how old was bathsheba when she had solomon

11:3), whom the Rabbis identify with Eliam son of Ahitophel (II Sam. Many dicta present Davids grief at the sin that he committed and the heavy price that this exacted. by The LORD loved him; (NIV). 2 Samuel 11:2-4One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. Fraught with Background: Literary Ambiguity in II Samuel 11. Interpretation 42 (1988): 24053. David was walking about on the roof when Satan came and appeared to him as a bird. David's punishment came to pass years later when one of David's much-loved sons, Absalom, led an insurrection that plunged the kingdom into civil war. Once he mentioned his fathers name and said [II Chron. 11 ), David saw Bathsheba and ordered her brought to his palace. What was the age of both Bathsheba and King David when they - Answers 2022-23 Season Wrap. [13], The Midrash portrays the influence of Satan bringing about the sinful relation of David and Bathsheba as follows: Bathsheba was bathing, perhaps behind a screen of wickerwork. Editing completed c. 500 C.E.Jerusalem Talmud Taanit 2:10, 65d). Morris Jastrow, Jr., Morris et al. 2.1 1) Sin, even "secret," will be found out. The Shocking Truth About Bathsheba's Marriage to David in the Bible Biblical Names: A Literary Study of Midrashic Derivations and Puns. In another tradition, she tells him: Your father married many women, and when Nathan the prophet came and informed him that one of his sons, who would be named Solomon, would inherit his kingdom, each of the wives said: If I give birth to Solomon, I will offer all the sacrifices in the Torah. I, too, took such a vow, and now I stand with my sacrifices in my hand, and you sleep? The rabbis apply to Bathsheba the verse from the Woman of Valor poem (Prov. Her standing did not diminish after Davids death, and she continued to educate her son, reproaching him for his unseemly behavior when he drank to excess and married the daughter of Pharaoh. Though David confesses and repents, he suffers the consequences of his sins: the sword will never leave his house and another man will possess his wives in public (2 Sam 12:1112; see 16:2122). Updates? He thus summoned Uriah, who was serving a military campaign back then. According to Lawrence O. Richards, however, Bathsheba was a victim who was taken advantage of by David. There are many interpretations of Bathshebas story. Then she added: O son of my womball of the women in your fathers house did not see the king again after they became pregnant. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2011. Bathsheba's role in these few terse lines reveals very little of her feeling or character. The prophet Nathan was sent to set David on the right path. [3] An Eliam is mentioned in 2 Samuel 23:34 as the son of Ahithophel, who is described as the Gilonite. In order to cover for his paternity and free Bathsheba from suspicion of adultery, he summons Uriah from the front to sleep with his wife. South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press, 2018. She becomes a favored wife at court and ultimately the Queen Mother. The midrash portrays Bathsheba as a modest woman and relates how she washed her hair under a bucket, hidden from all. The Birth of Solomon and the Making of a King, Biblical Women in World and Hebrew Literature, Modesty and Sexuality in Halakhic Literature, The Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women, https://thetorah.com/article/bathsheba-the-kingmaker, Copyright 19982023, Jewish Women's Archive. Uriah was a military captain in King Davids army. It was Bathsheba who secured Solomons succession to the throne and became a powerful female figure in the kingdom. 11:2): Late one afternoon, David rose from his couch, for it was then that he arose from intercourse. David had Uriah himself carry the message that led to his death (2 Samuel 11:615). Kristin De Troyer, "Looking at Bathsheba with Text-Critical Eyes," in Nra Dvid, Armin Lange, Kristin De Troyer and Shani Tzoref (eds), Mother Abiona or Amtelai the daughter of Karnebo. She had heard him speak of the Lord many times. After Uriah had been killed in the siege of Rabbah (2 Samuel 11:17), Bathsheba mourned Uriah, but then David took Bathsheba into his house and made her his wife, and she gave birth (2 Samuel 11:2627). Shimoff, Sandra R. David and Bathsheba: The Political Function of Rabbinic Aggada. Journal for the Study of Judaism in the Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman Period 24, no. Solomon, her second son with David, was promised the throne, but the completion of that promise was endangered by the internal strife in David's family as his children jostled for power ( 1 Kings 1:13-17 & 1 . He came and bowed before King Solomon, and Solomon said to him, "Go home." . The Lord punished David by striking his and Bathsheba's first child with an illness. According to another