2 Samuel 11 11

2 Samuel 11:11 kjv

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 thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I will not do this thing.

2 Samuel 11:11 nkjv

And Uriah said to David, "The ark and Israel and Judah are dwelling in tents, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are encamped in the open fields. Shall I then go to my house to eat and drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing."

2 Samuel 11:11 niv

Uriah said to David, "The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in tents, and my commander Joab and my lord's men are camped in the open country. How could I go to my house to eat and drink and make love to my wife? As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!"

2 Samuel 11:11 esv

Uriah said to David, "The ark and Israel and Judah dwell in booths, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field. Shall I then go to my 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."

2 Samuel 11:11 nlt

Uriah replied, "The Ark and the armies of Israel and Judah are living in tents, and Joab and my master's men are camping in the open fields. How could I go home to wine and dine and sleep with my wife? I swear that I would never do such a thing."

2 Samuel 11 verses

2 Samuel 11 11 Meaning

Uriah's declaration reveals his profound loyalty to God, Israel, his commander, and his fellow soldiers engaged in war, prioritizing shared hardship and sacred duty over personal comfort and marital relations. It stands in stark moral opposition to King David's earlier actions of staying home from battle and indulging in sinful pleasure.

2 Samuel 11 11 Context

Chapter 11 of 2 Samuel describes King David's greatest moral failure. While kings normally led their armies in battle, David remained in Jerusalem. From his rooftop, he saw Bathsheba bathing and, driven by lust, committed adultery with her. When Bathsheba became pregnant, David desperately sought to cover up his sin. His first attempt was to have Uriah, Bathsheba's husband and one of his most loyal and elite soldiers (a Hittite in his thirty valiant men, 2 Sam 23:39), return home from the front lines of the Ammonite war, hoping he would sleep with his wife and thus make it appear the child was his. Uriah's declaration in verse 11 is his righteous refusal, disrupting David's plan and showcasing Uriah's profound integrity, devotion to his duty, and solidarity with his fellow soldiers and the ark of God, which represented God's presence in the battle. This powerful refusal directly exposes the depth of David's sin and sets the stage for David's tragic escalation to murder.

2 Samuel 11 11 Word analysis

• Uriah (אוּרִיָּה, ’U̇riyyah): Meaning "My light is Yahweh" or "Flame of Yahweh." This name stands in stark contrast to David's moral darkness, as Uriah embodies spiritual and ethical clarity amidst the king's compromise. His unwavering moral stand shines brightly, highlighting his role as a true bearer of God's light.
• said to David: A direct, forthright address from a subordinate to his king. However, it is imbued with a profound moral authority derived from Uriah's integrity, implicitly challenging the king's self-serving agenda.
• The ark (הָאָרוֹן, ha-aron): Refers to the Ark of the Covenant, the most sacred symbol of God's tangible presence, divine protection, and leadership for Israel. Its placement with the army signifies that the military campaign is a holy undertaking, making the soldiers' living conditions sacred and dedicated.
• and Israel and Judah: Represents the entire unified nation, underscoring Uriah's profound nationalistic and communal loyalty. He perceives the conflict as a struggle involving the collective body of God's people, transcending individual concerns.
• are staying in tents, (יוֹשְׁבִים בַּסֻּכּוֹת, yoshvim ba-sukkot): Literally, "dwelling in booths/tents." This signifies the harsh, temporary, and vigilant conditions of military encampment. It portrays a scene of shared austerity and readiness for battle, directly contrasting David's opulent palace.
• and my commander Joab: Acknowledges immediate military leadership and demonstrates Uriah's allegiance within the command structure. It signifies loyalty extending beyond the distant king to those who directly share the battlefield dangers.
• and the king's men (וְעַבְדֵי אֲדֹנִי, və-avdei adoni): "And servants of my lord," referring to all the soldiers. This phrase emphasizes Uriah's solidarity and brotherhood with his comrades who face shared hardship and peril. His conscience dictates that he cannot abandon them, even for permissible comforts.
• are camped in the open country (חֹנִים עַל־פְּנֵי הַשָּׂדֶה, ḥonim ‘al-pəney ha-śadeh): "Are encamped on the face of the field." This imagery vividly conveys the raw, exposed, and vulnerable conditions on the battlefield, contrasting with the security and luxury enjoyed by David in Jerusalem.
• How could I go...? (הֲבֹא אֶל־בֵּיתִי, ha-vo el-beiti): A powerful rhetorical question that conveys Uriah's utter incredulity and firm moral resolve. It underscores the unacceptability of pursuing personal pleasure given the communal suffering.
• to my house: Represents the private, comfortable, and intimate sphere of domestic life. Uriah consciously foregoes these legitimate comforts out of higher commitment.
• to eat and drink and make love to my wife? (לֶאֱכֹל וְלִשְׁתּוֹת וְלִשְׁכַּב עִם־אִשְׁתִּי, le'echol ve-lishtot ve-lishkav ‘im ishti): These represent basic human needs and legitimate conjugal intimacy. However, within the context of holy war, where soldiers maintained ritual purity often through sexual abstinence (Deut 23:9-14), these actions become unacceptable to Uriah's moral conscience as a betrayal of his comrades' sacrifices.
• As surely as you live and as you yourself live (חֵי אֲדֹנִי וְחֵי נַפְשֶׁךָ, ḥei adoni ve-ḥei nafshecha): This is a solemn double oath, emphasizing absolute certainty. While "by Yahweh" was also an option, this oath (swearing by David's life) ironically underlines Uriah's fidelity to David's office and David's existence, even as Uriah's integrity contrasts with the king's actions.
• I will not do such a thing! (אִם־אֶעֱשֶׂה הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה, im e‘eseh ha-davar hazzeh): An unequivocal and emphatic declaration that terminates any possibility of David's manipulative plan succeeding. It is a powerful affirmation of Uriah's unshakeable moral conviction.

