Chapter 7
1; And it happened, when the king lived in his house, and YAHWEH had given him rest from all his enemies all around,
2; The king said to Nathan the prophet, See, now, I am living in a house of cedar, and the ark of the Elohim dwells within tent curtains.
3; And Nathan said to the king, All that is in your heart, go, do. For YAHWEH shall be with you.
4; And it happened in that night, the Word of YAHWEH was to Nathan, saying,
5; Go, and you shall say to My servant, to David, So says YAHWEH, Will you build a house for Me, for My dwelling?
6; For I have not dwelt in a house even from the day of My bringing the sons of Israel out of Egypt, even to this day; but I have been moving about in a tent, even in a shepherds hut.
7; In all places in which I have gone with all Israel's sons, have I spoken a word with one of the tribes of Israel, those I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, Why have you not built for me a house of cedars?
8; And now, so you shall say to My servant, to David, So says YAHWEH of Hosts, I have taken you from the good pasture, from following the flock, to be ruler over My people, over Israel.
9; And I have been with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies from before you and have made you a great name, like the name of the great men who are on the earth.
10; And I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place and not be made to tremble any more. Nor shall the sons of evil afflict them again, as at the first,
11; even from the day I commanded judges to be over My people Israel. And I will cause you to rest from all your enemies. And YAHWEH declares to you that YAHWEH will make you a house.
12; When your days are fulfilled, and you lie with your fathers, then I shall raise up your seed after you, who shall come out from your loins, and I shall establish his kingdom.
13; He shall build a house for My Name, and I shall establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
14; I shall be a father to him, and he shall be a son to Me. If He takes iniquity upon Himself, then I will chasten him with a rod of men, and with strokes of the sons of men.
15; But My mercy shall not be taken from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you.
16; And your house shall be sure, and your kingdom before me forever. Your throne shall be established forever.
17; According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.
18; And King David came in and sat before YAHWEH, and said: Who am I, O Adonai YAHWEH, and what is my house, that you have brought me here?
19; And this was yet but little in Your eyes, O Adonai YAHWEH. But You have spoken also of Your servant's house for a time afar off. And is this the law of men, O Adonai YAHWEH?
20; And what more can David say to You? And You know Your servant, O Adonai YAHWEH.
21; Because of Your Word, and according to Your heart, You have done all this greatness to make Your servant know.
22; For this reason, O YAHWEH Elohim, You are great; for there is none like You; and there is no Elohim except You, according to all that we have heard with our ears.
23; And who is like Your people, like Israel, the one nation in the earth that Elohim went out to redeem to be a people for Themselves, and to make Themselves a name, and to do for You great and fearful things for Your land, before Your people which You redeemed to Yourself from Egypt, from nations and their Elohims?
24; Yea, You have established Your people Israel to Yourself, to You for a people forever. And You, O YAHWEH have become to them for Elohim.
25; And now, O YAHWEH Elohim, the Word which You have spoken concerning Your servant, and concerning his house, confirm it forever. And do as You have spoken.
26; And Your name shall be great forever, saying, YAHWEH of Hosts is Elohim over Israel, and the house of Your servant David is established before You.
27; For You, O YAHWEH of Hosts, the Elohim of Israel, You have uncovered the ear of Your servant, saying, I will build a house for you. On account of this Your servant has found his heart to pray to You this prayer.
28; And now, O Adonai YAHWEH, You are the Elohim, and Your Words are truth, and You speak this goodness to Your servant.
29; And now, let it please You to bless the house of Your servant, to be forever before You. For You, O Adonai YAHWEH, have spoken, and with Your blessing let the house of Your servant be blessed forever.
Chapter 8
1; And it happened afterward, David struck the Philistines, and humbled them. And David took the Bridle of the Metropolis out of the hand of the Philistines.
2; And he struck Moab, and measured them with a line; making them to lie down on the ground. And he measured two lines to cause them to died, and one full line to keep alive. And the Moabites were slaves to David, bearers of a gift.
3; And David struck Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to restore his power at the River.
4; And David captured from him seventeen hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen. And David hamstrung all of the chariot horses; he only left a hundred chariots of them.
5; And the Syrians of Damascus came to give help to Hadadezer the king of Zobah. And David struck twenty two thousand men of Syria.
6; And David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus. And the Syrians became servants to David, bearers of tribute. And YAHWEH saved David in all places in which he went.
