Teaching Notes
II SAMUEL
As we concluded last week in II Samuel chapter 10, David was at the pinnacle of his power. His kingdom had grown and was strong. The land that was lost by king Saul was gained back by king David and the boarders of Israel almost encompassed all that God had promised them. And if you were to place the accomplishments of king David on a graph, it would be steadily going up. It seemed that everything David touched turned to gold, he was prosperous and victorious. But then things came crashing down as we move into chapter 11. We are going to see David walk into sin, for he did not fall into it. You see, when you use the word "fall" it implies that it was an accident. It was not necessarily your fault. But with sin we never fall into it, but we walk into it. And we are going to see David walk into sin and as he does, he is going to try and cover his sin, which only is going to cause him to move farther and farther into it and away from God.
II SAMUEL 11
VERSE 1
1. There are seasons for war, and in the Middle-East the winter months are too wet to fight. So during the winter months they would plan their strategies so as spring would come, they would be ready to fight. And as spring comes and Israel prepares for war against the people of Ammon, David sends his military leader, Joab, to go and fight. David, as king, should have lead the battle, but instead he remains home. Why would he do this? Maybe he was tired of fighting. He has been on the throne in Israel for 20 years, which would make him around 50 years old. And he has been fighting ever since he was a young man, and maybe he thought he deserved a break, a time to enjoy the spoils of his previous victories and relax in his palace.
2. I want you to notice in this verse that after we read that all Israel was engaged in this war, it says "But David remained at Jerusalem." While everyone else was busy, David had a lot of time on his hands, and that is going to cause him trouble. There is an old proverb, "An idol mind is the devils workshop." David is going to find out that the thoughts of sin he is throwing around in his mind are going to manifest itself in action.
Remember that all the direct assaults that the enemy mustered against David, failed. But this back door approach is going to be very successful. David is going to allow his flesh to get the better of him. And he will find out that his real enemy is not the Philistines, or the Ammonites but his flesh!
3. Also understand that David only compromised a little bit by staying home from war. It was nothing big. But keep in mind that little compromise, for you are going to see the depths it is going to bring David down to. What may seem harmless, is going to become deadly and touch many lives.
VERSE 2
1. If we saw people walking on the roofs of their houses today, we would be suspicious or think they were strange. But in Israel, even today, their roofs are flat and are just like patios. And in the evening hours, as things cooled off outside and a breeze blew, many would retreat and spend time on their roofs, cooling off and relaxing, for their homes would still be warm.
2. David had a lot of time on his hands and as he walked on the roof his eyes caught the sight of a beautiful woman who was bathing. That first look was not the sin, but the second and third and so on was. You see, he began to entertain thoughts and ideas, fantasizing a relationship with her. It is as James tells us, "But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death." James 1:14-15. If you feed and nurture sin, it will grow and give birth to your desires, but it only leads to death, as David will soon find out.
VERSE 3
1. David's curiosity gets the better of him and he sends his servants to find out more about this woman. And what David finds out should have put a stop to his ideas. Bathsheba was a married woman.
2. Something for you to file away till next time is that Bathsheba's father, Eliam, was the son of Ahithophel. Thus, Ahithophel was Bathsheba's grandfather and he was also one of David's trusted counselors. We are going to see that when Absalom, David's son, takes over the kingdom, usurps it from king David, that Ahithophel sides with Absalom. And this breaks David's heart. In Psalm 55 David laments over this broken friendship. And it may be that what David did to Ahithophel's granddaughter, Bathsheba, in breaking up her marriage and killing her husband, caused great bitterness and resentment in his heart. And when the right opportunity came, Ahithophel took advantage and tried to repay the hurt that he felt in his own heart, and give that hurt to David. This may be the reason he turned against David, and it seems very possible.
VERSES 4-5
1. God tells us in Leviticus 15:19-28 that during a woman's menstrual period, she was unclean for 7 days. That during that time, as she was considered unclean, if you had sexual relations with her, you would be unclean also. And God is telling us that her menstrual period is over because He wanted us to know that she was not pregnant before she slept with David. That this child she conceived was not from her husband, but from David.
2. God said in Numbers 32:23 that your sin will find you out. David thought he did his sin in secret, that no one knew about it. He forgot about God. And the sin that David did in secret is going to be made known to all.
VERSES 6-7
1. David comes up with a plan to cover his sin. So he asks Joab to send Uriah home. And David asks Uriah how the battle was going, but David was not concerned about his men, but he was setting in order his plan, to cover his sin.
VERSE 8
1. Plan A, David tells Uriah to go home and relax. And in David's mind, if Uriah goes home, he is going to have sexual relations with his wife. Thus, he will think that the child is his. Isn't it amazing how sin can twist the mind of a Godly man!
VERSE 9
1. David's plan fails. Instead of Uriah going home to his wife, he sleeps in the servants quarters of king David's house. And David is baffled by Uriah's actions.
VERSES 10-11
1. Uriah was a man of integrity. What loyalty to his fellow warriors. Since they were out fighting the war for Israel and they could not enjoy any of the creature comforts of home, neither would Uriah.
2. Remember, Uriah was a Hittite who converted to the God of Israel. His name means "Jehovah is light." And compared with David's actions, Uriah is exposing David's wickedness, and yet David does not see it.
VERSES 12-13
1. Plan A failed, now it is time for plan B. David figures that if he gets Uriah drunk enough he would not remember what he did or did not do. Thus, his sin will remain a secret. But Uriah, even in his drunken condition, does not go home, but sleeps in the servants quarters.
VERSES 14-15
1. Plan A failed. Plan B failed. And now it is time for Plan C, which is just the plan of a desperate man who is trying to cover his sin. David sends to Joab a letter telling Joab to put Uriah on the front line and then pull back, thus Uriah would be killed by the enemy. And Uriah was the one who would carry his own death warrant to Joab. How sad to see David sink to such a depraved state. And I wonder what Joab thought when he read this letter?
2. David is called a man after God's own heart, and yet look at what he has done. How can this be? How can a man of God do such evil? You see, the reason we think that way is because we believe evil can only come from evil people, but that is wrong. Inside everyone of us are theseeds of evil, and if they are watered and nurtured they will grow until the most gross sin is manifested in a persons life.
3. And isn't it amazing the things that man can justify. Even murder, rape, stealing all can be justified in the human mind. That is why we need a standard to live by. Something to tell us right from wrong. And the standard we use is written by God - it is called the BIBLE!
VERSES 16-17
1. Uriah is placed by the wall of the city, fighting alongside Joab's best men. And David's plan works, Uriah is killed, but so too are some of David's own men, valiant warriors killed in battle. And so David's sin not only affected Uriah, but the wives, children, relatives and friends of these men. The sin of David touched the lives of many, many people.
VERSES 18-21
1. Joab sends a messenger back to David to let him know what has happened. And Joab knows that no military leader would dare put his men in the line of fire, which Joab was instructed to do. You see, if you were to close to the wall, the archers would be able to shoot down towards you with ease and pick you off. And Joab recognizes that when David hears how these men died, he is going to be angry with Joab. And it seems that on previous battles, David instructed his men not to get to close to the wall. David reminded them of the story in Judges chapter 9, where Abimelech was killed by a woman because he was to close to the wall and she dropped a millstone on his head. So Joab tells this messenger to let David know that Uriah is also dead. Joab knew that this would calm David's anger, for his plan was completed.
VERSES 22-25
1. When David hears the news, he says basically, "Life and death are matters of chance." "You win some you lose some." "That is all part of the cost of war." What a carefree, uncaring attitude at the loss of life. And I wonder if David would have responded differently if he were not trying to cover his sin?
2. God is going to take David's words "The sword devours one as well as another" and turn them around and onto David. And God is going to say to David "The sword shall never depart from your house."
VERSES 26-27
1. David comes out looking like a compassionate man. He takes this poor pregnant woman, who has lost her husband in battle, and makes her his wife. But what fooled the people did not fool God. David thought his sin was covered, but as Hebrews 4:13 says "And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account."
2. Now, between chapters 11 and 12, a whole year goes by. And that does not mean God accepted or condoned David's actions, for we read that what David did was evil in the sight of God. You see, God was giving David a chance to repent, and He will chasten us, for we are His children and He loves us. He wants us to get right with Him. If He let us do what we want, it would tell me that He does not love us. Now during that year, God's chastening was heavy upon David's life and yet he still refuses to repent of his sin and get right with God.
II SAMUEL 12
VERSES 1-4
1. Nathan was a prophet of God and a close friend of David's. And Nathan tells David this story of two men. One was rich and had many flocks, many herds. There was also a poor man who had one little ewe lamb. It was part of his family. It slept with him, ate with him, it was like a son or daughter to him. And David, being a shepherd, must have felt the love that this man had for this little ewe lamb. God knew exactly what buttons to push on David. And so this rich man is about to entertain a guest, and he does not take a lamb from his own, but this poor mans ewe lamb he takes. And God is about to nail David through this story.