• "The ark and Israel and Judah... are staying in tents, and my commander Joab and the king's men are camped in the open country.": This phrase establishes the broad scope of Uriah's loyalty and his profound sense of responsibility. It encompasses God's direct presence (Ark), the entire nation (Israel/Judah), and the military community (Joab and soldiers). The repeated imagery of austere living conditions ("tents," "open country") starkly contrasts with David's luxury and grounds Uriah's ethical stance in a deep understanding of shared spiritual and physical sacrifice.
• "How could I go to my house to eat and drink and make love to my wife?": This rhetorical question highlights the profound moral dilemma for Uriah. It articulates his deep sense of impropriety and betrayal towards his comrades and his God, effectively declaring that personal pleasure is unconscionable when faced with a holy war and communal suffering. This demonstrates Uriah's conscience being driven by higher principles.
• "As surely as you live and as you yourself live, I will not do such a thing!": This culminating statement is a definitive, uncompromising declaration of Uriah's unyielding resolve. The solemn, double oath ("As surely as you live and as you yourself live") intensifies the certainty of his refusal, showcasing his unwavering integrity. It places Uriah, a common soldier, in a position of superior moral clarity relative to the king, sealing his commitment to righteous action at great personal cost.

2 Samuel 11 11 Bonus section

• Uriah's Identity as a Hittite: That a non-Israelite, a Hittite, exhibits such exemplary faithfulness to the Lord and Israel's covenant principles, outshining even the king, serves as a powerful testament. It illustrates that genuine devotion and integrity transcend ethnic or national boundaries and is a matter of the heart, putting many born into the covenant community to shame.
• Narrative Irony: The "man after God's own heart" (1 Sam 13:14, Acts 13:22) is depicted engaging in profound moral compromise, while an outsider lives by principles of absolute devotion and self-sacrifice. This sharp irony highlights the universality of God's call to righteousness and the dangers of complacency even for God's chosen leaders.
• Prophetic Voice: Uriah's words, though a refusal, function almost as an indirect prophetic rebuke. He unknowingly confronts David with the very standards of piety and solidarity that David, as king and a man of God, should have embodied. His faithfulness becomes a silent condemnation that anticipates the direct prophetic denunciation by Nathan in 2 Samuel chapter 12.

2 Samuel 11 11 Commentary

2 Samuel 11:11 serves as a devastating indictment of King David's spiritual and moral decline, spoken by a Hittite soldier of impeccable character. Uriah, one of David's most elite and loyal warriors, exemplifies extraordinary integrity and selfless devotion to God, nation, and fellow soldiers. His refusal to accept personal comfort or marital intimacy while the Ark, Israel, and his comrades endured the rigors of battle reveals a profound understanding of duty, ritual purity for holy war, and communal solidarity. This single verse establishes the dramatic moral chasm between Uriah's blameless fidelity and David's calculated deception, highlighting the depth of David's sin and presenting Uriah as a poignant symbol of righteous, covenant faithfulness in stark contrast to a king who had abandoned his own principles.