7; And David took the shields of gold which were on Hadadezer's servants and bore them to Jerusalem.
8; And King David took very much bronze from Betah, and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer.
9; And Toi the king of Hamath heard that David had struck all the army of Hadadezer.
10; And Toi sent his son Joram to King David to ask of his peace, and to bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and struck him. For Hadadezer had been a man of wars against Toi. And in his hand were silver articles, and golden articles, and bronze articles.
11; King David also dedicated them to YAHWEH, with the silver and the gold which he dedicated of all the nations which he subdued:
12; from Syria, and from Moab, and from the sons of Ammon, and from the Philistines, and from Amalek, and from the plunder of Hadadezer the son of Rehob, the king of Zobah.
13; And David made a name for himself when he returned, after he had struck the Syrians in the Valley of Salt, eighteen thousand men.
14; And he put garrisons in all Edom; and all Edom became servants to David. And YAHWEH saved David in all places in which he went.
15; And David reigned over all Israel, and David executed justice and righteousness to all his people.
16; And Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was the historian;
17; and Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were priests; and Seraiah was scribe;
18; and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and the sons of David were priests.
Chapter 9
1; And David said, Is there yet any left to the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness because of Jonathan?
2; And the house of Saul had a servant, and his name was Ziba. And they called him to David. And the king said to him, Are you Ziba? And he said, Your servant!
3; And the king said, Is there not yet a man to the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of Elohim to him? And Ziba said to the king, There is yet a son to Jonathan, lame in both feet.
4; And the king said to him, Where is he? And Ziba said to the king, Behold, he is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel in Lo-Debar.
5; And King David sent and took him out of the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, of Lo-Debar.
6; And Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan the son of Saul came to David and fell on his face, and bowed himself. And David said, Mephibosheth! And he said, Behold, your servant.
7; And David said to him, Do not be afraid, for I will certainly show kindness to you because of your father Jonathan. And I will give back to you all the land of your father Saul. And you shall eat bread at my table continually.
8; And he bowed and said, What is your servant, that you should look upon such a dead dog as I am?
9; And the king called to Ziba the servant of Saul, and said to him, All that belonged to Saul and to all his house, I have given to the son of your master.
10; And you shall till the land for him, you and your sons and your servants. And you shall bring in the fruits, so that your master's son may have bread to eat. But Mephibosheth your master's son shall eat bread continually at my table. And Ziba had fifteen sons, and twenty servants.
11; And Ziba said to the king, According to all that my master the king commands his servant, so your servant will do. And Mephibosheth was eating at my table like one of the king's sons.
12; And Mephibosheth had a young son, and his name was Micha. And everyone living in Ziba's house were servants to Mephibosheth.
13; And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for he ate continually at the table of the king. And he was lame in both his feet.
Chapter 10
1; And it happened afterward, the king of the Ammonites died. And his son Hanun reigned in his place.
2; And David said, I will show kindness to Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father showed kindness to me. And David sent to comfort him concerning his father by the hand of his servants. And David's servants came into the land of the sons of Ammon.
3; And the leaders of the sons of Ammon said to their master Hanun. Is David honoring your father in your eyes, because he has sent comforters to you? Has not David sent his servants to you to search the city, and to spy it out, and to overthrow it?
4; And Hanun took David's servants and shaved off half of their beards, and cut off their long robes in the center, to their buttocks; and he sent them away.
5; And they told David, and he sent to meet them; for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, Remain in Jericho until your beard grows; then you shall return.
6; And the sons of Ammon saw that they were odious to David. And the sons of Ammon sent and hired Syrians from Beth-Rehob, and Syrians from Zobah, twenty thousand footmen; and the king of Maacah with a thousand men; and the men of Tob with twelve thousand men.
7; And David heard, and he sent Joab and all the army, the mighty men.
8; And the sons of Ammon came out and set the battle in order at the opening of the gate. And the Syrians of Zobah, and Rehob, and the men of Tob, and Maacah were by themselves in the field.
9; And Joab saw that the front of the battle was against him before and behind. And he chose from all the chosen in Israel, and set them in order to meet the Syrians.
10; And the rest of the people he gave into the hand of his brother Abishai, and he set in order to meet the sons of Ammon.
11; And he said, If the Syrians are stronger than I, then you shall be for me; and if the sons of Ammon are stronger than you, then I will come to help you.
12; Be strong, and let us be strong for our people, and for the cities of our Elohim. And may YAHWEH do that which seems good in His eyes.
