2 Samuel 12:25 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and sent a message by Nathan the prophet. So he called his name Jedidiah, because of the Lord.

NIV: and because the Lord loved him, he sent word through Nathan the prophet to name him Jedidiah.

NASB: and sent word through Nathan the prophet, and he named him Jedidiah for the Lord’S sake.

CSB: and he sent a message through the prophet Nathan, who named him Jedidiah, because of the Lord.

NLT: and sent word through Nathan the prophet that they should name him Jedidiah (which means 'beloved of the Lord'), as the Lord had commanded.

KJV: And he sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet; and he called his name Jedidiah, because of the Lord.

NKJV: and He sent word by the hand of Nathan the prophet: So he called his name Jedidiah, because of the Lord.

The child Bathsheba illegitimately conceived with David died (2 Samuel 12:16–19). It seems that David and Bathsheba have had three other sons since then, including Mary's ancestor Nathan (1 Chronicles 3:5; Luke 3:31). But there's something special about the fourth. He's conceived because David wants to comfort his wife.

When he's born, David calls this boy Shalōmōh, a variation of the Hebrew word for peace and wholeness. Most Bible translations render this name as "Solomon." God confirms this child is special. For His own purposes, God loves him and calls him Yadiydayāh, or Jedidiah: "beloved of the Lord." Solomon goes on to be the richest and wisest king of his time (1 Kings 10:23). He has a unique, God-given ability to share wisdom with all who ask. Most of his reign is filled with peace (1 Kings 4:20–25).

Unfortunately, Solomon will also betray the God of his father and worship the idols of his hundreds of wives (1 Kings 11:1–13).

The loss of David and Bathsheba's first son feels cruel. Both Bathsheba and the baby were innocent. His death was God's justice for David's sin against Uriah (2 Samuel 12:14). But there may also be a political reason behind it. When the baby was born, David and Bathsheba were legally married. But when he was conceived, Bathsheba was married to Uriah. People would be able to confirm that the child was not Uriah's. But they might also have realized that he was conceived in adultery. That may have made him ineligible to worship in the tabernacle (Deuteronomy 23:2).

Now, however, Bathsheba has a son who can be 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).

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.