It happened after this that the king of the people of Ameth died, and Hannon had his son right in his place. And David said, I was so kind as to Hannon the son of Nahash as his father showed kindness to me. So David sent by the hand of his servants to comfort him concerning his father, and David's servants came into the land of the people of Ameth. And the princes of the people of Ameth said to Hannon their lord, Do you think that David really honors your father because he has sent comforts to you?
Has David not rather sent his servants to you to search the city, just fight out and to overthrow it? Their forehand took David's servants, shaved off half their beards, cut off their garments in the middle, at their buttocks, and sent them away. When they told David, he sent to meet them, because the men were greatly ashamed, and the king said, wait at Jericho, until your beards have grown, and they were turned. When the people of Ameth saw that they had made themselves repulsive to David, the people of Ameth sent and hired the Syrians of Bethry Holbe, and the Syrians of Zova, 20,000 foot soldiers, and from the king of Makkah, 1,000 men, and from Ishtobbe, 12,000 men.
Now when David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the army of the mighty men, and the people of Ameth came out and put themselves in battle array at the entrance of the gate, and the Syrians of Zova, Bethry Holbe, Ishtobbe, and Makkah were by themselves in the field. When Joab saw that the battle line was against him before and behind, he chose some of Israel's best and put them in battle array against the Syrians, and the people who put under the command of Abishai, his brother, that he might set in the battle array against the people of Ameth. Then he said, if the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me, but if the people of Ameth are too strong for you, then I will come and help you. Be of the courage and let us be strong for our people and for the cities of our God, and may the Lord do what is good in his sight.
So Joab and the people who were with him drew near for the battle against the Syrians, and they fled before him. When the people of Ameth saw that the Syrians were fleeing, they also fled before Abishai, and entered the city. So Joab returned from the people of Ameth and went to Jerusalem. When the Syrians saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they gathered together.
Then had had Yzer, sent and brought out the Syrians who would be on the river, and they came to Hellen, and showed back the commander of had Yzer's army went forward. When it was told David he gathered all Israel, crossed over to Jordan, and came to Hellen, and the Syrians set themselves in battle array against David and fought with him. Then the Syrians fled before Israel, and David killed 700 charioteers, and 40,000 horsemen of the Syrians, and struck the commander of their army, who died there. Then when all the kings who were servants to had Yzer, saw that they were defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel, and served them.
So the Syrians were afraid to help the people of Ameth anymore. It happened in the spring of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, the David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel. And they destroyed the people of Ameth in the seas for Ava. But David remained in Jerusalem.
Then it happened when David rose from his bed, and walked on the roof of the kings house. And from the roof he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful and old. So David sent and inquired about the woman, and someone said, Is this not Vasheva, the daughter of Elion, the wife of Yeriah the Hittite? And David sent messengers and took her, and she came to him, and he lay with her, for she was cleanse from her impurity, and she returned to her house.
And the woman conceived, so she sent and told David and said, I'm with child, and David sent to Joab saying, Send me Yeriah the Hittite, and Joab sent Yeriah the David. When you riot, come to him, David asked how Joab was doing, and how the people were doing, and how the war prospered. And David said, Do you riot? Go down to your house and wash your feet.
So you riot apart from the kings house, and a gift of food from the king followed him. But Yeriah slept at the door at the kings house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. So when they told David saying, You rioted and not go down to his house, David said, Do you riot? Did you not come from a journey?
Why did you not go down to your house? And Yeriah said to David, The Ark and Israel and Judah are dwelling in tents. And my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are in camp in the open fields. Shall I then go to my house to eat and 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 Yeriah, Wait here today also, and tomorrow I will let you depart. So Yeriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next. Now when David called him, he ate and drank for him, and he made him drunk.
And even if he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house. In the morning, it happened that David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Yeriah, and he wrote in the letter saying, Set Yeriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retreat from him, that he may be struck down and died. So it was while Joab received the city that he assigned Yeriah to a place where he knew they were valiant men. Then the men of the city came out and fought with Joab, and some of the people of the servants of David fell, and Yeriah the Hittite died also.
Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war, and charged the messengers saying, When you finished telling the matters of the war to the king, if it happens that the king's wrath rises, and he says to you, Why did you approach so near to the city when you fought? Did you not know they would shoot from the wall? Who struck a bin like? The son of Jerabeshith?
Was not a woman who cast a piece of a millstone on him from the wall so that he died in the bed? Why did you go near the wall? Then you shall say your servant Yeriah the Hittite is dead also. So the messenger went and came and told David all the Joab had sent by him, and the messengers said to David, surely the men prevailed against us and came out to us in the field.
Then we drove them back as far as the entrance of the gate, the archers, shot from the wall at your servants, and some of your king's servants were dead, and your servant Yeriah the Hittite is dead also. Then David said to the messengers, Though she shall say to Joab, Do not let this thing displease you, for the sword of ours one as well as another, strengthen your attack against the city and overthrow it, so encourage him. When the wife of Yeriah heard that Yeriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband. When her morning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife and born in the sun.
But the thing that David had done displease the Lord. Then the Lord sent Nathan to David, and he came to him and sent to him. There were two men in one city, one rich, and the other four. The rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds.
But the poor man had nothing except one little you lamb, which he had bought and urged, and it grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food and drank from his own cub and lay in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him. And a traveler came to the rich man who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd to prepare one for the wayfaring man who had come to him. But he took the poor man's lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.
So David's anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, as the Lord lives, the man who has done this shall surely die. And he shall restore fourfold for the lamb because he did this thing and because he had no pity. Then Nathan said to David, you are the man. Thus says the Lord God of Israel, I know that you came over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.
I gave you your master's house and your master's wives, and 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. Why have you despised the command of the Lord to do evil insight?
You have killed your right of the sword. You have killed your right of the hit type of the sword. You have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, because you despise me, and have taken the wife of your right of the hit type to be your wife.
Thus says the Lord, Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house, and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor. And you shall lie with your wives inside of the sun. For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel before the sun. So David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord, and Nathan said to David, the Lord has always put away your sin.
You shall not die. However, because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme. The child also was born to you, shall surely die. Then Nathan departed to his house.
Then the Lord struck the child, that your wise wife boarded David, and it became ill. David therefore pleaded with God for the child, and David fasted and went in, and lay all night on the ground. So the elders of his house arose and went to him, to raise him up from the ground, but he would not, nor did he eat food with him. Then on the seventh day, it came to pass that the child died, and the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead.
But they said, indeed, while he was alive, we spoke to him, and he would not eat our voice. How can we tell him that the child was dead? When David saw the servants were whispering, David perceived that the child was dead, therefore David said to his servants, as the child did, and they said he is dead. So David arose from the ground, washed and wanted himself, and changed his clothes, and he went into the house of the Lord and worshiped.
Then he went to his own house, and when he requested, they set food before him, and he ate, then the servants said to him, what is this that you've done? You fasted and went for the child while he was alive, but when the child died, you arose and ate food, and he said, while the child was alive, I fasted and went, for I said, who can tell whether the Lord will be gracious to me, that the child may live, but now he is dead, then David comforted back to David's wife, and went into her and laid with her, so she bore us on, and he called his name Solomon. Now the Lord loved him, and he sent word by the hand of Nathan the Prophet, so he called his name, Jadiah, because of the Lord. Now Joe had fought against Raybo, the people of Ammon, and took the royal city, and Joe had sent messengers to David and said, I fought against Raybo, and I have taken the city's water supply, now therefore gather the rest of the people together and camp against the city, and take it, lest I take the city and be called after my name.
So David gathered all the people together and went to Raybo, fought against it, and took it. Then he took their kings crown from his head, and gave it to David's head. Also he brought out a spoil of the city and great abundance, and he brought out the people who were in it and put them to work with souls and iron picks and iron axes, and made them cross over to the brick works. So he did it to all the cities of the people of Ammon, then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.
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