Several weeks after her sexual relations with King David, feeling queasy and trembling, Bathsheba sat on the edge of the bed she had shared with Uriah and wept. Then she noticed another warrior stride up Uriah the Hittite. Captain Abraham is buried in the cemetery that grew up around a church that sprouted from that cabin. Others believe there may have been a special providence at work in Jesus' lineage, in which these women played a central role. Bathsheba - Britannica A replica of Bathshebas log cabin wherein she raised her family is located at the Lincoln Homestead State Park just north of Springfield, Kentucky. Some believe that this Rahab is the same person as the former prostitute of Jericho who helped Joshua's men in their spying mission (Josh. It was a risky move, coming to Kentucky, and the Lincolns knew it. [17] As soon as her days of impurity were passed, David once again brought her into his bed. Basic facts about Bathsheba. Not sure how they landed there, but I apologize for not seeing them before. Back Story : Ahithopel was the grandfather of Bathsheba. At Davids command, Solomon was immediately crowned king of all Israel. I agree! The gaps in the text have been filled by interpreters who characterize her on the spectrum from passive victim to active seductress. There could be no doubt. The prophet had noted the good influence Bathsheba had on her children. The definition of power rape seems to apply to Bathshebas situation, and nowhere does Scripture condemn her as sinful. Absolutely. Bathsheba was the sister of William Herring my 5th great grandfather. First woman executed for murder in U.S. by non-British government. To cover his sin. After completing her period of mourning for her husband, Bathsheba becomes David's wife. No doubt the king and his men had come to discuss some military matter with her grandfather, perhaps to use his keen insight to plan a battle against the Ammonites. I really think your post helps us on that road. The text specifies that her bath was an obligatory act of purification and clarifies that Davidnot Bathshebawas on the roof. At the time of Absalom's revolt he deserted David ( Psalm 41:9; 55:12 -14) and espoused the cause of Absalom ( 2 Samuel 15:12 ). Native Americans were seeking to drive the settlers back out of their country. Heres my heart Lord, take and seal it Yet when the child died, David stopped weeping and fasting and got up and cleaned himself up. She is essentially at the mercy of the men in her life. 11:24-25). In 2Sam 11:26, Bathsheba laments Uriahs death, but maybe those are crocodile tears. Bathsheba (Ruggles) Spooner Famous Kin (32987) Bathsheba's father and grandfather accepted the bride-price from Uriah the Hittite, and all, in their minds, was settled. See 2nd Samuel 12:15-18 (NIV): After Nathan had gone home, the Lord struck the child that Uriahs wife had borne to David, and he became ill. David pleaded with God for the child. Although she had seen David many times, and heard the adventurous stories that her father, Eliam, one of Davids 30 mighty warriors, told about the king, it was always a thrill to see the man God had chosen to rule Israel. [6] While she was bathing, King David noticed her great beauty her from his vantage point. Bathsheba That might be my favorite part about her story. Despite this, God knew of David's sin. She might send the message to hold David accountable, and her grief over Uriahs death could be honest. Before David's eyes would his wives be taken from him and be given to one who was close to him, and that person would sleep with them in broad daylight. David and Bathshebas child would die soon after birth. Well on Ancestry my Uncle Howard Shanklin has several DNA matches to Josiah and Mary Lincoln descendants. The king is outraged by this unrighteous act and declares that the man should be put to death. Israelite Great catch, Mary! "Notorious" Passages, Women and Relationships, Did King David Rape Bathsheba? Because Davids %%promise is nowhere narrated, some assume that Bathsheba opportunistically invents a backstory that enables her to become the royal mother. [22] Though Bathsheba's son Solomon was the promised King, there had six sons born to six wives that all had eyes on the throne. [24], Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. As this was also the name of a son of Ahithophel, one of David's old counselors, it has been conjectured that Bathsheba was a granddaughter of Ahithophel. I enjoyed researching her so much. The