2 Samuel 12

¹ Yahweh sent the prophet Nathan to David. He came to him and said: In the same town were two men,one rich, the other poor.

² The rich man had flocks and herds in great abundance;

³ the poor man had nothing but a ewe lamb, only a single little one which he had bought. He fostered itand it grew up with him and his children, eating his bread, drinking from his cup, sleeping in his arms; it was likea daughter to him.

⁴ When a traveller came to stay, the rich man would not take anything from his own flock or herd toprovide for the wayfarer who had come to him. Instead, he stole the poor man's lamb and prepared that for hisguest.

⁵ David flew into a great rage with the man. 'As Yahweh lives,' he said to Nathan 'the man who did thisdeserves to die.

⁶ For doing such a thing and for having shown no pity, he shal make fourfold restitution for the lamb.'

⁷ Nathan then said to David, 'You are the man! Yahweh, God of Israel, says this, "I anointed you king ofIsrael, I saved you from Saul's clutches,

⁸ I gave you your master's household and your master's wives into your arms, I gave you the House ofIsrael and the House of Judah; and, if this is stil too little, I shal give you other things as wel .

⁹ Why did you show contempt for Yahweh, by doing what displeases him? You put Uriah the Hittite tothe sword, you took his wife to be your wife, causing his death by the sword of the Ammonites.

¹⁰ For this, your household wil never be free of the sword, since you showed contempt for me and tookthe wife of Uriah the Hittite, to make her your wife."

¹¹ 'Yahweh says this, "Out of your own household I shal raise misfortune for you. Before your very eyesI shal take your wives and give them to your neighbour, who wil lie with your wives in broad daylight.

¹² You have worked in secret, but I shall work this for al Israel to see, in broad daylight." '

¹³ David said to Nathan, 'I have sinned against Yahweh.' Nathan then said to David, 'Yahweh, for hispart, forgives your sin; you are not to die.

¹⁴ But, since you have outraged Yahweh by doing this, the child born to you wil die.'

¹⁵ And Nathan went home. Yahweh struck the child which Uriah's wife had borne to David and it felgravely il .

¹⁶ David pleaded with Yahweh for the child; he kept a strict fast and went home and spent the nightlying on the ground, covered with sacking.

¹⁷ The officials of his household stood round him, intending to get him off the ground, but he refused,nor would he take food with them.

¹⁸ On the seventh day the child died. David's retinue were afraid to tel him that the child was dead.'Even when the child was alive', they thought, 'we reasoned with him and he would not listen to us. How can wetel him that the child is dead? He wil do something desperate.'

¹⁹ David, however, noticed that his retinue were whispering among themselves, and realised that thechild was dead. 'Is the child dead?' he asked the officers. They replied, 'He is dead.'

²⁰ David got off the ground, bathed and anointed himself and put on fresh clothes. Then he went intoYahweh's sanctuary and prostrated himself. On returning to his house, he asked to be served with food and ateit.

²¹ His retinue said, 'Why are you acting like this? When the child was alive, you fasted and wept; nowthat the child is dead, you get up and take food!'

²² 'When the child was alive', he replied, 'I fasted and wept because I kept thinking, "Who knows?Perhaps Yahweh wil take pity on me and the child wil live."

²³ But now that he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shal go to him but hecannot come back to me.'

²⁴ David consoled his wife Bathsheba. He went to her and slept with her. She conceived and gave birthto a son, whom she called Solomon. Yahweh loved him

²⁵ and made this known by means of the prophet Nathan, who named him Jedidiah, as Yahweh hadinstructed.

²⁶ Joab assaulted Rabbah-of-the-Ammonites and captured the royal town.

²⁷ He then sent messengers to tel David, 'I have assaulted Rabbah and captured the water supply.

²⁸ So now muster the rest of the army, lay siege to the town and take it, or I wil take it and the town wilbe cal ed after me!'

²⁹ So David mustered the whole army and marched on Rabbah; he assaulted the town and captured it.

³⁰ He took the crown off Milcom's head; it weighed one talent of gold, and in it was set a precious stonewhich went on David's head instead. He carried off great quantities of booty from the town.'

³¹ And he expel ed its inhabitants, setting them to work with saws, iron picks and iron axes, employingthem at brickmaking. He treated all the Ammonite towns in the same way. David and the whole army returned toJerusalem.