The Fall of Israel's Community: David and Bathsheba

 


Outline:

Warning: this topic from Scripture might not be suitable for younger children.

Recap:

  • God tried to create a community with God as the ultimate head
    • Did through leadership of Judges
    • Fell apart with leadership of Samuel's children- early P.K.s
  • Israel rejected God's rule, asked for kings instead
David's Rule:
  • Most beloved King of Israel
    • Wrote many of the Psalms
    • Ancestor of Jesus
  • Was a Warrior King
    • Prime Example, fight with Goliath
  • Eventually settles in and stops going out to war
  • David's lack of participation in battle is what leads to his great sin (2 Sam. 11)
    • Sees Bathsheba bathing
      • Wouldn't have if had been out to battle
      • Bathsheba was on the roof top, no one else would have seen her
    • Bathsheba is another's wife, David asks her to come to his palace
      • What else was Bathsheba to do
    • Bathsheba becomes pregnant
    • David tries to trick Uriah, Bathsheba's husband, into think the child is his
      • Uriah is a good soldier, won't be with his wife while his fellow soldiers fight
    • David sends Uriah to the front where he is sure to die, then marries Bathsheba
  • Prophet Nathan speaks out against David (2 Sam. 12)
    • Tells story of injustice with two shepherds
    • David declares the wrong in this story, says wrongdoer should be punished
      • Nathan tells David he is this person
    • David accepts sin and what follows
Consequences:
  • David and Bathsheba's son dies
  • David is never the same, allows Absalom to try and take over
  • David and Bathsheba have another son: Solomon
  • Solomon allows foreign gods into Israel, leads to the downfall of the nation
Take-aways:
  • Our personal actions can have dire consequences to the community
    • David snowballed from not going out to battle with his people
    • Led to the events that brought the eventual fall of Israel 
  • Can't forget we live in a community, actions effect others too