1

I. INTRODUCTION

The books of the scriptures: the Old Testament and the New Testament 1 have been
divided or categorized into groups by scholars who were responsible for the formation of the
present Biblical Canon. Often time books are named after their presumed human authors as in
the case of the Gospels; or the recipient, as in the case of the epistles of Saint Paul, and others.

The Old Testament first five books or the Pentateuch is also called the Law of Moses or
Torah. These books speak of the age of the Patriarchs such as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and of
greater significance, Moses who was the representative of Gods chosen people Israel, to lead
Israel out of slavery from Egypt to a promised land by YHWH.

A. The Law handed over to Moses

Thus says the Lord to Moses:

I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out

of Egypt. I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that
it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of
Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain. (Ex 3:10, 12)

At Sinai, Moses stayed and received the Ten Commandments of God in two tablets.(Ex
20-21ff) But lo, when he went down from the mountain, the people had built a golden calf and
made of it an idol, a god.(cf. Ex 31-32) And YHWH raged with anger to His people, but did not
cease to love them. At once he can destroy His people, but Moses interceded for them. (cf. Ex
32-33)

God then has instructed Moses to prepare an Ark, there to place two tablets that when
God will write again his commandments. God has written for the first time in tablets His
commandments, but in Exodus 32: 19, due to Moses anger seeing the Israelites worship and
feast for the Golden calf, he threw and broke the stone tablets of the Commandments. In Exodus
34: 1 God has instructed him to prepare a second set of tablets. This would perhaps be the origin
of the name of the fifth book of the Torah: Deuteronomy. Deuteronomy means second law.

1 It is the New Testament that makes the Old Testament Old. The very name Old Testament (OT),
which makes sense only in correlation with the New Testament (NT), already implies the problem of the
Christian interpretation of this body of traditions. Werner H. Schmidt, Old Testament Introduction, trans.
Matthew J. OConnell(New York: Crossroad, 1984) 3.
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Deuteros means second, and nomos means law. God has established a covenant with His
chosen people, through chosen persons who would lead them to God-leaders, priests, prophets
and kings as well. However the name Deuteronomy does not primarily refer to the making of the
second set of tablets.

B. The Second Law and the Deuteronomistic History

Walter E. Rast, asserts in Proclamation Commentaries that in a certain period in history a

criticism of the Pentateuch arose, there also arose a view that there were books that are in some
way connected to the last book of the Pentateuch. He called this group of books the
Deuteronomistic History, D-Work, or Deuteronomic History. 2 For the reason that the
writer of this history seemed to be deeply influenced by the theological ideas of the core of the
book of Deuteronomy3 M. Noth who was responsible for this view saw the Deuteronomist
as the author of the entire voluminous literary complex. 4 According to him there is a continuity
from Deuteronomy to Joshua to 2 Kings.5 Noth enumerates two reasons that show the
continuity of the stretch of literature from Deuteronomy or Joshua to 2 Kings:

[First.] A continuous chronology is more or less clearly recognizable

[Second.] Retrospective and prospective reflections are introduced at historical climaxes

and turning points; these reflections take the form either of narrative statements or a
discourse of the principal personage involved. They do not simply report a new action but
rather attempt to interpret and evaluate history. In the process they give expression to
similar basic views on the theology of history and show the same characteristic style.
Consequently these connecting pieces resemble sermons- a rhetorical form on which the
proclamation of the prophets may have had an influence. 6This period focuses primarily

2 Walter E. Rast, Proclamation Commentaries (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1978) 16.

3 Ibid.

4 Schmidt, 136.

5 Rast, 16.

6 Schmidt, 137.
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on the entry into the Promised Land and the undertaking of the people with God, His
judges, kings and prophets, and His law.7

For our purpose in this paper, we are about to deal with one of this group of books, and an
interesting part of the History of Salvation. As the discussion goes on in the Second book of
Samuel it is good to note of David. Now this is something of great importance for David is Jesus
forerunner. He appears as the leading personality in the second generation of Jesus ancestors.
The Evangelist Matthew proclaims:

