Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1883-03-08
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REV. ROBERT LATHAM.
DAVID AND BATH .SHEBA.

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DAY.D AND BATH.SHEBA.
There is not more interesting or more in
structive scrap of history than that contain
ed in the eleyeaptht and twelfth lfftlh chapters of
second Samdel. The prominent characters
are David the King of Israel, Bath-Sheba
the wife of Uriah, and Nathan the prophet.
The two former are presented to our view
as heinous transgressors of Gods law, and
the latter as asWisea and sharp reprover of
sin. There were few persons who occupied
such prominence in the Old Testament
Church as David. Of him it can be said:
"He was great and good man." AT the
time, however, thatihe sent Joab to besiege
Rabbah the metropolis of the Ammonites,
he presents deplorable picture of human
weakness and human fwickedness. Led
away by lust, He committed adultery with
Bath-Sheba, the wife of Uriah, who was in
the army. For the purpose of covering up
his sin from the eyes of men, ne had Uriah
sent home. Uriah came to Jerusalem, but
refused TO- visit, bis own house. That the
weather-beaten Soldier hight be thrown off
his guard, David made him drunk. Still he
refused to 20 home. After Uriah had been
detained for few days, he was sent back to
the army, with letter to -5eab. In that
letter there were written these words: "Set
Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle,
and retire from hins sthat he may be smitten
and die" It would be difficult to point out
a single act in the life of Henry the Eighth,
or any one of the Stewarts of England, which
more vividly exhibits the innate depravity
of the human heart, than this letter which
David penned.
The sin of David, in this affair, may be
summed up in the following particulars {:
O Adultery, (2) drunkenness, in that he
made Uriah drunk, and (3) murder, in that
he had Uriah slain. In connection with
these fragrant sins, he was also guilty of dis
similation, in that he said to the messenger
who was sent by, Joab to announce the death
of Uriah, "Let not this thing displease thee,
for the sword devoureth one as well as an
other" The first lesson to be learned from
this whole affair, as related in the Bible, is
that the Bible is the word of God. Had men
conspired together to palm off on the credu-
lous, they never would have suffered this
affair of David and Bath-Sheba to have seen
the light. Aside from this, there are many
other very practical lessons to be learned.
Each of US should remember that but for the
sustaining and guiding grace of God, we
would plunge ourselves as deeply into infa-
nous crimes as did David. The starting
point of David's sin, at this particular time,
was idleness. If it was right that the chill
dren of Israel should 60 to war with the
Ammonites, it was the duty of David, their
King, to 90 with them. Instead of this, he
remained at Jerusalem, and seems to have
been lolling about his own house.
"The devil always finds some mischief
for idle hands to do" lisa truth which none
of us should forget. Idleness and the i'm
modest conduct of Bath-Sheba inhamed the
lust of David, and lust was followed by sin.
David was about fifty years old when this af-
fair transpired. He had experienced much,
but neither his good sense nor his great expe-
rience availed anything when God left him
for a time, to himself. No better example
than this could be selected to prove that the
man who walks uprightly does so by the
grace of God. Left to ourselves and no one
can tell what we will become, or what we
will do. 80 ,. f.,
It seems that David had fallen into kind
of spiritual stupor, and that he remained in
this condition for, perhaps, whole year.
No doubt after the death of Unriah and his
taking Bath-Sheba to be his wife, he thought
his wickedness would never see the light of
day. 1t is possible that he and Bath-Sheba
talked the whole affair, from beginning to
end, over frequently, but it is very probable
that they, laboring under sense of shame,
never mentioned it. If any of the subjects
of David knew it, they dare not mention it,
Joab knew itbut hecared perhaps little about
it, for he was a mansof Blood, and was fast
friend of David, and in this affair, his assis-
tant. God, however, determined that the
thing should not lie concealed. The prophet
Nathan was sent to David to make known
to him Gods displeasure concerning this
thing. Nathan related to David a parable
tender and touching. He is told of a rich
man who, "although he had exceeding many
flocks and herds" took the pet lamb of his
poor neighbor to dress for wayfaring man.
The righteous indignation of David was
aroused, and he, said with emphasis, "The
man that done This thing shall surely die"
Nathan replied, "Thou art the man." "You
killed Uriah with the sword ofthe Ammon-
ties and took his wife to he your wife"
This aroused David from his spiritual leth-
argy, and he said, II have sinned against
the Lord"
It should never be forgotten that sin is
sin, no matter who commits it. No encour"
agement is given to any one to dissemble,
to commit adultery, or to kill, because Da~
vid did these things. 1t is true that David
sinned, butit is also true that God disap-
provedSof it, e..
We should remember that there are some
forms of sin, that although God may pardon,
still he will make public examples Of those
who commit them. These sins, whatever
they may be, give an occasion to the enc"
mics of the Lord to blaspheme, and God
Furnishes publicly and severely those who
commit them. In the case of David, the
child born of adultery died. This was a
source of great grief to. David. In addition
to this, God announced to him that he would
raise up evil against him out of his own
house, and that the sword should not depart
from his house as long as he lived.
TO David the affair with Bath-Sheba was
the prolific source of grief and sorrow all the
days of his life. 1t was but short time
after this sad affair that Amnon, one of the
sons of David, played the beast. This was
followed by the murder Of Amnon by Alb