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2 Samuel 12

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Nathan Confronts David with a Parable 1–6

1
And Jehovah sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him, and said unto him, There were two men in one city; the one rich, and the other poor. ​
2
The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds;
3
but the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up: and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own morsel, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter. ​
4
And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him, but took the poor man’s lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him.
5
And David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As Jehovah liveth, the man that hath done this is worthy to die: ​
6
and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.

God Pronounces Judgment on David 7–12

7
And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul; ​
8
and I gave thee thy master’s house, and thy master’s wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added unto thee such and such things.
9
Wherefore hast thou despised the word of Jehovah, to do that which is evil in his sight? thou hast smitten Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. ​
10
Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thy house, because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. ​
11
Thus saith Jehovah, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house; and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbor, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. ​
12
For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.

David Confesses His Sin 13–14

13
And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against Jehovah. And Nathan said unto David, Jehovah also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die. ​
14
Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of Jehovah to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die. ​

The Lord Strikes the Child 15–23

15
And Nathan departed unto his house. And Jehovah struck the child that Uriah’s wife bare unto David, and it was very sick.
16
David therefore besought God for the child; and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth. ​
17
And the elders of his house arose, and stood beside him, to raise him up from the earth: but he would not, neither did he eat bread with them.
18
And it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died. And the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead; for they said, Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spake unto him, and he hearkened not unto our voice: how will he then vex himself, if we tell him that the child is dead!
19
But when David saw that his servants were whispering together, David perceived that the child was dead; and David said unto his servants, Is the child dead? And they said, He is dead.
20
Then David arose from the earth, and washed, and anointed himself, and changed his apparel; and he came into the house of Jehovah, and worshipped: then he came to his own house; and when he required, they set bread before him, and he did eat. ​
21
Then said his servants unto him, What thing is this that thou hast done? thou didst fast and weep for the child, while it was alive; but when the child was dead, thou didst rise and eat bread.
22
And he said, While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I said, Who knoweth whether Jehovah will not be gracious to me, that the child may live? ​
23
But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me. ​

Birth of Solomon (Jedidiah) 24–25

24
And David comforted Bath-sheba his wife, and went in unto her, and lay with her: and she bare a son, and he called his name Solomon. And Jehovah loved him; ​
25
and he sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet; and he called his name Jedidiah, for Jehovah’s sake. ​

The Capture of Rabbah 26–31

26
Now Joab fought against Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and took the royal city. ​
27
And Joab sent messengers to David, and said, I have fought against Rabbah; yea, I have taken the city of waters.
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
And 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 off his head; and the weight thereof was a talent of gold, and in it were precious stones; and it was set on David’s head. And he brought forth the spoil of the city, exceeding much.
31
And he brought forth the people that were therein, and put them under saws, and under harrows of iron, and under axes of iron, and made them pass through the brickkiln: and thus did he unto all the cities of the children of Ammon. And David and all the people returned unto Jerusalem. ​

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for 2 Samuel 12

Verse 1

the LORD sent Nathan — The prophet to whom the word of the LORD came about David's house in 2 Sam 7:4 now comes with a story of 'two men in one city'. The title of Psalm 51 ties that psalm to the day 'Nathan the prophet came unto him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba'.

Verse 3

one little ewe lamb — Kibsah, a female lamb, 'bought and nourished up'. It ate 'of his own meat' (path, a morsel), drank 'of his own cup', and 'lay in his bosom' (cheyq), the place of a wife in Deut 13:6, 'the wife of thy bosom'. The poor man's one possession is set against the rich man's many flocks of v.2.

Verse 5

shall surely die — The Hebrew is literally 'a son of death' (ben-maveth), as David's own words to Abner in 1 Sam 26:16, 'ye are worthy to die'. The law of theft asked four sheep for a sheep (Ex 22:1), which David also names in v.6. His oath goes beyond it, and v.13 answers: 'thou shalt not die'.

Verse 7

Thou art the man — Nathan adds 'Thus saith the LORD God of Israel', so the verdict is the LORD's. 'I anointed thee' recalls Samuel's horn of oil (1 Sam 16:13), and 'I delivered' (natsal) the song of 2 Sam 22:1, sung when the LORD 'had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul'.

