³ Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary^(A) and lose heart.

God Disciplines His Children

⁴ In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.^{(B) 5} And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says,

⁷ Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children.^(F) For what children are not disciplined by their father? ⁸ If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline^(G)—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. ⁹ Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits^(H) and live!^{(I) 10} They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.^{(J) 11} No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace^(K) for those who have been trained by it.

¹² Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.^{(L) 13} “Make level paths for your feet,”^[b](M) so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.^(N)

Warning and Encouragement

¹⁴ Make every effort to live in peace with everyone^(O) and to be holy;^(P) without holiness no one will see the Lord.^{(Q) 15} See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God^(R) and that no bitter root^(S) grows up to cause trouble and defile many. ¹⁶ See that no one is sexually immoral,^(T) or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son.^{(U) 17} Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. Even though he sought the blessing with tears,^(V) he could not change what he had done.

Nathan Rebukes David^(A)

12 The Lord sent Nathan^(B) to David.^(C) When he came to him,^(D) he said, “There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. ² The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, ³ but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.

⁴ “Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him.”

⁵ David^(E) burned with anger^(F) against the man^(G) and said to Nathan, “As surely as the Lord lives,^(H) the man who did this must die! ⁶ He must pay for that lamb four times over,^(I) because he did such a thing and had no pity.”

⁷ Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man!^(J) This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed^(K) you^(L) king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. ⁸ I gave your master’s house to you,^(M) and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you all Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. ⁹ Why did you despise^(N) the word of the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down^(O) Uriah^(P) the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed^(Q) him with the sword of the Ammonites. ¹⁰ Now, therefore, the sword^(R) will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’

¹¹ “This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household^(S) I am going to bring calamity on you.^(T) Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight.^{(U) 12} You did it in secret,^(V) but I will do this thing in broad daylight^(W) before all Israel.’”

¹³ Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned^(X) against the Lord.”

Nathan replied, “The Lord has taken away^(Y) your sin.^(Z) You are not going to die.^{(AA) 14} But because by doing this you have shown utter contempt for^[a] the Lord,^(AB) the son born to you will die.”

¹⁵ After Nathan had gone home, the Lord struck^(AC) the child that Uriah’s wife had borne to David, and he became ill.