words of Nathan the prophet were fulfilled and before the week was out, the child was dead. Right next to the farm of his prosperous father. He immediately desires her. The child that dies is not mentioned, nor is there any mention of Nathan or his part for Solomon's succession. In Christian tradition, Bathsheba is one of four Old Testament women listed as an ancestor of Jesus. On: July 7, 2022 Asked by: Zion Jacobs Advertisement David married the widowed Bathsheba, but their first child died as punishment from God for David's adultery and murder of Uriah. I would not be pleased to have my granddaughter marrying anyone less.. Very inspiring. Enjoyed your article. It was he who advised Absalom . Ester Herring. In an effort to cover his sin, David summons Uriah from the army in the hopes that Uriah will sleep with Bathsheba, thus making Bathsheba's pregnancy seem legitimate. in Biology from the University of Louisville. I wonder what she thought of that irony, after her husband died and she raised her children alone in Kentucky. High above her, King David paced back and forth on the roof of his palace. Bathsheba is bathing when David first sees her. Bathsheba | The Crimson Thread Thus, three, and possibly all four, of the women named in Matthew's genealogy were women of alleged sexual impurity. David fasted and wept before the LORD, praying that God would spare the child. The family background for Bathsheba is really informative. Why did they come? Bathshebas life would never be the same, nor would Davids. [1] In fact when her relationship to David is mentioned, the only one declared sinful is him (2 Samuel 12:1-6). . Thank you for writing it. In 1782, she traveled through the Cumberland Gap with her husband, Abraham, and their children, ranging from 2 to 11 years of age. Offspring He couldnt take his eyes off her. (Wipf & Stock, 2011). Additionally, because I work with the sexually exploited, to know that despite Davids past as a rapist and murderer, he became a man after Gods own heart gives me a lot of hope for the people who are exploiting the vulnerable in my community. Would you like some wine? She came to him, and he slept with her (verse 4). Her first novel, Yielded Captive, was published last spring. But it could also be that Bathsheba, the wise royal mother, knows that Adonijahs request would give Solomon a reason to dispatch his rival for the throne. I would have been easy to just fade away, but she fought for her son as well as herself. In the end, Uriahs righteousness cost him his life, and Bathsheba is brought to the palace to take her place in the harem as another of Davids wives. Joab performs this treacherous deed, and Uriah is killed as a result. Daily she prayed to God to bring Uriah home safely. No one had spoken up for her or defended her rights when she was stripped of her life as Uriahs wife and placed in the kings harem. [12] The child she carried would be the talk around the court in the months following the royal wedding. King Lemuel, generally accepted as a pseudonym of King Solomons, introduces Proverbs 31 as an oracle his mother taught him. Consider these words from the hymn, Come thou Fount of Every Blessing: Prone to wander, Lord I feel it After about an hour with David, Ahithophel returned to his house alone. Apparently not uncommon [but certainly concerning], was the fact that he did not list the name of his wife-to-be. I think we can see possibilities that we couldnt notice before. A few years ago my uncle tested on Ancestry to reach back another layer in the family to Leonard Alexander Herring father of Bathsheba. And as for what David did to her and to one of his longest serving companions, he got off easy. However, Uriah declines David's offer to take his ease at home, preferring to remain with the palace troops. Having grown up in a very conservative denomination it was particularly interesting to hear how this story was viewed through the eyes and minds of women. Bathsheba: Mother and Queen - Grace Communion International Moreover, David was the king; could any subject, especially a woman, reasonably refuse to come when summoned? Her mother, in an effort to encourage her, explained their many reasons for choosing him. Bathshebas third action in 2Sam 11 is to send a message to David announcing her pregnancy. This is a whole layer of patriarchal purity culture I dont understand. Copyright 2023, Society of Biblical Literature, Isnt This Bathsheba? Alternatively, some readers see Bathsheba continually