Study Desk

To the chief musician, A Psalm of David when Nathan the prophet came to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba. Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your loving-kindness, according to themultitude of Your tender mercies; blot outmy transgressions.

Wash me completely from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.

For I know my transgressions; and my sin is ever before me.

Against You, You only, I have sinned, and done evil in Your eyes; that You might be justified in Your speaking and be clear when You judge.

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me.

Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts; and in the hidden parts You teach me wisdom.

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

Cause me to hear joy and gladness; the bones You have crushed will rejoice.

Hide Your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Do not cast me out from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.

Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.

Then I will teach transgressors Your ways; and sinners will turn back to You.

Deliver me from the guilt of shedding blood, O God, O God of my salvation; my tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness.

O Lord, open my lips and my mouth shall declare Your praise.

For you do not desire sacrifice, or I would give it ; You do not delight in burnt offering.

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.

Do good in Your good pleasure to Zion; build the walls of Jerusalem.

Then You shall be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole offering; then they shall offer bulls on Your altar.

And it happened at the turn of the year, at the time when 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.

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.

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?

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.

And the woman conceived, and sent, and told David. And she said, I am with child.

And David sent to Joab, Send Uriah the Hittite to me. And Joab sent Uriah to David.

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.

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.

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.

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?

And Uriah said to David, The ark, and Israel, and Judah dwell in booths. And my lord Joab, and my lord'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.

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.

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 lord. And he did not go down to his house.

And it happened in the morning David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah.

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.

And it happened, as Joab watched the city, that he sent Uriah to the place where he knew there would be mighty men.

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.

And Joab sent and told David all the matters of the war.

And he commanded the messenger, saying, As you finish all the matters of the war, speaking to the king,

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?

Who killed Abimelech the son of Jerub-besheth? 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.

And the messenger went and came and told David all that which Joab had sent him to tell ,

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.

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.

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.

And Uriah's wife heard that her husband Uriah was dead. And she mourned for her husband.

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 Jehovah.

And Jehovah 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.

The rich one had flocks and very many herds.

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 adaughter to him.

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.

And David's anger glowed greatly against the man. And he said to Nathan, As Jehovah lives, surely the man who did this is a son of death.

And he shall repay fourfold for the ewe lamb, because he has done this thing, and because he had no pity.

And Nathan said to David, You are the man! So says Jehovah, the God of Israel, I anointed you as king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul.

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 .

Why have you despised the Word of Jehovah, 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.

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.

So says Jehovah, 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.

For you acted in secret, but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun.

And David said to Nathan, I have sinned against Jehovah. And Nathan said to David, Jehovah also has put away your sin; you shall not die.

Only, because you have made the enemies of Jehovah to scorn derisively by this thing, also the son who shall be born to you dying shall die.

And Nathan went to his house, and Jehovah struck the boy whom the former wife of Uriah had borne to David. And it became sick.

And David sought God for the child. And David fasted a fast, and went in and stayed the night, and lay on the earth.

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.

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 tohim, The boy is dead? Then he may do harm.

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.

And David rose up from the earth, and bathed, and anointed. And he changed his clothing, and came into the house of Jehovah, and worshiped. And he came to his house, and commanded, and they brought bread for him; and he ate.

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?

And he said, While the boy was alive, I fasted and wept. For I said, Who knows? Jehovah may be gracious to me and the boy may stay alive.

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.

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 Jehovah loved him,

and sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet, and called his name Jedidiah, because of Jehovah.