2 Samuel 11

1 And it comes to pass, at the revolution of the year—at the time of the going out of the messengers—that David sends Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel, and they destroy the sons of Ammon, and lay siege against Rabbah, but David is dwelling in Jerusalem.

At the return of the year, at the time when kings go out, David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem.

2 And it comes to pass, at evening-time, that David rises from off his bed, and walks up and down on the roof of the king’s house, and sees a woman bathing from the roof, and the woman [is] of very good appearance,

At evening, David arose from his bed and walked on the roof of the king’s house. From the roof, he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to look at.

3 and David sends and inquires about the woman, and [someone] says, “Is this not Bathsheba, daughter of Eliam, wife of Uriah the Hittite?”

David sent and inquired after the woman. One said, “Isn’t this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, Uriah the Hittite’s wife?”

4 And David sends messengers, and takes her, and she comes to him, and he lies with her—and she is purifying herself from her uncleanness—and she turns back to her house;

David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in to him, and he lay with her (for she was purified from her uncleanness); and she returned to her house.

5 and the woman conceives, and sends, and declares [it] to David, and says, “I [am] conceiving.”

The woman conceived; and she sent and told David, and said, “I am with child.”

6 And David sends to Joab, [saying], “Send Uriah the Hittite to me,” and Joab sends Uriah to David;

David sent to Joab, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” Joab sent Uriah to David.

7 and Uriah comes to him, and David asks of the prosperity of Joab, and of the prosperity of the people, and of the prosperity of the war.

When Uriah had come to him, David asked him how Joab did, and how the people fared, and how the war prospered.

8 And David says to Uriah, “Go down to your house, and wash your feet”; and Uriah goes out of the king’s house, and there goes out a gift from the king after him,

David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.” Uriah departed out of the king’s house, and a gift from the king was sent after him.

9 and Uriah lies down at the opening of the king’s house, with all the servants of his lord, and has not gone down to his house.

But Uriah slept at the door of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and didn’t go down to his house.

10 And they declare [it] to David, saying, “Uriah has not gone down to his house”; and David says to Uriah, “Have you not come from a journey? Why have you not gone down to your house?”

When they had told David, saying, “Uriah didn’t go down to his house,” David said to Uriah, “Haven’t you come from a journey? Why didn’t you go down to your house?”

11 And Uriah says to David, “The ark, and Israel, and Judah, are abiding in shelters, and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are encamping on the face of the field; and should I go to my house to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? [By] your life and the life of your soul—if I do this thing.”

Uriah said to David, “The ark, Israel, and Judah, are staying in tents; and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are encamped in the open field. Shall I then go into my house to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing!”

12 And David says to Uriah, “Also abide in this [place] today, and tomorrow I send you away”; and Uriah abides in Jerusalem on that day and on the next day,

David said to Uriah, “Stay here today also, and tomorrow I will let you depart.” So Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day and the next day.

13 and David calls for him, and he eats before him, and drinks, and he causes him to drink, and he goes out in the evening to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, and he has not gone down to his house.

When David had called him, he ate and drank before him; and he made him drunk. At evening, he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but didn’t go down to his house.

14 And it comes to pass in the morning that David writes a letter to Joab and sends [it] by the hand of Uriah;

In the morning, David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah.

15 and he writes in the letter, saying, “Place Uriah in front of the face of the most severe battle, and you have turned back from after him, and he has been struck, and has died.”

He wrote in the letter, saying, “Send Uriah to the forefront of the hottest battle, and retreat from him, that he may be struck and die.”

16 And it comes to pass in Joab’s watching of the city, that he appoints Uriah to the place where he knew that valiant men [were];

When Joab kept watch on the city, he assigned Uriah to the place where he knew that valiant men were.

17 and the men of the city go out and fight with Joab, and [some] of the people, from the servants of David, fall; and Uriah the Hittite also dies.

The men of the city went out and fought with Joab. Some of the people fell, even of David’s servants; and Uriah the Hittite died also.

18 And Joab sends and declares to David all the matters of the war,

Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war;

19 and commands the messenger, saying, “At your finishing all the matters of the war to speak to the king,

and he commanded the messenger, saying, “When you have finished telling all the things concerning the war to the king,

20 then, it has been, if the king’s fury ascends, and he has said to you, Why did you draw near to the city to fight? Did you not know that they shoot from off the wall?

it shall be that, if the king’s wrath arise, and he asks you, ‘Why did you go so near to the city to fight? Didn’t you know that they would shoot from the wall?

21 Who struck Abimelech son of Jerubbesheth? Did a woman not cast a piece of a rider from the wall on him, and he dies in Thebez? Why did you draw near to the wall? That you have said, Also—your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.”

Who struck Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Didn’t a woman cast an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died at Thebez? Why did you go so near the wall?’ then you shall say, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hittite is also dead.’”

22 And the messenger goes, and comes in, and declares to David all that with which Joab sent him,

So the messenger went, and came and showed David all that Joab had sent him for.

23 and the messenger says to David, “Surely the men have been mighty against us, and come out to us into the field, and we are on them to the opening of the gate,

The messenger said to David, “The men prevailed against us, and came out to us into the field; and we were on them even to the entrance of the gate.

24 and those shooting shoot at your servants from off the wall, and [some] of the servants of the king are dead, and also, your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.”

The shooters shot at your servants from off the wall; and some of the king’s servants are dead, and your servant Uriah the Hittite is also dead.”

25 And David says to the messenger, “Thus you say to Joab, Do not let this thing be evil in your eyes; for thus and thus the sword devours; strengthen your warfare against the city, and throw it down; so you strengthen him.”

Then David said to the messenger, “Tell Joab, ‘Don’t let this thing displease you, for the sword devours one as well as another. Make your battle stronger against the city, and overthrow it.’ Encourage him.”

26 And the wife of Uriah hears that her husband Uriah [is] dead, and laments for her lord;

When Uriah’s wife heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband.

27 and the mourning passes by, and David sends and gathers her to his house, and she is to him for a wife, and bears a son to him; and the thing which David has done is evil in the eyes of YHWH.

When the mourning was past, David sent and took her home to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased Yahweh.