2 Samuel 12

12 ¹ Our Father sent Nathan to David. He came and said, "Two men lived in a certain city, one rich, one poor. ² The rich man had very many flocks and herds, ³ but the poor man had only one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It ate from his plate, drank from his cup, lay in his arms; it was like a daughter to him. ⁴ A traveler came to the rich man, but he would not take from his own flock or herd to feed the guest who had come. So he took the poor man's ewe lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.

⁵ David burned with great anger at the man and told Nathan, "As our Father lives, the man who did this deserves to die! ⁶ He must repay the lamb four times over, because he did this and had no pity."

⁷ Then Nathan said to David, "You are the man! This is what our Father, the God of Israel, says: I anointed you king over Israel, and I rescued you from Saul's power. ⁸ I gave you your master's house and his wives into your arms, and the house of Israel and Judah. And had this been too little, I would have given you much more. ⁹ Why have you despised my word, doing evil in my sight? You struck Uriah the Hittite with the sword, took his wife as your own, and killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. ¹⁰ So now the sword will never leave your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite as your own.

¹¹ This is what our Father says: I will bring disaster on you from your own house. Before your eyes I will take your wives, give them to a man close to you, and he will lie with them in broad daylight. ¹² You did this in secret, but I will do this thing before all Israel, in broad daylight."

¹³ David told Nathan, "I have sinned against our Father." Nathan replied, "Our Father has also removed your sin; you will not die."

¹⁴ But because you have shown deep contempt for our Father by this deed, the son born to you will die." ¹⁵ Then Nathan went home. And our Father struck the child Uriah's wife had borne to David, and he became gravely ill. ¹⁶ David pleaded with our Father for the boy. He fasted, went in, and spent the nights lying on the ground. ¹⁷ The elders of his household stood beside him to lift him from the ground, but he refused and would not eat with them. ¹⁸ On the seventh day the child died. David's servants feared telling him the child was dead, for they said, "While the child lived, we spoke to him and he wouldn't listen. How can we say the child is dead? He may harm himself."

¹⁹ But David saw his servants whispering and realized the child was dead. So he asked, "Is the child dead?" "He is dead," they said.

²⁰ David got up from the ground, washed, put on oil, and changed his clothes. He went into the house of our Father and worshiped, then went home, asked for food, and ate. ²¹ His servants said, "What is this you have done? While the child lived, you fasted and wept; now that he's dead, you get up and eat."

²² He said, "While the child lived, I fasted and wept, thinking, 'Who knows? Our Father may be gracious to me and let the child live.'" ²³ But now he is dead. Why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he won't return to me."

²⁴ Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba. He went to her and slept with her, and she bore a son. He named him Solomon. Our Father loved him, ²⁵ and he sent word by Nathan the prophet, who named him Jedidiah, for our Father's sake. ^a a v25 Jedidiah means "beloved of our Father" — the name echoes the love our Father had just set on the child.

David Captures Rabbah

²⁶ Meanwhile Joab fought against Rabbah of the Ammonites and captured the royal city. ²⁷ Joab sent messengers to David: "I have fought Rabbah and captured its water supply. ²⁸ Now gather the rest of the army, lay siege to the city, and take it. Otherwise I will take it, and it will be named after me."

²⁹ David gathered the whole army, marched on Rabbah, attacked it, and took it. ³⁰ He took the crown from their king's head — a talent of gold set with a precious stone — and it went on David's head. He carried off great plunder from the city. ³¹ He brought out the people there and set them to work with saws, iron picks, and iron axes, and put them to labor at the brick kilns. So he did to all the Ammonite cities. Then David and all the army returned to Jerusalem.