Life of David – 2 Samuel 11

David, “For His eyes only”

2 Samuel 11:1-14

Vs. 1-5 A stroll into sin

Vs. 6-14 Lying cheater

Intro.

This week we had a political debate in our state and I’m certain that neither candidate issued press releases speaking about all the reasons why you shouldn’t vote for them. But the biblical record is not about a campaign that elevates man’s goodness and why he is worthy of God’s love and attention; it is about ordinary people who do incredibly dumb things and how God continues to work in their lives to accomplish His purposes. Consider these folks:

Noah a man full of grace in the eyes of the Lord got drunk
Abraham the great man of faith twice lied about his wife calling her his sister
Jacob the man who would be called Israel (ruled by God) lied to his father to deceive his brother to obtain the birth right
Moses the great leader and deliverer of Israel twice lost His temper the first time killing a man, the second time misrepresenting the nature of God
David a man after God’s heart commits adultery and murder
Peter the rock, loses his courage and denies Jesus three times in one night

Man I feel better about myself already! It would take David nine months before he would come clean about his sin and only after the Lord revealed to his friend Nathan. And though he would be forgiven he would suffer the consequences of his actions the rest of his life. “The good things God has for us have been paid for in advance, but the things of the flesh that we pursue are paid for on the installment plan.”

A stroll into sin

Vs. 1a Before we examine the fall of a man after God’s own heart we need to realize that this was not a sudden plunge off a ledge in the darkness, it was a gradual decent in broad day light over 20 years. Several points need to be made up front when examining this:

Not age related: David is around 50 and I mention this to dispel the false notion that this is just a young man’s struggle. Brothers and sisters we will need to be either dead or raptured to not struggle with lust.

Life not a mess: The nation was at the peak of their power and prowess over their enemies. For 17 years David had walked in fellowship with the Lord, through hardships and prosperity, peace and war. Yet there lay within his heart a lack of trust, a tad bit of insecurity and an enemy that could not invade the nation from the outside found a way into that heart, a heart in which in every other way was for God. Hey saint take note, Our enemy may lay defeated in ground won in battle, but is still able to defeat us in land that he was never vanquished from.

Here then is the history of David’s sin which culminated in adultery with Bathsheba. In chapter three we can count 7 wives including Michal ,Saul’s daughter. Then in chapter 5:13 we are told that he took “more concubines and wives from Jerusalem”. So this was a problem for some time, it was nothing new. In Deut 17 were the rules for a king that said they were “not to multiply wives, horses, gold and silver” but David kept only two of those commands. Why were there such rules for a king? Well there is a price to pay when someone is called to serve and lead God’s people. God knows how easily distracted our hearts are by these things. You can look at David and see that he did not worship money as he dedicated it to the Lord (8:11) he was not a prideful man as he had a good grasp on his humble upbringing (7:18) but he had a problem with women. So David did what many do concerning their lives and compromise he compartmentalized God’s word by disregarding its clear teaching or Perhaps he thought, “Hey I’m off duty” so he indulged himself with A thought, and a thought led to a look and a look developed into a desire and a desire formed into an action!

Vs. 1b-3 If we look at James’ words in 1:14-15 where he says, “each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.” Notice that James uses the word “enticed” which means to be entrapped; it is our own fleshly desires that entrap us. We can see the same blueprint of sin here with David:

Vs. 1b Idleness: “In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war… David remained in Jerusalem.” Springtime in our country signifies the start of the baseball season but in Israel it signifies the start of the battle season. It was too cold to fight in the winter so they would go back and rest up for the spring time battles. As noted last week David’s act to distribute the kindness of God may have played a part in his decision to stay at home when the battle was not finished.

Hey saint God has not designed you and me to be spectators, when we become spectators instead of participants we get into trouble. Consider the twin cities of Sodom and Gomorrah: what do you suppose was their sin? Well most if not all would say sexual immorality but according to scripture in Ezekiel 16:49 “this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.” Sexual immorality is where these cities ended up but clearly they were blessed with full provisions, lots of time and instead of being a blessing kicked back and took it easy which led to sin.

