David and Bathsheba

2 Samuel 11-12

            The sordid tale of David and Bathsheba is familiar and doesn’t need much commentary. David falls into adultery, and then compounds the sin by trying to cover it up. Uriah the Hittite shows himself a better Israelite than David in this instance and refuses to provide David cover. So, David arranges for him to die. Adultery, lying, and murder—not a great look for the one who is ‘a man after God’s own heart’!

            But it’s the aftermath that really makes us take notice. First, we have Nathan’s parable, which really defines what a parable is for. A parable is a story told in order to get someone to convict themselves. It’s a story told to subtly criticize another and to lead to a sort of “Aha” moment. And Nathan’s hits the mark perfectly, luring David right into his trap “Thou art the man!” David has nowhere to go except to repentance: “I have sinned against the Lord.”

            Now things get troubling. Nathan declares David’s sin forgiven (verse 13), but he has already pronounced the Lord’s judgment—calamity from within David’s own household, and, even after forgiving David’s sin, adds another judgment, namely, that the child will die.

            Ok, so why does the child have to die? Surely the Lord doesn’t punish people for the sins of others, does he? In this case we have to see the consequences for the kingdom. The kingdom needs David’s heir to be an unimpeachably legitimate son. The death of the child, while tragic on many levels, will ensure the continued good of the kingdom. That may be thin comfort, but I think it’s the best we’ll have.

            We might also want to ask, “If David’s sin is forgiven, why aren’t the punishments taken away?” Here I think a statement in our usual confession of sins—that we deserve “present and eternal punishments”—is helpful. God’s forgiveness absolutely removes eternal punishments. Paul says, “The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Because we are forgiven, our sins do not exclude us from everlasting life; we will live with Christ forever. However, there remain “present” punishments; I find it helpful to think of these as consequences. Our sins have consequences. Murder someone and you will go to jail, maybe even death row. Commit adultery and the trust that underlies your marriage is going to be damaged, perhaps beyond repair. Sometimes, when Christians forgive one another, we can alleviate the interpersonal damages of those consequences. If forgiveness is real between us and God, it has the possibility of working real change and healing among humans. But sometimes the damage is really deep and we fallen humans cannot fully bring ourselves to healing. So, we learn from David, sadly, that we sometimes must bear the burden of our sins, at least in this fallen world. Hopefully that doesn’t blind us to the absolute assurance of God’s forgiveness.