Facts About Bathsheba: Are They True or False? Quiz

Answer: True

True. According to 2 Samuel 11:3, Bathsheba was married to Uriah, a soldier. Her husband was off in battle when she had an adulterous affair with David. Bathsheba ended up becoming pregnant as a result of her liaison with the king. Eventually, David would devise a scheme to have Uriah killed in the heat of battle.

Answer: False

Bathsheba's father was Eliam, as per 2 Samuel 11:3 in the NKJV and the NIV Bibles, but not much is known about him as he is mentioned in passing reference. (In 1 Chronicles 3:5, the name appears as Ammiel in the NKJV and the NIV.)

Elimelech was actually the husband of Naomi, as per Ruth 1:2. The same verse in the NKJV states they were the parents of two boys, Mahlon and Chilion. (In the NIV Bible, Chilion is spelled Kilion.)

Answer: True

Yes, Bathsheba was bathing when David first spotted her. 2 Samuel 11:2-4, in the NIV, tells of the occasion: "One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, 'She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.' Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her."

Notes in the NKJV Study Bible state "in ancient times, Israelite houses had an enclosed courtyard. Bathsheba was actually in her house."

Obviously, her house was relatively close to David's palace and he observed her from a higher vantage point. Before long, Bathsheba and David would find themselves in real hot water when she became pregnant as a result of their liaison.

Answer: False

False. There is no information in the Bible suggesting this. In fact, to the contrary, Ruth was David's great grandmother according to Ruth 4:17. Scripture states Ruth and her husband Boaz had a son whom they called Obed. In turn, Obed became the father of Jesse who became the father of David.

Answer: True

Yes, her first son, the result of an adulterous affair with David, died shortly after birth. According to Scripture, the boy was never named. The account of the boy's death can be found in 2 Samuel 12:15-23. Later, she would give birth to Solomon.

Answer: True

Bathsheba combined with Nathan made sure Solomon would become king (1 Kings 1:11-31). According to Scripture, Adonijah had set himself up as king when David was elderly and basically out of it. However, Bathsheba and Nathan were able to convince David to use his royal power to have Adonijah removed and Solomon set up as king.

She would become the Queen Mother when her son Solomon assumed the throne. As a result, she would be the most powerful woman in the land.

Answer: True

Yes, Bathsheba acted on a request of Adonijah to grant permission to him to marry Abishag, a beautiful young woman who had been assigned to care for David in his elderly years. According to Scripture, Adonijah requested Bathsheba to get permission from her son Solomon for the marriage and when she approached Solomon about the matter, it appears to have been the final straw.

1 Kings 2:23-25, in the NKJV Bible, states: "Then King Solomon swore by the LORD, saying, 'May God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah has not spoken this word against his own life! Now therefore, as the LORD lives, who has confirmed me and set me on the throne of David my father, and who has established a house for me, as He promised, Adonijah shall be put to death today!' So King Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he struck him down, and he died."

Previously, Adonijah had attempted to replace his father David as king, but lost out to Solomon when Bathsheba intervened. Notes in the NKJV Study Bible suggest Adonijah's request came with serious ramifications. "Taking a member of the king's harem would normally be interpreted as a claim to the throne," the notes state.

Answer: False

There is no information to support such a view. In fact, there isn't even a single mention of Bathsheba interacting with David's other wives. Some of his other wives were Abigail, Ahinoam, Haggith, Abital, Maacah and Eglah, according to 1 Chronicles 3:1-3.

Answer: False

False. The only woman to have her age listed in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament and New Testament of the English Bible is Sarah with Genesis 23:1 stating she was 127 years old at the time of her death. (Luke 2:37 states the prophetess Anna was a widow of about 84 years but no details are given about her exact age.)

Answer: False

Bathsheba's name does not appear in the genealogy of Christ in the third chapter of Luke. Of course, the genealogy in Luke makes mention of Bathsheba's husband David and her son Solomon.

However, her name does appear indirectly in the genealogy of Christ in Matthew. Matthew 1:6, in the NIV Bible, states Jesse was the father of King David and David was the father of Solomon, "whose mother had been Uriah's wife." Three other women mentioned in Christ's genealogy in Matthew are Tamar, Rahab and Ruth.