Idleness is not just inactivity it is activity without purpose and such Idleness will lead to a troubled heart. Remaining in Jerusalem is not automatically a problem as you will recall that Mephibosheth found strength and refuge in Jerusalem at the kings table. But I suggest that the king’s table is a far different place than the kings roof pacing back and forth. The Ammonites lay defeated but not destroyed, subdued but not in subjection. As such our fleshly passions can trick us so that we will not go out and destroy the areas of our lives that seek to conquer us. The truth is David was safer on the battlefield than he was on his own roof!

Vs. 2 Imagination: “From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful”. David awoke from his siesta that he went up on the roof with its garden to look out over the city. He saw a woman who was bathing; and she was very beautiful to look upon. The fault lie not that he saw her bathing but rather that he began to fantasize about her in his heart. How do we know? Well it says that he saw that she was “very beautiful”.

The moment he saw her he needed to come down off the roof instead he decided to linger and gaze which gave birth to sin. To further back up this the Hebrew form of the word “walked” suggests that David paced back and forth on the roof. Now this tells me that something caused him to be restless, perhaps this was because he wasn’t where God wanted him to be. There are those who wish to find fault with Bathsheba suggesting that she in some way acted immodestly. However, considering that the Bible does not indicate this, she was bathing at a time when most people were asleep and she had no way of knowing that David would be watching. Likewise there is no indication that David planned on seeing her, his sin did not lie that he saw her but the phrase “the woman was very beautiful to behold.” Indicates that he kept looking! Hey brothers the Bible says in Job 31:1 “I have made a covenant with my eyes; Why then should I look upon a young woman?” We need to keep our eyes on the Lord and not any other woman other than our wife. It says that Bathsheba “was very beautiful to behold” But the problem was not in her beauty but in the heart of David.

You see David had many wives who were very beautiful; Solomon his son had 700 wives and 300 concubines. Surely there were some beauties among them. Fellows the problem of lust is that it comes from a heart that is never satisfied with what it has been given. Consider Joseph who was more than seduced daily by a beautiful woman he was attacked by but he fled temptation yet David just looked upon her and the temptation was too strong.

Was the difference to be found in Bathsheba being much better looking than Potiphar’s wife? No, the problem lies not in the temptation but in the heart being tempted! David looked at Bathsheba and saw beauty but God looked at David’s heart and saw ugliness. Mankind wants to call it an “affair” but God calls it adultery. David wanted to call it love but God called it lust. David thought “oh so sexy” but God said, “oh so sinful”. Saint this isn’t romantic” its ruin and destruction.

Vs. 3 Inquiry: “and David sent someone to find out about her”. He had already stepped over the line when he remained on the roof but when he sought to know more about that which in his heart he had already committed adultery seeking to make his fantasy a reality. The bottom line is you have a problem if you “send after your sin”. I mean did David invite a few of his servants up on the roof to check her out and watch her bathe? What did he learn? Well that she like him (many times over) was married.

He found out that she was a daughter of a mighty man and a granddaughter of a trusted adviser, and finally that her husband was also of mighty men. Those facts ought to have been more than enough to cause him to repent but all he heard was that Uriah the husband was away!

Time must have temptation and temptation needs opportunity and all of this need to take root in a heart that has already been made fertile for the weeds of sin to grow. As soon as he was told it should have caused him to repent and turn away being that she was a married woman. Ahithophel was a close friend and in the Psalm 55:12-13 David makes reference to him as he will side and give aid to his son Absalom when he rebels against him. He no doubt lost respect for David because of his relationship with his granddaughter.

In Num. 32:23 Moses told the men of Gad and Manasseh “take note, you have sinned against the LORD; and be sure your sin will find you out”. Hey Christian, be it known there really is no such thing as a “secret sin” All sin is against God, and He sees it all. Jesus said in Luke 12:2 “For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known”. Chron 28: 9 tells us that “the LORD searches all hearts and understands all the intent of the thoughts.”

Vs. 4 Now though it is true that David committed adultery in his heart on the roof but the action he took afterwards was far worse. There are those who would suggest that the two are equal in some way but just ask anyone who has had their spouse commit adultery and ask them if it is the same? The phrase “took her” does not mean by force but that she did not offer any hesitation, simply put it takes two to tango and Bathsheba is not without blame! I’m not suggesting that she may have not been seduced by his power, looks and charm but she still had a choice.

One of the questions people ask is why Bathsheba was so willing to go with David’s messengers and then submit to his desires? Some want to say that it was Bathsheba that seduced David and that he fell into her trap of seduction. Others suggest that her public bathing was an invitation to any man. Or some say she went with the messengers for information about her husband and when he made advances felt she could not say no to the king for fear of what might happen to him. All or none of those scenarios could be but it still does not take away human responsibility.

David’s life was going to be a mess all for a few minutes of stolen pleasure. Literature, movies and music have all romanticized adultery yet seldom do we really know the true cost of the breaking of promises. God takes seriously the promises made to Him even if those who made them to each other don’t. Furthermore why didn’t someone stop David as he was involving them in his sin? It is highly unlikely that no one knew of the situation. It is more likely that they knew and turned the other way thinking, “Well he has done so many good things for the nation, he once helped me so I’ll overlook this!”

We are told her that “she was cleansed from her impurity” which suggests three things:

First, that David was concerned about the levitical laws concerning having sex with someone during their time of the month. As it says that he “took her” after she had purified herself so that she could have sexual relations, oh the hypocrisy of such an action. Is that not amazing, “Hey, can’t break that law but after your week is up let’s commit adultery”. David was clearly able to compartmentalize his actions so as to not be convicted by his behavior.
Second it is clear that this statement confirms that the child was his as she was clearly not pregnant prior to being with David, in other words there was no question as to whom the father was.
Finally, this action reveals that David had adopted the world’s view for the purpose of sex as the pursuit of “self gratification”. This wasn’t about intimacy, the union of man, woman and God, no it was, (no matter how much music and Hollywood want to romanticize it) the pursuit of personal pleasure at the expense of others, as it says that “she returned to her house”.

Vs. 5 David and Bathsheba did not plan on this as the pregnancy would prove their adultery as Uriah was away. In Leviticus 20:10 we are told “The man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, he who commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress, shall surely be put to death.” So Bathsheba’s words to David concerning her pregnancy was an attempt to thwart the consequences of their sin. “What was he thinking?” He wasn’t, he was relying completely on emotions to which he completely blocked out any and all thought of the consequences. You see the consequences were:

An unwanted pregnancy
The murder of a trusted friend
A dead baby
His daughter raped by his son
One son murdered by another son
A civil war led by one of his sons
A son who imitates David’s lack of self-control and it leads him and much of Israel away from God

The only recorded words of Bathsheba in this entire incident are right before as she simply said, “I am with child” based upon 1 Chron 3:5 this was her first child who would die and later she would give birth to four more sons. There ought not to be a more joyous occasion in a couple’s life than to find out that God has blessed with a child, but not when the expected birth is from an adulterous relationship.

We just took note of the terrible waste of life and how many children lost their fathers and mothers on September 11, 2001, but the sad truth of it is that far more children go to bed every night without their dad or mom in the house because of adultery.

Lying cheater

Vs. 6 The news of Bathsheba being pregnant should have caused him to repent but instead David acts as all unrepentant sinners do, seeking to hide or cover their sin. God mercifully gives him another chance to get it right the moment that he realized that she was pregnant, he could have gone and confessed his sin but he chose another path, of deception and cover up, which meant he had to keep lying. It all started in the garden of Eden with Adam and Eve as they sewed together fig leaves, to hide their nakedness. Then Moses, who killed the Egyptian, and tried to bury him. It’s just what man does who wants to cover their actions and not deal with the heart. But our sin always finds us out, so too did David’s as Bathsheba tell him she is pregnant. And again God gives David a chance to repent but instead he tells Joab to send Uriah back from the battle.

