2 Samuel 12:12
ESV
For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun.’"
NIV
You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’ "
NASB
Indeed, you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, and in open daylight.’?'
CSB
You acted in secret, but I will do this before all Israel and in broad daylight.’"
NLT
You did it secretly, but I will make this happen to you openly in the sight of all Israel.'
KJV
For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.
NKJV
For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun.’ ”
What does 2 Samuel 12:12 mean?
David's sin was supposed to be secret. He sent servants to bring Bathsheba to him at night when her husband Uriah was away at war. He slept with her and sent her back. When she sent word that she was pregnant, David recalled Uriah from the front, thinking he would go home, sleep with his wife, and accept the child as his own. Uriah didn't, so David secretly arranged to have him murdered in the middle of a battle. David married Bathsheba and claimed the child was legitimate (2 Samuel 11).Despite David thinking the issue was over, God knows all. God sends the prophet Nathan to confront David and declare God's judgment. David will suffer the same fate as Uriah, but more intensely and more publicly (2 Samuel 12:1–11).
When Saul chased David, David never fought back. He trusted that God would give him justice, which came when Saul died after a battle. When the northern tribes refused to accept David as their king for seven years, David didn't try to conquer them. He waited for God's timing.
So, he must accept God's sentence, which brings justice to Uriah and Bathsheba. David will experience betrayal and violence in his household (2 Samuel 12:10). Because David took Bathsheba, his usurper will take his own wives in public. This happens when David's son Absalom sleeps with David's concubines on David's roof (2 Samuel 16:22). In addition, God will take the life of David and Bathsheba's son (2 Samuel 12:14).
Bathsheba's justice arrives in a way that seems uncompelling to modern Western culture. God restores to her a husband who cares enough to comfort her in her grief (2 Samuel 12:24). He gives her four sons (1 Chronicles 3:5). And He makes one of her sons, Solomon, king of Israel.
David's sins against Uriah and Bathsheba are sins because they break God's commands. David has sinned most against God (Psalm 51:4). But even though David repents (2 Samuel 12:13; Psalm 51), he can't give God justice. Only Jesus can do that. When David repents, God applies Jesus' sacrifice to David's sin and forgives him (2 Samuel 12:13). Jesus' death on the cross gives God justice for David's sins.
