“You Have Utterly Scorned The LORD”

But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD, ¹ and the LORD sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had very many flocks and herds; but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. He brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children; it used to eat of his meager fare, and drink from his cup, and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him. Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was loath to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared that for the guest who had come to him.” Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man. He said to Nathan, “As the LORD lives, the man who has done this deserves to die; he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.”

Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: I anointed you king over Israel, and I rescued you from the hand of Saul; I gave you your master’s house, and your master’s wives into your bosom, and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added as much more. Why have you despised the word of the LORD, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, for you have despised me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife. Thus says the LORD: I will raise up trouble against you from within your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes, and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this very sun. For you did it secretly; but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.” David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” Nathan said to David, “Now the LORD has put away your sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless, because of this deed you have utterly scorned the LORD, the child that is born to you shall die.”

2 Samuel 12:1-14

David was known as a man after God’s own heart, and yet he failed to seek truth, and he used the power of his office to take another man’s wife and then to place the husband in battle so that he would die. The man who died was one of David’s own military officers.

We could look at the failures of well-known people to feel better about ourselves. But if we feel good about the wrongs of others, we don’t know ourselves. The Bible does not tell us about the sins of David to weaken our sense of moral alarm, but to put all of us on notice. The failures of others should cause us to be more aware of our own weaknesses and need for the grace of Christ. Only in the knowledge of our weakness will we be dependent on the strength of our God. The Bible is a mirror that reflects how God sees us.

Our Daily Bread – September 15, 2007