13; And Joab and the people with him drew near to battle against the Syrians. And they fled before him.
14; And the sons of Ammon saw that the Syrians fled, and they fled before Abishai, and went into the city. And Joab returned from the sons of Ammon, and came to Jerusalem.
15; And Syria saw that it was stricken before Israel. And they assembled.
16; And Hadarezer sent and brought out the Syrians which were beyond the River. And they came to Helam, and Shobach was the commander of the army of Hadarezer before them.
17; And it was told to David. And he gathered all Israel, and passed over the Jordan, and came to Helam. And the Syrians set themselves in order to meet David. And they fought with him.
18; And the Syrians fled before Israel. And David killed from Syria seven hundred in chariots, and forty thousand horsemen. And he struck Shobach the commander of the army, and he died there.
19; And all the kings, the servants of Hadarezer, saw that they had been stricken before Israel. And they made peace with Israel, and served them. And Syria feared to help the sons of Ammon any more.
Chapter 11
1; And it happened at the return of the year, at the time when the kings go out, David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel. And they destroyed the sons of Ammon, and lay siege to Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.
2; And it happened at evening time, David rose up from his bed and walked up and down on the roof of the king's house. And he saw from the roof a woman bathing. And the woman was very good of form.
3; And David sent and asked about the woman. And one said, Is this not Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?
4; And David sent messengers and took her. And she came to him, and he lay with her. And she purified herself from uncleanness, and she returned to her house.
5; And the woman conceived, and sent, and told David. And she said, I am with child.
6; And David sent to Joab, Send Uriah the Hittite to me. And Joab sent Uriah to David.
7; And Uriah came to him. And David asked the peace of Joab, and the peace of the people, and of the success of the war.
8; And David said to Uriah, Go down to your house and wash your feet. And Uriah went out of the king's house, and a gift from the king went out after him.
9; Uriah lay down at the entrance of the king's house, with all the servants of his lord. And he did not go down to his house.
10; And they told David, saying, Uriah did not go down to his house. And David said to Uriah, Have you not come from a journey? Why have you not gone down to your house?
11; And Uriah said to David, The ark, and Israel, and Judah dwell in booths. And my master Joab, and my master's servants are camping on the face of the field. And I, shall I go into my house to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.
12; And David said to Uriah, Remain here today also, and tomorrow I will send you away. And Uriah remained in Jerusalem on that day, and on the next day.
13; And David called for him, and he ate and drank before him. And he made him drunk, and he went out in the evening to lie on his bed with the servants of his master. And he did not go down to his house.
14; And it happened in the morning David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah.
15; And he wrote in the letter, saying, Place Uriah in the front of the strongest battle, and withdraw from him, that he may be struck, and die.
16; And it happened, as Joab watched the city, that he sent Uriah to the place where he knew there would be mighty men.
17; And the men of the city went out and fought with Joab, and some of the people fell of David's servants. And Uriah the Hittite also died.
18; And Joab sent and told David all the matters of the war.
19; And he commanded the messenger, saying, As you finish all the matters of the war, speaking to the king,
20; then it shall be, if the king's fury rises, and he says to you, Why did you draw near to the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from off the wall?
21; Who killed Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Did not a woman throw a piece of a riding millstone on him from the wall, and he died in Thebez? Why did you draw near to the wall? Then you shall say, Also your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.
22; And the messenger went and came and told David all that which Joab had sent him to tell,
23; and the messenger said to David, Surely the men have been mighty against us, and came out to us into the field. And we were on them to the entrance of the gate.
24; And those shooting shot at your servants from off the wall, and some of the servants of the king are dead. And also your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.
25; And David said to the messenger, You shall say to Joab, Do not let this thing be evil in your eyes. For the sword devours one as well as another. Make your battle stronger against the city, and overthrow it. And make him strong.
26; And Uriah's wife heard that her husband Uriah was dead. And she mourned for her husband.
27; And the mourning time passed by. And David sent and gathered her to his house; and she became his wife, and bore a son to him. And the thing which David had done was evil in the eyes of YAHWEH.
Chapter 12
1; And YAHWEH sent Nathan to David. And he came to him and said to him, There were two men in one city, the one rich, and the other poor.
2; The rich one had flocks and very many herds.
3; But the poor one had nothing except one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished. And it grew up with him, and with his sons together, and it ate of his morsel, and it drank from his cup, and it lay in his bosom. And it was like a daughter to him.