What must Joab have thought concerning the king’s request, “Uriah, why would the king want to see Uriah, why did he not come out himself?” Then upon hearing that Uriah had been given the sentence of death, “What must have Uriah done to deserve this from a man who so praises and exalts God?”

Vs. 7-11 All this discussion with Uriah was again hypocrisy as he did not care only that he could deceive him. David was seducing Uriah no doubt the way he had seduced his wife and perhaps believed that Uriah like him, would give in to his passions. David had no plans to kill Uriah or to take Bathsheba as his wife; it didn’t start out like that. Little did David count on the fact that a Hittite would have a greater passion for the glory and honor of Israel than did the king? Uriah was a team player who could not think of enjoying himself while his fellows in arms were not able to, he was not after his pleasure at the expense of others as was David.

Think of what this must have communicated to Bathsheba concerning his devotion and commitment towards her, “Hey, I know I’ll bring your husband home from the battle and you can have sex with him and no one will ever know the difference”. This suggests to me that he did not view her any more than an object of lust and an instrument to satisfy his pleasure as he is more than willing to have her go back to her husband. One can only wonder how that made her feel, perhaps as just a piece of meat? Oh such love and concern! David is the consummate planner and had a way to cover up the blessing that was growing in her womb.

David orders Uriah home so that he would spend time with the woman David found irresistible, but Uriah disobeyed the king and stayed with the servants in the king’s palace. David then planned a romantic dinner for Uriah and sent him to their home but he still did not go. The next day upon hearing that Uriah didn’t go home David gave the soldier a bad time for not doing so, to which Uriah gently reproved the king. There was a rule that a soldier should abstain from intimacy while serving in a military campaign.

The only one hiding from his sin was David’s conscience as God clearly knew all that had happened. Far too many people are willing to cover their sin while talking about others, we have it backwards don’t we? You and I are called to cover others’ sins while exposing our own.

Vs. 12-14 Alcohol lowers a person’s resistance and sense of decency. Fast forward many years and hear the words of Bathsheba to her son Solomon in Prov. 31:4-6, “It is not for kings, O Lemuel– not for kings to drink wine, not for rulers to crave beer, lest they drink and forget what the law decrees, and deprive all the oppressed of their rights. Give beer to those who are perishing, wine to those who are in anguish”. Bud never made anyone I know wiser but it has ruined many lives and marriages as those who partook of it did things that without them never would have.

So finally David thought, “If I can’t get him to sleep with his wife while sober I’ll get him drunk and his passions will override his sense of duty!” Yet Uriah drunk was still a more honorable man than David was sober, and even though alcohol may have weakened his defenses it didn’t change his commitment. Again I wonder how this made Bathsheba feel as she had been seduced by the king who couldn’t keep his hands off of her only to be dismissed back to a husband who even when drunk didn’t want to be with her. What a sad commentary on David who pursued what was not his sober and could not get the husband to do drunk what he had every right to do. David was drunk with lust when he slept with Bathsheba; he hoped that making Uriah drunk with wine would bring the same result.

There remained only one solution left in the eyes of David and it was not to get his heart right and confess openly his sin. Gone from David as well as many in the church today are the words of Nathan to David, “by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme” (2 Sam 12:14). David had not yet heard those words of Nathan and at this moment his contemplation was only to protect what was so carelessly disregarded and what this reveals is that David only sought to divert the consequences of the action and not get his heart right with the Lord. Until his heart was broken by Nathan’s words he had no repentance, only diversion. Oh that we might understand the words of Paul in Rom. 5:20 “Where sin did abound, grace did much more abound”.

David, “The King’s troubles”

2 Sam. Ch. 11:15-27

Vs. 15-17 A second mistress

Vs. 18-27 There was a king that swallowed a fly

Intro

Here we see the man according to 1 Sam. 13:14 that the LORD had “sought for Himself as a man after His own heart”. Pay close attention as this quote comes not from David’s estimation of himself but rather from the Lord’s estimation of David. Yeah so? Well God is all knowing, He did not say, “Well, that boy of mine WAS a man after My own heart.” God knew full well that David would fail to get a hold of and surrender the area of lust over to Him. What this tells me is that a person after God’s heart is not added or scratched off based upon success or failure, no a person that is after God’s own heart is called such based upon their response to the Lord in both!

