7 Nathan then said to David , " You are the man ! Thus says the Lord God of Israel , ' It is I who anointed you king over Israel and it is I who delivered you from the hand of Saul . 8 'I also gave you your master's house and your master's wives into your care , and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah ; and if that had been too little , I would have added to you many more things like these ! 9 'Why have you despised the word of the Lord by doing evil in His sight ? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword , have taken his wife to be your wife , and have killed him with the sword of the sons of Ammon .
Matthew Henry's Commentary on 2 Samuel 12:7-9
Commentary on 2 Samuel 12:1-14
(Read 2 Samuel 12:1-14)
God will not suffer his people to lie still in sin. By this parable Nathan drew from David a sentence against himself. Great need there is of prudence in giving reproofs. In his application, he was faithful. He says in plain terms, Thou art the man. God shows how much he hates sin, even in his own people; and wherever he finds it, he will not let it go unpunished. David says not a word to excuse himself or make light of his sin, but freely owns it. When David said, I have sinned, and Nathan perceived that he was a true penitent, he assured him his sin was forgiven. Thou shalt not die: that is, not die eternally, nor be for ever put away from God, as thou wouldest have been, if thou hadst not put away the sin. Though thou shalt all thy days be chastened of the Lord, yet thou shalt not be condemned with the world. There is this great evil in the sins of those who profess religion and relation to God, that they furnish the enemies of God and religion with matter for reproach and blasphemy. And it appears from David's case, that even where pardon is obtained, the Lord will visit the transgression of his people with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes. For one momentary gratification of a vile lust, David had to endure many days and years of extreme distress.