So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen

generations; and from David to the deportation to Babylon,
fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to the
Messiah, fourteen generations. ( Matthew 1: 17)
II. TEXT AND CONTEXT: 2 SAMUEL 12
A. The Pericope
But the thing that David had done displeased the
LORD, and the LORD sent Nathan to David. He came to him
and said to him, There were two men in a certain city, one rich
and the other poor. The rich man had very many flocks and herds;
but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he
had bought. He bought it up, and it grew with him and with his
children; it used to eat of his meagre fare, and drink from his cup,
and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him. Now there
came a traveler to the rich man, and he was loath to take one of his
own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to
him, but he took the poor mans lamb, and prepared that for the
guest who had come to him. Then Davids anger was greatly
kindled against the man. He said to Nathan, As the LORD lives,
the man who has done this deserves to die; he shall restore the
lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he has no
pity.
Nathan said to David, You are the man! Thus says the
LORD, the God of Israel: I anointed you king over Israel, and I
rescued you from the hand of Saul; I gave you your masters
house, and your masters wives into your bosom, and gave you
the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little,
I would have added as much more. Why have you despised the
word of the LORD, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck

7Cf. Ibid. 140.

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down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and have taken his wife to
be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the
Ammonites. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from
your house, for you have despised me, and have taken the wife of
Uriah the Hittite to be your wife. Thus says the LORD: I will raise
up trouble against you from within your own house; and I will take
your wives before your eyes, and give them to your neighbor, and
he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this very sun. For you
did it secretly; but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before
the sun. David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the
LORD. Nathan said to David, Now the LORD has put away your
sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless, because by this deed you have
utterly scorned the LORD, the child that is born to you shall die.
then Nathan went to his house.
The LORD struck the child that Uriahs wife bore to
David, and it became very ill. David therefore pleaded with God
for the child; David fasted and went in and lay all night on the
ground. The elders of his house stood beside him, urging him to
rise from the ground; but he would not, nor did he eat food with
them. On the seventh day the child died. And the servants of David
were afraid to tell him that the child was dead; for they said,
While the child was still alive, we spoke to him, and he did not
listen to us; how then can we tell him, the child is dead? He may
do himself some harm. But then David saw that his servants were
whispering together, he perceived that the child was dead; and
David said to his servants, Is the child dead? They said, He is
dead.
Then David rose from the ground, washed, anointed
himself, and changed his clothes. He went into the house of the
LORD and worshipped; he then went to his own house; and when
he asked they set food before him and he ate. Then his servants
said to him, What is this thing that you have done? You fasted and
wept for the child while it was alive; but when the child died, you
rose and ate food. He said, While the child was still alive, I fasted
and wept; for I said, Who knows? The LORD may be gracious to
me, and the child may live. But now he is dead; why should I
fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not
return to me.
The David consoled his wife Bathsheba, and went to her,
and lay with her; and she bore a son, and he named him
Solomon. The LORD loved him, and he sent a message by the
prophet Nathan; so he named him Jedidiah, because of the LORD.
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B. Context

1. This period is the beginning of the Monarchy. David precedes Saul, who was Israels first
king, whom God had rejected. Scholars say that David was the first true king of Israel in
such that he brought Israel to a national status by establishing a capital. (cf. 2 Sam 6) 8 this
he made by capturing the Canaanite or, more accurately, the Jebusite city of Jerusalem,
which stood in a kind of neutral area between the northern and southern kingdoms. He
made this both his own residence (2 Sam 5:6ff.) and also, by transferring the Ark to it ( 2
Sam 6), the liturgical center of the Yahwistic faith.9
2. Following the pericope/ the passage group are the crises that happened during Davids
term. His son Absalom tries to usurp the throne.(cf. 2 Sam 15ff.) His daughter Tamar was
raped her brother and Davids son Amnon. (2 Sam 13) Prior to the pericope Davids act
with Bathsheba is narrated (2 Sam 11), it might have relations to Chapter 13 of 2 Samuel.
3. There is also the appearance of Solomon for the first time. It might be an anticipation of
the Solomonic succession, and expectation that Solomon will someday inherit the throne.
In fact, there were some controversies how Solomon got to seat on the throne. Like the
clear rivalry between Solomon and Adonijah over who will succeed David.10
4. An intriguing question: Why was it not David who started the building of the Temple,
rather it was Solomon?