used by more powerful male characters in the story. The Lord loved him; and because the Lord loved him, he sent word through Nathan the prophet to name him Jedidiah. most of his 24 titles are available on this site and Amazon with many on Kindle and Audible! He has a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Santa Clara University, and a Masters and PhD. Maybe he made a mistake not going with Joab and the army to Rabbah, he thought. Bathsheba Herring Lincoln was the wife of our Abes grandfather. And Bathsheba was 28 when she married the then 26-year-old Captain Abraham. Its claimed over me because of Jesus. http://www.cbeinternational.org. A Case Study in Narrative Theology.. I love how our God is so redemptive! And we need to wrestle with the implications that this man after Gods own heart was as much sinner as saint. Bathsheba, my dear. Uriah the Hittite - Wikipedia Was it wanderlust? NETBible: Ahithophel Who was the grandfather of Bathsheba? - TimesMojo As he made yet one more turn walking around the roof, he suddenly spotted Bathsheba. /a/ahithophel.htm - 16k. Uriah had saved her father once in battle; Uriah was counted among David's thirty mighty men; Uriah had proven himself valorous . Thomas, who had spent some time away with a cousin in East Tennessee, married Nancy Hanks in 1806, and moved to a lot he had purchased in the community of Elizabethtown in Hardin County, Kentucky. Bathsheba and David have a second child, Solomon, who succeeds his father as king, though he is not the oldest living son. Bathshebas first child was not still born, rather, it became ill and died shortly after birth. Once David had died, Adonijah sought to make David's final concubine, a slave girl named Abishag, his wife. Did he just want to get away from encroaching society? Thanks for sharing this perspective on Bathsheda! When the Lincolns got to their land, they slept within the walls of the nearby stockade fort of George Hughes. Bathsheba does not appear again in the narrative until David's old age, when she figures prominently in the question of who will succeed the king on the throne of Israel. With Eliam, the transfer of syllables moves "El" (God) to the back of Eliam's name. In 1Kgs 1, at Nathans behest, Bathsheba reminds the aged David that he had promised that Solomon would be king. When Absalom siezed power and drove his father out of Jerusalem, Ahithophel stayed behind and became chief advisor to the rebellion (2 Sam 15:30-31). In Talmudic tradition, Bathsheba may have been providentially destined from the time of creation to become in due course the legitimate wife of David, but this relation was prematurely precipitated by David's impetuous act of adultery with her. Does the evidence sustain this view? David then commands that Solomon be crowned king instead of Adonijah, the oldest son and rightful successor to the throne. Bathsheba | Women in the Bible They came safely into Kentucky over the Cumberland Gap with packhorses. David examines her closely, and validates the abuse. Mordecai married first in 1796, and moved nearby to land that he purchased. Bathsheba the King's Mother a Hittite? - LinkedIn [7], Afterreturning home, it is likely she suspected this affair was not over. Ive been reading through 1st and 2nd Samuel over the past month, and last night, after having grown up in Sunday school, hearing the story of David and Bathsheba numerous times, the question finally popped into my brain, Why do we villainize Bathsheba? In the story that Nathan tells David to help him realize the error of his ways, she is even represented as a lamb, a symbol of innocence that is used in the New Testament to refer to Jesus himself. Whether that group is defined by religion, race, or. After also hearing from Nathan about Adonijahs premature coronation celebration, David realized he must act quickly to save all their lives. As Bathshebas story continues in 1 Kings, she can still be interpreted in more than one way: as cunning queen or unwitting pawn of other men. But the cabin he was building was upslope. 