When David was around 50 years old he fought and won a battle against a confederation of nations (2 Samuel 10:1-19 and 1 Chronicles 19:1-19) to the north of ancient Israel, elevating him to a powerful and influential position in the region.
Around this time David was on the rooftop of his palace and saw a beautiful woman bathing. She was “Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite” (II Samuel 11:2-3). Eliam and Uriah were two of David’s elite mighty men, with whom he had spent untold hours. These were important men who lived close to the palace and would have been regular guests at the king’s table.
Although David was now a very powerful man he was unable to control his passions, and he lusted after Bathsheba—coveting his neighbor’s wife in violation of the Tenth Commandment. God admonishes us when confronted with these situations to flee from them (1 Corinthians 6:18; 2 Timothy 2:22). If David had done this considerable suffering would be avoided, but he used his position as king to take advantage of Uriah’s wife (II Samuel 11:4).
What part Bathsheba played in all this is difficult to ascertain. She sinned as well, but David, as spiritual leader and premier civil authority in the land, had greater accountability, and the sordid situation was made worse by the fact that David fathered a child with her.
This was a terrible betrayal of Uriah. This story is generally referred to as that of “David and Bathsheba,” but God calls it “the matter of Uriah the Hittite” (1 Kings 15:5). The name Uriah means “Flame of the Eternal” or “The Eternal Is Light.” As he was called a Hittite, he was probably a foreign mercenary who became a worshiper of the God of Israel and, for years, he had devoted his life to the service of David.
David’s attempt to cover up his sin by getting Uriah together with his wife was not successful, so he despicably sent a message to Joab, his nephew, with orders that essentially constituted Uriah’s death sentence. To perpetuate his cover-up, David took Bathsheba as his wife to make it appear that their unborn child was legitimate. It appeared to David that he had gotten away with everything, “But,” as the account tells us, “the thing that David had done displeased the Lord” (II Samuel 11:27).
David had now committed two heinous sins against God—adultery and murder. David’s sin began with a thought—the sin of lust. He then committed the act of adultery and tried deception to cover up his sin. When that did not work, he had Uriah killed. Sin begets sin. The fact that such a righteous man as King David could sink to this level should serve as a warning to us all to always remain close to God.
God then sent the prophet, Nathan, to confront David. This took some courage on Nathan’s part as David could have ordered Nathan to be killed for pointing out his sins. Nathan asked the King’s advice about what to do about a man who had taken a poor man’s lamb. David did not realize Nathan was symbolically referring to his own callous and sinful behavior and he not only called for restitution, but even pronounced the death sentence on the offender. It is always easier to see and condemn the sins of others—even when our own sins are staring us in the face.
Nathan then told him: “You are the man!” (II Samuel 12:7). David had broken the tenth commandment prohibiting coveting, and also the eighth, against stealing. He broke the seventh, by committing adultery and the ninth, against lying and deception. He broke the sixth, against murder, and also the third, against taking God’s name in vain, by claiming to represent God while acting contrary to Him, causing God’s name to be “profaned among the nations” (II Samual 12:14). And David broke the First Commandment by not putting God first in his life, and serving his own desires instead.
As a result of these sins, Nathan presented David with four punishments from God. The first three are listed in 2 Samuel 12:10-12. 1) His family would experience infighting and bloodshed. 2) Adversity would be raised up against David from among his own family. 3) His wives would be taken from him by another, who will lie with them in public.
At this point, David fully confessed to what he had done. A complete account of his prayer of repentance is found in the sobering words of Psalm 51. David had hurt a lot of people, but above all he had sinned against God (verse 4). He begged God to forgive him and asked for a clean heart and a renewed spirit to serve God, and that God’s presence through the Holy Spirit would remain with him.
After David’s heartfelt repentance Nathan told him that: “The Lord…has put away your sin; you shall not die” (2 Samuel 12:13). However, Nathan stressed David must still suffer many of the consequences for what he had done lest others think there was no justice with God. The fourth consequence of his sin was that the child born of his adultery with Bathsheba would die. Even David’s heartfelt prayer and fasting before God for the child did not change God’s mind about this.
Because of David’s sincere repentance and desire to follow God, God forgave and comforted David and Bathsheba and Bathsheba conceived another child who would become the next king of Israel. David would later report in 1 Chronicles 22:8-9: “But the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘…Behold, a son shall be born to you… and I will give him rest from all his enemies all around. His name shall be Solomon, for I will give peace and quietness to Israel in his days.'”
