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2 Samuel 11:1
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David, Bathsheba, and Uriah

1 It happened in the spring of the year, at the atime when kings go out to battle, that bDavid sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the people of Ammon and besieged cRabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.  
2 Then it happened one evening that David arose from his bed aand walked on the roof of the king’s house. And from the roof he bsaw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to behold.  
3 So David sent and inquired about the woman. And someone said, “Is this not1 Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife aof Uriah the bHittite?”  
4 Then David sent messengers, and took her; and she came to him, and ahe lay with her, for she was bcleansed from her impurity; and she returned to her house.  
5 And the woman conceived; so she sent and told David, and said, “I am with child.”
Commentaries:
Forerunner Commentary
What is the Forerunner Commentary?
<< 2 Samuel 10:19   2 Samuel 11:2 >>

What Does 2 Samuel 11:1 Mean?



2 Samuel 11:1

Ezekiel 40:1 contains a phrase, "the head of the year" (KJV) or "the beginning of the year" (New King James Version [NKJV]), in concert with a date, the tenth day of the month, which Judaism identifies as Tishri, making this the Day of Atonement. (This phrase, Hebrew rosh hashana, is used by Jews today to designate the Feast of Trumpets, the first day of the seventh month.)

In addition, in Exodus 23:16, the Feast of Ingathering (Tabernacles) is said to be "at the end [going out] of the year," and in Exodus 34:22, the same feast is dated "at the year's end," a phrase more literally rendered as "at the turn of the year." Further, II Samuel 11:1 begins with a phrase that designates springtime as "the return of the year" (in the NKJV, this phrase is directly interpreted as "the spring of the year").

Scholars argue that these phrases indicate two calendar years in simultaneous use. Tishri 1, they assert, began what can be called the "civil" or "secular" year, while Abib 1 inaugurated the "sacred," "cultic," or "religious" year. However, each of these indications of a Tishri 1 New Year can be disputed. For instance, the name of the month in Ezekiel 40:1 does not appear in the text, and further, throughout his book, the prophet consistently uses the Babylonian system of reckoning—which had a spring New Year. "Head of the year," then, would indicate the tenth day of the first month, Abib, making Abib 1 the true rosh hashana.

As for the Feast of Tabernacles taking place "at the end of the year," it does—at the end of the agricultural year. The context says nothing about a calendar but a great deal about Israelite agrarian activities throughout a typical annual cycle. Finally, calling springtime "the return of the year" makes sense, as it is indeed the time when the year "returns" to begin anew.

Richard T. Ritenbaugh
The Biblical New Year




Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing 2 Samuel 11:1:

Exodus 12:2
Ezekiel 40:1


 
<< 2 Samuel 10:19   2 Samuel 11:2 >>

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