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. . Since 2 Samuel 11:3 notes that Eliam is the father of Bathsheba, some scholars suggest that the Ahitophel of 2 Samuel 15 may in fact be Bathsheba's grandfather. Motivated by his guilt and his concern for Bathsheba, after several unsuccessful attempts to have Uriah return to his wifes bed, David tried to cover up the sin by having Uriah killed in battle. Gail (co-editor for TJP), Thank you, Sarah! What a beautifully exposed sight we get of Bathsheba from what youve written here, Dalaina. In 2 Samuel 11:3 we are Read More 05 Feb Uriah The Hittite: Bathsheba's Canaanite Husband and David's Mighty Man New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article You and me both, Gail! Interestingly, one of Ahithophel's admonitions to Absalom was that he take the harem of the king ( 2 Samuel 16:21-22 ). Her story is found primarily in 2 Samuel 11-12 and 1 Kings 1-2. Other Names A Case Study in Narrative Theology, Whispers of Hope and Subversion in the Old Testament, Co-Pastoring & Marriage: 5 Things That Helped Us Survive It All , Power Dynamics Between Jesus and the Canaanite Woman in Matthew 15, Using Peter and Paul Against Mary? He practices law from offices in Shelbyville, Kentucky concentrating his legal practice in environmental law. He sent the prophet Nathan to convict David of his sin. Particularly in 2 Samuel, Bathshebas motives and emotions go undescribed when certain actions are narrated. The elders of his household stood beside him to get him up from the ground, but he refused, and he would not eat any food with them. He also has his Juris Doctorate in Law from the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law. Bathshebas first action is bathing, and many have understood her bath to be some sort of exhibitionist act to tempt and seduce David. I heard something somewhere about great responsibility coming with great power. Rembrandt: Bathsheba at Her Bath Bathsheba was a daughter of Eliam and was probably of noble birth. I have high hopes for him. Bathsheba is an Israelite, but because she was married to Uriah the Hittite, some interpreters thought that she was also a foreigner. "My lord the king," she implores him, "the eyes of all Israel are on you, to learn from you who will sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. Dr. Van Stockum, Jr. has published numerous books, articles, and short stories in the areas of law, science, and creative writing. How old was Bathsheba? In the early Greek translation of the Bible, the clause in 2Sam 11:4 reads he came to her, such that all initiative in the sexual encounter is Davids. 27:33, 34). All Rights Reserved. In songs and art, Bathsheba bathes on the roof or naked in the open air. While Bathsheba's husband Uriah was off with David's army fighting the Ammonites, David saw Bathsheba, brought her to his palace, and had sex with her. It is interesting how easy it is to read into a story what we want to see. Solomon not only refuses but has Adonijah killed. Overcoming the ignoble beginning of their lives together, patiently suffering the consequences of their sin, both Bathsheba and David learned from their mistakes and grew in the knowledge and righteousness of God. In cultures other than Israel, the right of the first night often belonged to the king and while we should be able to expect otherwise in Israel, perhaps the ten commandments were pushed aside in a perverted sense of accomplishing justice for Uriahs adamant refusal to conjugate the marital vows with his wife. One story, one room, and no partitions. 69 b ), was misled by his knowledge of astrology into believing himself destined to become king of Israel. But Nathan the prophet confronts David about his sins, and God punishes David through the death of Bathshebas child. Go decide for yourself. [1] For a compelling argument that Bathsheba was the victim of sexual abuse at the hands of King David, see Davidsons excellent article, Did King David Rape Bathsheba? Biographical Before long, my little girl, you will be a happily married woman. She married Revolutionary War Captain Abraham Lincoln [born 1744] in 1770. So, until genetic evidence proves otherwise, I believe it reasonable to consider Bathsheba as Captain Abrahams only wife and the mother of his children. Abraham, father of Thomas, and father of our Abraham. You know their names. The lack of details in Bathshebas story has resulted in her character being read in multiple ways. On the other hand, there is reason to suppose that Bathsheba was of a family that existed in Jerusalem before . He was killed in Kentucky by Native Americans in 1786. Her name, given as "Bathshua" in the Book of Chronicles, means either seventh daughter or daughter of the oath. Within six months of her husbands death, Bathsheba moved her family farther south into the more settled Outer Bluegrass of Kentucky around Bairdstown. I have always viewed her as a