C. Structure
1. From this point forward I will make a division into sections Chapter 12 and adopt that of
Hamilton(p. 332)
I. Nathans parable: a creative telling of Davids story(vv. 1-6)
II. David and what he had done, his resolution for his sins(vv. 7-14)
III. The Consequences of Davids act(vv. 15-25)
i. Punishment(vv. 15-23)
ii. Consolation(vv. 24-25)
IV. Supplementary verses, battle with the Ammonites(vv. 26-31)

8 Steven L. McKenzie and John Keltner, The Old Testament Its Background, Growth and Context
(Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2007) 181.

9 Schmidt 21.

10 Steven L. McKenzie and John Keltner, 185.

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2. The Punishment given to David will be discussed. Verses 26ff shall not be included in the
pericope. Scholars have recognized that peculiarity of Davids action. David seemed to be
fasting and to be praying, or mourning for a supposedly dead person, but stops when he
hears that the child already died. There are some studies that show contention.

III. EXEGESIS
A. David. Who is David?
David first appears in the first book of Samuel chapter 16. He was the son of Jesse
the Bethlehemite(v1). In chapter 17: 12a, it was mentioned that he was the son of an
Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah. He has 7 more siblings and three of them, the eldest
ones follow Saul- Eliab, Abinadab, and Shammah(v12b-13).
Saul also appears in this section in v14ff. The Lords favor has left him and an
evil spirit tormented for he has disobeyed the Lord (1 Sam 15:11).
Thus says the LORD: I regret that I made Saul king, for he has
turned back from following me, and has not carried my
commands.

For this reason, God has rejected Saul being king( v23). It is quite a bit surprising
that the two kings have met in an unexpected fashion. Saul must not have known that and
says: This person in front of me will someday take away my kingdom. In chapter 16:
13, Samuel secretly anoints David. Also in verses 14 and the following David has begun
service for Saul by striking the lyre to prevent the evil spirit from disturbing Saul.

1. The thing that David has done.

A famous tale about David is found in chapter 17 of 1 Samuel: David and

Goliaths battle. This text is usually said in a fashion friendly to children as in a fairy tale.
Goliath is depicted as a giant and David a tiny person.

Goliath is an impressive sight. His height, following the Hebrew

text, is six cubits and a span (v. 4), which transfers
approximately nine feet and nine inches. The Greek text reads
four cubits and a span, which equals six feet and nine inches,
still quite an imposing stature. 11

11 Victor P. Hamilton, Handbook on the Historical Books (Michigan: Baker Academic, 2001) 257.
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Saul believed that in order to defeat Goliath, and the Philistines, one must be wearing metal
armours and having metal swords ( 17: 38) He thus gives his armour and sword to David, but the
latter said that he is uncomfortable with it (v. 39). So he removes them.

Verses 49-50 states that the Philistine Goliath was killed only with a stone and thus also
the Philistines who fled in their fear because their leader was defeated ( v. 51). David defeated
them because his weapon was the Lords and the LORD. ( 17: 46-47). David told the Philistine:

This very day the LORD will deliver you into my hand, and I will
strike you down and cut off your head; and I will give the dead
bodies of the Philistine army this very day to the birds of the air
and to the wild animals of the earth, so that all the earth may know
that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know
that the LORD does not save by sword and spear; for the battle is
the LORDS and he will give you into our hand
This even might have gotten Sauls attention for later, Saul came to hate David because he might
be a threat to the throne ( 1 Sam 18:8-9). There are some contentions. Was it really David who
defeated, this must not be discussed for it is not a matter of concern.

2 Samuel 5:1-5 tells of David anointed by the people as King of all Israel because he led Israel.

2. The thing that David has done displeased the LORD.

What is this thing David did that the Lord should be disappointed? That David does not know. It
was now only through the prophet Nathan to tell. Thus, the Lord sent Nathan( 2 Sam 12: 1) to
inform king David. Nathan comes then to tell David of the condemnation coming from God in
view of his adulterous act in Chapter 11.

