2 Samuel 12:16

2 Samuel 12:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)David therefore besought God for the child; and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth.
• New International Version (NIV)David pleaded with God for the child. He fasted and spent the nights lying in sackcloth on the ground.
• English Standard Version (ESV)David therefore sought God on behalf of the child. And David fasted and went in and lay all night on the ground.
• New King James Version (NKJV)David therefore pleaded with God for the child, and David fasted and went in and lay all night on the ground.

Context of 2 Samuel 12:16

14Nevertheless, because you have shown utter contempt for the word of the Lord by doing this, your child will die.” 15After Nathan returned to his home, the Lord sent a deadly illness to the child of David and Uriah’s wife. David begged God to spare the child. He went without food and lay all night on the bare ground. 17The elders of his household pleaded with him to get up and eat with them, but he refused. 18Then on the seventh day the child died. David’s advisers were afraid to tell him. “He wouldn’t listen to reason while the child was ill,” they said. “What drastic thing will he do when we tell him the child is dead?”

2 Samuel 12:16 word by word

וַיְבַקֵּ֥שׁ דָּוִ֛ד אֶת־הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים בְּעַ֣ד הַנָּ֑עַר וַיָּ֤צָם דָּוִד֙ צ֔וֹם וּבָ֥א וְלָ֖ן וְשָׁכַ֥ב בַּשָּׂק אָֽרְצָה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Davidדָּוִדdâvid dâvîyd · DavidH1732
• therefore besoughtבָּקַשׁbâqash · to seekH1245
• Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• for the childנַ֫עַרna‛ar · youthH5288
• fastedצוֹםtsôm tsôm · fastH6685
• fastedצוּםtsûm · to fastH6684
• and went inבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• and layשָׁכַבshâkab · to lie down: lay downH7901
• all nightלוּןlûn lîyn · to lodgeH3885
• upon the earthאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: soilH776

Cross-references for 2 Samuel 12:16

• 2 Samuel 12:22David replied, “I fasted and wept while the child was alive, for I said, ‘Perhaps the Lord will be gracious to me and let the child live.’
• Psalms 50:15Then call on me when you are in trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory.”
• Isaiah 26:16Lord, in distress we searched for you. We prayed beneath the burden of your discipline.
• Joel 2:12That is why the Lord says, “Turn to me now, while there is time. Give me your hearts. Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning.
• Jonah 3:9Who can tell? Perhaps even yet God will change his mind and hold back his fierce anger from destroying us.”
• Esther 4:16“Go and gather together all the Jews of Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will do the same. And then, though it is against the law, I will go in to see the king. If I must die, I must die.”
• Psalms 69:10When I weep and fast, they scoff at me.
• Isaiah 22:12At that time the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, called you to weep and mourn. He told you to shave your heads in sorrow for your sins and to wear clothes of burlap to show your remorse.
• Acts 9:9He remained there blind for three days and did not eat or drink.
• 2 Samuel 13:31The king got up, tore his robe, and threw himself on the ground. His advisers also tore their clothes in horror and sorrow.
• Job 20:12“They enjoyed the sweet taste of wickedness, letting it melt under their tongue.

Commentaries on 2 Samuel 12:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16David - besought God for the child - How could he do so, after the solemn assurance that he had from God that the child should die? The justice of God absolutely required that the penalty of the law should be exacted; either the father or the son shall die. This could not be reversed.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16The death of the infant child of one of the numerous harem of an Oriental monarch would in general be a matter of little moment to the father. The deep feeling shown by David on this occasion is both an indication of his affectionate and tender nature, and also a proof of the strength of his passion for Bath-sheba. He went into his most private chamber, his closet Matthew 6:6, and “lay upon the earth” 2 Samuel 13:31, rather “the ground,” meaning the floor…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-25Verses 15-25 David now penned the 51st Psalm, in which, though he had been assured that his sin was pardoned, he prays earnestly for pardon, and greatly laments his sin. He was willing to bear the shame of it, to have it ever before him, to be continually upbraided with it. God gives us leave to be earnest with him in prayer for particular blessings, from trust in his power and general mercy, though we have no particular promise to build upon. David…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-31Chapter 12 expands on the final part of 2 Samuel 11:27.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 15-2315-23. the Lord struck the child ... and it was very sick--The first visible chastisement inflicted on David appeared on the person of that child which was the evidence and monument of his guilt. His domestics were surprised at his conduct, and in explanation of its singularity, it is necessary to remark that the custom in the East is to leave the nearest relative of a deceased person to the full and undisturbed indulgence of his grief, till on the third…Read the comment

Topics related to 2 Samuel 12:16

• Afflictions and Adversities
• Bereavement
• Children
• David
• Fasting
• Mourning
• Parents
• Seven

In the dictionaries

• David
• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Bathsheba
• Fast
• Fourfold
• Mourn
• Parable
• Samuel, Books of
• Solomon

Commentaries on 2 Samuel 12

• 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
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings