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 naBatseba
1 Ndele eshi pa pita omudo umwe, pefimbo olo eehamba tadi fikama okushinga oita, David okwa tuma Joab novapiya vaye pamwe naye nOvaisraeli aveshe koita. Ndele ova hanauna oshilongo shOvaammoni ndele tava kondekele Rabba, fimbo David a fyaala muJerusalem. 2 Ndelenee komatango efiku limwe David eshi a omboloka nokwa penduka kombete yaye ndele ta ende kombada yonduda yongulu youhamba, okwa mona eshi e li konduda omukainhu te likosho. Nomukainhu okwa li e nolupe liwa. 3 Ndele David okwa tuma va pulapule omukainhu ndele kwa tiwa: oye Batseba yaEliam, omwalikadi waUria, Omuheti. 4 Opo nee David a tuma ovatumwa kuye ve ke mu tale. Ndele ye eshi e uya kuye, David okwa nangala naye, opo a hangika e lifeta molwohani yaye. Opo nee ye a shuna keumbo lavo. 5 Nomwalikadi okwa ninga oufimba nokwa tuma kuDavid e mu shiivifile: Ame nda ninga oufimba. 6 Ndele David okwa shiivifila Joab: “Tuma kwaame Uria, Omuheti. Ndele Joab okwa tuma Uria kuDavid.” 7 Uria eshi e uya kuDavid, David okwa pula ngeenge Joab oku li nawa nongeenge ovakwaita ove li nawa, noita ngeenge otai lu nawa. 8 Ndele David ta lombwele Uria: “Inda keumbo loye u koshe eemhadi doye.” Ndele Uria okwa dja kongulu youhamba noshali yohamba ye mu shikula. 9 Ndelenee Uria okwa nangala poshivelo shongulu yohamba povapiya aveshe vomwene waye, ndele ina ya keumbo laye. 10 Ndele David okwa shiivifilwa nokutya, Uria ina ya keumbo laye. Opo nee David a pula Uria: “Ove wa dja koweenda. Omolwashike ino ya keumbo loye?” 11 Ndele Uria ta ti kuDavid: “Oshikefa naIsrael naJuda ve li momatwali nomwene wange Joab novapiya vomwene wange va onga onhanda moluhaela. Ame ndi ye ngeno meumbo lange ndi lye ndi nwe nondi nangale nomwalikadi wange? Oshili, ngaashi ove u nomwenyo, nongaashi omwenyo woye u nomwenyo, ame ihandi ke shi ninga.” 12 Ndele David ta ti kuUria: “Kala apa nonena eli yo! Opo ndi ku lekele mongula.” Ndele Uria okwa kala efiku olo muJerusalem. 13 Ndelenee efiku la shikula David e mu ifana ndele ye okwa lya nokwa nwa koshipala shaye, ndele ye okwe mu kolwifa. Opo nee onguloshi ye a pita mo nokwa ya a ka nangale ponhele yaye povapiya vomwene waye. Ndelenee ina ya keumbo laye.
14 Ndele ongula David ta shangele Joab onhumwafo ndele te i tumu ko naUria. 15 Ndele ye okwa shanga onhumwafo ndele tai ti: “Tula Uria monhele yokomesho molwoodi lipyu. Opo nee tamu shuna lwanima, opo ye a dipawe molwoodi omo.” 16 Mokukondekela oshilando Joab okwa tula Uria monhele oyo a shiiva mu na ovakwanyati ovaladi. 17 Novalumenhu vomoshilando eshi va tota ndele tava lwifa Joab, movakwaita, movapiya vaDavid mwa fya vamwe, naUria yo, Omuheti, okwa fya. 18 Ndele Joab okwa tuma ko nokwa hepaululila David ashishe eshi sha ningwa molwoodi. 19 Ndelenee ye okwa lombwela omutumwa ndele ta ti: “Ove eshi wa hepaululila ohamba ashishe eshi sha ningwa molwoodi, 20 kashiimba ohamba tai handuka ndele tai ku lombwele: ‘Omolwashike mwa ya popepi noshilando okulwa? Inamu shiiva nokutya, venya vokohotekuma otava umbu? 21 Olyelye a dipaa Abimelek yaJerubeset? Omukainhu umwe ndishi wokombada yohotekuma e mu ekelele emanya loshini, onghee ye a fila muTebes? Omolwashike mwa ya unene popepi nohotekuma?’ Opo nee to ti: ‘Omupiya woye Uria, Omuheti, okwa fya yo.’ ”
22 Nomutumwa okwa ya nokwe uya ndele ta hepaululile David ashishe eshi Joab e mu lombwela. 23 Nomutumwa okwa tya kuDavid: “Ovalumenhu venya va li ve tu dule ndele va dja mo ndele ve tu totela moluhaela, ndelenee fye twe va fininika noku va shunifa fiyo okoshipala sholuvanda. 24 Opo nee ovaumbi vomauta vokohotekuma va umba kovapiya voye, opo nee ovapiya vohamba va fya. Nomupiya woye Uria, Omuheti, okwa fya yo.” 25 Opo nee David a lombwela omutumwa ndele ta ti: “U nokulombwela Joab ngaha: Oshinima eshi shihe ku etele ouyehame, osheshi eongamukonda hali lyana nokulya, nena umwe mongula omukwao. Lwifeni ashike nonyati oshilando mu shi hanaune po. Osho ngaha hano u noku mu lombwela noku mu nyatipaleka.”
26 Omwalikadi waUria eshi a uda nokutya, omulumenhu waye Uria okwa fya, okwe mu lila eefya. 27 Efimbo laye lokulila eefya eshi la umbuka, David okwa tuma ve ke mu tale ko ndele te mu tambula meumbo laye. Ndele ye a ninga omwalikadi waye nokwe mu dalela okaana okamati. Ndelenee oshinima eshi David e shi ninga, sha li shii momesho Omwene.
