David pleaded with God for the boy. He fasted and went into his house and spent the night lying in sackcloth on the ground. David pleaded with God for the childThe Hebrew word for "pleaded" is "בִּקֵּשׁ" (biqqesh), which conveys a sense of earnest seeking or entreaty. This highlights David's deep desperation and humility before God. Historically, this moment follows Nathan's confrontation with David over his sin with Bathsheba, and the subsequent pronouncement of judgment upon the child born from that union. David's plea is not just a request for the child's life but a profound act of repentance and acknowledgment of his dependence on God's mercy. In the broader scriptural context, this reflects the biblical theme of intercession, where individuals seek divine intervention on behalf of others, demonstrating faith in God's power and compassion. he fasted
Fasting, from the Hebrew "צוּם" (tsum), is a spiritual discipline often associated with mourning, repentance, and seeking God's favor. In ancient Israel, fasting was a common practice during times of crisis or when seeking divine guidance. David's choice to fast underscores his sincerity and the gravity of the situation. It is a physical manifestation of his inner turmoil and his desire to align himself with God's will. Fasting, in this context, is not merely abstaining from food but a holistic act of worship and submission, seeking to draw closer to God in a time of need. and went into his house
The phrase "went into his house" suggests a retreat into a private space, away from the public eye. In the ancient Near Eastern culture, the home was a place of refuge and personal reflection. David's withdrawal into his house indicates a desire for solitude, where he can fully express his grief and seek God without distraction. This act of seclusion is significant, as it shows David's understanding that true repentance and communion with God often require stepping away from the busyness of life to focus solely on Him. and spent the night lying on the ground
"Lying on the ground" is a posture of humility and submission, often associated with mourning and supplication in the Hebrew tradition. The act of prostration, or lying face down, is a physical expression of David's contrition and his recognition of God's sovereignty. In the historical context, this posture was common in the ancient world as a sign of respect and earnest petition before a king or deity. David's choice to spend the night in this manner highlights his unwavering commitment to seeking God's mercy, despite the dire circumstances. It is a poignant reminder of the depth of David's repentance and his reliance on God's grace. Persons / Places / Events 1. DavidThe King of Israel, a man after God's own heart, who is in deep distress over the illness of his child. 2. GodThe sovereign Lord to whom David pleads for mercy and healing for his child. 3. The ChildThe son born to David and Bathsheba, who becomes ill as a consequence of David's sin. 4. Fasting and PrayerDavid's response to the child's illness, demonstrating his repentance and dependence on God. 5. The HouseThe place where David isolates himself to pray and fast, showing his humility and earnestness in seeking God's intervention. Teaching Points The Power of Prayer and FastingDavid's actions remind us of the importance of earnest prayer and fasting in seeking God's intervention in dire situations. Repentance and HumilityDavid's posture of lying on the ground signifies his humility and repentance, teaching us the importance of a contrite heart before God. God's Sovereignty and MercyWhile David pleads for his child's life, the outcome is ultimately in God's hands, reminding us to trust in His sovereign will. Consequences of SinDavid's situation illustrates that sin has consequences, but it also shows the possibility of restoration through repentance. Seeking God in CrisisDavid's immediate turn to God in a time of crisis serves as a model for us to seek divine help and guidance in our own times of trouble. Bible Study Questions 1. How does David's response to his child's illness reflect his relationship with God, and what can we learn from his example about handling personal crises? 2. In what ways does fasting enhance our prayer life, and how can we incorporate this practice into our spiritual disciplines today? 3. How does David's posture of lying on the ground demonstrate his humility, and why is humility important in our relationship with God? 4. What are some modern-day situations where we might need to plead with God as David did, and how can we prepare our hearts for such times? 5. How can we reconcile the tension between God's sovereignty and our earnest prayers, especially when the outcomes are not what we desire? Connections to Other Scriptures Psalm 51David's psalm of repentance, which provides insight into his heart and mindset during this period of seeking God's mercy. Jonah 3The people of Nineveh fast and pray for God's mercy, similar to David's actions, showing a biblical pattern of seeking God in times of distress. Matthew 6:16-18Jesus teaches about fasting, emphasizing sincerity and humility, which aligns with David's approach. James 5:16The power of earnest prayer is highlighted, reflecting David's intense supplication for his child. 1 John 1:9The promise of forgiveness upon confession, relevant to David's situation of seeking God's mercy after sin. People Ammonites, Bathsheba, David, Jedidiah, Joab, Milcom, Nathan, Saul, Solomon, Uriah, UrijahPlaces Jerusalem, RabbahTopics Begged, Besought, Child, David, Fast, Fasted, Ground, Inquired, Keepeth, Lain, Lay, Lodged, Lying, Nights, Often, Pleaded, Prayer, Seeketh, Spent, Stretching, YouthDictionary of Bible Themes 2 Samuel 12:16 5738 sons