So how did things get so bad? It all started a long time ago when David compromised with the Word of God and failed to surrender his life in simple obedience to God in the area of lust. For years the glances at the ladies was something he toyed with but it was harmless no big deal a “victimless sin”. Then opportunity came for him to add wives to his harem and it was politically expected, socially acceptable and after all he made them wives yet the clear teaching was not to multiply wives. Perhaps he reasoned, “Hey I’m not multiplying just adding one at a time!” Then there was that day when he was not where he was supposed to be “the time when kings go out to battle” and idleness created the pathway to view a woman bathing and his imagination kicked in as he began to fantasize about her. Finally fantasy not being enough he needed to inquire about her and soon after adultery and now murder.

Hey saints, our flesh is really sneaky, it will jump through every hoop, dodge every opportunity, make every excuse but there is one thing that our old nature will avoid at every cost DEATH to its self centered ways! Oh it will play possum, faint for a season, even yield up ground but DIE on its own? NEVER! Here Paul’s words in Rom 6:11-14 “Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.” Hey, saint listen carefully, do you know how to stop a speeding locomotive? Call for Superman! No, don’t let it get started, and then you will show that you know the Super Man, Jesus!

A second mistress

Vs. 15 Joab was a murderer himself and would again use deception in the 20th chapter so he must have read between the lines and deduced that David wanted Uriah’s wife. Now Joab knew that he could not send Uriah up to the wall by himself so he sent David’s own bodyguards (verse 17) with Uriah, perhaps they were in on the plan and if Uriah failed to be killed by the Ammonites he would be killed by some “friendly fire”.

Remember David is not vengeful against Uriah; this action is not jealousy or a response for some wrong done by Uriah, not that this would justify his action. No this is premeditated murder and to make matters worse it is done simply so David would not have to take responsibility for his action. It is fear and deception that is ruling David’s life and not only does this cost Uriah his life it takes the life of David’s bodyguards as well.

David has become infected with sin and it is growing in ways that I’m sure he never anticipated as he is sending a note with Uriah the man he had been committing adultery against. The note to Joab was a conspiracy to murder Uriah placed in the hand of Uriah, the intended victim. Man is that ever hard hearted.

What must have Joab thought upon receiving the note? It is clear that Joab understood the note as he studied the city enough to know where he was most certain to die. You will recall that it was Joab who murdered Abner for the death of his brother by the gate in Hebron. David was very critical of Joab and Abishai saying in 3:19 “the sons of Zeruiah, are too harsh for me. The LORD shall repay the evildoer according to his wickedness.” David was so displeased with Joab that he demoted him until he needed someone to penetrate the walls of Jerusalem and Joab accepted the suicide mission and regained his position as commander of the army (1 Chron 11:6, 2 Sam 5:8). “The sons of Zeruiah are too harsh for me?” “Hey Man I just avenged my brothers death by the hands of a wicked man I didn’t take another man’s wife and then sign his death warrant.”

Vs. 16-17 David had known that Joab was a harsh man and so he knew that Joab would see to it that Uriah would be killed and Joab could say, “Hey, not my problem I was just following orders.” What does this say about Uriah that he would send a death sentence by his own hand and trust that he would not open the message? I don’t know if you can get more wicked than this, to take advantage of a man’s noble character and use it to put him to death. Furthermore, David trusted Joab to carry out a plan to have an innocent man murdered. Having failed to cover his own sin, now all that was left in his eyes was to have Uriah killed. Whenever we seek to cover our sin, as David did, we are revealing that we view what we have as greater value than our relationship with the Lord. Yes someone needed to die but it was not Uriah it was David’s self centeredness. What does this show us? Well it suggests that David had two mistresses Bathsheba and his position as king and he certainly loved his position greater than Bathsheba as he was willing to sacrifice her but not his position. It had taken 15 years for David to obtain the promise of God to be king and in about the same amount of time he had valued the promise above the Promiser and was willing to risk what he had waited so long in the Lord to obtain.

