፲፩

1. Verse 1.፩

   ወእምዝ ፡ በጻሕ ፡ ዓመተ ፡ መዋዕል ፡ አመ ፡ ይወፅኡ ፡ ነገሥት ፡ ወፈነዎሙ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ ለኢያብ ፡ ወለኩሉ ፡ አግብርቲሁ ፡ ወለእስራኤል ፡ ወተቃተልዎሙ ፡ ለደቂቀ ፡ እሞን ፡ ወነበሩ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ራባ ፡ ወዳዊትሰ ፡ ነበረ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ኢየሩሳሌም ።

   And then, when the turn of the year had come, at the time when kings go out [to war], David sent Joab and all his servants and Israel; and they fought against the children of Ammon, and they besieged [encamped at] Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem.

2. Verse 2.፪

   ወሶበ ፡ ኮነ ፡ ፍና ፡ ሰርክ ፡ ተንሥአ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ እምስካቡ ፡ ወዓርገ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ናሕሰ ፡ ቤተ ፡ ንጉሥ ፡ የንሶሱ ፡ ወርእየ ፡ ብእሲተ ፡ ላዕለ ፡ ናሕስ ፡ እንዘ ፡ ትትሐፀብ ፡ ወሠናይት ፡ ይእቲ ፡ ብእሲት ፡ ራእያ ፡ ፈድፋደ ።

   And when it was the hour of evening, David arose from his bed and went up onto the roof of the king's house and walked about; and he saw a woman upon a roof bathing; and the woman was very beautiful in appearance.

3. Verse 3.፫

   ወይቤ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ ዘመኑ ፡ ይእቲ ፡ ብእሲት ፡ ወይቤ ፡ አኮኑ ፡ ቤርሳቤሕ ፡ ይእቲ ፡ ወለተ ፡ ኤልያብ ፡ ብእሲተ ፡ ኦርዮ ፡ ዜጥያዊ ።

   And David said, 'Whose is this woman?' And [one] said, 'Is this not Bathsheba the daughter of Eliab, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?'

4. Verse 4.፬

   ወለአከ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ ኀቤሃ ፡ ወነሥአ ፡ ወሰከበ ፡ ምስሌሃ ፡ ወይእቲሰ ፡ በከመ ፡ ተሐፀበት ፡ እምነ ፡ ትክቶሃ ፡ ወአተወት ፡ ቤታ ።

   And David sent to her and took her, and lay with her; and she had just purified herself from her [uncleanness]; and she returned to her house.

5. Verse 5.፭

   ወፀንሰት ፡ ይእቲ ፡ ብእሲት ፡ ወለአከት ፡ ወዜነወቶ ፡ ለዳዊት ፡ ወትቤ ፡ ፀንስኩ ፡ አነ ።

   And the woman conceived, and she sent and informed David, and said, 'I have conceived.'

6. Verse 6.፮

   ወለአከ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ ኀበ ፡ ኢዮአብ ፡ እንዘ ፡ ይብል ፡ ፈንም ፡ ለኦርዮ ፡ ኬጥያዊ ፡ ወፈነወ ፡ ኢዮአብ ፡ ለኦርዮ ፡ ኀበ ፡ ዳዊት ።

   And David sent to Joab, saying, 'Send to me Uriah the Hittite.' And Joab sent Uriah to David.

7. Verse 7.፯

   ወበጻሐ ፡ ኦርዮ ፡ ወቦአ ፡ ኀቤሁ ፡ ወተስእሎ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ በእንተ ፡ ዳዓናሁ ፡ ለኢዮአብ ፡ ወበእንተ ፡ ዳዓና ፡ ሕዝብ ፡ ወበእንተ ፡ ዳዓና ፡ ፀብእ ።

   And Uriah came and entered to him; and David asked [him] about the welfare of Joab, and about the welfare of the people, and about the welfare of the battle.

8. Verse 8.፰

   ወይቤሎ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ ለኦርዮ ፡ ሐራ ፡ ረድ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ቤትከ ፡ ወተሐፀብ ፡ እገሪከ ፡ ወወፅአ ፡ ኦርዮ ፡ እምነ ፡ ቤተ ፡ ንጉሥ ፡ ወወዲአ ፡ ተለዎ ፡ ወዓሌ ፡ ንጉሥ ።

   And David said to Uriah, 'Go down to your house and wash your feet.' And Uriah went out from the king's house, and a portion [gift] of the king followed [was sent] after him.

9. Verse 9.፱

   ወስከበ ፡ ኦርዮ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ደዴ ፡ ቤተ ፡ ንጉሥ ፡ ምስለ ፡ ኵሉ ፡ አግብርተ ፡ እግዚእ ፡ ወኢወረደ ፡ ቤቶ ።

   And Uriah lay down at the door of the king's house with all the servants of [his] lord, and did not go down to his house.

