thine anger: the LORD shall swallow them up in his wrath, A.C. 1036. and the fire shall devour them.

10 Their fruit shalt thou destroy from the earth, and their seed from among the children of men.

11 For they intended evil against thee: they imagined a mischievous device, which they are not able to perform.

* Or, thou

12 Therefore shalt thou make them turn their + back, them when thou shalt make ready thine arrows upon thy strings against the face of them.

13 Be thou exalted, LORD, in thine own strength: so will we sing and praise thy power.

1 CHRONICLES XIX.

1 David's messengers, sent to comfort Hanun the son of Nahash, are villainously entreated. 6 The Ammonites, strengthened by the Syrians, are overcome by Joab and Abishai.

by David.

16 Shophach, making a new supply of the Syrians, is slain

as a butt: See
Job vii. 20.
+ Heb. shoul-
der.

1 Now it came to pass after this, that Nahash the king of the children of z 2 Sam. x. 1, &c. Ammon died, and his son reigned in his stead.

2 And David said, I will shew kindness unto Hanun the son of Nahash, because his father shewed kindness to me. And David sent messengers to comfort him concerning his father. So the servants of David came into the land of the children of Ammon to Hanun, to comfort him.

Thinkest thou

3 But the princes of the children of Ammon said to Hanun, that David doth honour thy father, that he hath sent comforters unto thee? are not his servants come unto thee for to search, and to overthrow, and to spy out the land?

4 Wherefore Hanun took David's servants, and shaved them, and cut off their garments in the midst hard by their buttocks, and sent them away.

And

5 Then there went certain, and told David how the men were served. he sent to meet them: for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, Tarry at Jericho until your beards be grown, and then return.

Heb. In thine eyes doth David, &c.

6¶ And when the children of Ammon saw that they had made themselves § odious to David, Hanun and the children of Ammon sent a thousand talents Heb. to of silver to hire them chariots and horsemen out of Mesopotamia, and out of Syria-maachah, and out of Zobah.

7 So they hired thirty and two thousand chariots, and the king of Maachah and his people; who came and pitched before Medeba. And the children of Ammon gathered themselves together from their cities, and came to battle.

8 And when David heard of it, he sent Joab, and all the host of the mighty

men.

9 And the children of Ammon came out, and put the battle in array before the gate of the city: and the kings that were come were by themselves in the field.

10 Now when Joab saw that the battle was set against him before and behind, he chose out of all the choice of Israel, and put them in array against the Syrians.

stink.

|| Heb. the face of the battle was.

* Or, young

men.

Abshai.

11 And the rest of the people he delivered unto the hand of † Abishai his + Heh, brother, and they set themselves in array against the children of Ammon.

A.C. 1036.

* That is,
Euphrates.
+ Or, Sho-
bach, 2 Sam.
x. 16.

1035.

↑ Heb. at the return of the

12 And he said, if the Syrians be too strong for me, then thou shalt help me: but if the children of Ammon be too strong for thee, then I will help thee.

13 Be of good courage, and let us behave ourselves valiantly for our people, and for the cities of our God: and let the LORD do that which is good in his sight.

14 So Joab and the people that were with him drew nigh before the Syrians unto the battle; and they fled before him.

15 And when the children of Ammon saw that the Syrians were fled, they likewise fled before Abishai his brother, and entered into the city. Then Joab came to Jerusalem.

16 And when the Syrians saw that they were put to the worse before Israel, they sent messengers, and drew forth the Syrians that were beyond the river and Shophach the captain of the host of Hadarezer went before them. 17 And it was told David; and he gathered all Israel, and passed over Jordan, and came upon them, and set the battle in array against them. So when David had put the battle in array against the Syrians, they fought with him.

18 But the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew of the Syrians seven thousand men which fought in chariots, and forty thousand footmen, and killed Shophach the captain of the host.

19 And when the servants of Hadarezer saw that they were put to the worse before Israel, they made peace with David, and became his servants : neither would the Syrians help the children of Ammon any more.

SECTION VIII.

David's Adultery.

1 CHRONICLES XX. FORMER PART OF ver. 1.

1 And it came to pass, that after the year was expired, a 2 Sam. xi, at the time that kings go out to battle, Joab led forth the power of the army, and wasted the country of the children of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried at Jerusalem.

year.

Heb. at the

year.

2 SAMUEL XI.

b

1 And it came to pass, § after the year was expired, at return of the the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem.

b 1 Chron. xx. 1.

|| Or, Bath.

shuah, 1 Chro. iii. 5.

*Or, Ammiel.

+ Or, and when she had purified her. self, &c. she returned.

2¶ And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon. 3 And David sent and enquired after the woman. one said, Is not this || Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?