homiletical approach, Bathsheba had been designated as David's wife during the six days of Creation; the fact that her son Solomon continued the royal dynasty of the Davidic line cleared David and Bathsheba of any reproach. When King David summoned Bathsheba, she had no choice but to go to him. 11:12 [which is attributed to David], that describes how the upright fall under the arrows of the wicked: How can you say to me, Take to the hills like a bird! No, O son of my womb! How can God have His Shekhinah rest within his handiwork? God, however, delayed the opening of the gates, since he thought to include the rejoicing of the Temple in the month of Ethanim, that is the month of Tishrei (I Kings 8:2), in which Abraham had been born. Through Bathshebas story, we discover that God can bring good out of the ashes of sin. 16:21), which sooner or later would have brought with it, according to Jewish law, the penalty of death; the motive for this advice being to remove Absalom, and thus to make a way for himself to the throne. )[25], Bathsheba's name appears in 1 Chronicles 3:5 spelled "Bath-shua", the form becomes merely a variant reading of "Bath-sheba". Ask Question Asked 2 years, 9 months ago Modified 6 months ago Viewed 62k times 1 1 Kings 3:7 New International Version "Now, LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. And in the list of David's thirty in 1 Chronicles 11:36 we have Ahijah the Pelonite. God makes sense when nothing else does. Bathsheba has been the subject of many literary works, such as David and Bethsabe, the 1588 play by George Peele. 3:5 ), wife of David and mother of Solomon. Seeing the request as a bid for the throne, Solomon utters an oath to have his brother executed. She used her position to ensure both her and Solomon's safety when Adonijah tried to steal the throne. The 2020 Elizabeth Cook novel Lux likened David and Bathsheba to Henry and Ann. 31:2]: No, my son! Top 10 Fascinating Facts about Bathsheba Reading the Women of the Bible. SAB Contradiction 422. The messengers are sometimes confused with David himself, but most artists follow the Bible in keeping David at a distance in this episode. The story of David's seduction of Bath-sheba, told in II Sam. But as time passed, she embraced her new life. In fact, she is one of only four women in the Old Testament to be mentioned as Jesuss ancestor. There are multiple interpretations of Bathshebas story across various scriptures and critical writings of scholars. 15b should be joined directly to 11: 27. The passages in which Bath-sheba is mentioned are 2 Samuel 11:212:24, and 1 Kings 1:2both of which are parts of the oldest stratum of the books of Samuel and Kings, part of that court history of David, written by someone who stood very near the events and who did not idealize David. This exegesis is most likely based on Ps. However, King David's initial interaction with Bathsheba is not mentioned in the Books of Chronicles. The song The Soul Mad About You from Sting's 1991 album Cages, too, talks about the tale of Bathsheba. Since King Solomon was considered a symbol of Christ, Bathsheba also came to symbolise the Virgin as a queen. She was raped by David and then sent home A painting of Bathsheba- Wikimedia While bathing in a pool, King David saw Bathsheba and wanted her. [23], In Islam, David is considered to be a prophet, and some Islamic tradition views the Bible story as incompatible with the principle of infallibility (Ismah) of the prophets. Meet the mother of Israel's wisest king and ancestor of Jesus Christ. (Viewed on July 17, 2023) . Absalom later started a civil war to be the new king and also had sex in public with 10 of Davids mistresses. 86:17]: Show me a sign of Your favor, that my enemies may see and be frustrated, because You, O Lord, have given me aid and comfort. God responded: In your lifetime I will not proclaim that you have been forgiven, but I will do so during the lifetime of your son Solomon (BT Sanhedrin 107a; see below, for the narrative of Solomon and the Temple gates). [8] Rather than go home to his own bed, he preferred to remain with the palace troops. Once the Temple was opened in the month of holidays, the sacrifices were offered, and the fire descended, God said, Now the labor has been completed (Pesikta Rabbati [ed. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Up high, you everlasting doors, so the King of glory may come in!, but he was not answered. xi. He asked about her and found out that she was married but still sent for her. "teaching," "study," or "learning." In the David and Bathsheba episode, however, the balance of power was reversed. Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, was born into this world through the bloodline of Bathsheba and King David. