◄ 2 Samuel 12:7 ►
Then Nathan said to David, "You are that man! This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.
Study Bible
Then Nathan said to David
Nathan, the prophet, serves as God's mouthpiece, delivering divine messages to King David. The name "Nathan" in Hebrew means "He has given," signifying his role as a giver of God's truth. Prophets in ancient Israel were crucial for guiding kings and the nation, often confronting them with uncomfortable truths. Nathan's courage to confront David highlights the prophetic duty to speak truth to power, a timeless principle for spiritual leaders.

You are the man!
This phrase is the climax of Nathan's parable, a direct and personal indictment of David's sin. In Hebrew, the word "man" (אִישׁ, 'ish) is used here to emphasize David's personal responsibility. This confrontation is a pivotal moment of conviction, illustrating the biblical principle that sin, no matter how hidden, is known to God and must be addressed. It serves as a reminder of the personal nature of sin and the need for accountability.

Thus says the LORD
This phrase introduces a divine pronouncement, underscoring the authority of the message. "LORD" (יהוה, Yahweh) is the covenant name of God, reminding David of the personal relationship and promises between God and Israel. The use of this phrase signifies that the message is not Nathan's opinion but a direct communication from God, reinforcing the seriousness of the rebuke.

the God of Israel
This title emphasizes God's sovereignty and His special relationship with Israel. It reminds David of his role as king under God's authority. The historical context is crucial here; Israel was chosen to be a nation set apart, and its leaders were expected to uphold God's laws. This phrase serves as a reminder of the divine expectations placed upon David as the leader of God's people.

I anointed you king over Israel
The anointing of David as king was a divine appointment, signifying God's choice and empowerment for leadership. The Hebrew root for "anointed" (מָשַׁח, mashach) is the same as for "Messiah," indicating a setting apart for a holy purpose. This reminder of David's anointing underscores the gravity of his sin, as he was chosen to lead with integrity and righteousness.

and I delivered you from the hand of Saul
This phrase recalls God's past faithfulness and deliverance, highlighting the contrast between God's grace and David's actions. The historical context of David's escape from Saul's pursuit is a testament to God's protection and favor. It serves as a reminder of God's continued presence and support, even when His chosen leaders falter. This juxtaposition of divine deliverance and human failure calls for repentance and a return to faithfulness.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Nathan
A prophet of God who served during the reign of King David. He was instrumental in delivering God's messages, including confronting David about his sin with Bathsheba.

2. David
The King of Israel, chosen by God, who committed adultery with Bathsheba and orchestrated the death of her husband, Uriah. David is confronted by Nathan in this passage.

3. Bathsheba
The woman with whom David committed adultery. She was the wife of Uriah, a Hittite warrior in David's army.

4. Uriah the Hittite
Bathsheba's husband, a loyal soldier in David's army, whom David had killed to cover up his sin.

5. Israel
The nation over which David was anointed king. It is the context in which these events unfold, highlighting the gravity of David's sin as a leader.
Teaching Points
Confrontation in Love
Nathan's approach to David teaches us the importance of confronting sin with truth and love, aiming for repentance and restoration.

The Weight of Leadership
David's sin reminds us that leaders are held to high standards and their actions have significant consequences.

God's Mercy and Justice
Despite David's grave sin, God's response through Nathan shows both His justice in addressing sin and His mercy in offering forgiveness upon repentance.

Personal Reflection on Sin
Like David, we must be willing to acknowledge our sins when confronted and seek God's forgiveness earnestly.

The Role of Accountability
Nathan's role highlights the importance of having godly accountability in our lives to help us stay on the right path.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does Nathan's confrontation with David illustrate the importance of speaking truth in love, and how can we apply this in our relationships today?

2. In what ways does David's response to Nathan's rebuke (as seen in Psalm 51) serve as a model for genuine repentance?

3. How does the account of David and Nathan challenge us to consider the impact of our actions, especially when in positions of leadership or influence?

4. What can we learn from Nathan's courage and obedience in delivering God's message to David, and how can we apply this in our own lives when God calls us to speak out?

5. How do the events of 2 Samuel 12:7 and the surrounding account encourage us to seek accountability and community in our spiritual walk?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Psalm 51
David's psalm of repentance, written after Nathan confronted him. It reflects David's remorse and plea for God's mercy.

1 Samuel 16:13
The anointing of David by Samuel, which Nathan references to remind David of God's favor and calling.

Exodus 20:13-14
The commandments against murder and adultery, which David violated, leading to Nathan's confrontation.

