2 Samuel 12:18 - Printer Friendly

ESV: On the seventh day 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 did not listen to us. How then can we say to him the child is dead? He may do himself some harm."

NIV: On the seventh day the child died. David’s attendants were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they thought, "While the child was still living, he wouldn’t listen to us when we spoke to him. How can we now tell him the child is dead? He may do something desperate."

NASB: Then it happened on the seventh day that the child died. And David’s servants were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, 'Behold, while the child was still alive, we spoke to him and he did not listen to us. How then can we tell him that the child is dead, since he might do himself harm?'

CSB: On the seventh day the baby died. But David’s servants were afraid to tell him the baby was dead. They said, "Look, while the baby was alive, we spoke to him, and he wouldn’t listen to us. So how can we tell him the baby is dead? He may do something desperate."

NLT: Then on the seventh day the child died. David’s advisers were afraid to tell him. 'He wouldn’t listen to reason while the child was ill,' they said. 'What drastic thing will he do when we tell him the child is dead?'

KJV: And it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died. And the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead: for they said, Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spake unto him, and he would not hearken unto our voice: how will he then vex himself, if we tell him that the child is dead?

NKJV: Then on the seventh day it came to pass that the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead. For they said, “Indeed, while the child was alive, we spoke to him, and he would not heed our voice. How can we tell him that the child is dead? He may do some harm!”

For a week now, the king of Israel has been fasting from food and lying face down in a position of humility and submission before God. David has been urgently praying that God will change His mind about taking the life of the baby born to Bathsheba because of David's sin (2 Samuel 12:16–18).

Now, though, the boy has died. The Lord has refused David's request to overturn His decision. God has said, "no." Those who submit to the all-powerful God of the universe cannot demand that He do as they wish. In humility, we make our requests and trust Him to answer according to His own plan and purpose and for our good. In David's case, the Lord carried through on what He said He would do.

David's chief servants, those responsible for his well-being, are more concerned than ever. David had refused to even hear their requests to him to eat and take care of himself while making his plea to God to spare his son. They are naturally worried that when the king learns the boy is dead, his utter despair will cause him to harm himself.

They misunderstand David's relationship with God. David knows God is full of grace and mercy. While the child still lived, there was a chance God would relent. Now that the boy is gone, David still mourns, but he accepts God's decision. And he doesn't mourn as one without hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13). He knows he'll see his son in the afterlife (2 Samuel 12:23).

Second Samuel 12:15–23 presents David's loss as Uriah's justice. David stole Uriah's wife, made her pregnant, and murdered him, taking away his right to leave a descendant for his family line. As a parallel, David will experience the loss of a child. David fasts and prays for mercy but accepts God's will when the child dies. Bathsheba will have four more sons including Solomon, the future king (2 Samuel 12:24–25; 1 Chronicles 3:5).

In 2 Samuel 12, David learns the consequences of his sins against Bathsheba and Uriah (2 Samuel 11). David thought no one of consequence knew what he'd done. Nathan the prophet reveals that God knows; the Lord demands justice for David's victims. David's household will rebel, and Bathsheba's son will die. David humbly repents, and Bathsheba later conceives Solomon, the future king. Joab, about to defeat the Ammonites, calls David to finish the fight. In 2 Samuel 13, the seeds of the promised rebellion are sown. Psalm 51 is David's expression of remorse for his sins.

David begins to lose control of his seemingly perfect situation. While the respected soldier Uriah was fighting Ammonites with Joab (2 Samuel 10), David slept with Uriah's wife, Bathsheba. To cover her pregnancy, David arranged for Uriah to die in battle (2 Samuel 11). Nathan, the prophet, confronts David over his crimes. God takes the child's life and will allow David's household to rebel against him. This begins when David's son rapes his own half-sister, Tamar (2 Samuel 13), starting a series of events that will result in another son, Absalom, taking the throne from his father (2 Samuel 14—16).