*

And

4 And David sent messengers, and took her; and she © Lev. xv. 19, came in unto him, and he lay with her; †for she was pu

28. & xviii. 19.

rified from her uncleanness: and she returned unto her A. C. 1035. house.

5 And the woman conceived, and sent and told David,

and said, I am with child.

6 And David sent to Joab, saying, Send me Uriah the

Hittite.

And Joab sent Uriah to David.

7 And when Uriah was come unto him, David demanded

of him how Joab did, and how the people did, and how Heb. of the the war prospered.

peace of, &c.

8 And David said to Uriah, Go down to thy house, and wash thy feet. And Uriah departed out of the king's house, and there + followed him a mess of meat from the + Heb. went king.

9 But Uriah slept at the door of the king's house with all the servants of his lord, and went not down to his house.

10 And when they had told David, saying, Uriah went not down unto his house, David said unto Uriah, Camest thou not from thy journey? why then didst thou not go down unto thine house?

11 And Uriah said unto David, The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide in tents; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open fields; shall I then go into mine house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I will not do this thing.

12 And David said to Uriah, Tarry here to day also, and to morrow I will let thee depart. So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day, and the morrow.

13 And when David had called him, he did eat and drink before him; and he made him drunk: and at even he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but went not down to his house.

14¶And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah.

out after him.

15 And he wrote in the letter, saying, Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye § from Heb. strong. him, that he may be smitten, and die.

16 And it came to pass, when Joab observed the city, that he assigned Uriah unto a place where he knew that valiant men were.

17 And the men of the city went out and fought with Joab: and there fell some of the people of the servants of David; and Uriah the Hittite died also.

18Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war;

19 And charged the messenger, saying, When thou hast made an end of telling the matters of the war unto the king,

Heb. from after him.

A.C. 1035.

d Judg. ix. 53. e Judg. vi. 32, Jerubbaal.

in thine eyes.

20 And if so be that the king's wrath arise, and he say unto thee, Wherefore approached ye so nigh unto the city when ye did fight? knew ye not that they would shoot from the wall?

e

21 Who smote d Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? did not a woman cast a piece of a millstone upon him from the wall, that he died in Thebez? why went ye nigh the wall? then say thou, Thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.

22 ¶ So the messenger went, and came and shewed Da

vid all that Joab had sent him for.

23 And the messenger said unto David, Surely the men prevailed against us, and came out unto us into the field, and we were upon them even unto the entering of the gate. 24 And the shooters shot from off the wall upon thy servants; and some of the king's servants be dead, and thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.

25 Then David said unto the messenger, Thus shalt thou * Heb. be evil say unto Joab, Let not this thing displease thee, for the + Heb. so and sword devoureth † one as well as another: make thy battle more strong against the city, and overthrow it: and encourage thou him.

such.

1034.

Heb. was

evil in the eyes

of.

sel.

Heb. mor

|| Or, is wor

26 And when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah ber husband was dead, she mourned for her husband.

27 And when the mourning was past, David sent and fetched her to his house, and she became his wife, and bare him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased

the LORD.

2 SAMUEL XII. VER. 1, TO FORMER PART OF ver. 15. 1 And the LORD sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him, and said unto him, There were two men in one city; the one rich, and the other poor.

2 The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds:

3 But the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up: and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own meat, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter.

4 And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him; but took the poor man's lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him.

5 And David's anger was greatly kindled against the thy to die, or, man; and he said to Nathan, As the LORD liveth, the man that hath done this thing || shall surely die:

is a son of

death,

6 And he shall restore the lamb f fourfold, because he did A.c. 1034. this thing, and because he had no pity.

f Ex. xxii. 1.

7¶And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I sanointed thee king over g 1 Sam. xvi. Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul;

8 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.

9 Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon.

10 Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife.

13.

11 Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy h Deu. xxviii. wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun.

12 For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing be

fore all Israel, and before the sun.

30. ch. xvi, 22.

13 And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, 'The LORD also i Ecclus. xlvii. hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die.

14 Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.

15

And Nathan departed unto his house.

PSALM LI 57.

1 David prayeth for remission of sins, whereof he maketh a deep confession. 6 He prayeth for sanctification. 16 God delighteth not in sacrifice, but in sincerity. 18 He prayeth for the church.

11.

To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came 2 Sam. xii. unto him, after he had gone in to Bath-sheba.

1 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy loving

57 Psalm li. is inserted here on the unanimous testimony of commentators. Psalm xxxii. It is generally thought that this Psalm was written by David, after the pardon he obtained for his adultery with Bathsheba.-Hales's Anal. vol. ii. p. 376; and Rosenmüller.

Psalm xxxiii. is ascribed by Dr. Hales to the same occasion. And

Psalm ciii. is considered by the same great authority as David's eucharistical ode, after God had pardoned his great sin.

1. & xi. 2. 4.