Read 2 Samuel 11:1-27
Over the last two chapters we have seen David as God’s representative, acting in a God-like way, and in his actions reflecting the grace of God. He showed grace towards Mephibosheth, a potential enemy, and he showed grace towards his actual enemy, the Ammonites. These next two chapters show a stark contrast. They show the effect of sin, how sin can destroy relationships, families and even destroy lives. And we see too how no-one is immune from sin. David was chosen by the Lord to be king over the Israelites; he was a man after the Lord’s own heart. And yet, he succumbed to sin and its destructive effects. How the mighty are fallen!
We know the story well. While the army is away fighting the war we read about in Chapter 10, David happened to see a beautiful woman, Bathsheba, bathing. Overcome by lust and desire he arranged for her to come to him and he slept with her. She became pregnant and that gave David a real problem. How was he going to get out of this? Well, he had a cunning plan. Bathsheba’s husband was with the army fighting the Ammonites, If David recalled him to Jerusalem; the husband would naturally spend time with his wife and when Bathsheba had the child it would naturally be assumed that it belonged to Uriah, her husband, conceived when he was on leave. But God has a way of unravelling human plans that are concocted to hide sinfulness. Uriah, in a gesture of solidarity with his troops at the front, chose not to take advantage of the comforts of home and slept rough with the other servants. David’s plan to cover up his sin had failed.
Rather than admit to his sin, David compounded it. This shows the insidious nature of sin. Sin leads to more sin, to greater sin. The attempt to cover up sin leads to more sin. Lies lead to more lies to cover up the previous lie. David arranged that Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband, be sent back to the battlefront and be deployed where the fighting was fiercest, and just to make sure, he ordered that the support troops be withdrawn so that Uriah and his troops are exposed to certain death by the enemy. David had moved from adultery to murder. And, as David had planned, Uriah was killed. That meant that David could marry Bathsheba and their child would be recognised as having been born within the marriage. David had managed to wriggle out of an embarrassing situation and had got away with murder. Or had he? David, as king, might think that he is all-powerful and can do what he wants, but the last sentence of the chapter brings it home and sets up the judgement that is to fall upon David, ‘The thing David had done displeased the Lord’.
We are all tempted and we do so often end up sinning. The Bible tells us that all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). But the answer is not to compound the sin like David did, but to come before the Lord to ask his forgiveness in Jesus name.