12:1  Then the LORD sent Nathan to David, and he came to him and said, "There lived two men in one city, the one rich and the other poor.

12:2  "The rich man had a great many flocks and herds.

12:3  "But the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb which he bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and his children. It would eat of his bread and drink of his cup and lie in his bosom, and seemed like a daughter to him.

12:4  "Now a traveler came to the rich man, and he felt unwilling to take from his own flock or his own herd, to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him; rather he took the poor man's ewe lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him."

12:5  Then David's anger burned greatly against the man, and he said to Nathan, "As the LORD lives, surely the man who has done this deserves to die.

12:6  "He must make restitution for the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing and had no compassion."

12:7  Nathan then said to David, "You indicted yourself! Thus says the LORD God of Israel, 'I anointed you king over Israel and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.

12:8  'I also gave you your master's house and your master's wives into your care, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had proved too little, I would have added to you many more things like these!

12:9  'Why have you despised the word of the LORD by doing evil in His sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, have taken his wife to become your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the sons of Ammon.

12:10  'Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to become your wife.'

12:11  "Thus says the LORD, 'Behold, I will raise up evil against you from your own household; I will even take your wives before your eyes and give them to your companion, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight.

12:12  'Indeed you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, and under the sun.'"

12:13  Then David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the LORD." And Nathan said to David, "The LORD also has taken away your sin; you shall not die.

12:14  "However, because by this deed you have given occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also that becomes born to you shall surely die."

12:15  So Nathan went to his house. Then the Lord struck the child that Uriah%u2019s widow bore to David, so that he became very sick.

12:16  David therefore inquired of God for the child; and David fasted and went and lay all night on the ground.

12:17  The elders of his household stood beside him in order to raise him up from the ground, but he felt unwilling and would not eat food with them.

12:18  Then it happened on the seventh day that the child died. And the servants of David felt afraid to tell him that the child had died, for they said, "Behold, while the child still lived, we spoke to him and he did not listen to our voice. How then can we tell him that the child has died, since he might do himself harm!"

12:19  But when David saw that his servants whispered together, David perceived that the child had died; so David said to his servants, "Has the child died?" And they said, "He has died."

12:20  So David arose from the ground, washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he came into the house of the LORD and worshiped. Then he came to his own house, and when he requested, they set food before him and he ate.

12:21  Then his servants said to him, "What have you done? While the child lived, you fasted and wept; but when the child died, you arose and ate food."

12:22  He said, "While the child still lived, I fasted and wept; for I said, 'Who knows, the LORD may show graciousness to me, that the child may live.'

12:23  "But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me."

12:24  Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and went in to her and lay with her; and she gave birth to a son, and he named him Solomon. Now the LORD loved him

12:25  and sent word through Nathan the prophet, and he named him Jedidiah for the LORD'S sake.

12:26  Now Joab fought against Rabbah of the sons of Ammon and captured the royal city.

12:27  Joab sent messengers to David and said, "I have fought against Rabbah, I have even captured the city of waters.

12:28  "Now therefore, gather the rest of the people together and camp against the city and capture it, or I will capture the city myself and people will name it after me."

12:29  So David gathered all the people and went to Rabbah, fought against it and captured it.

12:30  Then he took the crown of their king from his head; and its weight measured a talent of gold, and in it he found a precious stone; and they placed it on David's head. And he brought out the spoil of the city in great amounts.

12:31  He also brought out the people who lived in it, and set them under saws, sharp iron instruments, and iron axes, and made them pass through the brick kiln. And thus he did to all the cities of the sons of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.