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. As an opportunity to feature a large female nude as the focus of a history painting, the subject was popular from the Renaissance onwards. He summoned her to his palace, had sex with her, and got her pregnant. Abigail told him (v. 31): Do not let this be a cause of stumbling. She alone carries the results of the tryst in her body. The Rabbis learn of the content of this curse from the word nimrezet, which they understand as an acrostic for all the curses that Shimei directed at David: noef (adulterer, for having taken Bathsheba); Moavi (Moabite, as a descendant of Ruth); rozeah (murderer, for killing Uriah); zorer (oppressor, for causing the deaths of Israelites); toevah (abomination). God so loved Solomon that Nathan the prophet called him Jedidiah, which means "beloved of Jehovah. Bathsheba's beginning at the palace was rocky. He did not obey David when the king ordered him to go down to his house, but rather refused, arguing (II Sam. Yet Bathsheba ensures that their second son, Solomon (reigns c. 968928BCE), becomes successor to the throne. Even in the worst possible situations, God is able to bring about a good outcome. The story of Bathsheba and David has proved so enduring that religious commentators still debate the quality . She then said: O son of my vowsall the women of your fathers house took vows that they would bear a son worthy of becoming king. Bathsheba was the daughter of Eliam (II Sam. David did not engage in adultery, because it was customary during the monarchy of the Davidic line for a man to write a conditional writ of divorce for his wife when he set out for war, which stipulated that, if he were to die in battle, his wife would be retroactively divorced from the time of his departure for the battlefield. Who Was Bathsheba in the Bible? Her Story and Significance 8 Mothers in the Bible Who Served God Well, Meet Eve: The First Woman, Wife, and Mother of All the Living, M.A., English Composition, Illinois State University, B.S., English Literature, Illinois State University. When Abigail, wife of Nabal the Carmelite, came to David clandestinely to plead for the lives of her family (I Sam. Ramat Gan: Bar Ilan University Press, 1991. The biblical narratives featuring Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11-12; 1 Kings 1-2) entail adultery and bloodshed, prophetic rebuke and tragic consequences, and the breaking and making of the throne. What You Need to Know About Bathsheba | The Junia Project 11:3, and 2 Sam 23:34 mentions an Eliam, the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite, one of David's "thirty". "[32] Antony F. Campbell states "The 'violation of Bathsheba' may be the least unsatisfactory terminology, especially given the ambivalence of the text's storytelling. David then sends him back to the front, with a letter to the general, Joab, to set Uriah up to be slain in battle. To support their claim, they cite that Bathsheba is mentioned as the daughter of Eliam (in 2 Sam. 4:2), David attests that he was aggrieved for three things, and the Lord comforted him by assuring him of divine forgiveness: the Temple, the episode with Bathsheba, and the kingship of Solomon. The Queen of Sheba (Hebrew: , romanized: Malka S; Arabic: , romanized: Malikat Saba; Ge'ez: , romanized: Ngt Saba) is a figure first mentioned in the Hebrew Bible.In the original story, she brings a caravan of valuable gifts for the Israelite King Solomon.This account has undergone extensive Jewish, Islamic . Retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/bathsheba-wife-of-king-david-701149. A woman of influence? Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Therefore, no . David asks forgiveness of God, saying: Master of the Universe! This exposition is based on a wordplay, since, in the Rabbinic period, bat sheva was the name of an especially fine type of fig (see Codification of basic Jewish Oral Law; edited and arranged by R. Judah ha-Nasi c. 200 C.E.Mishnah Maaserot 2:8). 24: 7]: O gates, lift up your heads! When she became pregnant, David tried to trick Uriah into sleeping with her so it would look like the child was Uriah's. In an effort to conceal his adulterous sin, David summoned Uriah from the army (with whom he was on campaign) in the hope that Uriah would have sex with her and think that the child belonged to him but Uriah was unwilling to violate the ancient kingdom rule applying to warriors in active service. Bathsheba (/bib/ or /bb/; Hebrew: , Ba-ea, Bat-Sheva or Batsheva, "daughter of Sheba" or "daughter of the oath")[1] was the wife of Uriah the Hittite and later of David, according to the Hebrew Bible. When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. David, while trying to shoot the bird, struck the screen and broke it. The midrash presents an event that preceded the David and Bathsheba episode and that revealed the formers weakness. A hadith quoted in Tafsir al-Kabir and Majma' al-Bayan expresses that Ali ibn Abi Talib said: "Whoever says that David, has married Uriah's wife as the legends are narrate, I will punish him twice: one for qazf (falsely accusing someone of adultery) and the other for desecrating the prophethood (defamation of prophet David)". Read the latest from JWA from your inbox. Translated by Phyllis Hackett. 