2 Samuel 12

¹The LORD sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to him, “There were two men in one city: the one rich, and the other poor.

²The rich man had very many flocks and herds,

³but the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and raised. It grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food, drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was like a daughter to him.

⁴A traveler came to the rich man, and he didn’t want to take of his own flock and of his own herd to prepare for the wayfaring man who had come to him, but took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”

⁵David’s anger burned hot against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the LORD lives, the man who has done this deserves to die!

⁶He must restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing and because he had no pity!”

⁷Nathan said to David, “You are the man! This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul.

⁸I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your bosom, and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that would have been too little, I would have added to you many more such things.

⁹Why have you despised the LORD’s word, to do that which is evil in his sight? You have struck Uriah the Hittite with the sword, have taken his wife to be your wife, and have slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon.

¹⁰Now therefore the sword will never depart from your house, because you have despised me and have taken Uriah the Hittite’s wife to be your wife.’