It happened, late one afternoon, when David arose from his couch and was walking on the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful. 2 Samuel 11:2
The last chapter of David’s life is dominated by troubles that David brought on himself by his own sin and folly. It began when David committed adultery with a married woman called Bathsheba.
When David discovered that Bathsheba was pregnant, he called for her husband Uriah, who was serving as a soldier in the king’s army, so that when the child was born, Uriah and everyone else would assume that this was his child. But Uriah refused to enjoy the comforts of home while his fellow soldiers were risking their lives on the field of battle.
So David sent Uriah back to the front lines with a letter to Joab, the army commander, with specific instructions to “set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him that he may be struck down, and die” (11:15). David’s plan was successful and the sad news of Uriah’s death was reported to Bathsheba. After an appropriate period of mourning, David sent for her to become his wife. The cover-up was complete, except for one thing: “the thing that David had done displeased the Lord” (11:27).
Nothing good ever comes from sin. If the only thing we say and believe about sin is that God wonderfully forgives us in Jesus, we will have very little defense against temptation. This story is in the Bible to tell us that sin destroys. That’s why it should horrify us and drive us to Christ.
On a scale of 1 (numb) to 10 (horrified), what is your reaction to sin? Ask God to give you a heightened sense of the cruelty of sin and a readiness to run to Jesus.