14In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah.

15In the letter he wrote, "Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die."

16And as Joab was besieging the city, he assigned Uriah to the place where he knew there were valiant men.

17And the men of the city came out and fought with Joab, and some of the servants of David among the people fell. Uriah the Hittite also died.

18Then Joab sent and told David all the news about the fighting.

19And he instructed the messenger, "When you have finished telling all the news about the fighting to the king,

20then, if the king's anger rises, and if he says to you, 'Why did you go so near the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall?

21Who killed Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Did not a woman cast an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died at Thebez? Why did you go so near the wall?' then you shall say, 'Your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.'"

22So the messenger went and came and told David all that Joab had sent him to tell.

23The messenger said to David, "The men gained an advantage over us and came out against us in the field, but we drove them back to the entrance of the gate.

24Then the archers shot at your servants from the wall. Some of the king's servants are dead, and your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also."

25David said to the messenger, "Thus shall you say to Joab, 'Do not let this matter trouble you, for the sword devours now one and now another. Strengthen your attack against the city and overthrow it.' And encourage him."

26When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she lamented over her husband.

27And when the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD.