12:16 Then David prayed to 1 God for the child and fasted. 2 He would even 3 go and spend the night lying on the ground.
12:17 The elders of his house stood over him and tried to lift him from the ground, but he was unwilling, and refused to eat food with them.
1 tnHeb “sought” or “searched for.”
2 tnHeb “and David fasted.”
3 tn The three Hebrew verbs that follow in this verse are perfects with prefixed vav. They may describe repeated past actions or actions which accompanied David’s praying and fasting.