VERSES 5-6
1. David is beyond anger. To restore something you stole you had to pay back fourfold, that was in the law. (Exodus 22:1). But God never said that you were to put to death someone for stealing. In Matthew 12:37 Jesus said "For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." David is about to be condemned by his own words!
VERSE 7A
1. Nathan tells David, "You have just condemned yourself." It always amazes me how our sin looks so horrible when someone else is doing them. We are ready to put them to death like David was. But when we are doing the same thing, it is not that bad. Or we call for God's grace and mercy to be extended to us. But when someone else does them we call for fire and brimstone to come down upon them and destroy them. We tell God to let them have it. So much for grace and mercy.
VERSES 7B-9
1. In these verses we see God lamenting over David's failure. And God is telling David that he had it all, and if it wasn't enough, He would have given David more.
2. I think many times we do the same in our own life. God has blessed us with so much, and we are not satisfied. We try to reach out for more. But the reality is, we already have all that we need. Think of all the marriages that have been broken up because people wanted more. How many relationships have been destroyed because we are never satisfied with what God has givenus? Don't try to attain more than what God has given you. Be thankful and praise God for the blessings He has bestowed upon you. David had it all, but it was tragiclly not enough for him.
VERSES 10-12
1. David was never the same after this. He had lost the fire and fight that he once had in him. Yes God forgave him, but David never forgot what he had done. And Satan will use our failures to beat us over the head with. Don't give him ammunition to fight us with, he already has enough. And we must remember what Paul said to those who are in Christ. He said "There is therefore no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the spirit." Romans 8:1.
2. Let me say this, and please don't misunderstand me. Sin does bring pleasure, or else no one would go after it. The problem is that it is sugar coated and short lived. Think of someone who takes cocaine, there is pleasure for a time. The problem is that the pleasure is short lived and now you take the drug just to survive. It is not pleasurable anymore, you are in bondage to the drug. Sin is the same, it only leads to bondage and death.
3. David's family is going to be a mess. We are going to see rape, murder, revolution and-so-on. David's own son will usurp the throne from David and then this son, Absalom, will take David's concubines, and lay with them in sight of all of Israel. As God said "For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun."
VERSES 13-15A
1. We tend to think of sin as committed upon another person, but the reality is, we commit sin against God. And David's sin, adultery and murder, were 2 of the 22 crimes that were punishable by death. But God is gracious and merciful and was not going to put David to death for his actions. But our sin does have consequences, and for David, the son that Bathsheba had will die.
2. Psalm 51:1-19, after David heard from Nathan. Psalm 32:1-5, after God had blotted out David's sin.
VERSES 15B-17
1. Just as God had said, the child became ill. And during the child's illness David fasted and prayed. For 7 days David sought the mercy of God upon this child.
VERSE 18
1. David's servant's saw the response of David when the child was ill, and now they were afraid to tell David his son was dead. They did not know what he would do.
VERSES 19-21
1. David's servants are baffled at the response of David. They don't understand how his emotions, his actions, could change when the situation became worse.
VERSES 22-23
1. David submitted to the sovereignty of God. While the child was alive, there was still hope that God's mercy would be extended and the child would be healed. Now that the child is dead, David looks forward to meeting the child again in heaven. He realized the child could not come back but one day he would see him again. That is a healthy outlook on death. (Matthew 18:10, angels = spirits)
2. Now some have a hard time with this, feeling that the child was judged for David's sin. Why did the child have to die? That is a wrong outlook on death. The child was with God, to be precise, in Abraham's bosom until the resurrection of Christ. Thus, the child did not have pain or suffering but experienced eternal joy. David on the other hand felt deep pain and sorrow over the situation. The judgment was upon David and not the child.
VERSES 24-25
1. It is not until after the judgment that Bathsheba is called David's wife. And they have another son and call his name Solomon, which means "peaceful" or "at peace." But God gives him another name, He calls him Jedidiah "Beloved of the LORD." God forgave David's sin and can return that joy after there has been repentance. We may not always understand why, but it is God's grace and mercy that He extends to us.
VERSES 26-27
1. We are now back to chapter 11, fighting the people of Ammon. And once you took the fresh water supply, it was only a matter of time before the city fell. And notice the loyalty of Joab towards David. He calls David to come and finish the battle so that the king would receive the honor and not Joab.
VERSES 28-31
1. Some feel that verse 31 should be translated that "he sawed in two, hacked them in pieces and made them pass through the fire." David was doing to them what they had done to others. (I Samuel 11:2, Amos 1:13).
2. Also notice that David took all the credit, but Joab did all the work. It reminds me of the credit Saul took in defeating the Philistines when in reality his son Johnathan did all the work.
3. Next week we see the problems arise with in David's family.