The Reign of David

And on the morowe Dauid wrote a letter to Ioab, and sent it by the hand of Vriah.

And he wrote thus in the letter, Put ye Vriah in the forefront of the strength of the battell, and recule ye backe from him, that he may be smitten, and die.

So when Ioab besieged the citie, he assigned Vriah vnto a place, where he knewe that strong men were.

And the men of the citie came out, and fought with Ioab: and there fell of the people of the seruants of Dauid, and Vriah the Hittite also dyed.

Then Ioab sent and tolde Dauid all the things concerning the warre,

And he charged the messenger, saying, When thou hast made an ende of telling all the matters of the warre vnto the King,

And if the kings anger arise, so that he say vnto thee, Wherefore approched ye vnto the citie to fight? knewe ye not that they would hurle from the wall?

Who smote Abimelech sonne of Ierubesheth? did not a woman cast a piece of a milstone vpon him from the wall, and he died in Thebez? why went you nie the wall? Then say thou, Thy seruant Vriah the Hittite is also dead.

So the messenger went, and came and shewed Dauid all that Ioab had sent him for.

And the messenger said vnto Dauid, Certainely the men preuailed against vs, and came out vnto vs into the field, but we pursued them vnto the entring of the gate.

But the shooters shot from ye wall against thy seruants, and some of the Kings seruants be dead: and thy seruant Vriah the Hittite is also dead.

Then Dauid said vnto the messenger, Thus shalt thou say vnto Ioab, Let not this thing trouble thee: for the sworde deuoureth one as well as another: make thy battell more strong against the citie and destroy it, and encourage thou him.

And when the wife of Vriah heard that her husband Vriah was dead, she mourned for her husband.

So when the mourning was past, Dauid sent and tooke her into his house, and shee became his wife, and bare him a sonne: but ye thing that Dauid had done, displeased the Lord.

Then the Lord sent Nathan vnto Dauid, who came to him, and sayd vnto him, There were two men in one citie, the one riche, and the other poore.

The rich man had exceeding many sheepe and oxen:

But the poore had none at all, saue one litle sheepe which he had bought, and nourished vp: and it grew vp with him, and with his children also, and did eate of his owne morsels, and dranke of his owne cup, and slept in his bosome, and was vnto him as his daughter.

Now there came a stranger vnto the rich man, who refused to take of his owne sheepe, and of his owne oxen to dresse for the stranger that was come vnto him, but tooke the poore mans sheepe, and dressed it for the man that was come to him.

Then Dauid was exceeding wroth with the man, and sayde to Nathan, As the Lord liueth, the man that hath done this thing, shall surely dye,

And he shall restore the lambe foure folde, because he did this thing, and had no pitie thereof.

Then Nathan sayd to Dauid, Thou art the man. Thus sayth the Lord God of Israel, I anoynted thee King ouer Israel, and deliuered thee out of the hand of Saul,

And gaue thee thy lordes house, and thy lords wiues into thy bosome, and gaue thee the house of Israel, and of Iudah, and would moreouer (if that had bene too litle) haue giuen thee such and such things.

Wherefore hast thou despised the commandement of the Lord, to doe euill in his sight? thou hast killed Vriah the Hittite with ye sworde, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slaine him with the sworde of the children of Ammon.

Now therefore the sworde shall neuer depart from thine house, because thou hast despised me, and taken the wife of Vriah the Hittite to be thy wife.

Thus sayth the Lord, Behold, I will rayse vp euil against thee out of thine owne house, and will take thy wiues before thine eyes, and giue them vnto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wiues in the sight of this sunne.