In the Hebrew Bible, we see two portraits of David, who is now seen as one of the towering figures of the Israelite people.
In today’s reading, we see a person who has messed up his life. Much of the Bible is about people who have botched things badly in their lives. David has “displeased the LORD.” He has had Uriah murdered and taken Uriah's wife to be his own wife. She bears him children.
In the book of Ezekiel, David is pictured as a completely different person. Ezekiel writes about David who has become the king of Israel and a servant who has become a prince forever.
Like David, we are mixtures of good and evil, right and wrong, love and hate, truth and falsehood. We are both takers and givers.
I am now in my eightieth year, and I find myself reflecting on my life. Most of the time this happens when I am tossing and turning between 3 and 4 a.m. I relive the times when I have lived as one who displeased the Lord and times when I have lived like a loving person.
In today’s texts, we get a clue as to how and why David was able to move from God’s displeasure to becoming a prince of Israel. David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” He confessed his sin to another person, and the Lord forgave him. He moved from confession to forgiveness. The same can happen for each of us.
When we displease the Lord and fail to live by what love requires, we can confess, repent, and move toward forgiveness. Just as the Lord forgave David, so the Lord will forgive us.
Give me the strength, O Lord, to practice confession so that I can feel forgiven in my mind and heart. Amen.
David thinks he has gotten away with his sins, but God sends Nathan to tell David a story. The story angers David, but Nathan reveals that the story is really about David’s own behavior. Indeed, it can be tempting to condemn others’ sin, while we justify our own. Psalm 51 is David’s appeal to God for forgiveness and restoration. If we want to please God in our own lives, what does this look like? Ephesians tells us that the signs of a redeemed life include humility, love, patience, and building up one another (the opposite of what David displayed). In John, Jesus has crowds following him because they want a free meal. The lasting nourishment they truly need, Jesus teaches, comes through believing that God has sent him.
Read 2 Samuel 11:26–12:13a. When has someone else helped you see that you have sinned? How did you respond to that person?
Read Psalm 51:1-12. When have you felt “unclean” before God? How did God restore you?
Read Ephesians 4:1-16. What are your gifts? How do you use them to build up the body of Christ?
Read John 6:24-35. How do you feed your soul?
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