Did David rape Bathsheba?

[tonychanyt]

I don't think so.

2 Samuel 11:

2 It happened, late one afternoon, when David arose from his couch and was walking on the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful. 3And David sent and inquired about the woman. And one said, “Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?” 4 So David sent messengers and took her, and she came to him, and he lay with her.

That's it. There was no detailed description of the act. There was no mention of how Bathsheba felt about it.

Later, David arranged for her husband to be killed.

26 When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she lamented over her husband. 27 And when the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son.

Again, there was no mention of any kind of resistance from Bathsheba.

How did she feel about the affair with David and then marrying David afterward?

God didn't like what David did and sent Nathan the prophet to tell David a parable, 2 Samuel 12:

4b [the rich man] took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.

David was the rich man. Uriah was the poor man. Bathsheba was the lamb.

David was the most powerful man in the country. Bathsheba's husband was only a poor soldier. Bathsheba was an innocent lamb/pawn in this game without a strong volition against the king's actions. I don't think David needed to forcibly rape her.

In contrast, the very next chapter details Amnon raping Tamar in vivid language, 2 Samuel 13:

11 when she [Tamar] brought them near him [Amnon] to eat, he took hold of her and said to her, “Come, lie with me, my sister.” 12 She answered him, “No, my brother, do not violate me, for such a thing is not done in Israel; do not do this outrageous thing. 13As for me, where could I carry my shame? And as for you, you would be as one of the outrageous fools in Israel. Now therefore, please speak to the king, for he will not withhold me from you.”

The writer described Tamar's protest.

14 But he would not listen to her, and being stronger than she, he violated her and lay with her.

Amnon raped Tamar by force.

Did David forcibly rape Bathsheba?

I don't think he needed to. In any case, he abused his position of power over Bathsheba and Uriah.

 

[eleos1954]

Something to be considered perhaps ...

God only holds David accountable

Nowhere of Bathsheba's consent. She was brought to him. He spied on her and asked who is she and she was then brought
to him. (so no previous relationship of any kind - he didn't even know who she was)

 

[Diamond7]

There was no mention of how Bathsheba felt about it.

Marriage was not the same then as it is now. We do not hear much about marriages of convenience and when we do, we accuse the women of being a gold digger. How do we know that Bathsheba's marriage to Uriah the Hittite, was not a marriage of convenience?

Despite the uncertainty surrounding his life, Saint Valentine has become associated with love and affection, and Valentine's Day is celebrated as a day of love and romance in many parts of the world. The exchange of valentine cards and gifts is a tradition inspired by these legends and has become a popular way to express affection for loved ones.

It is not uncommon for women to have an amount of money their potential husband needs to make in order for them to consider him for marriage. Use to be in the 30 to 40,000 range. Now I would think it is 50 to 60,000. Although my son actually makes more than that.

The most famous case of Stockholm syndrome may be when Patricia Hearst, a newspaper heiress, helped her kidnappers to rob multiple banks in 1970s. Hearst claimed she had been brainwashed and temporarily became an advocate for her captors' radical ideology. Of course there are many versions of this story.

The point is even in a marriage of convenience they can still develop love.