The Life and Times of

Leson 8: David and Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:1-4)

Introduction

Many tragic incidents occur as the unexpected outcome of a sequence of events. Certainly that is the case with King David. A little vacation from war leads to a day spent in bed, followed by a stroll along the roof of his palace as night begins to fall on Jerusalem. By chance, David sees a woman bathing herself, a sight which David fixes upon, and then follows up on with an investigation as to her identity. The woman is shortly summoned to the palace and then to his bedroom, where David sleeps with her, even though he has discovered she is the wife of Uriah, a warrior who is fighting for the army of Israel. The woman becomes pregnant, and so David calls Uriah home, hoping it will be thought that he has gotten his wife pregnant. When this does not work, David gives orders to Joab, the commander of the army, which arranges for Uriah's death in battle. It looks like the perfect crime, but David's sin is discovered and dealt with by Nathan, the prophet of God.

This sequence of events and its accompanying tragedies is the subject of chapters 11 and 12 of 2 Samuel. I have chosen to expound these chapters in three lessons. This first lesson will deal with “David and Bathsheba,” as described in 11:1-4. In the following lesson, we will address the subject of “David and Uriah,” as told by our author in 11:5-27. The third lesson will focus on “David and Nathan,” as this confrontation is put forth in chapter 12. Our text has much to say about the sins of adultery and murder, but rest assured that it addresses much more than this. It is a text we all need to hear and to heed, for if a “man after God's own heart” can fall so quickly and so far, surely we are capable of similar failures. May the Spirit of God take this portion of the Word of God and illuminate it to each of us as we come to this study.

Preliminary Observations

Before we begin to look carefully at verses 1-4 of chapter 11, allow me to make a couple of comments about this event as portrayed in these two chapters of 2 Samuel. First, I want you to notice the “law of proportion” in this text. Only three verses describe David's sin of adultery with Bathsheba. Second, the author pulls no punches in describing the wickedness of this sin. History is not written in a way that makes David look good. Third, the sin of David and Bathsheba is dealt with historically, but not in a Hollywood fashion. Hollywood filmmakers would perform a remake of this account to dwell on the sensual elements. Nothing in this text is intended to inspire unclean thoughts or actions. Indeed, this story is written in a way that causes us to shudder at the thought of such things.

David Stays in Jerusalem (11:1)

Israel is at war with none other than the Ammonites (verse 1), which may come as a surprise to you as it did to me. I thought the Ammonites had been defeated in chapter 10. I was wrong. The author is very clear on this matter. In chapter 8, the author tells how David began to engage his enemies in battle, ending the strangle-hold these surrounding nations had on Israel. David subjected the Philistines (8:1), then the Moabites (8:2), and then he took on the king of Zobah (8:3ff.). In the process, other nations became involved and found Israel too formidable an enemy to oppose again.

In chapter 10, we find David and the men of Israel deliberately insulted by Hanun, the king of the Ammonites. David had become friends with Nahash, the former king. When he died, David sent a delegation of officials to express David's respect for Nahash and his grief over this king's death. The Ammonites do not seem to wish to continue this peaceful relationship with David and Israel, so they humiliate the men whom David sent. This leads to a war between the Israelites and the Ammonites. The Ammonites recruit the Syrians as their allies against David. In their first conflict, the Syrians flee, forcing the Ammonites to retreat to “the city” (10:14; which must be Rabbah -- see 12:26ff.). The Syrians are not content with their defeat and attempt a rematch, but once again they are defeated. This causes them to give up any thought of backing up the Ammonites in their war with Israel in the future.

So you see, the Ammonites were not subjected to Israel in chapter 10, but they were deprived of Syrian assistance. Now they are on their own. The Israelites make the most of this. They ravage the land of the Ammonites and then besiege the capital (royal) city of Rabbah (11:1; see 1 Chronicles 20:1). This city of Rabbah, incidentally, is now the city of Amman, Jordan. It is not until after David's sin is rebuked by Nathan that the Israelites actually take the city (2 Samuel 12:26-31).

The author of our text informs us that it is spring, the time when kings go to war (11:1). Weather has always affected warfare. Battles have been won and lost due to the season. Winter time is not favorable to war. It is cold and wet, and camping out in the open field (as those who are besieging the city of Rabbah have to do -- see 11:11) hardly is feasible. The wheels of chariots get stuck in the mud, among other problems. And so kings usually sit it out for the winter, resuming their warfare in the spring. It is spring, Israel is still at war with the Ammonites, and it is time to finish the task of subduing them. The army assembles, under the command of Joab and his officers, and “all Israel.” They all go off to complete their victory over the Ammonites, who seem to retreat in their capital and fortress city of Rabbah.

Every man who is able to fight goes to war, except one -- David. David, we are told, “stayed in Jerusalem” (11:1). David's decision to stay at home in Jerusalem becomes a devastating one. The author of Samuel does not include this fact, but the Chronicler does. In 1 Chronicles 20, we read these words:

1 Then it happened in the spring, at the time when kings go out to battle, that Joab led out the army and ravaged the land of the sons of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem. And Joab struck Rabbah and overthrew it (1 Chronicles 20:1).

We know from the details of this text in Chronicles that it is the same time and the same war. This decision on David's part precedes a serious sin of another kind in 1 Chronicles 21:

1 Then Satan stood up against Israel and moved David to number Israel. 2 So David said to Joab and to the princes of the people, “Go, number Israel from Beersheba even to Dan, and bring me word that I may know their number.” 3 Joab said, “May the LORD add to His people a hundred times as many as they are! But, my lord the king, are they not all my lord's servants? Why does my lord seek this thing? Why should he be a cause of guilt to Israel?” 4 Nevertheless, the king's word prevailed against Joab. Therefore, Joab departed and went throughout all Israel, and came to Jerusalem. 5 Joab gave the number of the census of all the people to David. And all Israel were 1,100,000 men who drew the sword; and Judah was 470,000 men who drew the sword (1 Chronicles 21:1-5).