Bathsheba, Eliams daughter and Uriah wife was having an affair with David by Davids
initiative. Whether the former had refused or freely chose to do so, we dont know. 12

When David found out that Bathsheba is pregnant the former thought of ways in order to
escape fault either by framing Bathsheba and his husband to a sexual affair through intoxicating
Uriah with alcohol. David encouraged Uriah to come to his house and wash his feet. Scholars
agree that the phrase wash your feet is an idiom for sex. Uriah refused to do so, because of
certain laws regarding wars. Hamilton explains that Uriah refuses because a military camp,

12 see Hamilton, 328. We cannot be sure if Bathsheba came willingly or protesting vigorously
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where God is present to fight for his people, is subject to even greater regimentation than is a
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residential camp. When there was nothing left to do in order to solve his problem, he would
have Uriah shed blood.

B. Nathans Parable

The prophet Nathan uses another literary style to disguise the truth, and make it implicit.
Hamilton said that Nathan used a pedagogical device that Jesus used often and effectively. 14
Hamilton also asserts that if Nathan could have spoken frankly or as straight to the point as he
can, then he could have been executed by king David.15

Nathan uses a parable, but not as to avoid the possible harsh judgment of David, but I think to
stir more Davids heart or conscience. Notice that the comparison or the analogy of the situation
of the parable was very likely to Davids in 2 Samuel 11.

Hamilton enumerates in 5 the important points in Nathans language in the parable to review
Davids act.

a. The word Nathan uses for traveler (v.4) is the very rare word helek , which we could
translate literally as walker. Now let us put together 11:2 with 12:4: David was
walking (yithallek) on the roof of his house; Now there came a walker (helek) to the
rich man.
b. Chapter 11 begins with David sending Joab, and ch. 12 begins with the Lord sending
Nathan.
c. David sent messengers for Bathsheba and he took her (laqakh) in 11:4, while in the
parable the rich man would not take one of his own flock, and so he took (laqakh)
the poor mans lamb( 12: 4).
d. Nathans emphasis on the ewe lamb who ate at table with her master and drank from
his cup, and who lay in his bosom (12:3) surely recalls Uriahs refusal to go to my
house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife (11:11).

13 Ibid. 328-329.

14 Ibid. 332.

15 Ibid. 335.
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e. Nathans suggesting in v. 3 that the ewe lamb was like a daughter (she was to him like a
daughter [bath]) would be powerful in light of Davids behavior with Bathsheba. To be
sure, Bathsheba is Uriahs wife, not his daughter, but Nathans use of the daughter
analogy makes his point all that more powerful. 16

C. Davids reaction

Because of the strong analogy, David was forced as though to give in to his anger. He
gives his verdict of death to the rich man narrated in Nathans parable. To Davids surprise he
found out that at the very beginning, Nathan was referring to him. How pitiful!

What is the importance of this passage? Both Deuteronomy and Samuel had warned
about kings who amassed too much wealth and power( Deut 17: 16-17; 1 Sam 8: 10-18) and had
proclaimed the responsibility of kings to obey the written commands of God (Deut 17: 18-19, 1
Sam 10: 25). 17 If kings were to be shepherds, then one must care for his flock to the point that he
consoled the afflicted and punishes violators. David is already possessing many wives, why
would he still desire more? Indeed this responsibility of the king to look over his people made
David give a verdict of death to the rich man who stole a lamb from the poor man.

D. Davids realization

When David had realized that Nathan was pointing to him, he turned to the Lord and said: I
have sinned. (Cf. 2 Sam 12: 13) Indeed, a famous psalm, the miserere, Psalm 51 is ascribed to
this event.
For I know my transgressions,
And my sin is ever before me.
Against you alone, have I sinned,
And done what is evil in your sight
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And put a new and right spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from your presence,
And do not take your holy spirit from me.
Restore the Joy of your salvation,
And sustain in me a willing spirit.( Ps 51: 3-4a., 10-12)

16 Ibid. 333.

17 Tremper Longman III and Raymond B. Dillard, An Introduction to the Old Testament (Michigan:
Zondervan, 1994) 163.
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IV. THEOLOGICAL INSIGHTS

1. God constantly reminds and recalls to us his covenant. He does not turn back on
His people in His covenant with them. It is rather Israel that breaks or sins. According to
Schmidt, Israels past, from the occupation of the country down to the period just over,
is a history of continuous apostacy from God, who repeatedly warned, chastised, and
finally exacted a harsh punishment for this continued disobedience. This history therefore
has a concrete aim: to show that in the national catastrophe Israel alone was at fault and
that God was justified.18 Man breaks the covenant. Man is a sinner against God, and his
neighbor, yet man does not discern and reflect at times on the morality of his acts-
whether he disobeys God or not-and the consequences of his act. There are other outside
forces which influences mans thinking, his conscience and way of acting. Contemporary
society is at hard in determining what among mans choices are good and sinful ones.
People in the world lost their sense of sin because things of the world have also lost its
deeper, religious meaning and significance-sacredness. They have been profaned and
made secular.