4; And a traveler came to the rich one, and he spared to take of his own flock, and of his own herd, to prepare for the traveler who had come to him. And he took the ewe lamb of the poor man, and prepared it for the man who had come to him.
5; And David's anger glowed greatly against the man. And he said to Nathan, As YAHWEH lives, surely the man who did this is a son of death.
6; And he shall repay fourfold for the ewe lamb, because he has done this thing, and because he had no pity.
7; And Nathan said to David, You are the man! So says YAHWEH, the Elohim of Israel, I anointed you as king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul.
8; And I gave you the house of your master, and your master's wives into your bosom. And I gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. And if that were too little, then I would have added to you these and those things.
9; Why have you despised the Word of YAHWEH, to do the evil in His eyes? You have stricken Uriah the Hittite by the sword, and you have taken his wife to yourself for a wife. And you have killed him by the sword of the sons of Ammon.
10; And now the sword shall not turn aside from your house continually, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be a wife to you.
11; So says YAHWEH, Behold, I shall raise up evil against you out of your house, and shall take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor. And he shall lie with your wives in the sight of the sun.
12; For you acted in secret, but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun.
13; And David said to Nathan, I have sinned against YAHWEH. And Nathan said to David, YAHWEH also has put away your sin; you shall not die.
14; Only, because you have caused to scorn the enemies of YAHWEH by this thing, also the son who shall be born to you dying shall die.
15; And Nathan went to his house, and YAHWEH struck the boy whom the wife of Uriah had borne to David. And it became sick.
16; And David sought the Elohim for the child. And David fasted a fast, and went in and stayed the night, and lay on the earth.
17; And the elders of his house rose up toward him, to raise him up from the earth. But he was not willing; and he ate no bread with them.
18; And it happened on the seventh day, the boy died. And David's servants feared to tell him that the boy was dead, for they said, Behold, while the boy was alive, we spoke to him, and he would not listen to our voice. And how shall we say to him, The boy is dead? Then he may do harm.
19; And David saw that his servants were whispering among themselves. And David understood that the boy was dead. And David said to his servants, Is the boy dead? And they said, He is dead.
20; And David rose up from the earth, and bathed, and anointed. And he changed his clothing, and came into the house of YAHWEH, and worshiped. And he came to his house, and commanded, and they brought bread for him; and he ate.
21; And his servants said to him, What is this thing you have done? You fasted and wept because of the living boy, yet when the boy is dead, you have risen up and have eaten food?
22; And he said, While the boy was alive, I fasted and wept. For I said, Who knows? YAHWEH may pity me and the boy may stay alive.
23; And now he has died. Why this, that I should fast? Am I able to bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.
24; And David comforted his wife Bathsheba. And he went in to her, and lay with her. And she bore a son, and he called his name Solomon. And YAHWEH loved him,
25; and sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet, and called his name Jedidiah, because of YAHWEH.
26; And Joab fought against Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, and captured the royal city.
27; And Joab sent messengers to David, and said, I have fought against Rabbah, and I have captured the city of waters.
28; And now gather the rest of the people, and encamp against the city, and take it; that I not take the city, and my name be called over it.
29; And David gathered all the people and went to Rabbah, and fought against it, and took it.
30; And he took the crown of the kingdom off his head. And its weight was a talent of gold, and a precious stone was in it. And it was set on David's head. And he brought out the plunder of the city in great abundance.
31; And he brought out the people in it, and put them to the saw, and to sharp tools of iron, and to axes of iron. And he caused them to go over into the brick kiln. And so he did to all the cities of the sons of Ammon. And David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.
Chapter 13
1; And afterward it happened that Absalom the son of David had a beautiful sister, and her name was Tamar. And Amnon the son of David loved her.
2; And Amnon was distressed, even to becoming sick, because of his sister Tamar. For she was a virgin, and it was hard in the eyes of Amnon to do anything to her.
3; And Amnon had a friend, and his name was Jonadab the son of Shimeah, David's brother. And Jonadab was a very shrewd man.
4; And he said to him, Why are you, the king's son, so lean morning by morning? Will you not tell me? And Amnon said to him, I love Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister.
5; And Jonadab said to him, Lie down on your bed and pretend to be ill. And your father will come in to see you, and you shall say to him, Please let my sister Tamar come in and give me food to eat. And she shall make the food before my eyes, so that I may see and may eat from her hand.
