Study Desk

But I will never put an end to my agreement with him, as I put an end to my agreement with Saul, who was king before you.

In the battle, David captured seventeen hundred cavalry and twenty thousand foot soldiers. He also captured war chariots, but he destroyed all but one hundred of them.

Hadadezer's officers had carried their arrows in gold cases hung over their shoulders, but David took these cases and brought them to Jerusalem.

David asked, "Are any of Saul's family still alive? If there are, I want to be kind to them." Ziba answered, "One of Jonathan's sons is still alive, but he can't walk."

You and your fifteen sons and twenty servants will work for Mephibosheth. You will farm his land and bring in his crops, so that Saul's family and servants will have food. But Mephibosheth will always eat with me at my table."

Ziba replied, "Your Majesty, I will do exactly what you tell me to do." So Ziba's family and servants worked for Mephibosheth. Mephibosheth was lame, but he lived in Jerusalem and ate at David's table, just like one of David's own sons. And he had a young son of his own, named Mica.

But Hanun's officials told him, "Do you really believe David is honoring your father by sending these people to comfort you? He probably sent them to spy on our city, so he can destroy it."

The Arameans attacked, but then they ran from Israel. David killed seven hundred chariot drivers and forty thousand cavalry. He also killed Shobach, their commander.

It was now spring, the time when kings go to war. David sent out the whole Israelite army under the command of Joab and his officers. They destroyed the Ammonite army and surrounded the capital city of Rabbah, but David stayed in Jerusalem.

But later, when she found out that she was going to have a baby, she sent someone to David with this message: "I'm pregnant!"

But Uriah didn't go home. Instead, he slept outside the entrance to the royal palace, where the king's guards slept.

David invited him for dinner. Uriah ate with David and drank so much that he got drunk, but he still did not go home. He went out and slept on his mat near the palace guards.

He added, "The enemy chased us from the wall and out into the open fields. But we pushed them back as far as the city gate.

but the poor man had only one little lamb that he had bought and raised. The lamb became a pet for him and his children. He even let it eat from his plate and drink from his cup and sleep on his lap. The lamb was like one of his own children.

One day someone came to visit the rich man, but the rich man didn't want to kill any of his own sheep or cattle and serve it to the visitor. So he stole the poor man's little lamb and served it instead.

What you did was in secret, but I will do this in the open for everyone in Israel to see."

David said, "I have disobeyed the Lord ." "Yes, you have!" Nathan answered. "You showed you didn't care what the Lord wanted. He has forgiven you, and you won't die. But your newborn son will."

So David went without eating to show his sorrow, and he begged God to make the boy well. David would not sleep on his bed, but spent each night lying on the floor.

His officials stood beside him and tried to talk him into getting up. But he would not get up or eat with them.

After the child had been sick for seven days, he died, but the officials were afraid to tell David. They said to each other, "Even when the boy was alive, David wouldn't listen to us. How can we tell him his son is dead? He might do something terrible!"