Joab urges David not to number the Israelites, and through the prophet Gad, God rebukes David for doing so, giving him a choice of one of three chastenings. It is a grave sin with great consequences for the nation Israel. Out of this sin, God brings about blessing for Israel, because it is on the plot of ground where David offers sacrifices to God that the temple will be built.

What I am pointing out here is that the decision on David's part -- to remain in Jerusalem -- is the beginning of woes for both David and the nation Israel. Why is it wrong for David to stay home while the rest of the men of Israel go to war against the Ammonites? First, leading the nation in war is one of the main tasks of the king:

19 Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel, and they said, “No, but there shall be a king over us, 20 that we also may be like all the nations, that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles” (1 Samuel 8:19-20).

The Israelites were wrong in demanding a king, but they were not too far off in expecting that their “king” would lead them in war. The judges God had raised up for them earlier were usually men like Barak or Gideon, who would lead the nation in battle against their enemies. When God designated Saul as Israel's first king, this military role was clearly indicated:

15 Now a day before Saul's coming, the LORD had revealed this to Samuel saying, 16 “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over My people Israel; and he will deliver My people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have regarded My people, because their cry has come to Me” (1 Samuel 9:15-16).

Saul shrunk back from pursuing the enemies of Israel at times, and it was sometimes David who stood in Saul's shoes, leading the nation in battle. This was the case, for example, when David fought Goliath, a battle that should have been fought by Saul, Israel's giant (see 1 Samuel 9:2). Up until now, David has been leading his men in battle, but in chapter 11, David suddenly steps back, sending others to fight for him. In 2 Samuel 12:26-31, the author makes it clear that David may not have been planning to be present for the formal surrender of Rabbah. Joab sends David a message, urging him to come and at least give the appearance of leading his army. If David does not come, Joab warns, David will not receive the glory, and it may go to Joab. Joab knows that David knows this is not the way it was meant to be. And so it is that David makes a formal appearance to be the “official” leader at the time of the surrender of the city of Rabbah.

David is wrong in yet another way, a way he would hardly have realized at the time. David is a prototype of the Messiah who was yet to come as God's King. When Messiah comes, it is He who brings about the deliverance of His people. It is He who will come to subdue His enemies and to establish His throne. How can David represent Messiah as he reigns by staying at home and refusing to enter the battle with the enemies of God and the enemies of God's people? Messiah will come (the second time) as a mighty warrior. If David would portray Him, then he must be a mighty warrior.

What keeps David home in Jerusalem? Why doesn’t David go to the battle? I fear there are perhaps several reasons. The first is David's arrogance. God has been with David in all of his military encounters and given him victory over all his foes. God has given David a great name. David has begun to believe his own press clippings. He begins to feel he is invincible. David seems to have come to the place where he believes his abilities are so great he can lead Israel into victory, even though he is not with his men in battle.

This seems consistent with David's other great sin, which also follows his decision to stay at home. When David instructs Joab to number the Israelite warriors, Joab protests. This is something David should not do. Perhaps this is because David would find too much confidence in the number of his men, rather than in God. It certainly is a far cry from Gideon's army, pared down to a meager 300 men.

A second reason may be boredom. It is one thing to fight battles in which the enemy is quickly overcome. But the besieging of Rabbah is a whole different kind of war. This battle will not be won so quickly. It will take time to starve the Ammonites to the point that they surrender. It is not a very exciting kind of war to wage. And while they wait, the Israelite soldiers (which includes David) have to pitch their tents outside the city, living in the open field. This is no picnic, and David knows it. David's attitude seems reflected in the advertising slogan of a major hamburger chain, “You deserve a break today.”

A third reason -- and I am hesitant to suggest it -- is that David may be getting soft. Let's face it, David had some very difficult days when he was fleeing from Saul. I am sure there were hot days and cold nights. There were certainly days when his food was either limited or lousy, or both. Army food has never been known as a work of culinary artistry. Now, David has moved up in the world, from barren wilderness, which Saul and his army would avoid if possible, to the hills of Jerusalem. His accommodations are better, too. He no longer lives in a tent (if he was fortunate enough to have one in those days); he lives in a palace. Why would David want to stay in a tent in the open field, outside of Rabbah, if he can stay in his own bed, in his own palace, inside Jerusalem?¹

David is starting to become Saul-like, in that he is willing to let others go out and fight his battles for him. Among those David is willing to send in his place are Joab and Abishai. This Joab, we should recall, is a violent man. Joab was not the commander of the army of Israel by David's choice. David had distanced himself from Joab and Abishai because of the death of Abner (2 Samuel 3:26-30). Joab had become the commander of Israel's armed forces because he was the first to accept David's challenge to attack Jebus (1 Chronicles 11:4-6). Suddenly, David is willing to stay at home and leave the whole of Israel's armed forces under Joab's command. I do not think David is motivated by trust in Joab as much as he is his disdain for the hardship of the campaign to take Rabbah.

Like my uncle to whom I referred earlier, David is in the wrong place at the wrong time. He is in Jerusalem when he should be at Rabbah. Unlike my uncle, David is in the wrong place at the wrong time because of a wrong decision. David is like the simpleton in Proverbs 7, who was foolishly and yet deliberately in the wrong place at the wrong time. Something almost had to go wrong, and it surely did!