I will be his Father, and he will be My son. When he does wrong, I will discipline him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men.
Parallel translations
- WEB I will be his father, and he will be my son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men;
- KJV I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men:
- NKJV I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men.
- NASB I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he does wrong, I will discipline him with a rod of men and with strokes of sons of mankind,
- NLT I will be his father, and he will be my son. If he sins, I will correct and discipline him with the rod, like any father would do.
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
God promised to be a father to David's son and to discipline him with human means if he sinned. The covenant combines fatherly love with fatherly correction.
Overview
This father-son relationship applies first to Solomon, who would be chastened for sin yet not cast off. Hebrews 1:5 applies the verse ultimately to Christ, the sinless Son to whom the fatherhood belongs perfectly, while the clause about discipline shows the human kings in view still needed correction. The promise thus spans flawed earthly heirs and the perfect Son who fulfills the line.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Heb 1:5For to which of the angels did God ever say: “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father”? Or again: “I will be His Father, and He will be My Son”?
- Rev 3:19Those I love, I rebuke and discipline. Therefore be earnest and repent.
- 1 Chr 28:6And He said to me, ‘Solomon your son is the one who will build My house and My courts, for I have chosen him as My son, and I will be his Father.
- 1 Chr 17:13I will be his Father, and he will be My son. And I will never remove My loving devotion from him as I removed it from your predecessor.
- Deut 8:5So know in your heart that just as a man disciplines his son, so the LORD your God disciplines you.
- 1 Cor 11:32But when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned with the world.
- Heb 12:5–11And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not take lightly the discipline of the Lord, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you.
- Ps 89:20–37I have found My servant David; with My sacred oil I have anointed him.
- Jer 30:11For I am with you to save you, declares the LORD. Though I will completely destroy all the nations to which I have scattered you, I will not completely destroy you. Yet I will discipline you justly, and will by no means leave you unpunished.”
- Ps 94:12–13Blessed is the man You discipline, O LORD, and teach from Your law,
- Prov 3:11–12My son, do not reject the discipline of the LORD, and do not loathe His rebuke;
- Matt 3:17And a voice from heaven said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased!”
- Job 5:17Blessed indeed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty.
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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 7:14 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.