Joe: Alright, so we’re talking about 2 Samuel 12 today. What’s this chapter about?

Bible Expert: Well, Joe, this chapter is about King David’s sin against Uriah the Hittite, and God’s punishment of that sin.

Joe: Whoa, whoa, whoa. That sounds intense. What did David do?

Bible Expert: Well, David committed adultery with Uriah’s wife, Bathsheba. He then arranged for Uriah to be killed in battle so that he could take Bathsheba for himself.

Joe: Holy crap! That’s messed up. So what happened?

Bible Expert: Well, God sent the prophet Nathan to confront David about his sin. Nathan told him a parable about a rich man who stole the only lamb of a poor man. David was enraged and declared that the rich man should be punished. Then Nathan revealed to David that he was the rich man in the parable, and that he was the one who had sinned against God.

Joe: Whoa, that’s heavy. What happened then?

Bible Expert: Well, God told David that he would be punished for his sin with death, but that his life would be spared. He also said that the sword of judgment would never depart from his house. As a result, David’s child with Bathsheba died, and several of his children were killed in battle.

Joe: Wow. That’s really sad. So what’s the moral of this story?

Bible Expert: The moral of this story is that God is just and righteous, and that he will not allow sin to go unpunished. We should always strive to live in obedience to God’s will, and to avoid sinning against him.