2 Samuel 11:2

2 And it came to pass one evening, that David arose from off his bed and walked upon the roof of the king’s house, and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself, and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.

2 Samuel 11:2 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 11:2

And it came to pass in an eveningtide
Some time in the afternoon, when the sun began to decline; not in the dusk of the evening, for then the object he saw could not have been seen so distinctly by him:

that David arose from off his bed;
having taken a nap in the heat of the day after dinner; indulging himself more than he used to do to sloth and luxury, which prepared him, and led him on the more eagerly to the lust of uncleanness:

and walked upon the roof of the king's house;
to refresh himself after his sleep, it being the cool of the day, and the roof of the house being flat and fit to walk upon, as the houses of Judea were; see ( Deuteronomy 22:8 ) ;

and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself;
in a bath in her garden, or in an apartment in her house, the window being open:

and the woman [was] very beautiful to look upon;
of a fine shape and good complexion, and comely countenance; all which were incentives to lust, at which his eye was attracted to, and his heart was ensnared with her.

2 Samuel 11:2 In-Context

1 And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab and his slaves with him and all Israel, and they destroyed the sons of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem.

2 And it came to pass one evening, that David arose from off his bed and walked upon the roof of the king’s house, and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself, and the woman was very beautiful to look upon.

3 And David sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah, the Hittite?

4 And David sent messengers and took her, and she came in unto him, and he lay with her. Then she purified herself from her uncleanness, and she returned unto her house.

5 And the woman conceived and sent and told David and said, I am with child.