2 Samuel 12
1 And YHWH sends Nathan to David, and he comes to him, and says to him: “Two men have been in one city, one rich and one poor.
And the Lord sent Nathan unto David, and he came unto him and said to him, Two men were once in one city, the one rich and the other poor.
2 The rich has very many flocks and herds,
The rich man had flocks and herds, in great abundance.
3 but the poor one has nothing, except one little ewe-lamb which he has bought and keeps alive. And it grows up together with him and with his sons. It eats of his morsel, and it drinks from his cup, and it lies in his bosom, and it is as a daughter to him.
But the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe, which he had bought; and he nourished it, and it grew up with him and with his children together; of his bread it used to eat, and out of his cup it used to drink, and in his bosom it used to lie, and it was to him as a daughter.
4 And a traveler comes to the rich man, and he spares to take from his own flock, and from his own herd, to prepare for the traveling [man] who has come to him; and he takes the ewe-lamb of the poor man and prepares it for the man who has come to him.”
And there came a traveler unto the rich man; and he felt compunction to take from his own flocks and from his own herds to dress for the wayfarer that was come to him; but he took the ewe of the poor man, and dressed it for the man that was come to him.
5 And the anger of David burns against the man exceedingly, and he says to Nathan, “YHWH lives, surely the man who is doing this [is] a son of death,
And the anger of David was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan, As the Lord liveth, surely the man that hath done this deserveth to die;
6 and [for] the ewe-lamb he repays fourfold, because that he has done this thing, and because that he had no pity.”
And the ewe he shall pay fourfold, for punishment that he hath done this thing, and because he had no compassion.
7 And Nathan says to David, “You [are] the man! Thus said YHWH, God of Israel: I anointed you for king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul;
Then said Nathan to David, Thou art the man! Thus hath said the Lord, the God of Israel, It is I who anointed thee as king over Israel, and it is I who delivered thee out of the hand of Saul;
8 and I give to you the house of your lord, and the wives of your lord, into your bosom, and I give the house of Israel and Judah to you; and if [that is] too little, then I add such and such [things] to you.
And I gave unto thee the house of thy master, and [put] the wives of thy master into thy bosom, and gave unto thee the house of Israel and Judah: and if this be too little, I could bestow on thee yet many more like these things.
9 Why have you despised the word of YHWH, to do evil in His eyes? You have struck Uriah the Hittite by the sword, and you have taken his wife for a wife for yourself, and you have slain him by the sword of the sons of Ammon.
Wherefore hast thou despised the word of the Lord to do what is evil in his eyes? Uriyah the Hittite hast thou smitten with the sword, and his wife hast thou taken unto thee for wife; but him hast thou slain with the sword of the children of 'Ammon.
10 And now, the sword does not turn aside from your house for all time, because you have despised Me, and take the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be for a wife for yourself;
And now, the sword shall not depart from thy house for ever; for the reason that thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriyah the Hittite to be thy wife.
11 thus said YHWH: Behold, I am raising up calamity against you, out of your [own] house, and have taken your wives before your eyes, and given [them] to your neighbor, and he has lain with your wives before the eyes of this sun;
Thus hath said the Lord, Behold, I will raise up against thee evil out of thy own house, and I will take away thy wives before thy eyes, and I will give them unto thy neighbor; and he shall lie with thy wives before the face of this sun.
12 for you have done [it] in secret, and I do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.”
For thou hast done it in secret; but I will surely do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.
13 And David says to Nathan, “I have sinned against YHWH.” And Nathan says to David, “Also—YHWH has caused your sin to pass away; you do not die;
Then said David unto Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said to David, Also the Lord hath caused thy sin to pass away: thou shalt not die.
14 only, because you have caused the enemies of YHWH to greatly despise by this thing, also—the son who is born to you surely dies.”
Nevertheless, because thou hast given great cause to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme through this thing, the child also that hath been born unto thee shall surely die.
15 And Nathan goes to his house, and YHWH strikes the boy, whom the wife of Uriah has borne to David, and it is incurable;
And Nathan went to his house; and the Lord struck the child that Uriyah's wife had born unto David, that it became very sick.
