2 Samuel 11:15

2 Samuel 11:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And he wrote in the letter, saying, Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die.
• New International Version (NIV)In it he wrote, “Put Uriah out in front where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)In the letter he wrote, "Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die."
• New King James Version (NKJV)And he wrote in the letter, saying, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retreat from him, that he may be struck down and die.”

Context of 2 Samuel 11:15

13Then David invited Uriah to eat and drink with him, and David got him drunk. He went out in the evening to lie down on his cot with his master’s servants, but he did not go home. 14The next morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah. In the letter he wrote: Put Uriah at the front of the fiercest fighting, then withdraw from him so that he is struck down and dies. 16When Joab was besieging the city, he put Uriah in the place where he knew the best enemy soldiers were. 17Then the men of the city came out and attacked Joab, and some of the men from David’s soldiers fell in battle; Uriah the Hethite also died.

2 Samuel 11:15 word by word

וַיִּכְתֹּ֥ב בַּסֵּ֖פֶר לֵאמֹ֑ר הָב֣וּ אֶת־אֽוּרִיָּ֗ה אֶל־מוּל֙ פְּנֵ֤י הַמִּלְחָמָה֙ הַֽחֲזָקָ֔ה וְשַׁבְתֶּ֥ם מֵאַחֲרָ֖יו וְנִכָּ֥ה וָמֵֽת׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And he wroteכָּתַבkâthab · to writeH3789
• in the letterסֵ֫פֶרsêpher siphrâh · scroll: documentH5612
• sayingאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Setיָהַבyâhab · to giveH3051
• ye Uriahאוּרִיָּה'ûrîyâh 'ûrîyâhû · UriahH223
• in the forefrontמוּלmûl môl mô'l mûl · oppositeH4136
• in the forefrontפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• of the hottestחָזָקchâzâq · strongH2389
• battleמִלְחָמָהmilchâmâh · battleH4421
• and retireשׁוּבshûb · to return: returnH7725
• ye from himאַחַר'achar · afterH310
• that he may be smittenנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
• and dieמוּתmûth · to dieH4191

Cross-references for 2 Samuel 11:15

• 2 Samuel 11:17Then the men of the city came out and attacked Joab, and some of the men from David’s soldiers fell in battle; Uriah the Hethite also died.
• 1 Samuel 18:17Saul told David, “Here is my oldest daughter Merab. I’ll give her to you as a wife if you will be a warrior for me and fight the Lord’s battles.” But Saul was thinking, “I don’t need to raise a hand against him; let the hand of the Philistines be against him.”
• Psalms 51:4Against you — you alone — I have sinned and done this evil in your sight. So you are right when you pass sentence; you are blameless when you judge.
• 2 Samuel 12:9Why then have you despised the Lord’s command by doing what I consider evil? You struck down Uriah the Hethite with the sword and took his wife as your own wife — you murdered him with the Ammonite’s sword.

Commentaries on 2 Samuel 11:15

• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-27Verses 14-27 Adulteries often occasion murders, and one wickedness is sought to be covered by another. The beginnings of sin are much to be dreaded; for who knows where they will end? Can a real believer ever tread this path? Can such a person be indeed a child of God? Though grace be not lost in such an awful case, the assurance and consolation of it must be suspended. All David's life, spirituality, and comfort in religion, we may be sure were lost. No…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-27David’s affair with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband Uriah show that David was capable of serious moral failure. These actions deeply damaged David’s life and leadership. These failures took place during a period when David was enjoying major military success against the Ammonites (2 Samuel 10:1–11:1; 12:26–31).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 14-1514-15. David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah ... Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle--The various arts and stratagems by which the king tried to cajole Uriah, till at last he resorted to the horrid crime of murder--the cold-blooded cruelty of despatching the letter by the hands of the gallant but much-wronged soldier himself, the enlistment of Joab to be a partaker of his sin, the heartless affectation of mourning…Read the comment

Topics related to 2 Samuel 11:15

• David
• Government
• Homicide
• Ingratitude
• Joab
• Lasciviousness
• Uriah

In the dictionaries

• Uriah
• Uriah; Uruah
• Approach
• David
• Forefront
• Samuel, Books of
• Writing
• Bible, the
• Epistle
• Gentiles

Commentaries on 2 Samuel 11

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings