2 Samuel 12:17

17 His court officials went to him and tried to make him get up, but he refused and would not eat anything 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 home. The Lord caused the child that Uriah's wife had borne to David to become very sick.

16 David prayed to God that the child would get well. He refused to eat anything, and every night he went into his room and spent the night lying on the floor.

17 His court officials went to him and tried to make him get up, but he refused and would not eat anything with them.

18 A week later the child died, and David's officials were afraid to tell him the news. They said, "While the child was living, David wouldn't answer us when we spoke to him. How can we tell him that his child is dead? He might do himself some harm!"

19 When David noticed them whispering to each other, he realized that the child had died. So he asked them, "Is the child dead?" "Yes, he is," they answered.