Consider this; David was of better character when he was a fugitive and a servant than he was when he was a king at home. As a fugitive twice he refused to take Saul’s life even though Saul was seeking to take his but as king he was willing to kill a friend to achieve a cover up after having taken his wife. Man does this speak volumes to our hearts as we are always in a better place as a servant knowing that this is not our home than we are thinking we are the kings or queens of our own castle!

Hey saints make no mistake about it God’s servants are under a higher standard as Nathan will say “By this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme”. When I was in the jewelry business we used to have a saying that reminded us to always strive for excellence on every piece we made, “You’re only as good as your last job”. Oh the last piece may have been a masterpiece but if you don’t take the same care on the next one then all people will remember is the job you just gave them.

Yes David was a great king and worshiper he had a great influence over the people and furthered God’s kingdom but one slip up and he not only caused his own downfall but gave opportunity for satan to bring others with him. I like you, have witnessed far too many Godly and gifted men throw away their calling because they valued the calling greater than the One who called them. Some, over time became broken and repentant and have begun to value the Caller above the calling. Others only give lip service to the Caller and immediately seek the calling, showing that their mistress was the attention they got from serving. Listen up, ministry can be extremely intoxicating and too much of it with out enough of Him will leave a person drunk on their self importance and gifting!

There was a king that swallowed a fly

Vs. 18 Apparently Joab was a bit worried at David’s response concerning the battle as he instructed the messenger to make sure David knew of Uriah’s death. He anticipated David’s response being “Why were you fighting so close to the wall”. And he makes reference to the book of Judges (so apparently the book of Judges was written by then); they had their history recorded by this point. Perhaps David was thinking, “Man I love it when a plan comes together,” as Uriah was posted next to the wall and sure enough he was killed along with a few other soldiers but what does it matter if there were a few others that died as long as Uriah was dead. “I mean if the brother had only not been so stupid he would still be alive”.

Vs. 19-21 Joab knew David was a strategic commander and would want to know why the carelessness that cost unnecessary losses in battle. So the messenger was instructed to tell David the reason for the loss was that Uriah was dead so David would understand what the world system has long extolled “The end justifies the means”. Joab sights the passage out of Judges chapter 9 concerning what a bad move this was militarily and how Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth was tricked and killed by the gate of Thebez when a woman dropped a millstone on his head. What make this story interesting is that it not only speaks of a bad military move by fighting too close to the gate, Abimelech was a guy who used deception and self interest to gain position as leader of the nation only to be judged by God for his actions and it was a woman that humbled him, sound familiar?

Vs. 22-25 The death of Uriah opened the door for him to marry Bathsheba and give explanation for her pregnancy, perhaps in some people’s eyes it would make him look even better as he was marrying a widower as they would see how much he cared for Uriah.

Further revealing David’s callused heart is the quotation of a proverb regarding the misfortunes of war. Did David believe this himself had he succeeded in self deception? So as soon as the messenger came in David was told what had happened and that Uriah was dead he sent word back to Joab saying, “Hey, not to worry bro you win some and you lose some!” The battle was lost because to David Uriah had to die and he had to die in such away as it would not come back upon him. All of this is reminiscent of the words of Caiaphas towards Jesus in John 11:50 where he said, “it is expedient for us that one man should die for the people, and not that the whole nation should perish.” So Uriah becomes a type of Jesus as he died for David, as Jesus took our nails and our sin sent Jesus to the battle where he took upon Himself the death that was meant for us.

Hey, saints, how many battles have we lost because we have been more concerned with covering up our sins at the expense of others? Is the battle ground of our lives littered with the dead bodies of innocent people so we could continue to live a compromised life? Is it not time for you and I to be courageous instead of cowards and head to the battlefield ourselves and die to the area of our lives that is defeating us instead of continually asking someone else to die in our stead?

