2 Samuel 11:12 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then David said to Uriah, "Remain here today also, and tomorrow I will send you back." So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next.

NIV: Then David said to him, "Stay here one more day, and tomorrow I will send you back." So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next.

NASB: Then David said to Uriah, 'Stay here today also, and tomorrow I will let you go back.' So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the day after.

CSB: "Stay here today also," David said to Uriah, "and tomorrow I will send you back." So Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day and the next.

NLT: Well, stay here today,' David told him, 'and tomorrow you may return to the army.' So Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day and the next.

KJV: And David said to Uriah, Tarry here to day also, and to morrow I will let thee depart. So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day, and the morrow.

NKJV: Then David said to Uriah, “Wait here today also, and tomorrow I will let you depart.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next.

David is still trying to disguise that he impregnated the wife of one of his most trusted warriors. He has called in that very man, Uriah, from a battle with the Ammonites. David expects him to go home and sleep with his wife. If he does, David and Bathsheba can pretend the child is Uriah's. If he doesn't, everyone will know it's not (2 Samuel 11:1–8).

His first night home, Uriah sleeps in the barracks with David's servants. When questioned, Uriah says that his fellow soldiers, not to mention the ark of the covenant, are in tents in a field; he has no right to indulge in comfort (2 Samuel 11:9–11). This isn't only normal practice in David's army; it's the law (1 Samuel 21:5; Deuteronomy 23:9–11).

David tries one more time. This time, he gets Uriah drunk, trying to lower his inhibitions and his honor. Uriah stays true. Again, Uriah stays with David's servants (2 Samuel 11:13).

This is a disaster. David's servants know Uriah never went home. They also know David called for Bathsheba some weeks before. The people will realize David slept with his general's wife while that general was out fighting a battle that David ordered. David's most trusted mighty men will know they can't trust their king with their wives. Uriah can call for David's and Bathsheba's execution. If David can't make everyone believe the baby is Uriah's, he must make them think the child is legitimate. The only way to make that happen quickly enough is if Uriah dies and Bathsheba marries David (2 Samuel 11:14–27).

In 2 Samuel 11:6–13, David plans a cover-up. While Uriah the Hittite was fighting the Ammonites at David's command, David slept with Uriah's wife Bathsheba. Now, Bathsheba is pregnant, and there's no way to pretend Uriah is the father. David recalls Uriah from the front line, thinking Uriah will visit home and have sex with his wife. Thinking about his comrades, sleeping in tents, Uriah refuses. So, David takes things a step further. He sends Uriah back with orders for Joab to arrange for Uriah's death in battle (2 Samuel 11:14–15).

In 2 Samuel 11, David commits grievous sins. Joab and the Israelite army, including the warrior Uriah, are finishing the battle against the Ammonites. Back in Jerusalem, David takes notice of Uriah's wife and impregnates her. When she informs David of the pregnancy, David recalls Uriah. The king expects the soldier to sleep with his wife and claim the child. Uriah's intense loyalty and integrity prevent him from even visiting his house while the others are still at war. David tells Joab to have Uriah killed in battle. God sends Nathan to confront David. David sincerely repents, but God takes the child (2 Samuel 12).

Second Samuel 11 begins the account of David's greatest sins. David sleeps with and impregnates a soldier's wife, Bathsheba. To hide his sin, David has the soldier killed in battle. God tells Nathan to rebuke David, and David repents fully. But God still takes the life of the baby boy (2 Samuel 12; Psalm 51). The story reveals two things about God. First, He is willing to restore His relationship with us when we repent from even the most horrible sin. And second, He has no interest in shaming vulnerable victims of powerful people.

Second Samuel continues the story of David, who will become king over Judah. The other tribes of Israel are resistant, eventually sparking a civil war. David wins and makes Jerusalem his capital. Early success is followed by moral failure and controversy in David's house. The book of 1 Kings will begin by detailing David's decline and death.