16 and David seeks God for the youth, and David keeps a fast, and has gone in and lodged, and lain on the earth.
And David besought God in behalf of the lad; and David kept a fast, and came home, and lay over night upon the earth.
17 And [the] elderly of his house rise against him, to raise him up from the earth, and he has not been willing, nor has he eaten bread with them;
And the elders of the house arose about him, to raise him up from the earth; but he would not, and he did not partake of any bread with them.
18 and it comes to pass on the seventh day, that the boy dies, and the servants of David fear to declare to him that the boy is dead, for they said, “Behold, in the boy being alive we spoke to him, and he did not listen to our voice; and how do we say to him, The boy is dead? Then he has done evil.”
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 would not hearken to our voice: how then shall we say to him, The child is dead! he might do [himself] a hurt.
19 And David sees that his servants are whispering, and David understands that the boy is dead, and David says to his servants, “Is the boy dead?” And they say, “Dead.”
But when David saw that his servants were whispering to each other, David understood that the child was dead; wherefore David said unto his servants, Is the child dead? and they said, he is dead.
20 And David rises from the earth, and bathes and anoints [himself], and changes his raiment, and comes into the house of YHWH, and bows himself, and comes to his house, and asks and they place bread for him, and he eats.
David then rose up from the earth, and washed and anointed himself, and changed his garments, and went into the house of the Lord and prostrated himself; and then he came to his own house, and asked that they should set food before him, and he ate.
21 And his servants say to him, “What [is] this thing you have done? Because of the living boy you have fasted and you weep, and when the boy is dead you have risen and eat bread.”
And his servants then said unto him, What is this thing which thou hast done? On account of the child when living thou didst fast and weep; but as soon as the child was dead thou didst arise and eat bread!
22 And he says, “While the boy is alive I have fasted and I weep, for I said, Who knows [if] YHWH pities me and the boy has lived?
And he said, While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept; because I said, Who knoweth, but that the Lord will be gracious to me, that the child may live?
23 And now, he has died, why [is] this—I fast? Am I able to bring him back again? I am going to him, and he does not return to me.”
But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast then? can I restore him again? I am going to him; but he will not return to me.
24 And David comforts his wife Bathsheba, and goes in to her, and lies with her, and she bears a son, and he calls his name Solomon; and YHWH has loved him,
And David comforted Bath-sheba' his wife, and he went in unto her, and lay with her; and she bore a son, and called his name Solomon; and the Lord loved him.
25 and sends by the hand of Nathan the prophet, and calls his name Jedidiah, because of YHWH.
And he sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet, and called his name, Yedideyah in behalf of the Lord.
26 And Joab fights against Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, and captures the royal city,
And Joab fought against Rabbah of the children of 'Ammon, and captured the royal city.
27 and Joab sends messengers to David and says, “I have fought against Rabbah—I have also captured the city of waters;
And Joab sent messengers to David; and said, I have fought against Rabbah, and have also captured the water-town.
28 and now, gather the rest of the people, and encamp against the city, and capture it, lest I capture the city, and my name has been called on it.”
And now gather the rest of the people together, and encamp against the city, and capture it: lest I capture the city myself, and it be called by my name.
29 And David gathers all the people, and goes to Rabbah, and fights against it, and captures it;
And David gathered all the people together and went to Rabbah, and fought against it, and captured it.
30 and he takes the crown of their king from off his head, and its weight [is] a talent of gold, and precious stones, and it is on the head of David; and he has brought out the spoil of the city—very much;
And he took the crown of Malkam from off his head, and its weight was a talent of gold, and [on it was] a precious stone, and it was set on the head of David; and the booty of the city he brought out in great abundance.
31 and he has brought out the people who [are] in it, and sets [them] to the saw, and to cutting instruments of iron, and to axes of iron, and has caused them to pass over into the brick-kiln; and so he does to all the cities of the sons of Ammon; and David turns back, and all the people, to Jerusalem.
And the people that were therein he brought forward, and put them under saws, and under iron threshing-wagons, and under axes of iron, and made them pass through brick-kilns; and thus did he unto all the cities of the children of 'Ammon: and David returned with them with all the people unto Jerusalem.