6; And Amnon lay down and pretended to be ill. And the king came to see him. And Amnon said to the king, Please let my sister Tamar come, and she shall make two cakes before my eyes, and I shall eat from her hand.
7; And David sent home to Tamar, saying, Please go to the house of your brother Amnon and make food for him.
8; And Tamar went to her brother Amnon's house. And he was lying down. And she took the dough, and kneaded it, and made cakes before his eyes, and baked the cakes.
9; And she took the baking pan and poured out before him. But he refused to eat, and Amnon said, Cause every man to go out from me. And every one of them went out from him.
10; And Amnon said to Tamar, Bring the food into the inner room, and I shall eat from your hand. And Tamar took the cakes that she had made and brought them in to her brother Amnon, into the inner room.
11; And she brought near to him to eat. And he lay hold on her, and said to her, Come lie with me, my sister.
12; And she said to him, No, my brother, do not humble me, for it is not done so in Israel. Do not do this foolishness.
13; And I, where should I cause my disgrace to go? And you, you shall be as one of the fools in Israel. But now, please speak to the king; for he shall not withhold me from you.
14; But he was not willing to listen to her voice. And he was stronger than she, and humbled her, and lay with her.
15; And Amnon hated her with a very great hatred, so that the hatred with which he hated her was greater than the love with which he had loved her. And Amnon said to her, Get up and go!
16; And she said to him, No, for this evil is greater than the other that you have done to me, to send me away. But he was not willing to listen to her.
17; And he called his young man who attended him, and said, Now put this one out from me, and bolt the door after her.
18; And a long tunic was on her, for so the virgin daughters of the king usually dressed. And his attendant brought her robes outside, and bolted the door after her.
19; And Tamar put ashes on her head, and tore the long tunic on her, and put her hand on her head, and left; going on and crying out.
20; And her brother Absalom said to her, Has your brother Amnon been with you? But now, my sister, keep silent. He is your brother. Do not set your heart on this thing. And Tamar lived in the house of her brother Absalom, but she was desolate.
21; And King David heard all these things, and it angered him very much.
22; But Absalom did not speak either good or evil with Amnon, for Absalom hated Amnon, because he had humbled his sister Tamar.
23; And after two years it happened that Absalom had shearers in Baal- Hazor, which is beside Ephraim. And Absalom called to all the sons of the king.
24; And Absalom came to the king and said, Behold, your servant now has shearers. Please let the king and his servants go with your servant.
25; And the king said to Absalom, No, my son, let us not all go now, and we shall not be too burdensome on you. But he urged him, and he was not willing to go, but he blessed him.
26; And Absalom said, If not, please let my brother Amnon go with us. And the king said to him, Why should he go with you?
27; And Absalom urged him, and he sent Amnon with him, and all the king's sons.
28; And Absalom commanded his young men, saying, Now watch when Amnon's heart is glad with wine, and when I say to you, Strike Amnon, you shall kill him. Do not fear. Did not I command you? Be strong, and be valiant.
29; And the young men of Absalom did to Amnon as Absalom commanded. And all the king's sons rose up, and they each rode on his mule, and fled.
30; And it happened while they were in the highway, even the report had come to David, saying, Absalom has stricken all the sons of the king, and not one of them is left.
31; And the king rose up and tore his garments, and lay on the earth; and all his servants were standing by with torn garments.
32; And Jonadab the son of Shimeah, David's brother, answered and said, Do not let my master say, They have killed all of the young men, the king's sons; for only Amnon is dead. For it has been settled by Absalom's command from the day of his humbling of his sister Tamar.
33; And now, do not let my master the king lay the word to heart, saying, All the king's sons have died; for only Amnon has died.
34; And Absalom fled. And the young man who was watching lifted up his eyes and looked. And, behold! Many people were coming by the highway behind him, by the side of the hill.
35; And Jonadab said to the king, See, the sons of the king have come; as the word of your servant, so it has been.
36; And it happened as he finished speaking, behold, the king's sons came. And they lifted up their voice and wept. And also the king and all his servants wept with a very great weeping.
37; And Absalom fled, and went to Talmai the son of Ammihud, the king of Geshur. And David mourned for his son all the time.
38; And Absalom had fled, and had gone to Geshur, and was there three years.
39; And King David determined to go out to Absalom, for he had been comforted for Amnon, for he had died.