that belonged to Hadadezer, King David took a great quantity of bronze.

9 When Tou[d] king of Hamath(P) heard that David had defeated the entire army of Hadadezer,(Q) 10 he sent his son Joram[e] to King David to greet him and congratulate him on his victory in battle over Hadadezer, who had been at war with Tou. Joram brought with him articles of silver, of gold and of bronze.

11 King David dedicated(R) these articles to the Lord, as he had done with the silver and gold from all the nations he had subdued: 12 Edom[f](S) and Moab,(T) the Ammonites(U) and the Philistines,(V) and Amalek.(W) He also dedicated the plunder taken from Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah.

13 And David became famous(X) after he returned from striking down eighteen thousand Edomites[g] in the Valley of Salt.(Y)

14 He put garrisons throughout Edom, and all the Edomites(Z) became subject to David.(AA) The Lord gave David victory(AB) wherever he went.(AC)

David’s Officials(AD)

15 David reigned over all Israel, doing what was just and right(AE) for all his people. 16 Joab(AF) son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat(AG) son of Ahilud was recorder;(AH) 17 Zadok(AI) son of Ahitub and Ahimelek son of Abiathar(AJ) were priests; Seraiah was secretary;(AK) 18 Benaiah(AL) son of Jehoiada was over the Kerethites(AM) and Pelethites; and David’s sons were priests.[h]

David and Mephibosheth

9 David asked, “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”(AN)

2 Now there was a servant of Saul’s household named Ziba.(AO) They summoned him to appear before David, and the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?”

“At your service,” he replied.

3 The king asked, “Is there no one still alive from the house of Saul to whom I can show God’s kindness?”

Ziba answered the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan;(AP) he is lame(AQ) in both feet.”

4 “Where is he?” the king asked.

Ziba answered, “He is at the house of Makir(AR) son of Ammiel in Lo Debar.”

5 So King David had him brought from Lo Debar, from the house of Makir son of Ammiel.

6 When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed down to pay him honor.(AS)

David said, “Mephibosheth!”

“At your service,” he replied.

7 “Don’t be afraid,” David said to him, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan.(AT) I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table.(AU)”

8 Mephibosheth(AV) bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog(AW) like me?”

9 Then the king summoned Ziba, Saul’s steward, and said to him, “I have given your master’s grandson everything that belonged to Saul and his family. 10 You and your sons and your servants are to farm the land for him and bring in the crops, so that your master’s grandson(AX) may be provided for. And Mephibosheth, grandson of your master, will always eat at my table.” (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)

11 Then Ziba said to the king, “Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do.” So Mephibosheth ate at David’s[i] table like one of the king’s sons.(AY)

12 Mephibosheth had a young son named Mika, and all the members of Ziba’s household were servants of Mephibosheth.(AZ) 13 And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king’s table; he was lame in both feet.

David Defeats the Ammonites(BA)

10 In the course of time, the king of the Ammonites died, and his son Hanun succeeded him as king. 2 David thought, “I will show kindness to Hanun son of Nahash,(BB) just as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent a delegation to express his sympathy to Hanun concerning his father.

When David’s men came to the land of the Ammonites, 3 the Ammonite commanders said to Hanun their lord, “Do you think David is honoring your father by sending envoys to you to express sympathy? Hasn’t David sent them to you only to explore the city and spy it out(BC) and overthrow it?” 4 So Hanun seized David’s envoys, shaved off half of each man’s beard,(BD) cut off their garments at the buttocks,(BE) and sent them away.

5 When David was told about this, he sent messengers to meet the men, for they were greatly humiliated. The king said, “Stay at Jericho till your beards have grown, and then come back.”

6 When the Ammonites realized that they had become obnoxious(BF) to David, they hired twenty thousand Aramean(BG) foot soldiers from Beth Rehob(BH) and Zobah,(BI) as well as the king of Maakah(BJ) with a thousand men, and also twelve thousand men from Tob.(BK)

7 On hearing this, David sent Joab(BL) out with the entire army of fighting men. 8 The Ammonites came out and drew up in battle formation at the entrance of their city gate, while the Arameans of Zobah and Rehob and the men of Tob and Maakah were by themselves in the open country.

