2 Samuel

Upon learning of Saul’s defeat by the Philistines, David sings a song lamenting the deaths of Saul and his friend, Jonathan. David goes to Hebron, where his followers and the southern tribe of Judah anoint him as king. Meanwhile, Saul’s chief commander, Abner, garners the support of the northern tribes and instates Saul’s son, Ish-Bosheth, as king of Israel. A war ensues between the conflicting regimes, played out in a series of small hand-to-hand contests between Abner’s men and the army of Joab, David’s general. God vows to grant Israel rest from foreign opposition and promises that the kingdom of David will last forever. With Joab’s services, David subdues the nations of the surrounding area, expanding Israel’s borders while developing diplomatic relations with the neighboring kingdoms. One day, David watches a woman bathing from the rooftop of his palace. He summons the woman, Bathsheba, and has sex with her, and the woman becomes pregnant. Unable to disguise his indiscretion, David sends her husband, Uriah, to die on the battlefield. David marries Bathsheba, but Nathan confronts the king about his wrongdoing. Nathan tells a parable about a wealthy man who steals a poor man’s only prized sheep. David is outraged by such selfishness, and Nathan informs David that the parable is about him. Nathan predicts that God will bring calamity on David’s household. David repents for his wrongdoing, but, despite his fasting and praying, Bathsheba’s son dies during childbirth. Afterward, David and Bathsheba have another son, Solomon. David’s older son Amnon falls in love with his half-sister Tamar and rapes her.