2 Samuel
New Living Translation
Chapter 11
David, Bathsheba and Uriah
In the spring of the year, 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 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
2Late 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.3He 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.”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
4Then 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.5Later, when Bathsheba discovered that she was pregnant, she sent David a message, saying, “I’m pregnant.”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
6Then 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.8Then he told Uriah, “Go on home and relax.” David even sent a gift to Uriah after he had left the palace.9But Uriah didn’t go home. He slept that night at the palace entrance with the king’s palace guard.
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
10When 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,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.”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
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.13Then 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.
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
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.”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
16So Joab assigned Uriah to a spot close to the city wall where he knew the enemy’s strongest men were fighting.17And when the enemy soldiers came out of the city to fight, Uriah the Hittite was killed along with several other Israelite soldiers.
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
18Then Joab sent a battle report to David. 19 He told his messenger, “Report all the news of the battle to the king. 20But 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 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.’”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
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 citygate, 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!”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
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.
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation (NLT)
Nathan Rebukes David
1So the Lord sent Nathan the prophet to tell David this story: “There were two men in a certain town. One was rich, and one was poor.
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
2 The rich man owned a great many sheep and cattle. 3 The poor man owned nothing but one little lamb he had bought. He raised that little lamb, and it grew up with his children. It ate from the man’s own plate and drank from his cup. He cuddled it in his arms like a baby daughter.
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
4 One day a guest arrived at the home of the rich man. But instead of killing an animal from his own flock or herd, he took the poor man’s lamb and killed it and prepared it for his guest.”
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
5 David was furious. “As surely as the Lord lives,” he vowed, “any man who would do such a thing deserves to die! 6 He must repay four lambs to the poor man for the one he stole and for having no pity.
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
7 Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! The Lord, the God of Israel, says: I anointed you king of Israel and saved you from the power of Saul. 8 I gave you your master’s house and his wives and the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. And if that had not been enough, I would have given you much, much more. 9 Why, then, have you despised the word of the Lord and done this horrible deed? For you have murdered Uriah the Hittite with the sword of the Ammonites and stolen his wife.
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
10 From this time on, your family will live by the sword because you have despised me by taking Uriah’s wife to be your own.11 “This is what the Lord says: Because of what you have done, I will cause your own household to rebel against you. I will give your wives to another man before your very eyes, and he will go to bed with them in public view. 12 You did it secretly, but I will make this happen to you openly in the sight of all Israel.”
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
13 Then David confessed to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”
Nathan replied, “Yes, but the Lord has forgiven you, and you won’t die for this sin. 14 Nevertheless, because you have shown utter contempt for the word of the Lord by doing this, your child will die.”
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
15 After Nathan returned to his home, the Lord sent a deadly illness to the child of David and Uriah’s wife. 16 David begged God to spare the child. He went without food and lay all night on the bare ground. 17 The elders of his household pleaded with him to get up and eat with them, but he refused. 18 Then on the seventh day the child died. David’s advisers were afraid to tell him. “He wouldn’t listen to reason while the child was ill,” they said. “What drastic thing will he do when we tell him the child is dead?”
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
19 When David saw them whispering, he realized what had happened. “Is the child dead?” he asked. “Yes,” they replied, “he is dead.”20 Then David got up from the ground, washed himself, put on lotions, and changed his clothes. He went to the Tabernacle and worshiped the Lord. After that, he returned to the palace and was served food and ate. 21 His advisers were amazed. “We don’t understand you,” they told him. “While the child was still living, you wept and refused to eat. But now that the child is dead, you have stopped your mourning and are eating again.”
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
22 David replied, “I fasted and wept while the child was alive, for I said, ‘Perhaps the Lord will be gracious to me and let the child live.’ 23 But why should I fast when he is dead? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him one day, but he cannot return to me.” 24 Then David comforted Bathsheba, his wife,
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
and slept with her. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and David named him Solomon. The Lord loved the child 25 and sent word through Nathan the prophet that they should name him Jedidiah (which means “beloved of the Lord”), as the Lord had commanded.
2 Samuel
New Living Translation
Chapter 11
David, Bathsheba and Uriah
In the spring of the year, 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 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
2Late 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.3He 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.”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
4Then 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.5Later, when Bathsheba discovered that she was pregnant, she sent David a message, saying, “I’m pregnant.”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
6Then 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.8Then he told Uriah, “Go on home and relax.” David even sent a gift to Uriah after he had left the palace.9But Uriah didn’t go home. He slept that night at the palace entrance with the king’s palace guard.
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
10When 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,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.”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
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.13Then 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.
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
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.”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
16So Joab assigned Uriah to a spot close to the city wall where he knew the enemy’s strongest men were fighting.17And when the enemy soldiers came out of the city to fight, Uriah the Hittite was killed along with several other Israelite soldiers.
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
18Then Joab sent a battle report to David. 19 He told his messenger, “Report all the news of the battle to the king. 20But 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 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.’”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
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 citygate, 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!”
2 Samuel 11
New Living Translation
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.
