2Samuel 11:1,2 And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him and all Israel and they destroyed the children of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem. And it came to pass in an eveningtide, that David arose from off his bed and walked upon the roof of the king's house and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.

2Samuel 11:3,4 And David sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite? And David sent messengers and took her and she came in unto him and he lay with her, for she was purified from her uncleanness.(Leviticus 15:24,25). And she returned unto her house. 

2Samuel 11:5 And the woman conceived and sent and told David and said, I am with child.

2Samuel 11:6-13 And David sent to Joab, saying, Send me Uriah the Hittite. And Joab sent Uriah to David. And when Uriah was come unto him, David demanded of him how Joab did and how the people did and how the war prospered. And David said to Uriah, Go down to your house and wash your feet. And Uriah departed out of the king's house and there followed him a mess of meat.(Barnes Notes: an honorable portion given by the host to his chief guest).from the king. But Uriah slept at the door of the king's house with all the servants of his lord and went not down to his house. And when they had told David, saying, Uriah went not down unto his house, David said unto Uriah, Came you not from your journey? Why then did you not go down unto your house? And Uriah said unto David, The ark and Israel and Judah, abide in tents and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are encamped in the open fields. Shall I then go into mine house, to eat and to drink and to lie with my wife? As you live and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing. And David said to Uriah, Tarry here today also and to morrow I will let you depart. So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day and the morrow. And when David had called him, he did eat and drink before him and he made him drunk. And at even he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but went not down to his house.

2Samuel 11:14,15 And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah. And he wrote in the letter, saying, Set Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle and retire from him, that he may be smitten and die.

2Samuel 11:16 And it came to pass, when Joab observed the city, that he assigned Uriah unto a place where he knew that valiant men were.

2Samuel 11:17 And the men of the city went out and fought with Joab.(out there with Joab, the head of this army division). And there fell some of the people of the servants of David and Uriah the Hittite died also.

2Samuel 11:26 And when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband.

2Samuel 11:27 And when the mourning was past, David sent and fetched her to his house and she became his wife and bare him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.

2Samuel 12:1-7 And the Lord sent Nathan.(a man of the Creator, a prophet in the times of David and Solomon).unto David. And he came unto him and said unto him, There were two men in one city; the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds. But the poor man had nothing, save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourished up and it grew up together with him and with his children; it did eat of his own meat and drank of his own cup and lay in his bosom and was unto him as a daughter. And there came a traveler unto the rich man and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him; but took the poor man's lamb and dressed it for the man that was come to him. And David's anger was greatly kindled against the man and he said to Nathan, As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die. And he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing and because he had no pity. And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. 

2Samuel 12:8 Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul. And I gave thee thy master's house and thy master's wives into thy bosom and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things.

2Samuel 12:9 Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in his sight? Thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword and hast taken his wife to be thy wife and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon.

2Samuel 12:10 Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.

2Samuel 12:11 Thus says the Lord, Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house and I will take your wives.(original is 'women') before thine eyes and give them unto your neighbour and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. 

2Samuel 12:12 For you did it secretly.(*); but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun.

2Samuel 12:13 And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said unto David, The Lord also has put away your sin. You shall not die.

2Samuel 12:14,15 Howbeit, because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto you shall surely die. And Nathan departed unto his house. And the Lord struck the child that Uriah's wife bare unto David and it was very sick.

Here we see the reap what you have sown law come into effect in a manner that was heartrending for David.

2Samuel 12:16-18 David therefore besought God for the child and David fasted and went in and lay all night upon the Earth. And the elders of his house arose and went to him to raise him up from the Earth.(off the ground), but he would not, neither did he eat bread with them. And it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died. And the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spake unto him and he would not hearken unto our voice. How will he then vex himself.(they figured that if he was that upset over the child's illness, we had better not tell him the child is now dead, for how would he then behave?), if we tell him that the child is dead?

2Samuel 12:19 But when David saw that his servants whispered, David perceived that the child was dead; therefore David said unto his servants, Is the child dead? And they said, He is dead.

2Samuel 12:20 Then David arose from the Earth and washed and anointed himself.(cleaned himself up, combed his hair, changed his clothes).and changed his apparel and came into the house of the Lord and worshipped.(wasn't upset and/or angry at God not having saved the child). Then he came to his own house and when he required.(time to have something to eat), they set bread before him and he did eat.

2Samuel 12:21,22 Then said his servants unto him, What thing is this that you have done? You did fast and weep for the child, while it was alive, but when the child was dead, you did rise and eat bread. And he said, While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept, for I said, Who can tell whether God will be gracious to me, that the child may live?

2Samuel 12:23 But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.

Such was the thinking in Old Testament times. Today it's a much higher consciousness regarding those passed on.

2Samuel 12:24,25 And David comforted Bathsheba his wife and went in unto her and lay with her and she bare a son and he called his name Solomon. And the Lord loved him. And he sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet and he called his name Jedidiah.(means 'beloved of the Creator'), because of the Lord.

2Samuel 12:26-29 And Joab fought against Rabbah.(an important Ammonite city).of the children of Ammon and took the royal city. And Joab sent messengers to David and said, I have fought against Rabbah and have taken the city of waters. Now therefore gather the rest of the people together and encamp against the city and take it, lest I take the city,and it be called after my name.(Joab didn't want people to look to him as the hero as he was very loyal to David). And David gathered all the people together and went to Rabbah and fought against it and took it.

2Samuel 12:30 And he took their king's crown from off his head, the weight whereof was a talent of gold with the precious stones and it was set on David's head. And he brought forth the spoil of the city in great abundance.

2Samuel 12:31 And he brought forth the people that were therein and put them under saws and under harrows of iron and under axes of iron and made them pass through the brick kiln and thus did he unto all the cities of the children of Ammon. So David and all the people returned unto Jerusalem.

Comprised with.Adam Clarke's Commentary:.It is surprising and a thing to be deplored, that in this and similar cases translators had not been more careful to sift the sense of the original words by which they would have avoided a profusion of exceptionable meanings with which they have clothed many passages of the sacred writings. Though I believe our translation to be by far the best in any language, ancient or modern, yet I am satisfied it stands much in need of revision and this site, eternalkeys.ca is doing the needed revisions so it's clear for readers. The meaning of this verse therefore is 'He made the people slaves and employed them in sawing, making iron harrows or mining and in hewing of wood and making of brick. The 'put them under saws' interpretation here in 2Samuel 12:31 was chiefly taken from the parallel place 1Chronicles 20:3, where it says 'he cut them with saws and with axes', whereas here in 2Samuel 12:31 it states 'he put them' and these two words differ from each other only in a part of a single letter in the original writings, an easy error for translators to make. Sawing asunder, hacking, chopping and hewing human beings, have no place in this text, as David earlier showed forgiveness to one who tried to kill him and David was kind hearted, unlike the conduct of the Ammonites toward Israel.

  ....continues to Chapter 13

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