David and Bathsheba
(1 Chronicles 20.1a)1 It was now spring, the time when kings go to war. David sent out the whole Israelite army under the command of Joab and his officers. They destroyed the Ammonite army and surrounded the capital city of Rabbah, but David stayed in Jerusalem.
2-4 Late one afternoon, David got up from a nap and was walking around on the flat roof of his palace. A beautiful young woman was down below in her courtyard, bathing as her religion required. David happened to see her, and he sent one of his servants to find out who she was.
The servant came back and told David, “Her name is Bathsheba. She is the daughter of Eliam, and she is the wife of Uriah the Hittite.”
David sent some messengers to bring her to his palace. She came to him, and he slept with her. Then she returned home. 5 But later, when she found out that she was going to have a baby, she sent someone to David with this message: “I'm pregnant!”
6 David sent a message to Joab: “Send Uriah the Hittite to me.”
Joab sent Uriah 7 to David's palace, and David asked him, “Is Joab well? How is the army doing? And how about the war?” 8 Then David told Uriah, “Go home and clean up.” Uriah left the king's palace, and David had dinner sent to Uriah's house. 9 But Uriah didn't go home. Instead, he slept outside the entrance to the royal palace, where the king's guards slept.
10 Someone told David that Uriah had not gone home. So the next morning David asked him, “Why didn't you go home? Haven't you been away for a long time?”
11 Uriah answered, “The sacred chest and the armies of Israel and Judah are camping out somewhere in the fields with our commander Joab and his officers and troops. Do you really think I would go home to eat and drink and sleep with my wife? I swear by your life that I would not!”
12 Then David said, “Stay here in Jerusalem today, and I will send you back tomorrow.”
Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day. Then the next day, 13 David invited him for dinner. Uriah ate with David, who gave him so much to drink that he got drunk. But Uriah still did not go home. He went out and slept on his mat near the palace guards. 14 Early the next morning, David wrote a letter and told Uriah to deliver it to Joab. 15 The letter said: “Put Uriah on the front line where the fighting is the worst. Then pull the troops back from him, so that he will be wounded and die.”
16 Joab had been carefully watching the city of Rabbah, and he put Uriah in a place where he knew there were some of the enemy's best soldiers. 17 When the men of the city came out, they fought and killed some of David's soldiers—Uriah the Hittite was one of them.
18 Joab sent a messenger to tell David everything that was happening in the war. 19 He gave the messenger these orders:
When you finish telling the king everything that has happened, 20 he may get angry and ask, “Why did you go so near the city to fight? Didn't you know they would shoot arrows from the wall? 21 Don't you know how Abimelech the son of Gideon was killed at Thebez? Didn't a woman kill him by dropping a large rock from the top of the city wall? Why did you go so close to the city walls?”
Then tell him, “One of your soldiers who was killed was Uriah the Hittite.”
22 The messenger went to David and reported everything Joab had told him. 23 He added, “The enemy chased us from the wall and out into the open fields. But we pushed them back as far as the city gate. 24 Then they shot arrows at us from the top of the wall. Some of your soldiers were killed, and one of them was Uriah the Hittite.”
25 David replied, “Tell Joab to cheer up and not to be upset about what happened. You never know who will be killed in a war. Tell him to strengthen his attack against the city and break through its walls.”
26 When Bathsheba heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him. 27 Then after the time for mourning was over, David sent someone to bring her to the palace. She became David's wife, and they had a son.
The Lord's Message for David
The Lord was angry because of what David had done,
David na Batseba
1 Tji pa kapita ombura imwe, oruveze ozombara ndu ze yenda kovita, David otja hinda Joab novarwe ve wovita notjimbumba tjOvaisrael kovita. Nowo va kanyona ehi rOvaamoni nave kakovera otjihuro Raba. Nungwari David omuini wa kara mOjerusalem.
2 Eyuva rimwe, kuṱa kongurova, David wa penduka motjiraro tje na ryanga komututu wondjuwo ye youhona. Nu ngunda ama ryanga ngo, arire tja munu omukazendu ngu me rikoho morutu; nomukazendu ngwi wa ri omuwa tjinene. 3 Nu David wa hinda ovatumwa okukakonḓonona kutja omukazendu ngwi owaṋi; neye wa raerwa kutja oBatseba, omusuko wa Eliam, omukazendu wa Urija, Omuhetite. 4 David wa hinda ovatumwa okukemueta. Batseba wa etwa, nu David wa rara pu ye Batseba tjandje otja za komayuva we woukazendu. Tjazumba Batseba wa yaruka koye. 5 Neye we ke rimuna kutja wa rire otjingundi, notja hinda ombuze ku David okumutjivisa.
6 David wa hinda ombuze ku Joab a tja: “Ndji hindira Urija, Omuhetite.” Nu Joab otja hinda Urija ku David. 7 Urija tje ya ku David, David we mu pura kutja Joab novarwe wovita ve ri vi, nokutja ovita vi kayenda vi. 8 David wa tja nai ku Urija: “Twende konganda u kasuve.” Nu Urija tja pita mondjuwo youhona, ombara David arire tje mu hindire oviyandjewa. 9 Nungwari Urija ka ire koye; moruveze rwanao eye wa rara pomahitiro wondjuwo youhona, pamwe novakarere ovatjevere vomuhona we. 10 David tja zuva kutja Urija ka ire koye, we mu pura a tja: “Ove mo zu nambano kouyenda; okutjavi tji u ha ire koyoye?”
11 Urija wa zira nai ku David: “Otjipwikiro tjOmerikutiropamwe novarwe vOvaisrael wovita, novOvajuda ve ri movitara. Omuhongore wovita Joab novakarere ve vatono ozondanda zawo pendje, nu hapo ami me yenene vi okuyenda koyandje okukarya nokunwa nokukarara puna omukazendu wandje? Tjiri, ami himee tjiti nao!”
12 David arire tja tja ku Urija: “Ndino kara muno; nu muhuka otji me ku esa u yende.” Nu Urija wa kara eyuva ndo mOjerusalem. 13 Mependukirwa David we mu ṋanga okurya nokunwa puna ye, ne mu purukisa nomavinu. Nungwari Urija ongurova wa karara potjiraro tje puna ovakarere vomuhona we, notje ha ire koye.
14 Nu mependukirwa David wa tjanga orutuu ku Joab, ne ru yandja Urija a twaerere. 15 Nu David wa tjanga nai: “Twa Urija komurungu omarwiro ku maye rire omazeu tjinene, tjazumba mu yaruke kombunda ye kutja a ṱe motjirwa.” 16 Joab ngunda ama kovere otjihuro, arire tja twa Urija poṋa puya tjiwa kutja pe novarumendu omapenda vovanavita. 17 Novanavita tji va pita motjihuro nave rwisa Joab, arire tji va zepa ovarwe tjiva va David wovita, nu Urija wina wa ṱa.
18 Tjazumba Joab otja hinda ombuze yokukaraera David omakayendero ayehe wotjirwa. 19 Eye wa rakiza nai komuhindwa: “Tji wa zu nokuserekarera inga omakayendero aehe wotjirwa kombara David, 20 neye a ṱomazenge ne ku pura nai: ‘Okutjavi tji mwe ya popezu nai notjihuro okurwa? Kamu tjivirwe kutja owo mave mu yahere kombanda yorumbo are? 21 Kamu nakuzemburuka Abimelek, omuzandu wa Jerubbaal, tja ṱa are? Ya ri mOtebes omukazendu ma yumbira ewe kotjikweyero okuza korumbo, nari zepa Abimelek? Okutjavi tji mwe ya popezu norumbo?’ NOmbara David tje ku pura nao, mu raera nai: ‘Omukarere woye Urija wina wa ṱu.’ ”
22 Komuhingo mbwi omuhindwa ngwi otja ya ku David, e kemuserekarerera avihe Joab mbye mu rakiza. 23 Neye wa katja nai ku David: “Ovanavita va ri ovanamasa pu eṱe, nowo va piti motjihuro okuturwisira mouhaiya wokuti, nungwari twe ve undura nga pomahitiro wotjihuro. 24 Nowo otji ve tu yahere kombanda yorumbo noviku. Novarwe tjiva vombara va ṱu; nomukarere woye Urija wina wa ṱu.”
25 David arire tja tja komuhindwa: “Katjivise ku Joab kutja eye a ha ṱoruhoze notjiṋa hi, engaruvyo tjinga ari zepa ngamwa auhe. Rwisa otjihuro nu u tji nyone. Kemuyanḓiparise nao!”
26 Batseba tja zuva onḓiro vomurumendu we, arire tje mu riri. 27 Nu oruveze rwomutambo tji rwa kapita, David we mu eta koye. Nu Batseba a rire omukazendu we, ne mu pandukire omuzandu. Nungwari Muhona ka ri nohange na imbi David mbya tjita.
