Did Bathsheba Seduce David?
Did Bathsheba purposefully seek to seduce David when bathing? 
Some books say Bathsheba “intended” to be seen by the king, presumably to seduce David and get closer to the seat of power. But I think this is misreading Scripture. The Bible portrays Bathsheba as an honorable woman of respectable character.
Here are three things about Bathsheba we can be fairly certain about in light of the honor-shame cultural dynamics. These are not facts, but reasonable deductions from the social context.
- Bathsheba was socially prominent. Bathsheba gets introduced as “the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite” (2 Sam 11:3). Both her father and her husband were on David’s Top 30 list of elite warriors (2 Sam 23), thus would have enjoyed renown and honor. Bathsheba herself would have inherited such prominence via birth and then marriage. She came from a distinguished family, and been expected to carry herself accordingly. Bathsheba would have most likely acted to retain her family’s social prominence.
- Bathsheba was Torah observant. Bathsheba was not bathing to seduce David, but to observe OT purity regulations. Let’s reason backwards: Bathsheba got pregnant, so that means she was ovulating at the time. Ovulation happens 1 week after menstruation stops. Therefore, Bathsheba was bathing one week after her bleeding, precisely when Jewish law required ritual bathing for a woman’s bleeding (Lev 15:18-30). The story even says, “Now she had been purifying herself from her uncleanness.” (2 Sam 11:4, ESV). That detail describes the purposes of Bathsheba’s cleansing (and alerts astute readers to an impeding problem, as the time of ritual bathing is when babies are made!) Bathsheba’s bath was likely the ritual bathing of a Torah observant lady, and not a Hollywood-style seduction scene. The text does not say she was bathing naked; she may well have been clothed and washing with a bowl.
- Bathsheba was a teenager. Considering she was old enough to be married yet still without children, Bathsheba was likely 16-19 years old in the story. In collectivistic cultures prizing children, that phase of “married-without-kids” usually lasts no more than 12 months. Nathan’s reference to her as a “little ewe lamb” (2 Sam 12:3) collaborates this deduction.
Not being told otherwise, the reader could reasonably assume a Torah-observant teenager from a prominent family would behave as socially expected—with modesty and humility, with a healthy sense of shame. Bathsheba would have hardly been pursuing David. Rather, as a young female she would have been unsure how to resist the King. The significant power distance between David and Bathsheba likely limited her ability to refuse the superior.
Considering the social realities in 1 Samuel 11 it is most plausible she was not seeking an extramarital relationship with David. While the text is admittedly silent in that chapter, the next chapter is rather clear on this matter. When Nathan confronts David, there is zero mention of Bathsheba’s fault. All fingers point squarely at David–“the thing David did displeased the Lord” (2 Sam 11:27).
Then the strongest case for her upright character is the rest of the story–the latter biblical testimony where she is repeatedly portrayed as an honorable person.
Restoring Bathsheba’s Honor
By the end of this story in 2 Sam 11, Bathsheba has endured 3 significant loses within one year; she lost her body, her husband, and her firstborn son. Those are significant for any person, but especially for a young lady in a collectivistic context. She would have been devastated by the grief, as well as the shame of the circumstances. Nevertheless, God sovereignly redeems her.
After this incident with David and Bathsheba, the book of 2 Samuel narrates David’s demise and recounts Bathsheba’s steady exaltation. Many years later as David is dying, Bathsheba acts nobly (at the request of Nathan) to ensure Solomon inherits the throne, as was promised (1 Kings 2:10-12).
Then in a later incident, her royal son Solomon “had a throne brought for the king’s mother, and she sat down at his right hand” (1 Kings 2:19). Bathsheba is in a position of power and honor. From a young girl with nothing, she has become the Queen Mother sitting on a throne at the right hand the king, her son.
Israel thrives under the leadership of Solomon, who wrote three wisdom books (Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Songs) that shed further light on Bathsheba. Songs mentions his mother fondly: that she crowned him with a wedding crown (Song 3:11), and that she used to teach him (Song 8:2). In Proverbs, Solomon respected the teaching of his mother (Prov. 1:8-9; 6:20; cf. Prov. 31:1ff). The terms mother is used 15 times in Proverbs with the sense that mothers deserve respect and should be spared the dishonor and grief caused by foolish children. While proverbs are general statements, Solomon personally had his own mother in mind when making those positive comments. And while Solomon’s wisdom was clearly supernatural, such wisdom would have been acquired through family, such as his mother Bathsheba. And when combined with a reference in Jesus’ genealogy (Mt 1:6), the Bible portrays Bathsheba as a respectable and honorable woman in these variety of ways.
