When Tangled in Sin
Explore the Bible Series
November 16, 2008
Background Passage: II Samuel 9:1-12:31 (I Chronicles 19:1-20:3)
Lesson Passage: II Samuel 12:1-7a, 9-14
Introduction:
This week we turn our attention to one of the most familiar stories in II Samuel; indeed, the account of David’s sin with Bathsheba may be one of the best known texts in all of the Old Testament. The passage contains invaluable lessons for Christians who, of course, deal with temptations, just as David did. The nature and consequences of sin become crystal clear as we examine this text. Furthermore, we rejoice in this testimony of God’s grace toward David, and all God’s children take comfort that the Lord forgives those who repent of their sins. We benefit from this example of God’s chastening of his wayward child. The Lord did not leave David in his sin; rather, he sent Nathan to confront the king, a confrontation that led to David’s repentance. Yes, this passage contains very helpful lessons for the Lord’s people. However, as is often the case, God’s dealings with men also prove mysterious.
As I have studied through I and II Samuel, the narrative,
again and again, raises questions for me.
Why, for instance, did God deal with Saul’s sin in one manner and
David’s in another? Saul failed to kill
all of the Amalekites, and God rejected him as king of
Another question that stirs my heart relates to the murder of Uriah the Hittite. Often the Psalms remind us of God’s protective care over his people. The images of God’s protection include a fortress, a high rock, a buckler, a shield, and a high tower. Why didn’t God protect Uriah? The poor man had done nothing wrong; in fact, he proved, in this case, far more righteous than David. It is true that Uriah was a Hittite, but the text seems to imply his conversion to Judaism. Yet, deceitful, adulterous, murderous David survived this story, and Uriah died a horrible, painful death.
Please forgive one more illustration of my puzzlement with this story. After Bathsheba conceived and Uriah died, David married his adulterous partner, and she gave birth to a son. Soon, the child became ill, and, after a week of suffering, died. The baby, of course, played no role in this sinful episode, but the baby suffered and died, while David and Bathsheba lived. Why did the baby suffer as a consequence of his parents’ sin? He didn’t deserve death, but David did.
I don’t raise these questions to promote doubt in any of my readers; rather, I express these things because I want to be honest about the difficulties that arise from considering the ways of God. Perhaps no one really has satisfactory answers to these questions; therefore, Christians should avoid the model of church leadership that claims to have all the answers of life. Ernest Reisinger often warned me about “people who had all the answers on 3x5 cards.” I think Ernie was right. God will not be tamed. He is a storm, an earthquake who refuses human demands to conform to a set of mundane expectations. The “answer men” are idolaters who create a “god” they can explain and manage. Their deity is perfectly understandable and predictable. Jehovah, however, has no bit in his mouth. He will not be caged or leashed, and we, his children, must bow before him in godly fear, awe, and reverence. Only the God of the Bible can evoke both reverence and love. No one can love the god of the “answer men”, he induces pride and pity, unworthy attitudes toward the sovereign Lord of Hosts.
Lesson Outline:
I. David’s Kindness to Mephibosheth (9:1-13)
A. Seeking an opportunity for kindness (vv. 1-4): The king remembered his covenant with Jonathan and inquired about a remnant of Saul’s household. Recall that most of Saul’s family had died, but David turned every stone to discover a survivor. Like David, Christians should seek opportunities for kindness.
B. David’s
summons of Mephibosheth (vv. 5-8): Mephibosheth, a son of Jonathan, had escaped
the demise of the family and lived with a wealthy man named Machir, at Lo-debar
(located, in all probability, in Gilead, on the east side of the
C. David’s decree concerning Mephibosheth (vv. 9-13): According to the decree of the king, Ziba and his family would serve Mephibosheth. David required that they work the lame man’s inherited land, and Mephibosheth was to eat at the king’s table. Some have speculated that David commanded this because he anticipated treachery at the hand of Mephibosheth. Our current text gives no indication of David’s suspicions, but the II Samuel 16:1-4 may indicate that Mephibosheth conspired with David’s enemies, during the revolt of Absalom.
II.
