2Sa 12 | AB | STEP | And the Lord sent Nathan the prophet to David; and he went in to him, and said to him, There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor.

‏ 2 Samuel 12

1 And the Lord sent Nathan the prophet to David; and he went in to him, and said to him, There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor. 2 And the rich man had very many flocks and herds. 3 But the poor man had only one little ewe lamb, which he had purchased, and preserved, and reared; and it grew up with himself and his children in common; it ate of his bread and drank of his cup, and slept in his bosom, and was to him as a daughter. 4 And a traveler came to the rich man, and he refused to take of his flocks and of his herds, to prepare for the traveler that came to him; and he took the poor man's lamb, and prepared it for the man that came to him. 5 And David was greatly moved with anger against the man; and David said to Nathan, As the Lord lives, the man that did this thing shall surely die. 6 And he shall restore the lamb seven-fold, because he has not spared. 7 And Nathan said to David, You are the man that has done this! Thus says the Lord God of Israel: I anointed you to be king over Israel, and I rescued you out the hand of Saul; 8 and I gave you the house of your master, and the wives of your master into your bosom, and I gave to you the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have given you even more. 9 Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do that which is evil in His eyes? You have slain Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and you have taken his wife to be your wife, and you have slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. 10 Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and you have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite, to be your wife. 11 Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house, and I will take your wives from before your eyes, and will give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in broad daylight. 12 For you did it in secret, but I will do this thing in the sight of all Israel, and in broad daylight. 13 And David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said to David, The Lord has put away your sin; you shall not die. 14 Only because you have given great occasion of provocation to the enemies of the Lord by this thing, your son also that is born to you shall surely die. 15 And Nathan departed to his house. And the Lord struck the child, which the wife of Uriah the Hittite bore to David, and it was ill. 16 And David inquired of God concerning the child, and David fasted, and went in and lay all night upon the ground. 17 And the elders of his house arose and went to him to raise him up from the ground, but he would not rise, nor 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 were afraid to tell him that the child was dead; for they said, Behold, while the child was yet alive we spoke to him, and he hearkened not to our voice; and should we tell him now that the child is dead?-- so would he do himself harm. 19 And David knew that his servants were whispering, and David perceived that the child was dead. And David said to his servants, Is the child dead? And they said, He is dead. 20 Then David rose up from the earth, and washed, and anointed himself, and changed his clothes, and went into the house of God, and worshipped Him; and he went into his own house, and called for bread to eat, and they set bread before him and he ate. 21 And his servants said to him, What is this thing that you have done concerning the child? While the child was yet living you fasted and wept, and kept watch; but when the child was dead you rose up and ate bread, and drank. 22 And David said, While the child yet lived, I fasted and wept; for I said, Who knows if the Lord will pity me, and the child should live? 23 But now it is dead, why should I fast thus? Shall I be able to bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me. 24 And David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and he went in to her, and lay with her; and she conceived and bore a son, and he called his named Solomon, and the Lord loved him. 25 And he sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet, and called his name Jedidiah, for the Lord's sake. 26 And 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, and taken the City of Waters. 28 And now gather the rest of the people, and encamp against the city, and take it beforehand; lest I take the city first, and it be called by my name. 29 And David gathered all the people, and went to Rabbah, and fought against it, and took it. 30 And he took the crown of Molchom their king from off his head, and the weight of it was a talent of gold, with precious stones, and it was upon the head of David; and he carried forth very much spoil of the city. 31 And he brought forth the people that were in it, and put them under the saw, and under iron harrows, and axes of iron, and made them pass through the brick-kiln: and thus he did to all the cities of the children of Ammon. And David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.