31:4]: Wine is not for kings, O Lemuel; not for kings to drinkwhat have you to do with kings who drink wine, become intoxicated, and say: What need have we of God? Nor any strong drink for princes [ibid. The interpretations and elaborations of the Mishnah by the, Biblical Women in World and Hebrew Literature, Yael Wife of Heber The Kenite: Midrash and Aggadah, The Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women, Copyright 19982023, Jewish Women's Archive. He had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. Some of the most popular portraits that featured Bathshebas tale were Bathsheba at Her Bath by Rembrandt (located at the Louvre), Bathsheba at her Bath by Veronese (1575, located at the Muse des Beaux-Arts de Lyon, France), and Bathsheba at her Bath by Ricci (the 1720s, located at the Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest). I did not inform the Patriarchs with what I would try them, but you I tell that I will try you with a sexual matter. When David heard how he would sin, he changed his night couch to a day couch (i.e., he engaged in intercourse during the day, so that he would be sated and not have sinful thoughts about any woman). Buber], 18:25). Everyone slandered Solomon, saying: Is he not the son of Bathsheba? The 1989 track Dead from the Pixies album Doolittle, too, depicts the tale. Though sometimes shown clothed at other points in her story, the most common depiction, in both medieval and later art, was Bathsheba at her Bath, the formal name for the subject in art showing Bathsheba bathing, watched by King David. Zavada, Jack. since he was an effete old man, and she was only able to "serve" him. She told him [Prov. 23:34); consequently, Bathsheba was the granddaughter of Ahitophel (BT Sanhedrin 69b). 12:13]: The Lord has remitted your sin; you shall not die. As regards his heir and successor, the Israelites asked: Did David think that his kingdom would sprout forth from Bathshebas son? God provided solace, and said to him [I Chron. During Solomons life, the rabbis portray Bathsheba as a positive influence on Solomon, rebuking him when he strayed from righteousness. As Bathsheba's story continues in 1 Kings, she can still be interpreted in more than one way: as cunning queen or unwitting pawn of other men. Nathan the priest alerted Bathsheba to the plot and she came before David to apprise him of what was going on behind his back and to plead with him (1 Kings 1:1-27). From his roof, King David (reigns c. 1005965BCE) sees beautiful Bathsheba, wife of Uriah, bathing, and he lies with her. Refusing the identity of David's victim, Bathsheba instead became Solomon's - and by consequence, Israel's - heroine. Abishag thereby alluded to the episode with Bathsheba, in which David did not hesitate to transgress the laws of the Torah, by engaging in intercourse with a married woman and causing her husbands death. June 23, 2021. Karras, Ruth M. David and Bathsheba: Masculine Sexuality in Medieval Judaism and Christianity. In Gods Own Gender? The man whom King David sent to find out about her identified her as, "Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite" ( 2 Samuel 11:3 ). [26], The only interpolations that concern the story of Bathsheba are some verses in the early part of the twelfth chapter, that heighten the moral tone of Nathan's rebuke of David. Have an update or correction? and Ali Al-Ridha said "At that time, women whose husbands passed away or got killed in the war would never get married again (and this was the source of many evils). Not just scholars, but a few passages in the Talmud, too, have supported this version. Solomon joined to these in love. (David might have intended to sin, but his actions did not exceed the bounds of the The legal corpus of Jewish laws and observances as prescribed in the Torah and interpreted by rabbinic authorities, beginning with those of the Mishnah and Talmud.halakhah). Now, however, when his desire has lessened, he presents himself as the guardian of the Torahs laws. i. The midrash states that in the end Solomon took his mothers words to heart, and when he wrote the Book of Proverbs (30:2) he admitted the error of his excessive drinking (BT Sanhedrin 70b). Similarly, in 1 Chronicles, Bathsheba is mentioned as Bathshua (daughter of Ammiel, 1 Chronicles 3:5). He uttered twenty-four psalms, but his prayer was not answered. 