2 Samuel 12:17

17 The elders of his household stood over him to lift him up from the ground, but he [was] not willing, and he did not eat [any] food with them.

2 Samuel 12:17 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 12:17

And the elders of his house arose, [and went] to him, to raise
him up from the earth
To persuade him to rise up, and sit upon a seat, and go to bed, after having taken some food; these were some of the chief officers at court, and had the management of the affairs of his household:

but he would not;
they could not persuade him to it:

neither did he eat bread with them;
that evening, as he had used to do; they being the princes of his court, who were wont to sit at table with him.

2 Samuel 12:17 In-Context

15 Then Nathan went to his house, and Yahweh struck the child that the wife of Uriah bore for David, and he became ill.

16 David pleaded [with] God on behalf of the boy and David fasted. He went to spend the night and lay upon the ground.

17 The elders of his household stood over him to lift him up from the ground, but he [was] not willing, and he did not eat [any] food with them.

18 It happened on the seventh day that the child died, and the servants of David [were] afraid to tell him that the child [was] dead, for they said, "Look, when the child [was] alive, we spoke to him, but he would not listen to our voice. How can we tell him, 'The child [is] dead'? He may do [something] evil."

19 When David saw that his servants [were] whispering together, he realized that the child [was] dead. Then David said to his servants, "[Is] the child dead?" And they said, "He [is] dead."