“So the Lord sent Nathan the prophet to tell David this story: “There were two men in a certain town. One was rich, and one was poor. The rich man owned a great many sheep and cattle. The poor man owned nothing but one little lamb he had bought. He raised that little lamb, and it grew up with his children. It ate from the man’s own plate and drank from his cup. He cuddled it in his arms like a baby daughter. One day a guest arrived at the home of the rich man. But instead of killing an animal from his own flock or herd, he took the poor man’s lamb and killed it and prepared it for his guest.” David was furious. “As surely as the Lord lives,” he vowed, “any man who would do such a thing deserves to die! He must repay four lambs to the poor man for the one he stole and for having no pity.” Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! The Lord, the God of Israel, says: I anointed you king of Israel and saved you from the power of Saul. I gave you your master’s house and his wives and the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. And if that had not been enough, I would have given you much, much more. Why, then, have you despised the word of the Lord and done this horrible deed? For you have murdered Uriah the Hittite with the sword of the Ammonites and stolen his wife. From this time on, your family will live by the sword because you have despised me by taking Uriah’s wife to be your own. “This is what the Lord says: Because of what you have done, I will cause your own household to rebel against you. I will give your wives to another man before your very eyes, and he will go to bed with them in public view. You did it secretly, but I will make this happen to you openly in the sight of all Israel.” Then David confessed to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan replied, “Yes, but the Lord has forgiven you, and you won’t die for this sin. Nevertheless, because you have shown utter contempt for the word of the Lord by doing this, your child will die.””
2 Samuel 12:1-14 NLT
David’s response to the exposure of his sin is telling. We know from other passages, namely the psalms, that it was not a performative response. Instead, it was a genuine one. He had been exposed. Interestingly, the prophet Nathan did not confront him outright but instead used a parable to do so. This allowed David to remember himself and his thoughts about God and morality before being confronted. That said, when the parallel was drawn for him, David took full ownership of his behavior. Here we see two things. David’s sin is immediately forgiven. The Bible notes that when we confess our sins, we can rely on God to forgive them. This behavior is entirely predictable and is an outworking of his justice and faithfulness. When we sin, we can’t use a fear of lack of forgiveness as an excuse not to do so. But it also notes that God will not spare him from his consequences. He would now be under attack, his wives would be taken from him, and his child would die. Even after forgiveness, our agency and its subsequent effects are never disrespected by God. David knew the world he lived in and ignored its rules to fulfill his own appetites. And now he would eat from the fruit of it. We must choose carefully what we will do with our agency.
David’s Response to Sin: Genuine remorse and full ownership of his actions after being confronted by Nathan.
Forgiveness and Consequences: God forgives David’s sin upon confession, but David still faces the consequences of his actions.
Agency and Its Impact: David’s sin, driven by his own desires, resulted in negative consequences, highlighting the importance of responsible choices.
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