2 Samuel 12 – NIV & CCBT

New International Version

2 Samuel 12:1-31

Nathan Rebukes David

1The Lord sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, “There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. 2The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, 3but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.

4“Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him.”

5David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this must die! 6He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity.”

7Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. 8I gave your master’s house to you, and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you all Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. 9Why did you despise the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. 10Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’

11“This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. 12You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’ ”

13Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.”

Nathan replied, “The Lord has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. 14But because by doing this you have shown utter contempt for12:14 An ancient Hebrew scribal tradition; Masoretic Text for the enemies of the Lord, the son born to you will die.”

15After Nathan had gone home, the Lord struck the child that Uriah’s wife had borne to David, and he became ill. 16David pleaded with God for the child. He fasted and spent the nights lying in sackcloth12:16 Dead Sea Scrolls and Septuagint; Masoretic Text does not have in sackcloth. on the ground. 17The elders of his household stood beside him to get him up from the ground, but he refused, and he would not eat any food with them.

18On 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.”

19David noticed that his attendants were whispering among themselves, and he realized the child was dead. “Is the child dead?” he asked.

“Yes,” they replied, “he is dead.”

20Then David got up from the ground. After he had washed, put on lotions and changed his clothes, he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and at his request they served him food, and he ate.

21His attendants asked him, “Why are you acting this way? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept, but now that the child is dead, you get up and eat!”

22He answered, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, ‘Who knows? The Lord may be gracious to me and let the child live.’ 23But now that he is dead, why should I go on fasting? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.”

24Then 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; 25and because the Lord loved him, he sent word through Nathan the prophet to name him Jedidiah.12:25 Jedidiah means loved by the Lord.

26Meanwhile Joab fought against Rabbah of the Ammonites and captured the royal citadel. 27Joab then sent messengers to David, saying, “I have fought against Rabbah and taken its water supply. 28Now muster the rest of the troops and besiege the city and capture it. Otherwise I will take the city, and it will be named after me.”

29So David mustered the entire army and went to Rabbah, and attacked and captured it. 30David took the crown from their king’s12:30 Or from Milkom’s (that is, Molek’s) head, and it was placed on his own head. It weighed a talent12:30 That is, about 75 pounds or about 34 kilograms of gold, and it was set with precious stones. David took a great quantity of plunder from the city 31and brought out the people who were there, consigning them to labor with saws and with iron picks and axes, and he made them work at brickmaking.12:31 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain. David did this to all the Ammonite towns. Then he and his entire army returned to Jerusalem.

Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)

撒母耳記下 12:1-31

拿單斥責大衛

1耶和華派拿單先知去見大衛拿單大衛說:「一座城裡有兩個人,一個富有,一個貧窮。 2富人擁有許多牛羊, 3窮人除了自己買來養的一隻母羊羔以外,什麼也沒有。他悉心飼養母羊羔,讓牠跟自己的兒女一起長大,他吃什麼,羊也吃什麼,他喝什麼,羊也喝什麼,還睡在他的懷中,就像他的女兒一樣。 4一天,富人家中來了客人,他捨不得拿自己的牛羊款待客人,卻宰了窮人的羊給客人吃。」 5大衛聽後非常憤怒,對拿單說:「我憑永活的耶和華起誓,這人實在該死! 6他真是沒有半點憐憫之心,他必須償還那窮人四倍!」

7拿單大衛說:「那人就是你!以色列的上帝耶和華這樣說,『我膏立你做以色列的王,從掃羅手中救你, 8將你主人的家業和妻妾交給你,把以色列猶大的國權賜給你。倘若還不夠,我會再加倍地賜給你。 9你為什麼蔑視我的命令,做出我視為可憎的事呢?你藉亞捫人的刀殺了烏利亞,把他的妻子據為己有。 10因為你藐視我,把烏利亞的妻子據為己有,從今以後,殺戮流血的事必永不離開你的家。』 11耶和華說,『我要在你家中降下災禍,我要當著你的面把你的妻妾交給你的近臣,他必在光天化日之下與她們行淫。 12你在暗地裡做這惡事,我要讓這樣的惡事當著以色列人的面在光天化日之下臨到你。』」 13大衛拿單說:「我得罪了耶和華。」拿單說:「耶和華已經赦免了你的罪,使你不致死亡。 14但你做的醜事給了仇敵褻瀆耶和華的機會,所以你這個孩子必定死。」 15拿單說完,便回家去了。

耶和華擊打烏利亞的妻子給大衛生的孩子,使他患重病。 16大衛為這孩子向上帝哀求,並且禁食,他進到裡面,整夜躺在地上。 17宮裡的老臣在旁邊伺候,想要扶他起來,他卻不肯,也不肯與他們一同吃飯。 18到了第七日,孩子死了。大衛的臣僕都不敢把這消息告訴他,因為他們心裡想:「孩子還活著的時候,我們勸他,他尚且不聽,若告訴他孩子死了,他會怎樣折磨自己呢?」 19大衛看見他們交頭接耳,知道孩子死了,便問他們:「孩子死了?」他們答道:「是的,他死了。」 20大衛聽後,便從地上起來,沐浴更衣,抹上香膏,然後到耶和華的殿去敬拜。他回宮以後,吩咐人擺上食物,自己開始用膳。 21他的臣僕詫異地問他:「我們真不明白,孩子還活著的時候,你禁食、哀哭。孩子死了,你反倒起來進食。」 22大衛說:「不錯,孩子活著的時候我禁食、哀哭,因為我想也許耶和華會向我開恩,讓他活命。 23但現在他既然死了,我禁食又有什麼用呢?能讓他起死回生嗎?我必去他那裡,他卻不能返回這裡了。」

24大衛安慰妻子拔示芭,與她同房,她便生了一個兒子。大衛給孩子取名叫所羅門。耶和華喜愛這孩子, 25祂差遣拿單先知去賜給他一個名字——耶底底亞,意思是耶和華喜愛他。

大衛打敗亞捫人

26那時,約押正攻打亞捫人的都城拉巴27他派人去向大衛稟告說:「我攻打拉巴,已經佔領了城的水源。 28請你趕快帶領其餘的兵馬前來圍攻并佔領這城,免得我攻取這城以後,人們用我的名字為這城命名。」 29於是,大衛便召集了所有的人去攻打拉巴,攻陷了那城, 30奪取了亞捫王頭上的金冠。這金冠重達三十四公斤,上面還鑲了寶石,人們將它戴在大衛頭上。大衛從城裡得到許多戰利品, 31又把城裡的人帶出來,讓他們從事鋸木、耕田、砍樹和做磚的工作。他用同樣的方式對待亞捫其他城邑的居民。之後,大衛和全軍返回耶路撒冷