2 Samuel
2 Samuel 11
King James Version · tap any highlighted word for context
2 Samuel 11 — Scripture text (King James Version)
And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that sent , and his servants with him, and all ; and they destroyed the children of , and besieged . But tarried still at . And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king’s house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon. And sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this -, the daughter of , the wife of the ? And sent messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him, and he lay with her; for she was purified from her uncleanness: and she returned unto her house. And the woman conceived, and sent and told , and said, I am with child. And sent to , saying, Send me the . And sent to . And when was come unto him, demanded of him how did, and how the people did, and how the war prospered. And said to , Go down to thy house, and wash thy feet. And departed out of the king’s house, and there followed him a mess of meat from the king. But slept at the door of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and went not down to his house. And when they had told , saying, went not down unto his house, said unto , Camest thou not from thy journey? why then didst thou not go down unto thine house? And said unto , The , and , and , abide in tents; and my lord , and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open fields; shall I then go into mine house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I will not do this thing. And said to , Tarry here to day also, and to morrow I will let thee depart. So abode in that day, and the morrow. And when had called him, he did eat and drink before him; and he made him drunk: and at even he went out to lie his bed with the servants of his lord, but went not down to his house. And it came to pass in the morning, that wrote a letter to , and sent it by the hand of . And he wrote in the letter, saying, Set ye in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die. And it came to pass, when observed the city, that he assigned unto a place where he knew that valiant men were. And the men of the city went out, and fought with : and there fell some of the people of the servants of ; and the died also. Then sent and told all the things concerning the war; And charged the messenger, saying, When thou hast made an end of telling the matters of the war unto the king, And if so be that the king’s wrath arise, and he say unto thee, Wherefore approached ye so nigh unto the city when ye did fight? knew ye not that they would shoot from the wall? Who smote the son of ? did not a woman cast a piece of a upon him from the wall, that he died in ? why went ye nigh the wall? then say thou, Thy servant the is dead also. So the messenger went, and came and shewed all that had sent him for. And the messenger said unto , Surely the men prevailed against us, and came out unto us into the field, and we were upon them even unto the entering of the gate. And the shooters shot from off the wall upon thy servants; and some of the king’s servants be dead, and thy servant the is dead also. Then said unto the messenger, Thus shalt thou say unto , Let not this thing displease thee, for the devoureth one as as another: make thy battle more strong against the city, and overthrow it: and encourage thou him. And when the wife of heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband. And when the mourning was past, sent and fetched her to his house, and she became his wife, and bare him a son. But the thing that had done displeased the LORD.