2 Samuel 12:24 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then David comforted his wife, Bathsheba, and went in to her and lay with her, and she bore a son, and he called his name Solomon. And the Lord loved him

NIV: Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and he went to her and made love to her. She gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon. The Lord loved him;

NASB: Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and went in to her and slept with her; and she gave birth to a son, and he named him Solomon. Now the Lord loved him,

CSB: Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba; he went to her and slept with her. She gave birth to a son and named him Solomon. The Lord loved him,

NLT: Then David comforted Bathsheba, his wife, and slept with her. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and David named him Solomon. The Lord loved the child

KJV: And David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in unto her, and lay with her: and she bare a son, and he called his name Solomon: and the Lord loved him.

NKJV: Then David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in to her and lay with her. So she bore a son, and he called his name Solomon. Now the Lord loved him,

God forgave David's sin against His Law when he repented. But Uriah and Bathsheba still deserved justice. For Uriah, God cursed David with what he gave Uriah: violence in his home, the humiliation of his wives, and the loss of his son with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 12:10–14).

Bathsheba also deserves justice, and she receives it through restoration. David took Bathsheba's loving husband (2 Samuel 11:14–17). David comforts and cares for her. He took away her potential to have children with her husband, and he lost the right to keep the child he had with her because of his sin (2 Samuel 12:15–23). Giving her more children, especially in this culture, is also an act of justice.

Solomon is mentioned most prominently, but the genealogies say Bathsheba also has Shimea, Shobab, and Nathan (1 Chronicles 3:5). Nathan was the ancestor of Mary (Luke 3:31). Solomon was probably the last born.

"Solomon" is a transliteration of the name Shalōmōh, a variation of the Hebrew shalowm. This means peace and wholeness. Today, there's a lot of necessary talk about David's maltreatment of Bathsheba. It's an important topic. It's also important to note that David and Bathsheba came to a reconciled relationship. They grew into peace with each other.

Of course, Solomon isn't just a representation of that relationship. He's also David's heir. Nathan the prophet tells David:

When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son.
-–2 Samuel 7:12–14

David dishonored Bathsheba by making her a sexual plaything. He restores her honor by making her the mother of the future king.

In 2 Samuel 12:24–25, David begins to atone for his sin against Bathsheba. Bathsheba was impregnated by David and made a widow when he arranged her husband's death in war. Because of David's sins, God has taken the life of her son. David repents and does the best thing he can for her, given the culture: he gives her another baby. David names him Solomon. God names him "beloved of the Lord." Bathsheba will transform from victim and widow to mother of the king. In the coming years, Bathsheba will have three other sons (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).