Nathan Rebukes David// Psalm 51:1–19
1Then Yahweh sent Nathan to David, and when he arrived, he said, “There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor. 2The rich man had a great number of sheep and cattle, 3but the poor man had nothing except one small ewe lamb that he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food and drank from his cup; it slept in his arms and was like a daughter to him.
4Now a traveler came to the rich man, who refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for his guest.”
5David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan: “As surely as Yahweh lives, the man who did this deserves to die! 6Because he has done this thing and has shown no pity, he must pay for the lamb four times over.”
7Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! This is what Yahweh, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8I gave your master’s house to you and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you the house of Israel and Judah, and if that was not enough, I would have given you even more.
- 2SA 12:7[NOTABLE]Four words that broke a king. Nathan told a story, let David judge it, then turned the story around. Sin we condemn in others is often sin we hide in ourselves.
9Why then have you despised the command of Yahweh by doing evil in His sight? You put Uriah the Hittite to the sword and took his wife as your own. You have slain him with the sword of the Ammonites. 10Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you have despised Me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’
- 2SA 12:10[PROPHECY]Nathan told David the sword would never depart from his house; his child by Bathsheba would die; his wives would be publicly violated → 2SA 12:18 (child dies); 2SA 16:21-22 (Absalom takes David's concubines on the roof); ongoing strife in David's family
- 2SA 12:10[DEMONIC]Sword shall never depart from David's house due to Bathsheba sin
11This is what Yahweh says: ‘I will raise up adversity against you from your own house. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to another, and he will lie with them in broad daylight. 12You have acted in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’”
David’s Loss and Repentance
13Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against Yahweh.”
“Yahweh has taken away your sin,” Nathan replied. “You will not die. 14Nevertheless, because by this deed you have shown utter contempt for the word of Yahweh, the son born to you will surely die.”
- 2SA 12:13[NOTE]I HAVE SINNED. David's prayer after this is Psalm 51, Create in me a clean heart, O God. Its heading says so.
15After Nathan had gone home, Yahweh struck the child that Uriah’s wife had borne to David, and he became ill. 16David pleaded with God for the boy. He fasted and went into his house and spent the night lying in sackcloth on the ground. 17The elders of his household stood beside him to help him up from the ground, but he was unwilling and would not eat anything with them.
18On the seventh day the child died. But David’s servants were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, “Look, while the child was alive, we spoke to him, and he would not listen to us. So how can we tell him the child is dead? He may even harm himself.”
- 2SA 12:18[FULFILLS]Nathan told David the sword would never depart from his house; his child by Bathsheba would die; his wives would be publicly violated ← 2SA 12:10-14
19When David saw that his servants were whispering to one another, he perceived that the child was dead. So he asked his servants, “Is the child dead?”
“He is dead,” they replied.
20Then David got up from the ground, washed and anointed himself, changed his clothes, and went into the house of Yahweh and worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and at his request they set food before him, and he ate.
21“What is this you have done?” his servants asked. “While the child was alive, you fasted and wept, but when he died, you got up and ate.”
22David answered, “While the child was alive, I fasted and wept, for I said, ‘Who knows? Yahweh may be gracious to me and let him live.’ 23But now that he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.”
- 2SA 12:23[NOTABLE]David's baby son died, and David got up, washed and worshiped. Many have taken comfort from these words: a parent who loses a little child can hope to see that child again.
- 2SA 12:23[NOTE]I WILL GO TO HIM. Many find comfort here for parents who lose a little child.
Solomon’s Birth
24Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and he went to her and lay with her. So she gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon.
Now Yahweh loved the child 25and sent word through Nathan the prophet to name him Jedidiah because Yahweh loved him.
- 2SA 12:24[ALLUDED TO]The New Testament refers to this → MT 1:6
- 2SA 12:25[NOTE]JEDIDIAH means loved by Yahweh. It was God's own name for Solomon.
The Capture of Rabbah// 1 Chronicles 20:1–3
26Meanwhile, Joab fought against Rabbah of the Ammonites and captured the royal fortress. 27Then Joab sent messengers to David to say, “I have fought against Rabbah and have captured the water supply of the city. 28Now, therefore, assemble the rest of the troops, lay siege to the city, and capture it. Otherwise I will capture the city, and it will be named after me.”
29So David assembled all the troops and went to Rabbah; and he fought against it and captured it. 30Then he took the crown from the head of their king. It weighed 75 pounds of gold and was set with precious stones, and it was placed on David’s head. And David took a great amount of plunder from the city.
- 2SA 12:30[NOTE]THEIR KING. The Hebrew is malkam. The Greek and many scholars read it as Milcom, the god of the Ammonites, 1 Kings 11:5. Then the heavy crown came off an idol's statue. See the Rabbah Field Notes page.
31David brought out the people who were there and put them to work with saws, iron picks, and axes, and he made them work at the brick kilns. He did the same to all the Ammonite cities. Then David and all his troops returned to Jerusalem.
- 2SA 12:31[NOTE]SAWS AND PICKS. Some old Bibles, like the King James, read this as torture. Most Bibles today read it as forced labor, as this Bible does.