The Daily Audio Bible

12 ¹ and the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him and said to him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor.^{(A) 2} The rich man had very many flocks and herds, ³ but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb that he had bought. He brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children; it used to eat of his meager fare and drink from his cup and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him. ⁴ Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was loath to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared that for the guest who had come to him.” ⁵ Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man. He said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die;^{(B) 6} he shall restore the lamb fourfold because he did this thing and because he had no pity.”^(C)

⁷ Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I anointed you king over Israel, and I rescued you from the hand of Saul;^{(D) 8} I 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 had been too little, I would have added as much more. ⁹ Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites.^{(E) 10} Now, therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, for you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.^{(F) 11} Thus says the Lord: I will raise up trouble against you from within your own house, and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in broad daylight.^{(G) 12} For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel and in broad daylight.”^{(H) 13} David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan said to David, “Now the Lord has put away your sin; you shall not die.^{(I) 14} Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord,^[a] the child born to you shall die.”^{(J) 15} Then Nathan went to his house.

Bathsheba’s Child Dies

The Lord struck the child whom Uriah’s wife bore to David, and it became very ill.^{(K) 16} David therefore pleaded with God for the child; David fasted and went in and lay all night on the ground.^{(L) 17} The elders of his house stood beside him urging him to rise from the ground, but he would not, nor did he eat food with them. ¹⁸ On the seventh day the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, “While the child was still alive, we spoke to him, and he did not listen to us; how then can we tell him the child is dead? He may do himself some harm.” ¹⁹ But when David saw that his servants were whispering together, he perceived that the child was dead, and David said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” They said, “He is dead.”

²⁰ Then David rose from the ground, washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes. He went into the house of the Lord and worshiped; he then went to his own house, and when he asked, they set food before him, and he ate.^{(M) 21} Then his servants said to him, “What is this thing that you have done? You fasted and wept for the child while it was alive, but when the child died, you rose and ate food.” ²² He said, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept, for I said, ‘Who knows? The Lord may be gracious to me, and the child may live.’^{(N) 23} But now he is dead; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me.”^(O)

Solomon Is Born

²⁴ Then David consoled his wife Bathsheba and went to her and lay with her, and she bore a son, and he named him Solomon. The Lord loved him^{(P) 25} and sent a message by the prophet Nathan, so he named him Jedidiah^[b] because of the Lord.

The Ammonites Crushed

²⁶ Now Joab fought against Rabbah of the Ammonites and took the royal city.^{(Q) 27} Joab sent messengers to David and said, “I have fought against Rabbah; moreover, I have taken the water city. ²⁸ Now, then, gather the rest of the people together, encamp against the city, and take it, lest I myself take the city and it is called by my name.” ²⁹ So David gathered all the people together and went to Rabbah and fought against it and took it. ³⁰ He took the crown of Milcom^[c] from his head; the weight of it was a talent of gold, and in it was a precious stone, and it was placed on David’s head. He also brought forth the spoil of the city, a very great amount.^{(R) 31} He brought out the people who were in it and set them to work with saws and iron picks and iron axes or sent them to the brickworks. Thus he did to all the cities of the Ammonites. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

16 “I have said these things to you to keep you from falling away.^{[a](A) 2} They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, an hour is coming when those who kill you will think that by doing so they are offering worship to God.^{(B) 3} And they will do this because they have not known the Father or me.^{(C) 4} But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them.

The Work of the Spirit

“I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. ⁵ But now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’^{(D) 6} But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. ⁷ Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate^[b] will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you. ⁸ And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about^[c] sin and righteousness and judgment: ⁹ about sin, because they do not believe in me; ¹⁰ about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, and you will see me no longer; ¹¹ about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.^(E)

¹² “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.^{(F) 13} When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.^{(G) 14} He will glorify me because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. ¹⁵ All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.^(H)

Sorrow Will Turn into Joy

¹⁶ “A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me.”^{(I) 17} Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying to us, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me,’ and ‘because I am going to the Father’?” ¹⁸ They said, “What does he mean by this ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.” ¹⁹ Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Are you discussing among yourselves what I meant when I said, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’? ²⁰ Very truly, I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will have pain, but your pain will turn into joy. ²¹ When a woman is in labor, she has pain because her hour has come. But when her child is born, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world.^{(J) 22} So you have pain now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.^{(K) 23} On that day you will ask nothing of me.^[d] Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.^{[e] 24} Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.^(L)

Peace for the Disciples

²⁵ “I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures but will tell you plainly of the Father. ²⁶ On that day you will ask in my name. I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf, ²⁷ for the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.^{[f](M) 28} I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and am going to the Father.”^(N)

²⁹ His disciples said, “Yes, now you are speaking plainly, not in any figure of speech! ³⁰ Now we know that you know all things and do not need to have anyone question you; by this we believe that you came from God.”^{(O) 31} Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? ³² The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each one to his home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me.^{(P) 33} I have said this to you so that in me you may have peace. In the world you face persecution, but take courage: I have conquered the world!”^(Q)