Nathan

Nathan was a prophet during the reigns of David and Solomon. When David desired to build a temple, he asked for Nathan’s counsel. At first, Nathan told him to go ahead, with the Lord’s blessing. But then, after hearing directly from the Lord, Nathan told David that one of his sons, rather than David himself, would be the one to build the temple. Through Nathan God also promised to establish the house and the kingdom of David forever. After David sinned with Bathsheba, God sent Nathan to rebuke him. To show David how wrong it was for him to take another man’s wife, Nathan told a parable about a rich man who took the only lamb belonging to a poor man. It was a powerful story, and David repented of his sin. (2 Samuel 12:1–15)