2. In connection to the first, someone must help man to recognize his sinfulness. As in the
story of David, without the preceding prophetic movement such a confession would
have been possible.19 And David must have not been forgiven by God. Today, the
Church, a modern prophet, teaches the forgiveness of sins, by confession. The Catechism
of the Catholic Church 979 speaks: The Church must be able to forgive all penitents
their offences, even if they should sin until the last moment of their lives. It is because
Christ desires this. (cf. CCC 982) The Church as a prophet proclaims the Good News and
helps to awaken men through catechesis to follow Christ. (cf. CCC 993) This is also one
of the central tenets of John the Baptists preaching and of Jesus. (cf. Mark 1: 15) More
importantly, Jesus comes to proclaim the coming of the kingdom. He requires man to
prepare for this kingdom by being blames, striving to be perfect as Jesus Father is.

18 Schmidt 141.

19 Ibid.
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Although the Church preaches what Christ preached she does not force human
beings to succumb to this truth/Gospel. Her preaching however, has a certain effect on
every members conscience, and even those who do not explicitly profess communion or
belief in the Churchs beliefs. Her members are free to choose.

David in the text used his freedom in a crooked way. The Church teaches that
genuine freedom is surrender to the Fathers will- abiding in His commandments.

3. The story of David and Solomons appearance brings an indirect insight of the
role of David in the History of Salvation. The very name of David itself is significant.
Basically, David is a type for the messiah, but he eventually disqualified himself because
of what he had done. However, this does not disqualify him of being the ancestor of
Jesus, who bore the name of David, under his foster father Joseph, who is from Davids
household, as Luke 1: 27 would testify. There are also other texts testifying to this such as
Matthew 20: 29-34. Jesus heals two blind men who called on him, son of David(cf. v.
30). Matthew 22: 41-46 also mentions Jesus being called son of David. There are
prophecies containing Davids name, that in his name a king shall be born, a king whose
kingdom has no end. In fact, this has been spoken in the Gospel of Luke, when angel
Gabriel had proclaimed the Good News to the virgin Mary:

Do not be afraid , Mary, for you have found favor with God. And
now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will
name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the
Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his
ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and
his kingdom there will be no end. (Luke 1: 32-33)
The same is found in Zechariahs canticle:

Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has looked favourably

on his people and redeemed them. He has raised up a mighty
savior for us in the house of his servant David(Luke 1: 68-69)
The event of the prophecy is related in some way to Solomons prior appearance
in the text. His appearance indicates a somewhat anticipation of the Messiah, related to
Davids throne but, is neither David nor Solomon.

V. REFLECTION
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Sin and temptation are all around everyone- to each one, especially to those who are called to the
vocation to the priesthood. God has given us the strength to fight these giants in our life.
Giants refer to those things that are powerful enough to take us away from God. Also, society
today is being dreadful of the consequences of their sin. Yet ironically, they do not take heed to
act to correct their fault or even recognize that they have sinned. They put the blame to others.
David is that kind of person who realized in his person that he is a sinner. He asked for the
Lords mercy and was bestowed upon him. yet God does not make him excused from whatever
his deeds put into effect. On my part, I have been asking myself if I had the courage to accept
that I am being conquered by my fears and by sin. Am I ready and will I courageously accept that
I am sinful? Will I implore of the Lords mercy? Will I act to move on to a better life?

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Hamilton, Victor P. Handbook on the Historical Books. Michigan: Baker Academic, 2001.

Longman, Tremper III. and Raymond B. Dillard. An Introduction to the Old Testament. Michigan:
Zondervan, 1994.
 13

McKenzie , Steven L. and John Keltner. The Old Testament Its Background, Growth and Context.
Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2007.

Rast ,Walter E.Proclamation Commentaries. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1978.

Schmidt, Werner H.Old Testament Introduction. trans. Matthew J. OConnell. New York:
Crossroad, 1984.