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)

²² Therefore say to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord God: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came.^{(A) 23} I will sanctify my great name, which has been profaned among the nations and which you have profaned among them, and the nations shall know that I am the Lord, says the Lord God, when through you I display my holiness before their eyes.^{(B) 24} I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land.^{(C) 25} I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you.^{(D) 26} A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you, and I will remove from your body the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.^{(E) 27} I will put my spirit within you and make you follow my statutes and be careful to observe my ordinances.^{(F) 28} Then you shall live in the land that I gave to your ancestors, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God.^(G)

³⁴ The land that was desolate shall be tilled, instead of being the desolation that it was in the sight of all who passed by. ³⁵ And they will say, “This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden, and the waste and desolate and ruined towns are now inhabited and fortified.”^{(A) 36} Then the nations that are left all around you shall know that I, the Lord, have rebuilt the ruined places and replanted that which was desolate; I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do it.^(B)

Peter’s Report to the Church at Jerusalem

11 Now the apostles and the brothers and sisters who were in Judea heard that the gentiles had also accepted the word of God. ² So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers^[a] criticized him,^{(A) 3} saying, “Why did you go to uncircumcised men and eat with them?”^{(B) 4} Then Peter began to explain it to them, step by step, saying, ⁵ “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. There was something like a large sheet coming down from heaven, being lowered by its four corners, and it came close to me.^{(C) 6} As I looked at it closely I saw four-footed animals, beasts of prey, reptiles, and birds of the air. ⁷ I also heard a voice saying to me, ‘Get up, Peter; kill and eat.’ ⁸ But I replied, ‘By no means, Lord, for nothing profane or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ ⁹ But a second time the voice answered from heaven, ‘What God has made clean, you must not call profane.’ ¹⁰ This happened three times; then everything was pulled up again to heaven. ¹¹ At that very moment three men, sent to me from Caesarea, arrived at the house where we were. ¹² The Spirit told me to go with them and not to make a distinction between them and us.^[b] These six brothers also accompanied me, and we entered the man’s house.^{(D) 13} He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying, ‘Send to Joppa and bring Simon, who is called Peter;^{(E) 14} he will give you a message by which you and your entire household will be saved.’ ¹⁵ And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as it had upon us at the beginning.^{(F) 16} And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’^{(G) 17} If then God gave them the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could hinder God?”^{(H) 18} When they heard this, they were silenced. And they praised God, saying, “Then God has given even to the gentiles the repentance that leads to life.”^(I)

²³ On that day you will ask nothing of me.^[a] Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.^{[b] 24} Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.^(A)

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.^{[c](B) 28} I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and am going to the Father.”^(C)

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.”^{(D) 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.^{(E) 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!”^(F)