2 Samuel 12
You Are the Man
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The Poor Man’s Ewe Lamb
12:1The Lord sent Nathan the prophet to David. He came in to him and said, “There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor.
12:2The rich man had very many flocks and herds.
12:3The poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb that he had acquired, preserved, and reared. It grew up with him and his sons together. It ate from his bread, drank from his cup, and slept in his bosom. It was like a daughter to him.
12:4A passerby came to the rich man. He was unwilling to take from his own flocks or herds to prepare a meal for the traveling stranger who had come to him. He took the poor man’s ewe lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”
12:5David became intensely angry with the man. David said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who did this deserves death!
12:6He must repay the ewe lamb sevenfold, because he did this thing and had no pity.”
You Are the Man
12:7Nathan said to David, “You are the man who did this! Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘I am the One who anointed you king over Israel, and I am the One who rescued you from Saul’s hand.
12:8I gave you your lord’s house and your lord’s wives into your bosom. I gave you the house of Israel and Judah. If this is little, I will add more like these things.
12:9Why have you treated the Lord’s word as worthless by doing evil in His eyes? You struck Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your wife; him you killed with the sword of the sons of Ammon.
12:10Now the sword will never depart from your house, because you held Me in contempt and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’
12:11Thus says the Lord: ‘Look, I am raising up calamities against you from your own house. I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he will lie with your wives before this sun.
12:12You acted in secret, but I will do this thing before all Israel and before this sun.’”
The Death of the Child
12:13David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you will certainly not die.
12:14Nevertheless, because by this deed you have thoroughly provoked the Lord’s enemies, your son who was born to you will certainly die.”
12:15Nathan went to his house. The Lord struck down the child whom Uriah’s wife had borne to David, and he became ill.
12:16David sought God concerning the child. David fasted, went in, and spent the night in sackcloth on the ground.
12:17The elders of his house stood beside him to raise him from the ground, but he refused and would not eat bread with them.
12:18On the seventh day the child died. David’s servants were afraid to tell him that the child had died, for they said, “While the child was still alive, we spoke to him and he did not listen to us. How can we tell him that the child has died? He may do harmful things.”
12:19David understood that his servants were whispering and perceived that the child had died. David said to his servants, “Has the child died?” They said, “He has died.”
12:20David rose from the ground, washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes. He entered God’s house and bowed down to Him. Then he entered his own house and asked for bread to eat; they set bread before him, and he ate.
12:21His servants said to him, “What is this that you have done? While the child was still alive, you fasted, wept, and kept vigil, but when the child died, you rose, ate bread, and drank.”
12:22David said, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept, because I said, ‘Who knows whether the Lord will have mercy on me and the child will live?’
12:23But now he has died. Why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.”
The Birth of Solomon
12:24David comforted Bathsheba his wife. He went in to her and lay with her. She conceived, bore a son, and named him Solomon. The Lord loved him.
12:25He sent word through Nathan the prophet, and he called the child Idedi because of the Lord.
The Taking of Rabbah
12:26Joab fought at Rabbah of the sons of Ammon and captured the royal city.
12:27Joab sent messengers to David and said, “I have fought at Rabbah and captured the city of waters.
12:28Now gather the rest of the people, encamp against the city, and take it first, lest I take the city first and my name be called over it.”
12:29David gathered all the people, went to Rabbah, fought there, and captured it.
12:30He took the crown of Melchol their king from his head. Its weight was a talent of gold and precious stone, and it was placed on David’s head. He brought out a very great quantity of spoil from the city.
12:31He brought out the people who were in it and put them to the saw and the iron threshing implements, and led them through the brickworks. He did this to all the cities of the sons of Ammon. David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.
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Saints Translation · Liturgical reading edition · V2 · working draft awaiting specialist review.