10. Verse 10.፲

    ወዜነውዎ ፡ ለዳዊት ፡ እንዘ ፡ ይብሉ ፡ ኢወረደ ፡ ኦርዮ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ቤቱ ፡ ወይቤሎ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ ለኦርዮ ፡ እምነ ፡ ሐቅል ፡ መጻእከ ፡ ለምንት ፡ ኢወረድከ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ቤትከ ።

    And they told David, saying, 'Uriah did not go down to his house.' And David said to Uriah, 'Have you not come from the journey? Why did you not go down to your house?'

11. Verse 11.፲፩

    ወይቤሎ ፡ ኦርዮ ፡ ለዳዊት ፡ ታቦተ ፡ እግዚእብሔር ፡ እስራኤል ፡ ወይሁዳ ፡ ይነብሩ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ደብተራ ፡ ወኢዮአብ ፡ እግዚእየ ፡ ወአግብርተ ፡ እግዚእየ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ገዳም ፡ ይትአየኑ ፡ ወአንሰ ፡ እበው ፡ እበው ፡ ውስተ ፡ ቤትየ ፡ ከመ ፡ እብላዕ ፡ ወእስተይ ፡ ወከመ ፡ እስክብ ፡ ምስለ ፡ ብእሲትየ ፡ ሕያው ፡ አንተ ፡ ወሕያው ፡ ነፍስከ ፡ ከመ ፡ ኢይገብር ፡ ለዝንቱ ፡ ነገር ።

    And Uriah said to David, 'The ark of Yahweh, and Israel and Judah, dwell in tents [booths], and Joab my lord and the servants of my lord are encamped in the open field; and shall I enter — shall I enter into 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.'

12. Verse 12.፲፪

    ወይቤሎ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ ለኦርዮ ፡ ንበር ፡ ዝየ ፡ ዮም ፡ ወጌሰመ ፡ እፌንወከ ፡ ወነበረ ፡ ኦርዮ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ኢየሩሳሌም ፡ ይእተ ፡ አሚረ ።

    And David said to Uriah, 'Stay here today, and tomorrow I will send you [back].' And Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day.

13. Verse 13.፲፫

    ወፀውዓ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ ወበልዓ ፡ ወስትየ ፡ ወአስከሮ ፡ ወወፅአ ፡ ሰርከከ ፡ ከመ ፡ ይስክብ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ዓራቱ ፡ ምስለ ፡ አግብርተ ፡ እግዚእ ፡ ወኢወረደ ፡ ቤቶ ።

    And David summoned him, and he ate and drank [before him], and he made him drunk; and in the evening he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of [his] lord, and did not go down to his house.

14. Verse 14.፲፬

    ወሶበ ፡ ፀብሐ ፡ ፀሐፈ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ መጽሐፈ ፡ ኀበ ፡ ኢዮአብ ፡ ወፈነወ ፡ በእዱ ፡ ለኦርዮ ።

    And when it was morning, David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah.

15. Verse 15.፲፭

    ወፀሐፈ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ውእቱ ፡ ፀሐፍ ፡ እንዘ ፡ ይብል ፡ አብእዎ ፡ ለኦርዮብ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ፀኑዕ ፡ ቀትል ፡ ፍጽሙ ፡ ወተመየጡ ፡ እምድኅሬሁ ፡ ወኃደግምዎ ፡ ይቅትል ፡ ወይሙት ።

    And he wrote in that letter, saying, 'Bring Uriah into the front of the fierce battle, and turn back from behind him, and leave him, that he may be struck down and die.'

16. Verse 16.፲፮

    እምዝ ፡ እንዘ ፡ የዓቅባ ፡ ኢዮአብ ፡ ለሀገር ፡ ወወሰደ ፡ ለኦርዮ ፡ ውስተ ፡ መካን ፡ ኀበ ፡ የአምር ፡ ከመ ፡ ህለው ፡ ዕደው ፡ ፅኑዓን ፡ ህየ ።

    And then, while Joab was besieging [keeping watch over] the city, he stationed Uriah in the place where he knew that valiant men were.

17. Verse 17.፲፯

    ወወፅኡ ፡ ሰብእ ፡ ህገር ፡ ከመ ፡ ይቃተሉ ፡ ምስለ ፡ ኢዮአብ ፡ ወወድቁ ፡ እምአግብርተ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ ወሞተ ፡ ኦርዮ ፡ ኬጥያዊ ።

    And the men of the city went out to fight against Joab, and some of the servants of David fell; and Uriah the Hittite died.

18. Verse 18.፲፰

    ወፈነወ ፡ ኢዮአብ ፡ ይዜንዎ ፡ ለንጉሥ ፡ ኵሎ ፡ ግብረ ፡ ፀብእ ።

    And Joab sent to tell the king all the [matters] of the battle.