5794 asceticism
5865 gestures
8300 love, and the world
8653 importunity, to God 2 Samuel 12:13-17 6227 regret 2 Samuel 12:13-23 5088 David, character 2 Samuel 12:13-25 5652 babies 2 Samuel 12:15-17 5567 suffering, emotional
8431 fasting, reasons 2 Samuel 12:15-18 6242 adultery
8605 prayer, and God's will 2 Samuel 12:15-21 5796 bereavement, experience 2 Samuel 12:15-23 5686 fathers, examples 2 Samuel 12:16-20 8430 fasting, nature of Library David and Nathan
'And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said unto David, The Lord also hath put away thy sin.'--2 SAMUEL xii. 13. We ought to be very thankful that Scripture never conceals the faults of its noblest men. High among the highest of them stands the poet- king. Whoever, for nearly three thousand years, has wished to express the emotions of trust in God, longing after purity, aspiration, and rapture of devotion, has found that his words have been before him. And this man …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureThou Art the Man
'And David said to Nathan, As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die; because he did this thing, and because he had no pity. And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man.'--2 SAMUEL xii. 5-7. Nathan's apologue, so tenderly beautiful, takes the poet-king on the most susceptible side of his character. All his history shows him as a man of wonderfully sweet, chivalrous, generous, swiftly compassionate nature. And so, when he hears the story of a mean, heartless selfishness, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture Letter vi. In My Last Two Letters I have Given the State of the Argument as It...
My dear friend, In my last two Letters I have given the state of the argument as it would stand between a Christian, thinking as I do, and a serious well-disposed Deist. I will now endeavour to state the argument, as between the former and the advocates for the popular belief,--such of them, I mean, as are competent to deliver a dispassionate judgment in the cause. And again, more particularly, I mean the learned and reflecting part of them, who are influenced to the retention of the prevailing …
Samuel Taylor Coleridge—Confessions of an Inquiring Spirit etc The Blessings of Noah Upon Shem and Japheth. (Gen. Ix. 18-27. )
Ver. 20. "And Noah began and became an husbandman, and planted vineyards."--This does not imply that Noah was the first who began to till the ground, and, more especially, to cultivate the vine; for Cain, too, was a tiller of the ground, Gen. iv. 2. The sense rather is, that Noah, after the flood, again took up this calling. Moreover, the remark has not an independent import; it serves only to prepare the way for the communication of the subsequent account of Noah's drunkenness. By this remark, …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament Cleansing.
As there are conditions requiring to be complied with in order to the obtaining of salvation, before one can be justified, e. g., conviction of sin, repentance, faith; so there are conditions for full salvation, for being "filled with the Holy Ghost." Conviction of our need is one, conviction of the existence of the blessing is another; but these have been already dealt with. "Cleansing" is another; before one can be filled with the Holy Ghost, one's heart must be "cleansed." "Giving them the Holy …
John MacNeil—The Spirit-Filled Life That the Ruler Should not Set his Heart on Pleasing Men, and yet Should Give Heed to what Ought to Please Them.
Meanwhile it is also necessary for the ruler to keep wary watch, lest the lust of pleasing men assail him; lest, when he studiously penetrates the things that are within, and providently supplies the things that are without, he seek to be beloved of those that are under him more than truth; lest, while, supported by his good deeds, he seems not to belong to the world, self-love estrange him from his Maker. For he is the Redeemer's enemy who through the good works which he does covets being loved …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great The Unchangeableness of God
The next attribute is God's unchangeableness. I am Jehovah, I change not.' Mal 3:3. I. God is unchangeable in his nature. II. In his decree. I. Unchangeable in his nature. 1. There is no eclipse of his brightness. 2. No period put to his being. [1] No eclipse of his brightness. His essence shines with a fixed lustre. With whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.' James 1:17. Thou art the same.' Psa 102:27. All created things are full of vicissitudes. Princes and emperors are subject to …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity How the Poor and the Rich Should be Admonished.