Matthew 18:15-17
Jesus' teaching on confronting a brother in sin, which parallels Nathan's role in addressing David's wrongdoing.
Sermons
A Bold Preacher2 Samuel 12:7
Conviction, Confession, and ForgivenessW. J. Bull, B. A.2 Samuel 12:7
Convincing PreachingE. P. Thwing.2 Samuel 12:7
Faithfulness to God and the King2 Samuel 12:7
His Natural Face in a GlassG. Hanson, M. A.2 Samuel 12:7
Nathan's MessageT. Nolan, M. A.2 Samuel 12:7
No Man ImpeccableJ. Styles.2 Samuel 12:7
Pointed SermonsJ. Newton.2 Samuel 12:7
Preaching to the HeartH. O. Mackey.2 Samuel 12:7
Sin's SelfdiscoveryR. J. Campbell.2 Samuel 12:7
Tenderness of ConscienceJ. Armstrong, D. D.2 Samuel 12:7
The Awakening to the Sophistry of SinA. Brunton. D. D.2 Samuel 12:7
The Fearless PreacherChristian Commonwealth2 Samuel 12:7
Awakened and AwedH. E. Stone.2 Samuel 12:1-14
David's FallG. T. Coster.2 Samuel 12:1-14
David's Great Sin, and God's Greater GraceJ. Clifford.2 Samuel 12:1-14
David's Sin and Nathan's ParableC. S. Robinson, D. D.2 Samuel 12:1-14
Definite Teaching as to SinH. O. Mackey.2 Samuel 12:1-14
Nathan as a True ProphetW. Smith, D. D.2 Samuel 12:1-14
Nathan Reproving DavidE. Harper, B. A.2 Samuel 12:1-14
Nathan Sent to DavidC. Merry.2 Samuel 12:1-14
Nathan the Parabolist2 Samuel 12:1-14
Nathan's ParableJ. Parker, D,D.2 Samuel 12:1-14
Of Sell-ExaminationE. M. Goulburn, D. D.2 Samuel 12:1-14
Preaching to the ConscienceAlexander Smellie.2 Samuel 12:1-14
Reproof by PortraitSunday Companion2 Samuel 12:1-14
Reproving Without OffendingH. Brooke, M. A.2 Samuel 12:1-14
The Force of Private AdmonitionJ. Trapp.2 Samuel 12:1-14
The Parable of NathanR. Moss, D. D.2 Samuel 12:1-14
Unconscious Self-CondemnationG. Wood 2 Samuel 12:5-7
Thou Art the Man!B. Dale 2 Samuel 12:7-10
People
Ammonites, Bathsheba, David, Jedidiah, Joab, Milcom, Nathan, Saul, Solomon, Uriah, Urijah
Places
Jerusalem, Rabbah
Topics
Anointed, David, Delivered, Hands, Holy, Kept, Nathan, Oil, Putting, Safe, Saul, Says, Thus
Dictionary of Bible Themes
2 Samuel 12:7

     6163   faults
     7967   spiritual gifts, responsibility

2 Samuel 12:1-7

     7786   shepherd, king and leader

2 Samuel 12:1-10

     5438   parables
     5503   rich, the
     6126   condemnation, human

2 Samuel 12:1-12

     1431   prophecy, OT methods
     5817   conspiracies

2 Samuel 12:1-13

     8479   self-examination, examples

2 Samuel 12:1-14

     6650   finding

2 Samuel 12:7-9

     8221   courage, strength from God

2 Samuel 12:7-10

     5088   David, character
     5295   destruction
     5702   husband

2 Samuel 12:7-12

     5941   secrecy

2 Samuel 12:7-14

     7773   prophets, role

Library
David and Nathan
'And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said unto David, The Lord also hath put away thy sin.'--2 SAMUEL xii. 13. We ought to be very thankful that Scripture never conceals the faults of its noblest men. High among the highest of them stands the poet- king. Whoever, for nearly three thousand years, has wished to express the emotions of trust in God, longing after purity, aspiration, and rapture of devotion, has found that his words have been before him. And this man …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Thou Art the Man
'And David said to Nathan, As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die; because he did this thing, and because he had no pity. And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man.'--2 SAMUEL xii. 5-7. Nathan's apologue, so tenderly beautiful, takes the poet-king on the most susceptible side of his character. All his history shows him as a man of wonderfully sweet, chivalrous, generous, swiftly compassionate nature. And so, when he hears the story of a mean, heartless selfishness, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Letter vi. In My Last Two Letters I have Given the State of the Argument as It...
My dear friend, In my last two Letters I have given the state of the argument as it would stand between a Christian, thinking as I do, and a serious well-disposed Deist. I will now endeavour to state the argument, as between the former and the advocates for the popular belief,--such of them, I mean, as are competent to deliver a dispassionate judgment in the cause. And again, more particularly, I mean the learned and reflecting part of them, who are influenced to the retention of the prevailing …
Samuel Taylor Coleridge—Confessions of an Inquiring Spirit etc

The Blessings of Noah Upon Shem and Japheth. (Gen. Ix. 18-27. )
Ver. 20. "And Noah began and became an husbandman, and planted vineyards."--This does not imply that Noah was the first who began to till the ground, and, more especially, to cultivate the vine; for Cain, too, was a tiller of the ground, Gen. iv. 2. The sense rather is, that Noah, after the flood, again took up this calling. Moreover, the remark has not an independent import; it serves only to prepare the way for the communication of the subsequent account of Noah's drunkenness. By this remark, …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament

