2 Samuel 12:16-18

Modern English Version

¹⁶ David entreated God on behalf of the child. He fasted for a period, and he would go in and lie throughout the night on the ground. ¹⁷ The elders of his house stood beside him to rouse him from the ground, but he was not willing, nor would he consume food with them.

¹⁸ The child died on the seventh day, and the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child had died. They said, “When the child was alive, we would speak to him, but he would not acknowledge our voices. Now how can we say to him, ‘The child is dead’? He may do harm.”