2 Samuel 12:8 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And I gave you your master 's house and your master 's wives into your arms and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. And if this were too little, I would add to you as much more.

NIV: I gave your master’s house to you, and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you all Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more.

NASB: I also gave you your master’s house and put your master’s wives into your care, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added to you many more things like these!

CSB: I gave your master’s house to you and your master’s wives into your arms, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah, and if that was not enough, I would have given you even more.

NLT: I gave you your master’s house and his wives and the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. And if that had not been enough, I would have given you much, much more.

KJV: And I gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things.

NKJV: I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your keeping, and gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more!

The Lord condemns David for his sin but also speaks to David as a loving Father. God repeats just a few of the things He has given David, including protection, the kingship, and everything he former king, Saul, once had (2 Samuel 12:7). As was tradition, when David took Saul's throne, he inherited all of Saul's wives. This lands awkwardly on modern ears, but the marriages of kings often involved making alliances and treaties with foreign kings or powerful domestic families. To keep those agreements in place and to show that the new king had all the power and authority of the previous king, he would become husband to that king's wives.

The Lord adds that He gave David both the house of Israel and the house of Judah. For several years, David was king over Judah only, but the Lord eventually gave David victory over the northern tribes, uniting all of Israel under his rule (2 Samuel 2:4; 5:1–5). The Lord insists that He did this and not David himself. All of David's victories, power, authority, marriages, and possessions were given to him by God. If David had wanted more, all he had to do was ask.

Uriah and Bathsheba were David's subjects; God gave David the right to justly rule over them. David abused that authority (2 Samuel 11). When David told Uriah to go to war, he went. While he was gone, David stole his wife. God says David took Saul's wives "into [his] arms." In Nathan's parable, the poor man allows his lamb to "lie in his arms" (2 Samuel 12:3). David had more women than he could hold. Uriah had one. Bathsheba was a woman in a patriarchal society. She had a loving husband, but no power. David took her.

That's more than a sin against the subjects David is supposed to protect. It's a rebellion against God.

Second Samuel 12:7–14 records the repercussions to come from David's sin. He thought no one who mattered knew he had taken Bathsheba and murdered Uriah (2 Samuel 11). Nathan told a parable describing David's sin, revealing that David's secret is out. The boy who faithfully followed God's will has now defiled God's law. David repents and will be spared. But Uriah and Bathsheba still deserve justice. David will experience versions of his own crimes against Uriah: loss of a child, violence, and humiliation.

In 2 Samuel 12, David learns the consequences of his sins against Bathsheba and Uriah (2 Samuel 11). David thought no one of consequence knew what he'd done. Nathan the prophet reveals that God knows; the Lord demands justice for David's victims. David's household will rebel, and Bathsheba's son will die. David humbly repents, and Bathsheba later conceives Solomon, the future king. Joab, about to defeat the Ammonites, calls David to finish the fight. In 2 Samuel 13, the seeds of the promised rebellion are sown. Psalm 51 is David's expression of remorse for his sins.

David begins to lose control of his seemingly perfect situation. While the respected soldier Uriah was fighting Ammonites with Joab (2 Samuel 10), David slept with Uriah's wife, Bathsheba. To cover her pregnancy, David arranged for Uriah to die in battle (2 Samuel 11). Nathan, the prophet, confronts David over his crimes. God takes the child's life and will allow David's household to rebel against him. This begins when David's son rapes his own half-sister, Tamar (2 Samuel 13), starting a series of events that will result in another son, Absalom, taking the throne from his father (2 Samuel 14—16).