He Took a Wife and a Life (2 Chron. 11:14–15)

14 In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15 In the letter he wrote, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die.” 2 Chronicles 11:14–15

As I read this passage with fresh eye and an open heart, I considered the many opportunities David had to avoid trouble “A” and digging a deeper hole “B”. God promises us that He will always leave a way of escape, but like David, the Promise of Pleasure was chose over Righteousness and Relationships.

The portion that bothered me was found first in verse 6 when David said, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” Though I was familiar with the story, I kept hope that this encounter with Uriah would be different. I thought, surely David will apologize to Uriah!

I wondered to myself, “How much drama and chaos exist in my life and the life of others because we won’t apologize?” What in your world is not aligned because you are stuck in pride? How much more damage did you do to yourself and to others because you would not confess your wrong?

The reality is that many of us have taken something that could have been a moment of pain and made it the central theme of our life and the main narrative between yourself and another because personal pride won’t let us do what was right.

A sad reality David found is: Not admitting wrong doesn’t make the wrong right.

But David is God’s chosen. He’s a man after Gods own heart! Surely David will make an attempt to restore to Uriah what he has damaged. Nope! Davis send for Uriah not to make the relationship or his marital circumstances but to trick him! His plan to deal with his sin was to cover it! He simply thought he would sweep it under the rug by getting Uriah to sleep with his wife. I wondered as I wrote, how many readers have several lumps under their rug? The problem with sweeping under the rug is that problem is not visible, but it presence is still evident.

Next, David discovered: “Your Struggle isn’t the Struggle of the Next.”

David figured he would fool him by giving him an opportunity; one that David himself would have taken! He sent Uriah home with a gift from the King following him, but Uriah slept at the Kings doorstep.

David’s plan to cover his sin would have allowed this man to raise David’s son as his own. He was going to spend his life looking at this boys face, touching this boys hair, looking at the shape of his chin, comparing him to his sisters and brothers and questioning his wife, and David was OK with this! David was ok with making Bathsheba live with her husband in a lie; all to cover his wrong! His plan was to make Bathsheba live a life avoiding eye contact, and denying truth, and eventually loosing the complete trust of her husband. Worse, she would be discovered and potentially stoned by the community, and David was OK with this!

What lie have you created to protect your own truth? How many of us have allowed an innocent person to bear a cross that belonged to us because we were more concerned with our own interest than how our actions would affect someone else?

But his plan failed! Though Uriah had the right to sleep with his wife, Uriah denied his flesh, and was consumed with returning the Ark, being a good soldier, and being a good citizen. As long as others were suffering and fighting, he would not allow himself a moment of peace and pleasure.

David found this too to be true; The Crown does not establish you as the King of Character just over the Country!

David found that there were people under Him that had more character and more discipline than him. There were people He was called to lead that placed God before self, and self before others more than he would. How tough this was for David to swallow. How dare this man have ethics and live by a high standard of morals when David himself had taken liberties. How dare he carry himself like a King and leave David feeling like a Peasant! It’s always challenging when you discover that you’re the only one that has a mouth full of apple. This had to fuel David even more, thus sealed the fate of Uriah.

Sadly, David response to Joab reveal his perspective. Davis didn’t see him as a Servant or as a Citizen, he saw him as only a Subordinate! Too often those in power suffer from this perspective! TD Jakes said in a conference once that when he want to judge a mans characters, he watches how he treats those who are thought to be under neath them. I see this as a heart perspective. Though we have different positions and titles, we are all God’s children. The same rights afforded to you have been afforded to all of Gods creation. In this moment, David valued his public perception more than. He valued his brother! In a moment where David should have been humbling himself before his brother, he exalted himself by placing his foot on the neck of a loyal servant.

Do you do this? Seeing others as less than, and treating them accordingly. David sins, and then sentences an innocent man to death! Worse, he puts into motion the demise of one who was loyal to both him and the creator!

David would not only take his wife, but would take his life!

David get’s a Two for One! What was one error is now being compounded by his attempt to cover up his sin. How many times have we made this same error? What should have been a skit, turns into a pilot episode for a syndicated series. How much innocent blood has been shed for you to keep your image in tact?

He sent this valiant warrior to fight, and ordered the troops to leave him uncovered so that he would die. He probably presented his wife and family with a flag and a purple heart, made a commemorative plaque and made that day Uriah the Hittite day, as the band marched past the palace where he sat on the couch in front of the fire with Bathsheba, pulling up his blanket up with a glass of wine and stogie in his mouth. He covered his sin, and left Uriah uncovered.

Lord be it that I and others will do right after we have done wrong. Lord forbid that we break the law and write the letter! Lord keep us first from the wrong, and in moments were we fail, allow us to make our relationship with you and our fellow brother and sister right.

#PastorJDO3