The Point
The prominence and honor of Bathsheba in the rest of the Bible is the clearest indication Bathsheba did not sin against God by pursuing David. This aligns with a prominent literary-theological motif in 1-2 Samuel—“Those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be treated with contempt” (1 Sam 2:30). Because she honored God, God honors her (unlike David whose status spirals down after this incident because he despised God).
Special thanks to Marg Mowczko for her insightful post “A Sympathetic Look at Bathsheba.”
resources for Majority World ministry
You need to do your research………..ritual cleansing took place in a mikvah and the woman immersed herself 3 times under the water, making sure every orifice of her body was open. She would have been naked. The chances that she would have had her own mikvah is slim. Only the very rich had mikvah in their home and it is a covered area where you go down seven steps, immerse 3 x and then come back up 7 steps. Ritual immersion was done after the period ends. It could not be done with a bowl of water…………at the southern steps of the temple mount there are 48 mikvaot that have been discovered. There is also one found in the “Burnt House” and others down at Qumran, used by the Essenes. At this period of history, I’m not sure what has been found as this was quite awhile before the first century. Women could have gone to a flowing stream or river of fresh water to be immersed at this time. That was quite acceptable in Jewish law at that time……..she was probably just bathing but probably not out in the open. Remember, the king’s palace was above, looking down on all the roof tops of the city of David. She could have been washing her hair, even……..anyway, why is this so important? Why do we dwell on the wrong things?
Thanks for your kind insights about ritual cleansing in second-temple period Judaism. I just wonder if anything changed in the 900 years between Bathsheba and then?
It is important to remember that once these laws were written and codified, they were adhered to carefully. When reading instructions for ritual cleansing, you need to read the whole chapter called “Mikvaot”………it has specific info in it. A mikveh was usually dug out of the ground, sometimes rock, etc. The walls inside were plastered. They had walls and steps and a ceiling. They were not out in the open, even in David’s time. They had to hold a great deal of water: 40 seahs (575 liters) of living water at a minimum. From what I have read there were mikvaot during David’s time period but not as many of them have been found as during the Second temple period. Ritual immersion was a conscious, intentional spiritual act…….not regular bathing. They had to be clean before they ever went into the mikveh. Very interesting to me………..thanks for your reply!
Thanks so much for the mention.
I still love and read your blog, even though I haven’t commented for a while.
Very splendid information and interaction here!
When you read through the genealogy list in Mt. 1, you find the NAMES of Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and virgin Mary. But Bathseba is referred to “Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife.”
Her name is left out. Why? Probably because she did not act in faith, as the other 4 women in Mt. 1 did.
The point: David is 100% guilty for his sin. Bathseba is guilty of not calling out for help or confronting David like Joseph did, “How can I do such a thing and sin ag’t God?” (Gen 39:9)
Interesting observation. I would say that is a possibility, but not sure if that reasoning is “probable,” esp since Mt 1 is silent as to reason for such wording and 2 Sam 12 doesn’t mention that idea…at least in my readings.
Deut 22:22 gives clear instructions regarding the prescribed penalty for the adultery of both David and Bathsheba. The following verses (through v. 27) show scenarios for urban vs. rural situations which include the test of whether the girl cried out for help. Silence is considered to be assent. However, the girl is mercifully assumed to have cried out if the adultery happened outside the city.
I believe that Bathsheba gave in to David’s advances. If you stop and think about, Bathsheba ‘s husband was a warrior. I have a feeling that he was a warrior first and husband second. When David had Uriah removed from the war to go home for a few days, what did Uriah do?? He slept at the palace gate instead of going home to be with his wife. Something tells me Uriah wasn’t taking care of business at home. I believe Bathsheba was a very lonely married woman . Not a good combination. I believe she was wooed by David’s handsome looks and succumbed to temptation. Just my opinion….
It seems unlikely that Uriah is ignorant of what David has done and what he is trying to accomplish by calling him home. Rumours must have been circulating around Jerusalem about David and Bathsheba, and could easily have reached the Israelite army which had besieged Rabbah. Uriah not only refuses to go to his house and sleep with his wife, he sleeps at the doorway of the king’s house, in the midst of his servants. He has witnesses any child borne by his wife during this time is not his child. It is clear Uriah understands that David wants him to have sex with his wife, and he refuses, even when the king virtually orders him.
According to Scriptures 2Sa.11:2-4, Bathsheba was taking a bath (rachatz -H7365) and NOT a ritual purification (tumah -H2932) some people are assuming…
Do you think Bathsheba was aware she was living next to the king’s palace? Off course she did. In such situation, would you be taking a bath in private or in a way so the king might see you bathing… why?” If you were living next to the king, would you want to be noticed by the king? Anyone would!!! Would you have done what Bathsheba did knowing the king will be looking down from His palace…most women would!!!
According to the Torah, sins committed intentionally are blaspheme (Number 15:30-31 clearly defined it) and are not forgiven (this is why they were stoned to death if breaking the Ten Commandments); only those committed unintentionally are forgiven (hence the personal sin offerings and the Yom Kippur are for). Scriptures did not accounted for all what happened, but we know David was forgiven, for David did not set out to commit adultery with Bathsheba or to murder her husband Uriyah…it was just one thing led to another…our Heavenly Father forgave David proved it was not intentional in His eyes, for He knows all hearts/minds.
Remember David was very kind person, especially to the women He met and married…this is also supported by the fact that Yah loves David and promised him the future everlasting kingdom in 2Samuel 7 which is being setup and soon to be fulfilled…HalleluYah!!!
The hero of David’s story is God, not David.
God is faithful to His covenant promises to David, despite David’s spectacular sins, not because of David’s kindness!
Very often, David was not kind at all.
Despite the fact that David’s first wife Michal had saved his life, he just ignored her, accumulated more wives, and then later treated her like a total pawn, ruthlessly wresting her away from her very despondent husband Paltiel for his own political protection. This all precedes Bathsheba in the narrative.
David was cowardly and did nothing whatsoever when his daughter Tamar was raped by his son, Amnon. Nothing. The fact that this painful episode immediately follows David’s sin with Bathsheba cannot be a coincidence. How can David have corrected his son Amnon, when Amnon had learned from his father that women were for the taking?
Later on, David’s failure to trust God to win a battle for him, choosing instead to number the soldiers as Saul had done, wound up costing 70,000 lives.
God’s faithfulness to His covenant promises has to do with God’s greatness, not David’s – even though David is described as a man after God’s own heart.
Yahuchanan, How could you possibly say that “David did not intend to commit adultery”? He asked around, found out she was married and then sent messengers to bring her to his palace so he could sleep with her (2 Sam 11.3-4). Also, David himself was married to multiple other women (Michal, Ahinoam, Abigail, Maacah, Haggith, Abital and Eglah), and thus by sleeping with Bathsheba, he was also committing adultery (funny how that doesn’t get mentioned often). Furthermore, David clearly set out to commit murder – he literally orders it (2 Sam 11.15), to cover up his sin. I find your reading of this passage very odd.
Bathsheba s first action is bathing, and many have understood her bath to be some sort of exhibitionist act to tempt and seduce David. In songs and art, Bathsheba bathes on the roof or naked in the open air. Second, 2Sam 11:4 says that Bathsheba comes to David when summoned. Those details could be related, Bathsheba bathing in the hopes that David would see her and send for her. Bathsheba s third action in 2Sam 11 is to send a message to David announcing her pregnancy. Perhaps she wanted to have his child and be his queen. In 2Sam 11:26, Bathsheba laments Uriah s death, but maybe those are crocodile tears. Each one of these actions, however, can be read differently. The text specifies that her bath was an obligatory act of purification and clarifies that David not Bathsheba was on the roof. The story is set during the spring, when kings are at war, and even if Bathsheba were in a place in the line of sight of the palace, she could have expected that David was away (as was her husband, a soldier in David s army). 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 David s. Moreover, David was the king; could any subject, especially a woman, reasonably refuse to come when summoned? She might send the message to hold David accountable, and her grief over Uriah s death could be honest.