Cleansing.
As there are conditions requiring to be complied with in order to the obtaining of salvation, before one can be justified, e. g., conviction of sin, repentance, faith; so there are conditions for full salvation, for being "filled with the Holy Ghost." Conviction of our need is one, conviction of the existence of the blessing is another; but these have been already dealt with. "Cleansing" is another; before one can be filled with the Holy Ghost, one's heart must be "cleansed." "Giving them the Holy …
John MacNeil—The Spirit-Filled Life

That the Ruler Should not Set his Heart on Pleasing Men, and yet Should Give Heed to what Ought to Please Them.
Meanwhile it is also necessary for the ruler to keep wary watch, lest the lust of pleasing men assail him; lest, when he studiously penetrates the things that are within, and providently supplies the things that are without, he seek to be beloved of those that are under him more than truth; lest, while, supported by his good deeds, he seems not to belong to the world, self-love estrange him from his Maker. For he is the Redeemer's enemy who through the good works which he does covets being loved …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

The Unchangeableness of God
The next attribute is God's unchangeableness. I am Jehovah, I change not.' Mal 3:3. I. God is unchangeable in his nature. II. In his decree. I. Unchangeable in his nature. 1. There is no eclipse of his brightness. 2. No period put to his being. [1] No eclipse of his brightness. His essence shines with a fixed lustre. With whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.' James 1:17. Thou art the same.' Psa 102:27. All created things are full of vicissitudes. Princes and emperors are subject to …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

How the Poor and the Rich Should be Admonished.
(Admonition 3.) Differently to be admonished are the poor and the rich: for to the former we ought to offer the solace of comfort against tribulation, but in the latter to induce fear as against elation. For to the poor one it is said by the Lord through the prophet, Fear not, for thou shalt not be confounded (Isai. liv. 4). And not long after, soothing her, He says, O thou poor little one, tossed with tempest (Ibid. 11). And again He comforts her, saying, I have chosen thee in the furnace of …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

Of Antichrist, and his Ruin: and of the Slaying the Witnesses.
BY JOHN BUNYAN PREFATORY REMARKS BY THE EDITOR This important treatise was prepared for the press, and left by the author, at his decease, to the care of his surviving friend for publication. It first appeared in a collection of his works in folio, 1692; and although a subject of universal interest; most admirably elucidated; no edition has been published in a separate form. Antichrist has agitated the Christian world from the earliest ages; and his craft has been to mislead the thoughtless, by …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Thirdly, for Thy Actions.
1. Do no evil, though thou mightest; for God will not suffer the least sin, without bitter repentance, to escape unpunished. Leave not undone any good that thou canst. But do nothing without a calling, nor anything in thy calling, till thou hast first taken counsel at God's word (1 Sam. xxx. 8) of its lawfulness, and pray for his blessings upon thy endeavour; and then do it in the name of God, with cheerfulness of heart, committing the success to him, in whose power it is to bless with his grace …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

The Preparatory Service; Sometimes Called the Confessional Service.
In our examination of the nature and meaning of the Lord's Supper, we have found that it is indeed a most important and holy Sacrament. It is in fact the most sacred of all the ordinances of the Church on earth. There is nothing beyond it--nothing so heavenly, on this side heaven, as this Feast. Nowhere else does the believer approach so near to heaven as when he stands or kneels, as a communicant at this altar, the Holy of Holies in the Church of Christ. What a solemn act! To approach this altar, …
G. H. Gerberding—The Way of Salvation in the Lutheran Church

The Right Understanding of the Law
Thou shalt have no other Gods before me.' Exod 20: 3. Before I come to the commandments, I shall answer questions, and lay down rules respecting the moral law. What is the difference between the moral laud and the gospel? (1) The law requires that we worship God as our Creator; the gospel, that we worship him in and through Christ. God in Christ is propitious; out of him we may see God's power, justice, and holiness: in him we see his mercy displayed. (2) The moral law requires obedience, but gives …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

The Sixth Commandment
Thou shalt not kill.' Exod 20: 13. In this commandment is a sin forbidden, which is murder, Thou shalt not kill,' and a duty implied, which is, to preserve our own life, and the life of others. The sin forbidden is murder: Thou shalt not kill.' Here two things are to be understood, the not injuring another, nor ourselves. I. The not injuring another. [1] We must not injure another in his name. A good name is a precious balsam.' It is a great cruelty to murder a man in his name. We injure others in …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

The Eighth Commandment
Thou shalt not steal.' Exod 20: 15. AS the holiness of God sets him against uncleanness, in the command Thou shalt not commit adultery;' so the justice of God sets him against rapine and robbery, in the command, Thou shalt not steal.' The thing forbidden in this commandment, is meddling with another man's property. The civil lawyers define furtum, stealth or theft to be the laying hands unjustly on that which is another's;' the invading another's right. I. The causes of theft. [1] The internal causes …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

Samuel
Alike from the literary and the historical point of view, the book[1] of Samuel stands midway between the book of Judges and the book of Kings. As we have already seen, the Deuteronomic book of Judges in all probability ran into Samuel and ended in ch. xii.; while the story of David, begun in Samuel, embraces the first two chapters of the first book of Kings. The book of Samuel is not very happily named, as much of it is devoted to Saul and the greater part to David; yet it is not altogether inappropriate, …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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