Week 3 Story: Bathsheba Revisited
There once was a time when King David ruled Jerusalem, and he had just sent all of his soldiers off to battle.
One evening, David had nothing else to do and decided to pass his time on the roof of his house. Not much longer after arriving, he noticed a woman. Though she was on the roof of a nearby house, he could see that she was bathing. She was beautiful.
With no other current obligations, the king immediately sent for her and brought her to his house that he may sleep with her.
However, she had a husband. His name was Uriah. Not only did David know this husband, but he was also one of the king's most prestigious generals, and at the time was off at war.
Not long after sleeping with Bathsheba, David heard from her. She was pregnant.
He panicked, knowing that something had to be done. How could he cover up his mistake?
He decided to try the most obvious option - get Uriah to sleep with his wife. David sent for Uriah from battle, and he quickly arrived back in Jerusalem. Despite David's repeated attempts to send Uriah back to his house to be with his wife, Uriah refused. He could not sleep with his wife while his people were at war.
David resorted to his back up plan - ensure that Uriah would be killed in battle, and then take Bathsheba as his own wife. Thus, he sent orders for Uriah to be put on the front lines in the most dangerous area for fighting. Surely, he would die.
Soon, David would find out that his plan had been foiled. Though Uriah had been seriously wounded with a spear in the chest, he survived the injury and went on to lead the army to victory.
David was in trouble. He frantically searched for other options, but quickly ran out of time.
Uriah was thrilled to finally see his wife after being away in battle. Upon return, he went straight to his home to see Bathsheba. Though he didn't notice a physical difference, something seemed different about her. She was acting strangely. After confronting her about it, he finally learned what was wrong: she was pregnant.
He couldn't believe it.
How could this have happened?
He had nobody to turn to except his closest friend, the king. He immediately sent for David and decided to visit him.
Upon arriving in David's chambers, he could only see the back of the king, who sat facing a window.
Uriah walked across the room slowly, not wanting to scare the king. As Uriah approached him, David turned his head, showing his tear-stained cheeks. With a deep breath, David began to speak...
Author's note:
This story is based on the original story of David and Bathsheba found in the Bible. The original version possesses a beginning very similar to the version that I retold. One day, King David sees a beautiful woman and decides to find out who she is. Though he discovers that she is the wife of one of his generals, he still brings her to his house and sleeps with her. Upon finding out that she is pregnant, he tries to cover up what he has done. First, he tries to convince Uriah, her husband, to sleep with her. However, Uriah does not comply. Next, David decides to place Uriah in the front lines of battle, that he may be killed. This is where the stories differ. In the original, Uriah dies, and David then takes Bathsheba as his wife. However, in my retelling, Uriah survives the battle. He comes home, only to find out that his wife, having slept with another man, is pregnant. Ironically, the only person he knows to speak with about what has happened is his close friend, King David. We never find out if David ends up being honest about what happened. This is where my story ends!
Image Information: Uriah supposedly slain in battle.
Link: Image
Bibliography
Bathsheba in the King James Version: link
One evening, David had nothing else to do and decided to pass his time on the roof of his house. Not much longer after arriving, he noticed a woman. Though she was on the roof of a nearby house, he could see that she was bathing. She was beautiful.
With no other current obligations, the king immediately sent for her and brought her to his house that he may sleep with her.
However, she had a husband. His name was Uriah. Not only did David know this husband, but he was also one of the king's most prestigious generals, and at the time was off at war.
Not long after sleeping with Bathsheba, David heard from her. She was pregnant.
He panicked, knowing that something had to be done. How could he cover up his mistake?
He decided to try the most obvious option - get Uriah to sleep with his wife. David sent for Uriah from battle, and he quickly arrived back in Jerusalem. Despite David's repeated attempts to send Uriah back to his house to be with his wife, Uriah refused. He could not sleep with his wife while his people were at war.
David resorted to his back up plan - ensure that Uriah would be killed in battle, and then take Bathsheba as his own wife. Thus, he sent orders for Uriah to be put on the front lines in the most dangerous area for fighting. Surely, he would die.
Soon, David would find out that his plan had been foiled. Though Uriah had been seriously wounded with a spear in the chest, he survived the injury and went on to lead the army to victory.
David was in trouble. He frantically searched for other options, but quickly ran out of time.
Uriah was thrilled to finally see his wife after being away in battle. Upon return, he went straight to his home to see Bathsheba. Though he didn't notice a physical difference, something seemed different about her. She was acting strangely. After confronting her about it, he finally learned what was wrong: she was pregnant.
He couldn't believe it.
How could this have happened?
He had nobody to turn to except his closest friend, the king. He immediately sent for David and decided to visit him.
Upon arriving in David's chambers, he could only see the back of the king, who sat facing a window.
Uriah walked across the room slowly, not wanting to scare the king. As Uriah approached him, David turned his head, showing his tear-stained cheeks. With a deep breath, David began to speak...
Author's note:
This story is based on the original story of David and Bathsheba found in the Bible. The original version possesses a beginning very similar to the version that I retold. One day, King David sees a beautiful woman and decides to find out who she is. Though he discovers that she is the wife of one of his generals, he still brings her to his house and sleeps with her. Upon finding out that she is pregnant, he tries to cover up what he has done. First, he tries to convince Uriah, her husband, to sleep with her. However, Uriah does not comply. Next, David decides to place Uriah in the front lines of battle, that he may be killed. This is where the stories differ. In the original, Uriah dies, and David then takes Bathsheba as his wife. However, in my retelling, Uriah survives the battle. He comes home, only to find out that his wife, having slept with another man, is pregnant. Ironically, the only person he knows to speak with about what has happened is his close friend, King David. We never find out if David ends up being honest about what happened. This is where my story ends!
Image Information: Uriah supposedly slain in battle.
Link: Image
Bibliography
Bathsheba in the King James Version: link
Hey Jake! What an interesting decision to change the ending of the story! I think it would have been more interesting to sum up the beginning of the story and really start the majority of your writing from where the stories differ. How would David have gone forward from this? Considering he had already tried to have Uriah killed, couldn't he have him killed now that he's back? Would Bathsheba react if she knew David had had her husband killed?
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