A. David’s
gracious overture to the Ammonites (vv. 1-2): The Ammonite people descended
from Lot’s incestuous relations with his youngest daughter (See Genesis
19:30-38), and this tribal group often had troubled relations with
B. Hanun’s disgraceful treatment of David’s emissaries (vv. 3-5): The princes of the Ammonites convinced Hanun, the son of Nahash, that the Israelite messengers had a sinister motive-- spying on the Ammonites. Foolishly, Hanun believed his unreliable counselors, and he ordered that the messengers’ beards and clothing be mutilated. Shaving half the beard and exposing the loins of the envoys constituted a grave humiliation, in ancient Middle Eastern culture.
C. David’s
defeat of the Ammonite/Syrian League (vv. 6-19): Quickly, the Ammonites
realized they had irked David, and they prepared for war. These preparations led them to ally with the
Syrians, and the two armies converged on
III. David’s Sin with Bathsheba (11:1-12:31)
A. The complexity of David’s sin (11:1-27): These two chapters faithfully recount the grievous series of events that led King David, deeper and deeper, into disobedience to God. The sinful spiral began with a lustful look and ended with David’s insensitivity to the seriousness of his transgressions. As often happens, the sin of lust did not stand in isolation; rather, one act of disobedience led to a complex sequence of sad events.
1. failure of duty (v. 1): Perhaps I press the text too far here, but I wonder why David did not go to battle with his troops. This verse highlights David’s absence from his army.
2. lust (vv. 2-3): David saw Bathsheba bathing, and her beauty overwhelmed him. If David had handled this situation wisely, the problems would not have escalated. Men, of course, find women attractive. I think this attraction, properly understood and expressed, makes up part of God’s healthy design (I encourage the careful reading of the Song of Solomon for more insight here). The beginning of David’s problem centers, it seems, on the king’s inquiry about the woman he saw from his roof. The text gives no indication that David spied on Bathsheba; rather, David’s observance of the woman seems incidental and without serious consequence.
3. adultery (vv. 4-5): The king followed through on his lustful desires for Bathsheba, and, after their illicit affair, the woman conceived a child. Note that the text indicates that Bathsheba had just completed her days of uncleanness (during her menstrual cycle); therefore, the baby was undoubtedly David’s child.
4.
deceit (vv. 6-13): David, in an effort to conceal
his sin, sent for Uriah and tried to persuade him to go in to Bathsheba, but
Uriah honored his military commitments and refused to go to his home. Desperate, David made Uriah drunk in hopes
that the alcohol would distort the judgment of the loyal soldier, but the
scheme did not work.
5.
murder (vv. 14-27): Finally, David conspired to
kill Uriah. The king told Joab to place
Uriah at the most intense part of the fighting; then, David required the
soldiers to withdraw, thus abandoning Uriah amid the enemy. After Uriah’s murder, David comforted Joab,
the commander who had given the fateful order to abandon Uriah. Bathsheba fulfilled the obligatory period of
mourning for her husband; then, she married David.
B. Nathan’s confrontation with King David (12:1-12): The prophet confronted David’s sin by telling the king a fictional story, a story that mirrored the horror of David’s sin. David, outraged at the cruelty of the rich man in the story, commanded that the offender be executed, and Nathan revealed that David was the oppressive rich man. The prophet predicted severe consequences for the king’s sin.
1. “the sword will not depart from your house” (v. 10)
2. “I will take your wives… and give them to your neighbor” (v. 11)
3. “I
will do these things before all of
C. David’s repentance (vv.13-14): David’s repentance was quick and sincere. God pledged not to kill the king, but the temporal consequences of his sin were not cancelled. Psalm 51 reflects the depth of David’s grief over his sin.
D. The birth and death of the child (vv. 15-23): The Lord afflicted the baby, and, after seven days of illness, the newborn died. David prayed earnestly for the baby, but God did not spare the little one.
E. The
birth of Solomon (vv. 4-25): In time, God gave a new son to David and
Bathsheba, and they named the boy Solomon.
This son, of course, will later become king of
F. Military
victory over Ammon (vv. 26-31): The narrative returns to the military conquests
of David. Joab defeated and enslaved the
long-time enemies of