9 Joab saw that there were battle lines in front of him and behind him; so he selected some of the best troops in Israel and deployed them against the Arameans. 10 He put the rest of the men under the command of Abishai(BM) his brother and deployed them against the Ammonites. 11 Joab said, “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you are to come to my rescue; but if the Ammonites are too strong for you, then I will come to rescue you. 12 Be strong,(BN) and let us fight bravely for our people and the cities of our God. The Lord will do what is good in his sight.”(BO)

13 Then Joab and the troops with him advanced to fight the Arameans, and they fled before him. 14 When the Ammonites(BP) realized that the Arameans were fleeing, they fled before Abishai and went inside the city. So Joab returned from fighting the Ammonites and came to Jerusalem.

15 After the Arameans saw that they had been routed by Israel, they regrouped. 16 Hadadezer had Arameans brought from beyond the Euphrates River; they went to Helam, with Shobak the commander of Hadadezer’s army leading them.

17 When David was told of this, he gathered all Israel, crossed the Jordan and went to Helam. The Arameans formed their battle lines to meet David and fought against him. 18 But they fled before Israel, and David killed seven hundred of their charioteers and forty thousand of their foot soldiers.[j] He also struck down Shobak the commander of their army, and he died there. 19 When all the kings who were vassals of Hadadezer saw that they had been routed by Israel, they made peace with the Israelites and became subject(BQ) to them.

So the Arameans(BR) were afraid to help the Ammonites anymore.

David and Bathsheba

11 In the spring,(BS) at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab(BT) out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army.(BU) They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah.(BV) But David remained in Jerusalem.

2 One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof(BW) of the palace. From the roof he saw(BX) a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, 3 and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba,(BY) the daughter of Eliam(BZ) and the wife of Uriah(CA) the Hittite.” 4 Then David sent messengers to get her.(CB) She came to him, and he slept(CC) with her. (Now she was purifying herself from her monthly uncleanness.)(CD) Then she went back home. 5 The woman conceived and sent word to David, saying, “I am pregnant.”

6 So David sent this word to Joab: “Send me Uriah(CE) the Hittite.” And Joab sent him to David. 7 When Uriah came to him, David asked him how Joab was, how the soldiers were and how the war was going. 8 Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.”(CF) So Uriah left the palace, and a gift from the king was sent after him. 9 But Uriah slept at the entrance to the palace with all his master’s servants and did not go down to his house.

10 David was told, “Uriah did not go home.” So he asked Uriah, “Haven’t you just come from a military campaign? Why didn’t you go home?”

11 Uriah said to David, “The ark(CG) and Israel and Judah are staying in tents,[k] and my commander Joab and my lord’s men are camped in the open country. How could I go to my house to eat and drink and make love(CH) to my wife? As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!”

12 Then David said to him, “Stay here one more day, and tomorrow I will send you back.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next. 13 At David’s invitation, he ate and drank with him, and David made him drunk. But in the evening Uriah went out to sleep on his mat among his master’s servants; he did not go home.

14 In the morning David wrote a letter(CI) to Joab and sent it with Uriah. 15 In it he wrote, “Put Uriah out in front where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down(CJ) and die.(CK)”

16 So while Joab had the city under siege, he put Uriah at a place where he knew the strongest defenders were. 17 When the men of the city came out and fought against Joab, some of the men in David’s army fell; moreover, Uriah the Hittite died.

18 Joab sent David a full account of the battle. 19 He instructed the messenger: “When you have finished giving the king this account of the battle, 20 the king’s anger may flare up, and he may ask you, ‘Why did you get so close to the city to fight? Didn’t you know they would shoot arrows from the wall? 21 Who killed Abimelek(CL) son of Jerub-Besheth[l]? Didn’t a woman drop an upper millstone on him from the wall,(CM) so that he died in Thebez? Why did you get so close to the wall?’ If he asks you this, then say to him, ‘Moreover, your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.’”

22 The messenger set out, and when he arrived he told David everything Joab had sent him to say. 23 The messenger said to David, “The men overpowered us and came out against us in the open, but we drove them back to the entrance of the city gate. 24 Then the archers shot arrows at your servants from the wall, and some of the king’s men died. Moreover, your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.”

25 David told the messenger, “Say this to Joab: ‘Don’t let this upset you; the sword devours one as well as another. Press the attack against the city and destroy it.’ Say this to encourage Joab.”

26 When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him. 27 After the time of mourning(CN) was over, David had her brought to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing David had done displeased(CO) the Lord.

Nathan Rebukes David(CP)

12 The Lord sent Nathan(CQ) to David.(CR) When he came to him,(CS) 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(CT) burned with anger(CU) against the man(CV) and said to Nathan, “As surely as the Lord lives,(CW) the man who did this must die! 6 He must pay for that lamb four times over,(CX) because he did such a thing and had no pity.”

7 Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man!(CY) This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed(CZ) you(DA) king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8 I gave your master’s house to you,(DB) 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(DC) the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down(DD) Uriah(DE) the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed(DF) him with the sword of the Ammonites. 10 Now, therefore, the sword(DG) 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(DH) I am going to bring calamity on you.(DI) 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.(DJ) 12 You did it in secret,(DK) but I will do this thing in broad daylight(DL) before all Israel.’”

13 Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned(DM) against the Lord.”

Nathan replied, “The Lord has taken away(DN) your sin.(DO) You are not going to die.(DP) 14 But because by doing this you have shown utter contempt for[m] the Lord,(DQ) the son born to you will die.”

15 After Nathan had gone home, the Lord struck(DR) 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(DS) in sackcloth[n] on the ground. 17 The elders of his household stood beside him to get him up from the ground, but he refused,(DT) and he would not eat any food with them.(DU)

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,(DV) put on lotions and changed his clothes,(DW) 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,(DX) 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?(DY) The Lord may be gracious to me and let the child live.’(DZ) 23 But now that he is dead, why should I go on fasting? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him,(EA) but he will not return to me.”(EB)

24 Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba,(EC) and he went to her and made love to her. She gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon.(ED) The Lord loved him; 25 and because the Lord loved him, he sent word through Nathan the prophet to name him Jedidiah.[o](EE)

26 Meanwhile Joab fought against Rabbah(EF) 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(EG) from their king’s[p] head, and it was placed on his own head. It weighed a talent[q] 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.[r] David did this to all the Ammonite(EH) towns. Then he and his entire army returned to Jerusalem.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 8:3 Or his control along
  2. 2 Samuel 8:4 Septuagint (see also Dead Sea Scrolls and 1 Chron. 18:4); Masoretic Text captured seventeen hundred of his charioteers
  3. 2 Samuel 8:8 See some Septuagint manuscripts (see also 1 Chron. 18:8); Hebrew Betah.
  4. 2 Samuel 8:9 Hebrew Toi, a variant of Tou; also in verse 10
  5. 2 Samuel 8:10 A variant of Hadoram
  6. 2 Samuel 8:12 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint and Syriac (see also 1 Chron. 18:11); most Hebrew manuscripts Aram
  7. 2 Samuel 8:13 A few Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint and Syriac (see also 1 Chron. 18:12); most Hebrew manuscripts Aram (that is, Arameans)
  8. 2 Samuel 8:18 Or were chief officials (see Septuagint and Targum; see also 1 Chron. 18:17)
  9. 2 Samuel 9:11 Septuagint; Hebrew my
  10. 2 Samuel 10:18 Some Septuagint manuscripts (see also 1 Chron. 19:18); Hebrew horsemen
  11. 2 Samuel 11:11 Or staying at Sukkoth
  12. 2 Samuel 11:21 Also known as Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon)
  13. 2 Samuel 12:14 An ancient Hebrew scribal tradition; Masoretic Text for the enemies of
  14. 2 Samuel 12:16 Dead Sea Scrolls and Septuagint; Masoretic Text does not have in sackcloth.
  15. 2 Samuel 12:25 Jedidiah means loved by the Lord.
  16. 2 Samuel 12:30 Or from Milkom’s (that is, Molek’s)
  17. 2 Samuel 12:30 That is, about 75 pounds or about 34 kilograms
  18. 2 Samuel 12:31 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain.
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