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation (NLT)
Nathan Rebukes David
1So the Lord sent Nathan the prophet to tell David this story: “There were two men in a certain town. One was rich, and one was poor.
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
2 The rich man owned a great many sheep and cattle. 3 The poor man owned nothing but one little lamb he had bought. He raised that little lamb, and it grew up with his children. It ate from the man’s own plate and drank from his cup. He cuddled it in his arms like a baby daughter.
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
4 One day a guest arrived at the home of the rich man. But instead of killing an animal from his own flock or herd, he took the poor man’s lamb and killed it and prepared it for his guest.”
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
5 David was furious. “As surely as the Lord lives,” he vowed, “any man who would do such a thing deserves to die! 6 He must repay four lambs to the poor man for the one he stole and for having no pity.
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
7 Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! The Lord, the God of Israel, says: I anointed you king of Israel and saved you from the power of Saul. 8 I gave you your master’s house and his wives and the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. And if that had not been enough, I would have given you much, much more. 9 Why, then, have you despised the word of the Lord and done this horrible deed? For you have murdered Uriah the Hittite with the sword of the Ammonites and stolen his wife.
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
10 From this time on, your family will live by the sword because you have despised me by taking Uriah’s wife to be your own.11 “This is what the Lord says: Because of what you have done, I will cause your own household to rebel against you. I will give your wives to another man before your very eyes, and he will go to bed with them in public view. 12 You did it secretly, but I will make this happen to you openly in the sight of all Israel.”
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
13 Then David confessed to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”
Nathan replied, “Yes, but the Lord has forgiven you, and you won’t die for this sin. 14 Nevertheless, because you have shown utter contempt for the word of the Lord by doing this, your child will die.”
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
15 After Nathan returned to his home, the Lord sent a deadly illness to the child of David and Uriah’s wife. 16 David begged God to spare the child. He went without food and lay all night on the bare ground. 17 The elders of his household pleaded with him to get up and eat with them, but he refused. 18 Then on the seventh day the child died. David’s advisers were afraid to tell him. “He wouldn’t listen to reason while the child was ill,” they said. “What drastic thing will he do when we tell him the child is dead?”
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
19 When David saw them whispering, he realized what had happened. “Is the child dead?” he asked. “Yes,” they replied, “he is dead.”20 Then David got up from the ground, washed himself, put on lotions, and changed his clothes. He went to the Tabernacle and worshiped the Lord. After that, he returned to the palace and was served food and ate. 21 His advisers were amazed. “We don’t understand you,” they told him. “While the child was still living, you wept and refused to eat. But now that the child is dead, you have stopped your mourning and are eating again.”
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
22 David replied, “I fasted and wept while the child was alive, for I said, ‘Perhaps the Lord will be gracious to me and let the child live.’ 23 But why should I fast when he is dead? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him one day, but he cannot return to me.” 24 Then David comforted Bathsheba, his wife,
2 Samuel 12
New Living Translation
and slept with her. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and David named him Solomon. The Lord loved the child 25 and sent word through Nathan the prophet that they should name him Jedidiah (which means “beloved of the Lord”), as the Lord had commanded.
Get to know God
How do you think God felt when the baby died?
Do you know that when the baby had to die, it was not just David nor Bathsheba who were sad? Actually, the One person who felt the pain but never told anyone, was the LORD God. It had never pleased God to see His people cry. David was someone very dear to God. Having to punish David so severely was very painful to the LORD too. Even more painful was to have the innocent baby losing his life. However, Almigthy God is a God of justice. When David did those evil, the LORD God had to pronounce the judgement. It was extremely painful but the sentencing had to be carried out.
The LORD will restore us with greater than before
David knew the LORD God intimately. He knew that God had to give the judgement but he also knew that God is full of compassion and mercy. So he fasted and prayed. When the baby passed on, David knew that God will someday restore because God had forgiven him and God is merciful. David knew he had created a mess and he knew it was even more painful for the LORD God. He did not become bitter but instead gather strength to comfort his wife.
Indeed the LORD God restored David and Bathsheba with another son, Solomon. In fact the scriptures stated that the LORD sent word to Prophet Nathan to name the child Jedidiah (which means “beloved of the Lord”). This is our LORD God. He loves us. Though He and to chastise us for the wrong we did, He is merciful and will restore us with greater than before!
My child, when we harm others, when we sin, know that it pains God a lot, a lot. Know that He still loves us deeply regardless of what we did. His love for us is steadfast and everlasting. So at the time when we did wrong, it is the LORD whom we hurt most. So never run away from God, instead run to Him. He will help you straighten out whatever mess you had gotten into.
Are you wondering…
How to become a believer?
You can be a believer simply by saying this prayer:
Dear God, thank you for so wonderfully make me and thank you for sending your Son, LORD Jesus to die for me so that I can have the blessed life that you intended for me — a life of leadership and fruitfulness. Now I believe and accept Jesus as my LORD and Saviour. I believe that from this time forth, I am a new creation, I am born again and I have the eternal life that Jesus came to give me. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
