Caught up in their Sins

 2 Samuel 11:14-27

A man or woman caught up in their sins has no limit to what they will do to cover their crime.  When that person is in a position of authority, such as a king, or president they give orders and others often enhance the sin.  Such is the case with Uriah as is witnessed in verses 14-22. 

David gives a letter to Uriah, it is an execution note to his general Joab, and yet Uriah did not have a clue he was delivering his death decree.  This was on that note: “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die.” 

This is the action of general Joab; “And as Joab was besieging the city, he assigned Uriah to the place where he knew there were valiant men. And the men of the city came out and fought with Joab, and some of the servants of David among the people fell. Uriah the Hittite also died. Then Joab sent and told David all the news about the fighting. And he instructed the messenger, “When you have finished telling all the news about the fighting to the king, then, if the king's anger rises, and if he says to you, ‘Why did you go so near the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall? Who killed Abimelech, the son of Jerubbesheth? Did not a woman cast an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died at Thebez? Why did you go so near the wall?’ then you shall say, ‘your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.’”

Joab is a great general, and he must have wondered what Uriah had done to deserve death, but he carried out the King’s orders.  The messengers must be wondering what’s going on, why would Uriah the Hittite’s death appease David’s anger of allowing men to fall in battle using such a foolish military tactic?

This is the report about what David said to the messenger, “Thus shall you say to Joab, ‘Do not let this matter displease you, for the sword devours now one and now another. Strengthen your attack against the city and overthrow it.’ And encourage him.”  So it is all going well for the King, he has gotten Uriah’s wife pregnant, while Uriah is away in battle, and he had Uriah killed to cover up his sin.

And it seems clear that Bathsheba was not aware of David’s actions, so when she gets the report of her husband's death, she mourned for him.  It is not clear to me if Bathsheba had a choice in David’s adultery, but I’m betting she was terrified of what Uriah would do to her when he came home.

When the time of mourning was over, David had her come to his house and she became his wife, and bore him a son.  It is the last sentence we need to pay attention to.  “But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice