2 Samuel 12:7-12

12:7 Nathan said to David, “You are that man! This is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘I chose you to be king over Israel and I rescued you from the hand of Saul. 12:8 I gave you your master’s house, and put your master’s wives into your arms. I also gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if all that somehow seems insignificant, I would have given you so much more as well! 12:9 Why have you shown contempt for the word of the Lord by doing evil in my sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and you have taken his wife as your own! You have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. 12:10 So now the sword will never depart from your house. For you have despised me by taking the wife of Uriah the Hittite as your own!’ 12:11 This is what the Lord says: ‘I am about to bring disaster on you from inside your own household! Right before your eyes I will take your wives and hand them over to your companion. He will have sexual relations with your wives in broad daylight! 12:12 Although you have acted in secret, I will do this thing before all Israel, and in broad daylight.’” 10 

2 Samuel 12:1

Nathan the Prophet Confronts David

12:1 So the Lord sent Nathan 11  to David. When he came to David, 12  Nathan 13  said, 14  “There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor.

2 Samuel 21:19

21:19 Yet another battle occurred with the Philistines in Gob. On that occasion Elhanan the son of Jair 15  the Bethlehemite killed the brother of Goliath the Gittite, 16  the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.

Psalms 50:21

50:21 When you did these things, I was silent, 17 

so you thought I was exactly like you. 18 

But now I will condemn 19  you

and state my case against you! 20 

Jeremiah 2:33-35

2:33 “My, how good you have become

at chasing after your lovers! 21 

Why, you could even teach prostitutes a thing or two! 22 

2:34 Even your clothes are stained with

the lifeblood of the poor who had not done anything wrong;

you did not catch them breaking into your homes. 23 

Yet, in spite of all these things you have done, 24 

2:35 you say, ‘I have not done anything wrong,

so the Lord cannot really be angry with me any more.’

But, watch out! 25  I will bring down judgment on you

because you say, ‘I have not committed any sin.’

Mark 6:18

6:18 For John had repeatedly told 26  Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” 27 

Acts 24:25

24:25 While Paul 28  was discussing 29  righteousness, self-control, 30  and the coming judgment, Felix 31  became 32  frightened and said, “Go away for now, and when I have an opportunity, 33  I will send for you.”

Galatians 2:11

Paul Rebukes Peter

2:11 But when Cephas 34  came to Antioch, 35  I opposed him to his face, because he had clearly done wrong. 36 


tn Heb “anointed.”

tn Heb “and the wives of your lord into your chest [or “lap”].” The words “I put” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons and for clarification.

tc So the Qere; the Kethib has “his.”

tn Heb “to you for a wife.” This expression also occurs at the end of v. 10.

tn Heb “raise up against you disaster.”

tn Heb “house” (so NAB, NRSV); NCV, TEV, CEV “family.”

tn Or “friend.”

tn Heb “will lie with” (so NIV, NRSV); TEV “will have intercourse with”; CEV, NLT “will go to bed with.”

tn Heb “in the eyes of this sun.”

10 tn Heb “and before the sun.”

11 tc A few medieval Hebrew mss, the LXX, and the Syriac Peshitta add “the prophet.” The words are included in a few modern English version (e.g., TEV, CEV, NLT).

12 tn Heb “him”; the referent (David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

13 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Nathan) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

14 tn The Hebrew text repeats “to him.”

15 tn Heb “Jaare-Oregim,” but the second word, which means “weavers,” is probably accidentally included. It appears at the end of the verse. The term is omitted in the parallel account in 1 Chr 20:5, which has simply “Jair.”

16 sn The Hebrew text as it stands reads, “Elhanan son of Jaare-Oregim the Bethlehemite killed Goliath the Gittite.” Who killed Goliath the Gittite? According to 1 Sam 17:4-58 it was David who killed Goliath, but according to the MT of 2 Sam 21:19 it was Elhanan who killed him. Many scholars believe that the two passages are hopelessly at variance with one another. Others have proposed various solutions to the difficulty, such as identifying David with Elhanan or positing the existence of two Goliaths. But in all likelihood the problem is the result of difficulties in the textual transmission of the Samuel passage; in fact, from a text-critical point of view the books of Samuel are the most poorly preserved of all the books of the Hebrew Bible. The parallel passage in 1 Chr 20:5 reads, “Elhanan son of Jair killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath.” Both versions are textually corrupt. The Chronicles text has misread “Bethlehemite” (בֵּית הַלַּחְמִי, bet hallakhmi) as the accusative sign followed by a proper name אֶת לַחְמִי (’et lakhmi). (See the note at 1 Chr 20:5.) The Samuel text misread the word for “brother” (אַח, ’akh) as the accusative sign (אֵת, ’et), thereby giving the impression that Elhanan, not David, killed Goliath. Thus in all probability the original text read, “Elhanan son of Jair the Bethlehemite killed the brother of Goliath.”

17 tn Heb “these things you did and I was silent.” Some interpret the second clause (“and I was silent”) as a rhetorical question expecting a negative answer, “[When you do these things], should I keep silent?” (cf. NEB). See GKC 335 §112.cc.

18 tn The Hebrew infinitive construct (הֱיוֹת, heyot) appears to function like the infinitive absolute here, adding emphasis to the following finite verbal form (אֶהְיֶה, ’ehyeh). See GKC 339-40 §113.a. Some prefer to emend הֱיוֹת (heyot) to the infinitive absolute form הָיוֹ (hayo).

19 tn Or “rebuke” (see v. 8).

20 tn Heb “and I will set in order [my case against you] to your eyes.” The cohortative form expresses the Lord’s resolve to accuse and judge the wicked.

21 tn Heb “How good you have made your ways to seek love.”

22 tn Heb “so that even the wicked women you teach your ways.”

23 tn The words “for example” are implicit and are supplied in the translation for clarification. This is only one example of why their death was not legitimate.

24 tn KJV and ASV read this line with 2:34. The ASV makes little sense and the KJV again erroneously reads the archaic second person feminine singular perfect as first person common singular. All the modern English versions and commentaries take this line with 2:35.

25 tn This is an attempt to render the Hebrew particle often translated “behold” (הִנֵּה, hinneh) in a meaningful way in this context. See further the translator’s note on the word “really” in 1:6.

26 tn The imperfect tense verb is here rendered with an iterative force.

27 sn It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife. This was a violation of OT law (Lev 18:16; 20:21). In addition, both Herod Antipas and Herodias had each left marriages to enter into this union.

28 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

29 tn Or “speaking about.”

30 tn Grk “and self-control.” This καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

31 sn See the note on Felix in 23:26.

32 tn Grk “becoming.” The participle γενόμενος (genomenos) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

33 tn Or “when I find time.” BDAG 639 s.v. μεταλαμβάνω 2 has “καιρὸν μ. have an opportunity = find time…Ac 24:25.”

34 sn Cephas. This individual is generally identified with the Apostle Peter (L&N 93.211).

35 map For location see JP1-F2; JP2-F2; JP3-F2; JP4-F2.

36 tn Grk “because he stood condemned.”