19. Verse 19.፲፱

    ይነግርዎ ፡ ለንጉሥ ፡ ወኮነን ፡ ለእመ ፡ ተምዕበ ፡ ንጉሥ ፡ ወይቤ ፡ ለምንት ፡ ቀረብክሙ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ሀገር ፡ ከመ ፡ ትትቃተሉ ፡ ኤተ ፡ አምራኩ ፡ ከመ ፡ ይነድፉ ፡ እምነ ፡ እረፍት ።

    [and he charged the messenger], 'When you have told the king [these things], it shall be, if the king is angry and says to you, "Why did you draw near to the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from upon the wall?

20. Verse 20.፳

    መኑ ፡ ቀተሎ ፡ ለአበሜሌክ ፡ ወልደ ፡ ሮብአም ፡ አኮኑ ፡ ብእሲት ፡ ወገደፈት ፡ ስባሬ ፡ ማሕረፀ ፡ ላዕሌሁ ፡ እምነ ፡ መልዕልተ ፡ እረፍት ፡ ወሞተ ፡ በታምናስ ፡ ለምንት ፡ ቀበርክሙ ፡ እረፍት ፡ ወትቤሎ ፡ ገብርከኒ ፡ እምርዮ ፡ ኬጥያዊ ፡ ሞተ ።

    Who struck down Abimelech the son of [Robam — so the Ge'ez; corrupt, cf. Jerubbaal]? Did not a woman cast down a piece of a millstone upon him from upon the wall, and he died at [Tamnas — so the Ge'ez; corrupt, cf. Thebez]? Why did you draw near to the wall?" — then you shall say, "Your servant Uriah the Hittite also is dead."'

21. Verse 21.፳፩

    ወሐረ ፡ ሳእኩ ፡ ለኢዮአብ ፡ ወዜነዎ ፡ ለንጉሥ ፡ ኵሎ ፡ ዘይቤሎ ፡ ኢዮአብ ።

    And the messenger [of Joab] went and told the king all that Joab had told him.

22. Verse 22.፳፪

    ወይቤሎ ፡ ሳእክ ፡ ለዳዊት ፡ ሶበ ፡ ኃየሉነ ፡ ወደገኑነ ፡ እሙንቱ ፡ ዕደው ፡ ወአውፅኡነ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ገዳም ፡ ወእምዝ ፡ ተመየጥናሆሙ ፡ ወሰደድናሆሙ ፡ እስከ ፡ ኆኅተ ፡ አንቀጽ ።

    And the messenger said to David, 'When [the men] prevailed against us and pursued us, those men, and drove us out into the open field, and then we turned [back] upon them and drove them as far as the gateway of the gate,

23. Verse 23.፳፫

    ወነደፉ ፡ ስብእ ፡ ሐዕለ ፡ ዕለ ፡ እግብርቲከ ፡ እመልዕልተ ፡ እረፍት ፡ ወሞቱ ፡ እምአግብርተ ፡ ንጉሥ ፡ ወካዕበ ፡ ግብርከኒ ፡ ኦርዮ ፡ ኬጥያዊ ፡ ሞተ ።

    the [bowmen] shot at your servants from upon the wall, and some of the king's servants died; and moreover your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.'

24. Verse 24.፳፬

    ወይቤሎ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ ለውእቱ ፡ ኢያዕብስ ፡ ዝንቱ ፡ ነገር ፡ ቅድመ ፡ አዕይንቲከ ፡ እስመ ፡ ከመዝ ፡ ይበልዕ ፡ ኩናት ፡ ወአጽንዕ ፡ ተቃትለከ ፡ ምስለ ፡ ሀገር ፡ አስተጋብእ ።

    And David said to [the messenger], 'Let not this matter be evil in your eyes, for thus the sword devours; press your battle harder against the city and overthrow it.' [Thus] encourage [Joab].

25. Verse 25.፳፭

    ወአጽንዓ ፡ ወሰምዓት ፡ ብእሲቱ ፡ ለኦርዮ ፡ ከመ ፡ ሞተ ፡ ኦርዮ ፡ ወበከየቶ ፡ ለዕለ ፡ ምታ ።

    And the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, and she mourned for her husband.

26. Verse 26.፳፮

    ወእምዝ ፡ ሶበ ፡ ሐለፈ ፡ መዋዕለ ፡ ሐዘን ፡ ለአከ ፡ ሳቲ ፡ ዳዊት ፡ ወነሥአ ፡ ወእቴዋ ፡ ውስተ ፡ ቤቱ ፡ ወኮነቶ ፡ ብእሲቶ ፡ ወወለደት ፡ ሎቱ ፡ ወልደ ፡ ወኮነ ፡ ዝንቱ ፡ እኩየ ፡ በቅድመ ፡ እግዚእብሔር ፡ ዘገብረ ፡ ዳዊት ።

    And then, when the days of mourning had passed, David sent and took her into his house, and she became his wife, and bore him a son. But this thing that David had done was evil in the sight of Yahweh.

Geʽez transcribed from the manuscripts; the English is a literal back-translation — a reading aid, not a replacement for the Geʽez. Free to read, copy, and share.