1And it came to pass , at the return of the year , at the time when kings go out to battle , that David sent Joab , and his servants with him , and all Israel ; and they destroyed the children of Ammon , and besieged Rabbah . But David tarried at Jerusalem . 2And it came to pass at eventide , that David arose from off his bed , and walked upon the roof of the king ’s house : and from the roof he saw a woman bathing ; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon . 3And David sent and inquired after the woman . And one said, Is not this Bath-sheba , the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite ? 4And David sent messengers , and took her ; and she came in unto him , and he lay with her ( for she was purified from her uncleanness ); and she returned unto her house . 5And the woman conceived ; and she sent and told David , and said, I am with child .
The Consequences of Sin
6And David sent to Joab , saying , Send me Uriah the Hittite . And Joab sent Uriah to David . 7And when Uriah was come unto him , David asked of him how Joab did , and how the people fared, and how the war prospered . 8And David said to Uriah, Go down to thy house , and wash thy feet . And Uriah departed out of the king ’s house , and there followed him a mess of food from the king . 9But Uriah slept at the door of the king ’s house with all the servants of his lord, and went not down to his house . 10And when they had told David , saying, Uriah went not down unto his house , David said unto Uriah, Art thou not come from a journey ? wherefore didst thou not go down unto thy house ? 11And Uriah said unto David , The ark, and Israel , and Judah , abide in booths ; and my lord Joab , and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open field ; shall I then go into my house , to eat and to drink , and to lie with my wife ? as thou livest , and as thy soul liveth , I will not do this thing . 12And David said to Uriah, Tarry here to-day also , and to-morrow I will let thee depart . So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day , and the morrow . 13And when David had called him , he did eat and drink before him ; and he made him drunk : and at even he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but went not down to his house .
The Murder of Uriah
14And it came to pass in the morning , that David wrote a letter to Joab , and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15And he wrote in the letter , saying, Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle , and retire ye from him , that he may be smitten , and die . 16And it came to pass , when Joab kept watch upon the city , that he assigned Uriah unto the place where he knew that valiant men were . 17And the men of the city went out , and fought with Joab : and there fell some of the people , even of the servants of David ; and Uriah the Hittite died also . 18Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war ; 19and he charged the messenger , saying , When thou hast made an end of telling all the things concerning the war unto the king , 20it shall be that , if the king ’s wrath arise , and he say unto thee, Wherefore went ye so nigh unto the city to fight ? knew ye not that they would shoot from the wall ? 21who smote Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth ? did not a woman cast an upper millstone upon him from the wall , so that he died at Thebez ? why went ye so nigh the wall ? then shalt thou say, Thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also . 22So the messenger went , and came and showed David all that Joab had sent him for . 23And the messenger said unto David , The men prevailed against us , and came out unto us into the field , and we were upon them even unto the entrance of the gate . 24And the shooters shot at thy servants from off the wall ; and some of the king ’s servants are dead , and thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also . 25Then David said unto the messenger , Thus shalt thou say unto Joab , Let not this thing displease thee , for the sword devoureth one as well as another ; make thy battle more strong against the city , and overthrow it : and encourage thou him . 26And when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead , she made lamentation for her husband . 27And when the mourning was past , David sent and took her home to his house , and she became his wife, and bare him a son . But the thing that David had done displeased Jehovah .