(Admonition 3.) Differently to be admonished are the poor and the rich: for to the former we ought to offer the solace of comfort against tribulation, but in the latter to induce fear as against elation. For to the poor one it is said by the Lord through the prophet, Fear not, for thou shalt not be confounded (Isai. liv. 4). And not long after, soothing her, He says, O thou poor little one, tossed with tempest (Ibid. 11). And again He comforts her, saying, I have chosen thee in the furnace of …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great Of Antichrist, and his Ruin: and of the Slaying the Witnesses.
BY JOHN BUNYAN PREFATORY REMARKS BY THE EDITOR This important treatise was prepared for the press, and left by the author, at his decease, to the care of his surviving friend for publication. It first appeared in a collection of his works in folio, 1692; and although a subject of universal interest; most admirably elucidated; no edition has been published in a separate form. Antichrist has agitated the Christian world from the earliest ages; and his craft has been to mislead the thoughtless, by …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Thirdly, for Thy Actions.
1. Do no evil, though thou mightest; for God will not suffer the least sin, without bitter repentance, to escape unpunished. Leave not undone any good that thou canst. But do nothing without a calling, nor anything in thy calling, till thou hast first taken counsel at God's word (1 Sam. xxx. 8) of its lawfulness, and pray for his blessings upon thy endeavour; and then do it in the name of God, with cheerfulness of heart, committing the success to him, in whose power it is to bless with his grace …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety The Preparatory Service; Sometimes Called the Confessional Service.
In our examination of the nature and meaning of the Lord's Supper, we have found that it is indeed a most important and holy Sacrament. It is in fact the most sacred of all the ordinances of the Church on earth. There is nothing beyond it--nothing so heavenly, on this side heaven, as this Feast. Nowhere else does the believer approach so near to heaven as when he stands or kneels, as a communicant at this altar, the Holy of Holies in the Church of Christ. What a solemn act! To approach this altar, …
G. H. Gerberding—The Way of Salvation in the Lutheran Church The Right Understanding of the Law
Thou shalt have no other Gods before me.' Exod 20: 3. Before I come to the commandments, I shall answer questions, and lay down rules respecting the moral law. What is the difference between the moral laud and the gospel? (1) The law requires that we worship God as our Creator; the gospel, that we worship him in and through Christ. God in Christ is propitious; out of him we may see God's power, justice, and holiness: in him we see his mercy displayed. (2) The moral law requires obedience, but gives …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments The Sixth Commandment
Thou shalt not kill.' Exod 20: 13. In this commandment is a sin forbidden, which is murder, Thou shalt not kill,' and a duty implied, which is, to preserve our own life, and the life of others. The sin forbidden is murder: Thou shalt not kill.' Here two things are to be understood, the not injuring another, nor ourselves. I. The not injuring another. [1] We must not injure another in his name. A good name is a precious balsam.' It is a great cruelty to murder a man in his name. We injure others in …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments The Eighth Commandment
Thou shalt not steal.' Exod 20: 15. AS the holiness of God sets him against uncleanness, in the command Thou shalt not commit adultery;' so the justice of God sets him against rapine and robbery, in the command, Thou shalt not steal.' The thing forbidden in this commandment, is meddling with another man's property. The civil lawyers define furtum, stealth or theft to be the laying hands unjustly on that which is another's;' the invading another's right. I. The causes of theft. [1] The internal causes …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments Samuel
Alike from the literary and the historical point of view, the book[1] of Samuel stands midway between the book of Judges and the book of Kings. As we have already seen, the Deuteronomic book of Judges in all probability ran into Samuel and ended in ch. xii.; while the story of David, begun in Samuel, embraces the first two chapters of the first book of Kings. The book of Samuel is not very happily named, as much of it is devoted to Saul and the greater part to David; yet it is not altogether inappropriate, …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links 2 Samuel 12:16 NIV2 Samuel 12:16 NLT2 Samuel 12:16 ESV2 Samuel 12:16 NASB2 Samuel 12:16 KJV
2 Samuel 12:16 Commentaries
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