Num. 32:23 Moses had spoken to the nation warning them, “Be sure your sin will find you out!” David thought, “Not this time, I’ve committed the perfect crime and I’ve thought of everything!” Except that God would speak to his friend Nathan! So 9 months pass you’ve added another wife to your harem and the nation thinks you’re a great guy for taking in a pregnant widow, the army’s moral is high as they see how you are for them and after 9 months you are expecting a child whom you will love as one of your own and no one will realize that he is your own. “My image is intact; I had my cake and ate it too!” But this will all fall apart shortly and David will have a mark on his record.

Now, follow me on this as this story would have never been known had it not been for David including it in his record as it is not recorded in Chronicles chapter 20 as it only says, “that Joab led out the armed forces and ravaged the country of the people of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem. And Joab defeated Rabbah and overthrew it.” And then skips to the 30th verse of the 12th chapter.

And it is here that we see that David is a man after God’s own heart. It was not his failure that disqualified him, it was his heart to speak of his own failure and God’s goodness in spite of him that caused God to speak of him in such terms. Here is my point: it is not our perfection that makes us great, no listen to David in 2 Sam 22:36-37 and Psalm 18:35 “Your gentleness has made me great. You enlarged my path under me; So my feet did not slip.” David was a man who, though many times blew it, always spoke of his failure and God’s goodness and he made sure that through every generation people would know that he was a flawed man who worshiped a perfect God and such are we!

Vs. 26 It appears that David concealed his plan to have her husband killed from Bathsheba as she grieved at her loss and with David’s recent treatment of her had no hope other than that she may be put to death. The general period for morning was 7 to 30 days so Bathsheba’s expression of grief was no doubt sincere but it was also mixed with relief and excitement as she went from the “electric chair” to the “Queen’s chair”. This would appear to be no big deal for David as he had been adding wives all along as many may be tempted to think as David has become a sort of hero taking in a grieving pregnant soldier’s wife to take care of her.

Perhaps David thought, “Man that was a close one I almost got caught but now that Uriah’s dead and Bathsheba is my wife now one will ever find out, I think I’ll go up and take a look out from my roof tonight.”

“Displeasing to the Lord”

Vs. 27 This phrase “The thing that David had done displeased the Lord”, is the first mention of God in the chapter and shows us that God witnessed every event and knew of every motive of the heart. Now David had sent the messenger back to tell Joab “Do not let this thing displease you” but he failed to realize in verse 27 that “the thing that he had done displeased the lord”. The sad truth is that oftentimes we are more concerned whether or not our actions displease men instead of asking if it displeases the Lord. Oh, to be sure there will be some who will say of our actions and attitudes “do not let this thing displease you” but they do not speak for God and be it known that He alone has the final word. A hireling is concerned with how their action will be viewed by men and if they can poll and persuade enough people concerning their action not being all that displeasing then they are alright. Oh we may be able to fool the courts, our friends and get off Scot-free but rest assured God will judge.

There was only one flaw with this plan, “the thing that David had done displeased the LORD.” But a true shepherd’s response will be what David wrote in Psalm 32:1-5 a year later, “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. When I kept silent, my bones grew old through my groaning all day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was turned into the drought of summer. I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and You forgave the iniquity of my sin.”

What this psalm shows is that David was under intense conviction during this time and that all the joy in his life evaporated. He was living in stress and agony because of living a double, false life and found no relief until he repented and got right with God. Someone has well said “The better the man the dearer the price he pays for a short season of sinful pleasure.” David had too much of the Lord to be happy and too much compromise and sin to be happy in the Lord.

He was at a breaking point and would either choose the Lord and humble out seeking repentance and restoration with the Lord or the path of compromise. “Those in most need of repentance are often the last to seek it as sin and compromise blind the eye, stifle the conscience and make ignorant the heart of those who would seek God”. Hear the words of Hosea in 6:1-3 “Come, and let us return to the LORD; For He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; On the third day He will raise us up, That we may live in His sight. Let us know, Let us pursue the knowledge of the LORD. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain, Like the latter and former rain to the earth.”