Verse 9

despised the commandment of the LORD — 'Commandment' is dabar, word, and 'despised' is bazah, to treat as worthless; in v.10 the same verb falls on the LORD himself: 'thou hast despised me'. Uriah is 'killed' with 'the sword of the children of Ammon', yet David is charged with the deed, as his own message to Joab in 2 Sam 11:25 spoke of the sword.

Verse 10

the sword shall never depart — Chereb, the word used three times in vv.9–10. Violent death comes to his sons: Absalom has Amnon killed (2 Sam 13:28–29), Joab's darts kill Absalom (2 Sam 18:14–15), and Solomon sends Benaiah against Adonijah, who 'fell upon him that he died' (1 Kings 2:25).

Verse 11

out of thine own house — The 'evil' comes from within David's own family, and the wives are given to 'thy neighbour' (rea). This is fulfilled when Ahithophel counsels Absalom to go in to his father's concubines (2 Sam 16:21) and a tent is spread on the roof, 'in the sight of all Israel' (2 Sam 16:22); v.12 says it is done 'before all Israel, and before the sun'.

Verse 13

The LORD also hath put away thy sin — Abar, to cause to pass over. David's words, 'I have sinned against the LORD', are the confession Psalm 51 takes up: 'Against thee, thee only, have I sinned' (Ps 51:4). 'Thou shalt not die' answers the sentence of v.5, though v.14 names what the sin still costs.

Verse 14

to blaspheme — Na'ats, to scorn, is used twice here: David has 'given great occasion' to the LORD's enemies 'to blaspheme', literally caused them to scorn. Paul uses the same charge against Israel: 'the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you' (Rom 2:24, quoting Isa 52:5).

Verse 16

besought God for the child — Baqash, to seek, joined with fasting (tsum) and lying 'all night upon the earth'. His reason comes in v.22: 'Who can tell whether GOD will be gracious to me, that the child may live?' He lies on the earth again in 2 Sam 13:31.

Verse 20

came into the house of the LORD, and worshipped — After washing, anointing and changing his apparel, he goes first to worship (shachah), and only then to food in his own house. The 'house of the LORD' is where the ark stood in the tent David pitched for it (2 Sam 6:17). Job answered his losses in the same way: 'and worshipped' (Job 1:20).

Verse 22

Who can tell — The Hebrew is 'Who knows?', the question of Joel 2:14, 'Who knoweth if he will return and repent', and of Jonah 3:9. The hope rests on God being 'gracious' (chanan), to stoop in favour; he fasted and wept while the child lived.

Verse 23

I shall go to him — David says he is going (halak) to the child, 'but he shall not return to me'. Jacob spoke of Joseph similarly: 'I will go down into the grave unto my son mourning' (Gen 37:35). Many have taken David's words as the hope of meeting the child, since he speaks of going to him.

Verse 24

Solomon — Shelomoh, 'peaceful', from shalom. The LORD had said to David that his son would be 'a man of rest', 'for his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quietness unto Israel in his days' (1 Chr 22:9). Matthew names 'Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias' in the line of Christ (Matt 1:6).

Verse 25

Jedidiah — Yedidyah, 'beloved of the LORD', from yedid and Yah; this is the only place the name occurs. It is sent 'by the hand of Nathan the prophet' and rests on v.24, 'the LORD loved him', so the prophet who delivered the rebuke also brings the child's second name.

Verse 26

Rabbah of the children of Ammon — The city David's armies besieged in 2 Sam 11:1, where Uriah died (2 Sam 11:17), is now taken by Joab. Deut 3:11 names 'Rabbath of the children of Ammon' as the place where Og's iron bedstead lay.

Verse 28

be called after my name — Joab asks David to bring 'the rest of the people'. The idiom 'called after my name' (qara with shem) marks ownership of what bears the name, as the ark 'is called by the name of the LORD of hosts' (2 Sam 6:2). Joab will not have the city bear his name rather than the king's.

Verse 31

put them under saws — The verse can be read as setting the people to labour with saws, iron harrows, axes and the brickkiln (malben), or as punishment; 1 Chr 20:3 says 'cut them with saws, and with harrows of iron, and with axes'. The same Hebrew brickkiln is found in Jer 43:9 and Nah 3:14. 'Thus did he unto all the cities of the children of Ammon.'