Then: the conjunction here need not be translated if the verse sounds natural without it.

His servants: as in verse 19, this refers to the court officials of David.

What is this thing that you have done? This is a way of expressing their surprise at the behavior of their king, since it was opposed to the normal practice for the people of Israel. In some languages it will be more natural to say “We do not understand what you are doing!” or “Why are you acting like this?”

The remainder of the verse is a summary of what has already been said in the text, but with past tense verbs in this context. Translators should try to make the words used here correspond to those found in the rest of the story.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .