2 Samuel 12:1

Nathan the Prophet Confronts David

12:1 So the Lord sent Nathan ¹  to David. When he came to David, ²  Nathan ³  said, ⁴  “There were two men in a certain city, one rich and the other poor.

Luke 3:31

3:31 the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, ⁵  the son of David, ⁶ 

[12:1]  ¹ 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).

[12:1]  ² tn Heb “him”; the referent (David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:1]  ³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Nathan) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:1]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew text repeats “to him.”

[3:31]  ⁵ sn The use of Nathan here as the son of David is different than Matthew, where Solomon is named. Nathan was David’s third son. It is not entirely clear what causes the difference. Some argue Nathan stresses a prophetic connection, but it is not clear how (through confusion with the prophet Nathan?). Others note the absence of a reference to Jeconiah later, so that here there is a difference to show the canceling out of this line. The differences appear to mean that Matthew’s line is a “royal and physical” line, while Luke has a “royal and legal” line.

[3:31]  ⁶ sn The mention of David begins a series of agreements with Matthew’s line. The OT background is 1 Chr 2:1-15 and Ruth 4:18-22.