But that night the word of the LORD came to Nathan, saying,
Parallel translations
- WEB That same night, Yahweh’s word came to Nathan, saying,
- KJV And it came to pass that night, that the word of the LORD came unto Nathan, saying,
- NKJV But it happened that night that the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying,
- NASB But in the same night, the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying,
- NLT But that same night the Lord said to Nathan,
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
That very night the word of the LORD came to Nathan with God's response. God graciously intervened to direct David's plan according to His own purpose.
Overview
God's swift word shows His active oversight of David's intentions and His desire to reveal His larger plan. The phrase 'the word of the LORD came' marks genuine prophetic revelation, distinct from Nathan's earlier personal opinion. What follows is one of the great covenant promises of Scripture, given not by human initiative but by God's gracious self-disclosure.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- 1 Chr 17:3But that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying,
- Num 12:6He said, “Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, will reveal Myself to him in a vision; I will speak to him in a dream.
- Amos 3:7Surely the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets.
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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 7:4 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
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