2 Samuel 12:4 (WEB)

Passage

A traveler came to the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to prepare for the wayfaring man who had come to him, but took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”

Nearby Context

2 Samuel 12:2 The rich man had very many flocks and herds,

2 Samuel 12:3 but the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and raised. It grew up together with him, and with his children. It ate of his own food, drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was like a daughter to him.

2 Samuel 12:4 A traveler came to the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to prepare for the wayfaring man who had come to him, but took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”

2 Samuel 12:5 David’s anger burned hot against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As Yahweh lives, the man who has done this deserves to die!

2 Samuel 12:6 He must restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity!”

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "traveler", "came", "rich", "spared", "take", "flock", "herd", and "prepare". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "traveler" and "came", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "but the poor man had nothing except..." into verse 5's "David s anger burned hot against the...", so "traveler" and "came" belong inside that flow. In 2 Samuel context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "traveler" and "came" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.