The rich man had a great number of sheep and cattle,
Parallel translations
- WEB The rich man had very many flocks and herds,
- KJV The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds:
- NKJV The rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds.
- NASB “The wealthy man had a great many flocks and herds.
- NLT The rich man owned a great many sheep and cattle.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
In the parable the rich man owns very many flocks and herds. His abundance highlights how needless his coming theft will be.
Overview
Nathan paints the rich man as having more than enough, lacking nothing. The detail sharpens the injustice of the act to come and mirrors David, who had wives and a kingdom yet took another man's wife. The contrast prepares David to feel outrage at a sin that is in fact his own.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- 2 Sam 12:8I gave your master’s house to you and your master’s wives into your arms. I gave you the house of Israel and Judah, and if that was not enough, I would have given you even more.
- 2 Sam 15:16Then the king set out, and his entire household followed him. But he left behind ten concubines to take care of the palace.
- 2 Sam 5:13–16After he had arrived from Hebron, David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, and more sons and daughters were born to him.
- Job 1:3and he owned 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female donkeys, and a very large number of servants. Job was the greatest man of all the people of the East.
- 2 Sam 3:2–5And sons were born to David in Hebron: His firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam of Jezreel;
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
God's covenant with David — a son whose throne and kingdom would last forever (7:12–16) — finds its yes in Jesus, the Son of David who reigns without end.
How 2 Samuel 12:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.