2.3 3) Even if we are forgiven, we may still experience sin's consequences. She was also the mother of King Solomon. "Bathsheba, Mother of Solomon, Wife of King David." Though her thoughts and feelings are never mentioned, she is never punished for her and Davids relationship, which implies that the rabbis viewed her as a righteous, guiltless woman. " : ( ) " (, "Bathsheba's Story: Surviving Abuse and Loss", "Bathsheba at the Bath, object 1 (Butlin 390) "Bathsheba at the Bath", "Ahithophel in the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia", "Is There a Queen in the Kingdom of Heaven? "the written Torah." 31:19, the heading of which is: The words of Lemuel, king of Massa, with which his mother admonished him. Since the Book of Proverbs is attributed to Solomon, the Rabbis understood King Lemuel to be Solomon, and these verses describe the reproach by Bathsheba, Solomons mother. Michael D. Coogan states that David was at fault, and not Bathsheba, because the text mentions "It was springtime, the time when kings go forth to war, but David had chosen to remain in Jerusalem instead. After David had her husband murdered, she had no choice when David took her for his wife. [27], Kenneth E. Bailey interprets the passage from a different perspective: he says that David's Jerusalem was tightly packed and Bathsheba's house may have been as close as twenty feet away from David's rooftop; people in ancient times were exceptionally modest about their bodies, so he suggests that Bathsheba displayed herself deliberately, so that instead of being an innocent victim, it was actually she who seduced David in order to rid herself of Uriah, and move in with King David. Omissions? A type of non-halakhic literary activitiy of the Rabbis for interpreting non-legal material according to special principles of interpretation (hermeneutical rules). Bathsheba Was King David's Most Famous Wife - Learn Religions 35:15]: But when I stumble, they gleefully gather; wretches gather against me, I know not why; they tear at me without end (BT Sanhedrin 107a). Bathsheba bore David other sons, most notably Solomon. As the story unravels, the narrative seems to exonerate Bathsheba of any guilt and is exclusively concerned with the kings degeneracy. The Real Bathsheba Sherman And The True Story Of 'The Conjuring' According to another tradition, David asks God: Why is it said [in prayer] the shield of Abraham, and not the shield of David? To which God replied: I put Abraham to ten tests, but I did not try you (Midrash Tehillim [ed. In the opening chapters of the book of Kings, Bathsheba plays an active role to ensure that her son is designated heir to the throne. [24], Another hadith narrated from Shia scholars states that Ali Al-Ridha, during the discussions with the scholars of other religions about prophets' infallibility, asked one of them, "What do you say about David?" 12:6): He shall pay for the lamb four times over, and was penalized by the death of four of his children: the first child born to Bathsheba, Amnon, Tamar [who was raped], and Absalom. Rachel Adelman Abigail was a woman of high station and power and therefore could resist him. Aug 19, 2019 The Story of Bathsheba in the Bible The first time Bathsheba's name is mentioned in the Bible is in 2 Samuel 11:3. In her old age, Bathsheba continued to fill her role as the mother and educator of her children. After being unable to convince Uriah to sleep with Bathsheba, David ordered his general, Joab, to put Uriah on the frontlines of the war, as that would increase Uriahs chances to be killed. [17][18][19][20][21][22], Bathsheba (Barsabeh, Bathsabeh) is venerated in Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church as a saint. Help us elevate the voices of Jewish women. In the next chapter, after David's death, Adonijah asks Bathsheba to request Solomon to give him Abishag as a wife (1 st Kings 2:13-18). How old was Solomon when he became king? Bathsheba was bathing on her roof when King David, who was walking on the roof of his palace, noticed her. She occupied an influential position as the queen mother. 1516). In text 2 Bathsheba is named Bath-shua and it is not quite clear what the meaning is. Oh, I would say yes. Women Historical Personalities, Bathshebas story appears in the Hebrew Bible (2 Samuel 11, 12; 1 Kings 1, 2). In the first scene of the Bathsheba narrative, David, who remains in the palace while his troops are deployed in war, spies a woman bathing from his rooftop after a late afternoon siesta. Matthew 1:6 mentions "the wife of Uriah" as one of Jesuss ancestors. Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Bathsheba speaks up to David on Solomon's behalf. Bathsheba, also known as Bathshua, is a character that appears in the Hebrew Bible (2 Samuel 11, 12; 1 Kings 1, 2). The story of Bathsheba has two parts: 1 Bathsheba and King David ( 2 Samuel 11:1-26, 12:15-25) Bathsheba was a beautiful, clever and unscrupulous woman. Nor does he know (in the biblical sense) the beautiful young woman, Abishag, who lies with him to keep him warm.