Bible Strands
2 Samuel 12:16
David pleaded with God for the boy. He fasted and went into his house and spent the night lying in sackcloth on the ground.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — David acts alone in his house after Nathan pronounces judgment for the child born to Uriah’s wife. He pleads with God for the dying boy while fasting and lying in sackcloth on the ground.
The words — וַ/יְבַקֵּ֥שׁ (va/y.va.Kesh) literally means "and he sought," and בְּעַד (be.'Ad) means "for" or "on behalf of." Together they frame David’s intercession as a direct petition to God for the lad.
The thread — This posture of fasting, sackcloth, and prostration recurs in 2 Samuel 13:31, 2 Samuel 12:22, and 1 Kings 21:27. These passages record royal figures adopting identical physical signs of mourning and supplication.
Why it lands — The text commands recognition of human limitation before divine judgment. It requires the reader to observe that physical austerity accompanies earnest petition without guaranteeing a specific outcome.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
David therefore besought God for the child; and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth.
Cross-references
- 2 Samuel 13:31 Then the king stood up, tore his clothes, and lay down on the ground. And all his servants stood by with their clothes torn.
- 2 Samuel 12:22 David answered, “While the child was alive, I fasted and wept, for I said, ‘Who knows? The LORD may be gracious to me and let him live.’
- 1 Kings 21:27 When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and fasted. He lay down in sackcloth and walked around meekly.
- Esther 4:16 “Go and assemble all the Jews who can be found in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day, and I and my maidens will fast as you do. After that, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish!”
- Psalms 50:15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor Me.”
- Psalms 69:10 I wept and fasted, but it brought me reproach.
- Isaiah 22:12 On that day the Lord GOD of Hosts called for weeping and wailing, for shaven heads and the wearing of sackcloth.
- Jonah 3:9 Who knows? God may turn and relent; He may turn from His fierce anger, so that we will not perish.”
- Acts 9:9 For three days he was without sight, and he did not eat or drink anything.
- Job 20:12 Though evil is sweet in his mouth and he conceals it under his tongue,