King David's Big Mistake

The story of Bathsheba and David might make for a compelling film. Characters:

-Powerful King & his tragic flaw (David)
-Noble Soldier (Uriah)
-Critical Man of Integrity (Jobab)
-Beautiful Woman forced into adultery (Bathsheba)
-Poignant plot (parable of the poor man and his one precious ewe lamb being stolen by someone with a herd)

Uriah was a man of strength and integrity and that underscored David's evil actions. David gave in to one stupid, wicked desire and it just rippled out to the destruction of his sons and strife in his household forever. As much as God loved David, He did not allow him to get away scot-free. David even lost the child borne from the adultery.

From the tale I can see how a willfully evil act makes everything go wrong: she got pregnant; her husband turned out to be too noble to fit into a coverup plan; the coverup turns into murder. David's inner circle loses respect for, and gains dirt on him, weakening his kingship.

What a mess. All because he gave in to the hots for a gorgeous woman.

And yet - and I have seen this happen in my own life - from evil, God can still make some lemonade. After the child produced from the adultery dies, when David finally sleeps with Bathsheba as his legal wife, the result is Solomon, probably the best human king of all time. And of course, from that line came You Know Who.

It's as if God is saying, "see, if you would just do things the right way without cheating, look how much I love you and will bless you. But if you disrespect me and my righteous laws, there will be consequences. Even so, I love you and I will not condemn you although I should. I choose instead to forgive you."

This story foreshadows God's treatment of each of us through Christ. If we are tempted to gasp and point a finger at David and condemn him here, then we must do the same for ourselves. What we need to do is look and this story and watch ourselves. Use it to stay out of trouble.

"his command leads to eternal life." -John 12:50