woman born into a culture in which she is little more than property but was able to use her circumstances as a spring board to achieve new heights. BATHSHEBA, ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S GRANDMOTHER - Life and Landscapes - A But not today. That has led to significant controversy among Lincoln researchers. [13], This story enraged the king and said that rich man deserved to die and had to pay the poor man for the lamb four times over. The only time we hear her voice is when she sends a message to the king announcing her pregnancy. Bathsheba, like the biblical mother of King Solomon. Bathshebas grandfather Ahithophel was the advisor for Davids son Absalom, when Absalom attempted a coup on his fathers throne. Bathsheba Uriah, Bathsheba's husband, was killed through the conniving plan of David in his desperate attempt to hide the fact that he was the father of the child that Bathsheba was carrying. After a period of mourning for her husband,[11] Bathsheba became David's seventh wife. Bathshua It is possible that the purchase was financed by his brother, Mordecai, after selling his fathers warrant lands on the Upper Green River. The first is Tamar, who committed adultery with her father-in-law Judah in order to perpetuate his dying lineage. A PLAGUE ON US: THE BEGINNING OF PANDEMICS! Bathsheba is buried in the Lincoln Cemetery, now within the Ft. Knox Military Base. As they discussed the days rumors from the war, she wished she could feel as calm as they appeared. In the end she did not lose her physical life like Uriah did, but she did lose her rights to her body, her husband, and eventually her child (2 Samuel 12:15-18). Her father Eliam and her first husband, Uriah, belonged to the Elite Palace Guard, called the Thirty. Probably onto land held by another Lincoln relative who had borrowed money from Captain Abraham to buy it. Nine Men in the Life of Bathsheba - Current Issue My two cents : ). A few years ago my uncle tested on Ancestry to reach back another layer in the family to Leonard Alexander Herring father of Bathsheba. Thanks for a fresh perspective on this woman. Did she weep at the murder of her husband, as Michal did when she was taken from her husband. Bathsheba approaches Solomon with the request, which he interprets as treasonous. So why did he come here? document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Thank you so much for sharing! The evidence in question comes from the infamous marriage of David and Bathsheba. The passages in which Bathsheba's story is told are 2 Samuel 11:2-12:24, and 1 Kings 1-2, both of which are believed to be from the oldest stratum of the books of Samuel and Kings. Thanks for a well-researched essay that goes way beyond the usual stereotypes. The Shocking Truth About Bathsheba's Marriage to David in the Bible But were not responsible for what we do when a beautiful woman comes along. I dont buy the idea that Uriah was a crappy husband. By some accounts, anecdotal, circumstantial, or familial, the mother of Captain Lincolns first children might have been Mary Shipley [an early candidate promoted by J.L. Unspoken: Bathsheba - Francine Rivers One of the wives of King David and, before that, wife of Uriah the Hittite, one of Davids Generals [Uriahs death was effected by Davids desire for Bathsheba, 2 Samuel 11-12, and I Kings 1-2 KJV]. The Bible By Category The Bible: Bathsheba: Mother and Queen The following story is based on events in 2 Samuel 11-17 and 1 Kings 1-2. This is not a contradiction. Religion . Although there is some controversy over whether the Lemuel of Proverbs 31 refers to Solomon, if rabbinical commentators are right, the imperial mother here advising her kingly son is Bathsheba. 25). The father of Bathsheba was Eliam (spelled "Ammiel" in I Chronicles 3:5). She was a survivor and a hero. Many of the daughters of Israel must envy you, marrying King Davids finest warrior., Ahithophels smile faded as he continued: And, not only is Uriah courageous in battle, he is a disciplined and dedicated man. We should have caught that the first time around. That is what is most important, child. He still does. Thanks for writing on Bathsheba the way you have . Topical Bible: Ahithophel - Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in According to 2 Samuel 11, despite it being spring"the time when kings go out to war"David stayed in Jerusalem while his army, under Joab, battled the Ammonites at Rabbah.
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